Together with Vietnam and other countries, Thailand aims to establish a common visa zone in Southeast Asia.

Thailand is pushing for a joint visa program with countries in Southeast Asia as Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin steps up efforts to attract tourists to take longer trips and spend more, according to SCMP.

Thái Lan hướng tới sáng kiến thị thực chung với Việt Nam và một số nước Đông Nam Á - Ảnh 1. — The unique Sanctuary of Truth in Pattaya, Thailand. Thailand is aiming to attract 80 million foreign tourists by 2027. Photo: Xinhua

According to official data, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar and Vietnam will record a total of 70 million international tourist arrivals in 2023, with Thailand and Malaysia accounting for more than half of the tourists.

In recent months, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has been pushing for an enhanced visa initiative with Southeast Asian countries such as Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar and Vietnam, aiming for a common regional visa similar to the European Union’s (EU) Schengen visa. This facility will ensure seamless travel for tourists between the six neighboring countries, creating a boost for tourism development in the region.

If the initiative is successful, tourists only need to apply for a visa to one of the six countries: Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia to be able to freely travel and visit the remaining countries.

A single entry visa is a type of visa that allows foreigners to enter and exit a country only once during the visa's validity period and cannot change the purpose of the visa.

The single-entry visa is the most ambitious of Thailand’s tourism development plans and is a long-term goal. Thailand’s tourism industry has been a major contributor to the country’s development, accounting for about 20% of total employment and 12% of the country’s $500 billion economy . Over the long term, Thailand’s tourism industry has thrived and coped with a decline in manufacturing and exports, the traditional pillars of the economy.

Thailand’s tourism industry is optimistic. Marisa Sukosol Nunbhakdi, former president of the Thai Hotels Association, said Thailand is now moving towards a common visa to make it easier for long-haul tourists to make their decisions.

Ms Marisa Sukosol Nunbhakd said that the validity of the visa will need to be extended to 90 days from the usual 30 days.

Need for coordination among countries in Southeast Asia

Prime Minister Srettha’s government also aims to attract 80 million tourists by 2027. And since taking office about seven months ago, Srettha’s government has signed a reciprocal visa exemption agreement with China – Thailand’s largest tourist market – and introduced temporary visa exemptions for visitors from India, Taiwan (China) and Kazakhstan.

According to Bill Barnett, CEO of hotel and property consultancy C9 Hotelworks, if implemented correctly, the benefits of visa-free travel will not only create opportunities for tourism development due to ease of travel, but also benefit business and commercial travellers.

The Schengen visa allows 27 European countries with no controlled borders between countries to travel freely around the borderless area within Europe.

The Schengen area includes 27 European countries with no controlled borders between them: Germany, Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Croatia, Denmark, Slovenia, Slovakia, Spain, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Norway, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Sweden and Switzerland.

For a common visa program, approval must be coordinated between countries, but Southeast Asian countries currently do not have common entry criteria, unlike the European Union, said Thitinan Pongsudhirak, a professor at the political science department of Chulalongkorn University.

The initiative to create an EU-style Schengen zone in Southeast Asia has been under consideration for years. ASEAN announced plans to create a single visa travel scheme in 2011, but the effort has stalled due to significant differences in visa regulations among member states.

Tourism has long been Thailand’s main source of income, accounting for about 12% of the country’s nearly $500 billion economy. The number of foreign tourists to Thailand increased 20% in 2023 compared to the previous year, to more than 27 million, the highest since the Covid-19 pandemic./.

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