Thailand rescinds COVID-19 vaccination rules for visitors

Passengers from China's Xiamen arrive at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport on Jan. 9 after China reopens its borders. (Photo:Reuters)

Minister of Public Health Anutin Charnvirakul said requiring visitors to show evidence of vaccination was inconvenient and a panel of experts had resolved that it was unnecessary as enough vaccinations had been administered globally.

Anutin added that visitors who have not vaccinated would also be granted entry without restriction.

The country's aviation authority on January 7 announced the restrictions, effective on January 9, ahead of an expected deluge of visitors from China, where COVID-19 cases have surged.

One of Asia's most popular travel destinations, Thailand is enjoying an influx of tourists during its first peak season since the removal of tight entry restrictions last year.

In November, it recorded 1.75 million visitors, quadruple the number received for the whole of last year when flights and foreign arrivals were limited.

Anutin said Thailand was now expecting 7-10 million Chinese visitors, compared to an earlier estimate of 5 million.

Thailand's tourism authority is expecting arrival numbers to have exceeded 11.5 million this year, just over a quarter of the record of nearly 40 million in pre-pandemic 2019, who spent about 1.91 trillion baht (55.17 billion USD)./.