Thailand and China will sign an agreement to permanently waive certain visa requirements for each other's citizens during a four-day visit by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi that begins on Friday, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) of Thailand.
Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said earlier that the two sides had reached an agreement on the reciprocal visa-free scheme, describing it as an upgrade of Thailand’s visa-free programme for Chinese visitors, which was initially scheduled to last until Feb 29.
The new pact, scheduled to take effect from March 1, will be signed by Foreign Minister Parnpree Bahiddha-Nukara and his Chinese counterpart at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) of Thailand. Their meeting will follow a courtesy call by Mr Wang on Mr Srettha at Government House, the ministry said.
The mutual visa exemption will apply to holders of ordinary passports and passports for public affairs between Thailand and China, according to the ministry.
Government spokesman Chai Wacharonke said earlier this month that under the new arrangement, Chinese tourists would be allowed to stay for a maximum of 30 days per entry in Thailand and vice-versa. A total of 90 days’ stay is allowed in case of multiple entries within 180 days, he said.
Chinese tourists were the country's largest group of visitors before the pandemic and are seen as key to a sustained recovery of the tourism industry, which is a main driver of its economic growth. Travellers from the mainland accounted for more than 27% of the 40 million foreign visitors in 2019 but made up only 3.5 million out of the 28 million tourists last year. Malaysia was the largest visitor market at 4.4 million.
The government is targeting 35 million foreign arrivals this year, including 8 million from China.
Last year, Thailand also issued temporary visa waivers for travellers from Russia, Kazakhstan, India and Taiwan and it has also been planning to allow longer stays for tourists from specific countries to spur spending.
Mr Wang’s visit is also aimed at enhancing cooperation between Thailand and China in such areas as trade, investment, security, culture and tourism — while also exchanging views on regional and international issues of common interest.
Mr Wang last visited Thailand in July 2022.