The Public Health Ministry will on Friday propose easier access to the country including a change to Covid-19 testing requirements, according to health authorities.
Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said on Thursday that his ministry would propose to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration on Friday that the government further relax restrictions on access to the country from December onwards. The relaxation would include antigen tests replacing RT-PCR tests on arrivals.
Dr Opas Karnkawinpong, director-general of the Department of Disease Control, said the ministry would also propose to increase the number of entry channels to the country, from air travel only to air travel plus some water and land channels through checkpoints considered to be safe.
The increase in immigration channels was possible because the Covid-19 infection rate among visitors who arrived through the "Test & Go" programme was very low, at 0.08%.
The "Test & Go" programme welcomes fully vaccinated visitors from 61 countries and two territories. Those visitors will not be quarantined if they test negative for Covid-19 right after arrival.