After the first cabinet meeting of this year, the government excited some local travellers with the announcement of a reciprocal visa exemption between Thailand and China scheduled to start in March, part of a plan to empower Thai passports.
Thai passport holders can enter 34 countries and territories without a visa.
About 10 million Thai nationals carry a passport, out of a population of around 70 million, according to the Consular Affairs Department. Last year the department received more than 2.6 million passport applications.
Thai passport holders can enter 34 countries and territories without a visa.
Based on the Henley Passport Index 2023, Thailand is ranked 64th with a score of 80, while on a regional basis Singapore overtook Japan in the top ranking, followed by Malaysia in 12th.
For this ranking, if a visa is not required or a visa on arrival, visitor's permit, or electronic travel authority can be applied for, the passport is awarded a score.
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin was unimpressed by this result as he posted on social media during the election campaign in May last year a "powerful passport" somehow correlates with the dignity of the country.
In the past decade, only seven countries added visa exemptions for Thai passports.
Mr Srettha committed to strengthening the status of Thai passports by knitting tighter diplomatic relations with other countries.
The Pheu Thai-led government has pledged to improve Thailand's ranking and number of visa-free arrangements in a bid to upgrade foreign trade and business, opening up opportunities for Thais to learn from other countries via travel, and encouraging cultural exchanges.
In terms of openness to other countries, Thailand ranked 55th, lagging behind other tourism-driven economies in Asia such as the Maldives, which sits in first place, while Hong Kong is in 18th place, according to the Henley Openness Index 2023.
With more countries offering visa exemptions to lure visitors, the private sector wants the Thai government to prepare for the possible consequences of this policy.
PREVENTING ILLEGAL LABOUR
Sisdivachr Cheewarattanaporn, president of the Association of Thai Travel Agents, said upgrading the status of Thai passports to allow Thais to enter more countries and territories without visa requirements would help the economy, allowing the country to gain security confidence from other nations, which should benefit foreign trade and investments.
However, he said securing visa-free privileges from certain countries or blocs will not be easy, such as the Schengen visa for the EU. Mr Srettha said last year he wants Thais to be able to travel to destinations such as Europe, the UK and the US without visas in the future.
Prior to the pandemic, security issues made governments carefully consider lifting visa requirements for other countries, but in the aftermath of Covid-19 the decision calculus changed.
"Tourism is the fastest way to generate income in a country and fix a broken economy. Post-pandemic, every country has pivoted to foreign tourism markets," said Mr Sisdivachr.
"Affluent Thai travellers may have bargaining power to persuade more countries to grant visa privileges to us."
He said visa-free cooperation with China is a good initiative for the country, particularly for the tourism sector, as tourism exchanges may give airlines more confidence to plan additional flights or increase seat capacity.
Yet the government should prepare for possible loopholes, as illegal labourers might exploit the policy to work without applying for a proper work permit, said Mr Sisdivachr.
"Seamless travel will definitely benefit the tourism industry, but we should have measures to prevent those who exploit this loophole," he said.
"For instance, miscreants might not overstay the legal period, but they can repeatedly re-enter if there's no prevention of such cases."
Given the ongoing problems of Thais entering South Korea to work illegally, and some Chinese doing business in Thailand while claiming to be tourists, the government should implement stringent measures to help workers apply for jobs with a proper work permit, said Mr Sisdivachr.
He said more government-to-government coordination is needed to increase the number of jobs Thais can legally apply for, as well as a mechanism to monitor those who enter Thailand with hidden agendas.
LONG WAY TO GO
Phumiphiphat Meesamran, vice-president of the Thai Travel Agents Association, said Thai passports are far from powerful, compared with Singapore or US passports.
He said it would take many years to elevate the Thai passport to a higher level, relying on a strong economy and increasing income, as well as diplomatic relations with other countries.
The Thai passport ranking is relatively low compared with Singapore and Malaysia, partially because of reports of many illegal Thai workers, said Kriengkrai Thiennukul, chairman of the Federation of Thai Industries.
Some Thais pretend to be tourists visiting South Korea, but they act as "phi noi", a Thai phrase describing their status as illegal workers, he said.
Mr Kriengkrai said the government not only needs to address workers illegally entering countries that offer high wages, but it also needs to improve the Thai economy so the country can escape the middle-income trap, which is a root cause of the labour problem.
This would improve Thailand's image and help the country gain a better passport ranking, he said.
"Singapore is a small country of around 6 million, but the city-state draws the most foreign direct investment in the region," said Mr Kriengkrai.
RIGHT DIRECTION
Sanan Angubolkul, chairman of the Thai Chamber of Commerce, said it was essential to understand the passport ranking as the number of destinations a passport can access without requiring a visa or visa-on-arrival arrangements.
The factors determining the rankings include political stability, economic robustness and positive international relations between countries.
To elevate the ranking of Thai passports, he said government diplomatic efforts are imperative with various countries to unlock visa restrictions, elevating the status of Thai passports to enable global travel.
