Thailand extends visa on arrival waiver
The Thai government has agreed to extend the waiver on the visa-on-arrival fee for nationals of 20 countries including China.
As well as China its biggest inbound market, the fee waiver will continue until April 30 for countries including Ethiopia, India, Kazakhstan, Maldives and Saudi Arabia,
It is a welcome extension, says The Tourism Authority of Thailand governor Yuthasak Supasorn, as the Chinese New Year holiday period is fast approaching.
The China market is key and has dramatically fallen since the fallout from a deadly boat accident which killed dozens of Chinese tourists.
The visa-on-arrival fee is normally THB2,000 (about 60 U.S. dollars).
The waiver was set to end before the extension was announced this week by tourism and sports minister Weerasak Kowsurat.
Deputy governor for International marketing for Asia and South Pacific, Chattan Kunjara Na Ayudha announced at the ASEAN Travel Forum that an e-visa facility will be rolled out in February, starting with China, and then expanding to the UK and France in the spring.
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Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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