https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-01-05/thailand-mandates-covid-insurance-for-visitors-from-some-nations-lcise6nq
Thailand Mandates Covid Insurance for Visitors From Some Nations
- Requirement not targeted at Chinese tourists, minister says
- Thailand joins other nations adding entry rules as China eases
2023年1月5日 下午3:48 [GMT+8]
Thailand is mandating Covid insurance for foreign visitors from countries that require negative RT-PCR test results before returning home, reinstating the entry rule ahead of the likely arrival of Chinese tourists in large numbers.
The insurance rule will ensure that visitors who test positive for the virus will be able to afford treatment in Thailand before leaving the country, Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul told reporters after a meeting on Thursday with health and tourism authorities.
Anutin said Thailand isn’t imposing any entry rules targeting specific nations, but only seeks to introduce safety measures that correspond with the rules in place in peoples’ home countries. While China requires a 48-hour negative PCR test result for all incoming travelers, India has imposed a similar mandate for visitors from five countries including Thailand and China.
The insurance requirement, effective next week, comes as China is rapidly dismantling its zero-tolerance policies, reopening the country to the world and scrapping quarantine for arrivals from Jan. 8. The world’s most-populous nation, seeking to revive its economy, will gradually reopen border checkpoints with Hong Kong from Sunday.
Visitors to Thailand won’t be required to produce proof of vaccination at this time, said Tanes Petsuwan, a deputy governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand.