The Cabinet has decided to extend the free-visa incentive for foreign tourists by another six months.
Under
the measure, visa fees will be waived at all Thai embassies and
consulates until August, though visas on arrival will still cost
Bt1,000.
On Tuesday, Government Spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd
said that waiving visa fees from December to February 28 had resulted in
a 12-per-cent increase in foreign arrivals.
The move to waive
visa fees was first introduced on December 1 after arrivals from China
plummeted by 30 per cent due to last year’s crackdown on zero-dollar
tours.
The government hopes that extending
the visa-fee waiver for all nationalities will give Thailand’s tourism
industry a boost as it heads into what is traditionally a low season.
