Govt to introduce 300 baht tourist fee in June

The government announced plans to introduce its long-mooted 300 baht tourist fee for foreign visitors in June.

The tourism fee was originally planned to be imposed on foreign travellers at the beginning of last year but the idea was put on hold after the spread of the Covid-19 Omicron variant and details of how the government planned to collect the money.

Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn yesterday announced that the 300 baht tourist fee will be collected from foreign tourists arriving in the country at the beginning of June.

“The money raised will be used to support visitors involved in accidents and develop tourist destinations.

“Fees won’t be collected from foreigners with work permits and border passes.

“The proposal for a tourist fee was first considered last year and is subject to Cabinet approval.

“Tourism is a crucial sector in Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy and contributed about 12% of gross domestic product before the pandemic.

“Tourism spending is forecast to reach at least 2.38 trillion baht this year.”

Announcing a plan and implementing it in Thailand are two different things as the nation’s residents discovered over the past week on whether Chinese travellers needed to show proof of vaccination or take a Covid test on arrival.

At first, no measures were going to be implemented on tourists before the government announced measures would be introduced. Another U-turn quickly followed that and now tourists can enter without having to show proof of vaccination, although grey areas still exist on whether visitors need to have some health insurance to enter the kingdom.

Last year, the government announced the tourist fee would be applied to all foreigners, “without exception” and that it would provide insurance coverage with a value of 500,000 baht for each person, up to 30 days, during their stay in Thailand. For air passengers, it will be included in their airfare.

It is still unclear whether this is still the case. More details will follow, surely.

If the government plans to implement tourist fees in June it would have to be confirmed by the Cabinet next month. After it has been confirmed it then takes effect after 90 days when it is published in the Royal Gazette.