Thailand waives visa requirements for dozens of countries, including several Latin American countries

Thailand increased the number of employees from 57 to 93 visa exempt countries to travel to this Southeast Asian nation, including several Latin American countries such as Mexico, Colombia, Cuba, Panama and Uruguay, among others.

The new measure, announced several months ago by Thai authorities, also extends the period of time that visitors can stay in the country from 30 to 60 days, seeking to encourage tourism following the Covid-19 pandemic (2020-2023).

Tourists arriving from Tuesday onwards will already benefit from the new extension.

Countries like Spain, Argentina, Brazil, Chili and Peru did not need a visa before the new measure, while the expansion will benefit more Latin American nations such as Ecuador, Dominican Republic and Guatemalaaccording to the new rule published Monday night in the Royal Gazette, Thailand’s official gazette.

On the other hand, travelers from 31 countries, including Bolivia, Costa Rica, The Savior and Venezuelacan apply for a visa upon arrival in Thailand for a maximum validity of 15 days.

Thai authorities have also introduced a special visa for digital nomads or remote workers, as well as those who want to travel to Thailand to attend Thai boxing courses, cooking classes, seminars, among other events, for a maximum period of 180 days with a multi-entry validity of 5 years.

Thailand It is one of the main tourist destinations in Asia, known for its tropical beaches, natural parks with elephants, temples and nightlife, among other attractions.

Over the past year, Thailand has reached agreements to waive visas or extend stay permits with countries including China, India and Russia in an attempt to revive tourism, which once accounted for 12% to 20% of its gross domestic product before the pandemic.

In 2023, around 28 million foreign tourists visited Thailand, mainly from Malaysia (4.6 million), China (3.5 million), South Korea (1.66 million), India (1.62 million) and Russia (1.4 million), according to official data.

For this year, the Ministry of Tourism expects a more robust recovery of the sector with the arrival of some 35 million international tourists.

In 2019, before the pandemic, Thailand had almost 40 million tourists, of which Chinese travellers accounted for more than 27% of the total, with more than 11 million visitors from the Asian giant.