Thailand and Australia may soon waive visa requirements thanks to a mutual agreement, enabling citizens of the respective countries to travel visa-free for certain periods.
The proposal was discussed during a meeting between Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin and David Hurley, the Governor-General of Australia, during a visit of the latter to the Asian country, VisaGuide.World reports.
Both sides were content with the current level of tourism activity between the two countries, with Australia being the ninth most visited by Thai tourists in 2019, while some 800,000 Australians visit Thailand every year.
Thailand Pushes for More Tourism With Australia
Hosting the Australian Governor and his wife, PM Srettha pointed out that he would like for Australian tourists to consider health-oriented travel in his country.
Thailand is quite popular for health-oriented travel due to its quality healthcare facilities, affordable healthcare as well and specialised medical services. In addition, English is frequently spoken in Thailand which makes this destination even more desirable for medical tourism.
Australian PM, on the other hand, proposed more cooperation on the Thailand-Australia Free Trade Agreement (Tafta), aiming at increasing trade volume and value. PM Hurley also called on Australian investigators to consider Thailand for opportunities in green energy and smart technology.
The ideal time to look into such options would be the upcoming ASEAN-Australia Special Summit early next month, which would enable Thailand to promote investments and other projects.
Thailand is a popular tourist destination in the Asian continent, which in pre-pandemic times received almost 40 million visitors – which was a record high. In 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this number fell to merely 430,000.
China is the main source of tourists in Thailand for 2019 – around 11 million, representing 28 per cent of all visitors. Australians spent $174 per day in Thailand, while Kuwaiti nationals spent the most – around $224.
As per the days spent, the average visitor spends just over nine days in Thailand. Suedes spent the longest time – 19 days whereas Malaysians spent around five days in the country, which can be related to the geographical proximity for such results.
Once the agreement is implemented, Thailand’s passport will experience a boost, ranking 107th in the world, as the Passport Index shows. While Thai citizens enjoy visa-free travel to 47 countries worldwide, they are required to obtain a regular visa to enter a total of 118 countries, including Australia, which ranks 34th at the international level.