New regulations that coincide with the resumption of travel from China will require all travelers to Thailand to present confirmation of at least two Covid19 vaccinations starting next week.
After three years of its “zeroCovid” policy, China is anticipated to open its border on Sunday and remove travel restrictions for citizens of the nation. Millions of Chinese residents are therefore anticipated to travel abroad.
“The principle is there will not be any discrimination against a particular country because Covid19 is spreading in all countries and the strains are similar. So, Covid19 should not be an issue of discriminating against any country.”
Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul
However, China still requires a negative PCR test result no older than 48 hours prior to arrival for all incoming travellers, and Thailand is making Covid insurance mandatory for foreign all visitors from countries that require negative RTPCR test results before returning home.
In fact, since Beijing announced border easing, a number of countries, including Japan, Canada, and France, have tightened regulations. Thailand is the latest.
If a visitor tests positive for the virus, the insurance requirement will guarantee that they can afford treatment in Thailand before leaving the country.
5 million visitors from China
Around 50,000 tourists from China are expected to visit Thailand in January. The number is expected to reach 300,000 per month in the first quarter, provided that more flights resume, while the overall visitor number from China this year is expected to be around 5 million, which is less than the prepandemic number of 11 million.
Although China was the world’s largest supplier of outbound tourists prior to the pandemic and will probably soon retake that position, other nations are increasingly growing concerned that the return of tourists from China will trigger a Covid comeback in their own populations.
Since January 1, India has made a PCR test required for visitors from China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, and Thailand.
A negative Covid test from within 48 hours of departure is required for travelers leaving mainland China, Hong Kong, and Macau for Australia. According to Health Minister Mark Butler, the temporary measure, which became effective on January 5, was implemented due to a “lack of full information” regarding the situation in China.
Lack of informations
Other nations and the World Health Organization (WHO) are urging China’s authorities to divulge more detailed information about the outbreak as COVID19 ravages the nation. Many of the numbers it reports, according to others, are meaningless.
Although he nationwide tally for Thursday (Jan 5) was 9,548 new cases and five deaths, Zhejiang, a province on the east coast, said on Jan 3 it was seeing about one million new cases a day.
Source: Thailand Business News
