UPDATE: Registration closes for Test & Go and Sandbox, except Phuket

Registration is closing today for travellers wishing to enter Thailand under the Test & Go quarantine exemption programme and the Sandbox entry scheme, with the exception of Phuket. In an urgent meeting this afternoon, chaired by PM Prayut Chan-o-cha, the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration decided to stop accepting new tourists under the entry schemes starting at midnight. The government will review the situation after the holidays on January 4.

Travellers already registered and approved to enter Thailand under the Thailand Pass Test & Go and Sandbox programme will still be able to enter. No more travellers will be able to register after midnight last night. Approved Test & Go travellers will now need to take a second RT-PCR test on their seventh day in Thailand, Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said in an interview with Thai media.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs released the following announcement…

• Those who have registered and been approved to enter Thailand can enter under the Test & Go and Sandbox schemes.
• Visitors who have registered, but are still waiting for approval and Thailand Pass QR Code have to keep checking. If approved, they can enter Thailand under one of the two schemes.
• Visitors who are interested to enter under Alternative Quarantine (AQ) or Phuket Sandbox can register as per normal.
• Visitors entering under the Test & Go and Sandbox must undergo two RT-PCR tests. The costs for the additional test will be covered by the government.

The decision follows yesterday’s reports on the first local transmission of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 in Thailand. So far, there have been more than 60 confirmed Omicron cases in Thailand involving travellers entering the country from overseas. One local transmission has also been reported.

The Thailand Pass Test & Go program was launched on November 1, allowing fully vaccinated travellers, from 63 “low risk” countries, to enter Thailand without undergoing a lengthy quarantine. Test & Go travellers have been required to book a night at an approved SHA+ hotel to stay in isolation while they wait for the results from an RT-PCR Covid-19 test.

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If you are fully vaccinated, and looking to travel to Phuket, you can enter by booking a 7 Day Sandbox Hotel package.

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