"The government has prioritised promoting tourism to develop Thailand, as well as to attract foreign direct investment. The prime minister recently engaged in diplomatic activities to strengthen relationships with various countries, aiming to enhance relations in terms of trade, investment and tourism, in addition to elevating pride in Thai passports," Mr Sanan said.
"The government is negotiating with various countries on bilateral free trade agreements, as well as with the EU bloc, aiming to create agreements exempting passport inspections in an additional 30 countries."
He said the private sector commends government negotiations with China that led to the exemption of visas for tourists to both countries.
The move strengthens the influence of Thai passports and promotes the country's tourism image, said Mr Sanan.
Thailand is ranked among the top 10 tourist destinations globally, he said.
"If the government and private sector collaboratively advance efforts to build relationships with other countries, the Thai passport can improve its global ranking," said Mr Sanan.
Mr Kriengkrai said upgrading the country's passport ranking can serve as a tool to create a secondary brand for Thailand to draw more foreign investment.
"An improved passport ranking can serve as a sub-brand, making Thailand more attractive to prospective foreign investors," he said.
"If Thais can travel to more countries without requesting a visa, it means the country is more accepted by the international community."
The result would give Thailand more power to attract foreign investment, said Mr Kriengkrai.
SEAMLESS FLOWS
Mr Phumiphiphat said a permanent reciprocal visa-free scheme between Thailand and China would definitely benefit both inbound and outbound segments.
He estimated this scheme would increase outbound trips to China by 10-20%, making travel to China more convenient for Thais by avoiding long visa application queues.
During the New Year holiday, popular Chinese tour packages for Thais included Kunming, Dali, Zhangjiajie and Shanghai.
China is famous for its nature, diverse cities and convenient travel at affordable prices.
Mr Phumiphiphat said he expects the number of outbound trips to China has the potential to overtake Japan in the near future thanks to the visa exemption.
Japan granted Thai citizens a visa exemption a decade ago and it remains the most popular tourist destination.
According to the Tourism and Sports Ministry, outbound trips to China tallied more than 690,000 in 2019, while those to Japan totalled 1.2 million.
Most Chinese tour packages in March and April have been booked, with travel agents preparing to refund the visa fee to clients who have already paid, he said.
Looking forward, Mr Phumiphiphat said the government should work on discussing visa exemptions for Thai nationals with European nations, the UK, the US and Australia, although he believed it would be difficult based on numerous factors.
If more territories exempted visas for Thai travellers, it would be positive for both sides as hassle-free travel enables more trade and cash flow between countries, and could bolster the exchange of business and leisure travellers, he said.
Regarding concerns about illegal Thai workers in countries that offer visa-free schemes, such as South Korea, the Thai government should work to prevent this by increasing legal overseas quotas, said Mr Phumiphiphat.
MORE STABLE FLIGHTS
Pinyot Pibulsonggram, head of commercial at Thai Vietjet, said elevating Thai passport power will benefit the aviation industry as airlines can increase flights catering to higher demand.
Mr Pinyot said visa exemptions are an incentive for international travel as they reduce expenses and time spent on visa applications, helping to accelerate travel decisions.
Flights between countries that share a visa-free arrangement typically have more balanced traffic from both sides, helping sustain the operations of those routes in the long run, he said.
For instance, the upcoming reciprocal visa-free scheme between China and Thailand should help to sustain flights to China, as around 80% of Thai Vietjet's passengers now are Chinese tourists, with only a small fraction of Thais, said Mr Pinyot.
Airlines need a sufficient balance of passengers from both destinations, and the visa-free scheme with China should encourage more Thai travellers to visit the mainland, he said.
Post-pandemic, Thai travellers have preferred trips within Asia because of the short distances and duration, as well as affordable prices.
China has plenty of attractions reachable within 4-5 hours by jet, said Mr Pinyot.
NOT MUCH BENEFIT
Sumate Sudasna, president of the Thailand Incentive and Convention Association, said a more powerful passport might not benefit the economy nor the business sector, as the government hopes.
Normally exhibitors or business travellers who want to showcase their products in trade events or engage in activities that could earn income in Thailand can apply for a specific type of visa to avoid complications.
"Improving Thailand's passport ranking might not directly benefit business travellers, as they're required to apply for different types of visas with specific travel purposes," said Mr Sumate.
He said as part of this policy push, the government should prioritise security issues and consider possible consequences before implementation.
Instead of offering a visa-free scheme to any country in a bid to receive a reciprocal visa waiver, Mr Sumate said the government should develop an online visa application system and simplify complicated procedures to facilitate business travellers from any part of the world to apply for a visa, even in cities without Thai consular offices.
However, if more reciprocal visa-free agreements are implemented with countries in the future, he said the government should prepare for congestion at airports during busy hours, which is a critical issue at the moment.
Arriving passengers wait in line for an immigration check at Suvarnabhumi airport.
Arriving passengers proceed to immigration procedures at Suvarnabhumi airport. Mr Sanan says Thailand is a top 10 tourist destination globally.
