Government says Thailand Pass not being cancelled, being “streamlined”

The Thai government says the Thailand Pass is not being cancelled (at least, not for now) but the process will be streamlined to make it faster and more convenient. According to a Bangkok Post report, Dr Sumanee Wacharasint from the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration says the cancellation of Test & Go from May 1 means there will no longer be a need to confirm hotel bookings and PCR tests. As checking vaccination certificates takes less time, this will speed up the approval process.

“Therefore, Thailand Pass registration has remained in place, and there should be no problems from May 1. But the CCSA will monitor the situation regularly. If the situation improves, a further easing of entry rules is expected to follow.”

Thailand’s health minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, had previously hinted that the Thailand Pass requirement might be dropped, subject to the Covid-19 situation stabilising. The Tourism and Sports Minister, Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, has confirmed he plans to submit a proposal to the CCSA to ditch the Thailand Pass by June 1, in order to revive the country’s battered tourism sector. For now, from Sunday, vaccinated overseas arrivals will not undergo PCR testing on arrival. They will still be advised to carry out antigen testing during their stay, although this is not mandatory.

However, travellers must still go through the Thailand Pass registration process, which requires them to show proof of vaccination. Should they test positive for Covid-19 during their stay in Thailand, they can use their Covid-19 insurance to cover treatment costs. Unvaccinated arrivals will still need to show evidence of a negative PCR test taken within 72 hours of departure, but will be allowed to enter the kingdom without any additional testing.

SOURCE: Bangkok Post