Friday, December 02, 2011

Thailand to waive visa fee for selected tourists

News this week: The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is reportedly planning to re-introduce a tourist visa fee waiver scheme for travellers from China, India, Russia and Taiwan in a bid to revive the tourism market in wake of the nation-wide flooding. The waiver scheme for selected nationalities was first introduced in 2009 and ended in March this year after several extensions.

TTGAsia reports that TAT has already proposed the waiver scheme to Thailand’s Ministry of Tourism and Sports along with a request for funding to help Thai tourism operators. Prior to the flood crisis, Thailand was reportedly anticipating 19.5 million overseas visitors and US$23.8 billion in overall tourism revenue for 2011.

According to the Thailand Convention and Exhibition Bureau (TCEB), Thailand’s MICE industry has lost an estimated 250,000 MICE visitors and a little over US$100 million in revenue in the fourth quarter.

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