The Cabinet agreed on Tuesday to exempt tourists from India and Taiwan from requiring an entry visa to say in Thailand for up to 30 days, effective from November 10 until May 10.

Currently, arrivals from 59 countries can enter Thailand without an entry visa. Recently, the cabinet agreed to grant visa exemptions for tourists from China and Kazakhstan, for a temporary period, to boost tourism during the final quarter of the year, after Chinese arrivals dropped below target, mostly due to concerns for safety, fanned by Chinese social media, and an economic slowdown in China.

About 25% of India’s 1.4 billion population are considered middle class. About 1.26 million Indians visited Thailand during the first nine months of this year and the numbers are expected to climb to about 1.55 million by the end of the year. Indian tourists spend an average of 41,000 baht per head during their 7-8 days in Thailand.

It is estimated that about 700,000 Taiwanese will have visited Thailand by the end of this year compared to about 780,000 arrivals in 2019, before the COVID pandemic.

Each Taiwanese tourist spends an estimated of 42,000 baht for an average 8-day stay in Thailand, generating revenue of about 33.5 billion baht.

Nearly one million Russian tourists have arrived in Thailand since the beginning of this year.