Bangkok beckons: Thailand extends visa-free entry for Indian tourists — all you need to know

Thailand has extended the visa-free entry policy for Indian travellers. The deadline was originally set to end on November 11, 2024. Now, according to the Tourism Ministry of Thailand, Indian visitors can stay in there country for 60 days without a visa. Travellers also have an option to continue their stay for 30 days more.

The new rule aims to increase and promote tourism in Thailand. Earlier, getting a Thai visa included fees and documentation. However, the elimination of documentation increased the number of Indian tourists to around 16.17 million between January and mid-October this year. This has also increased bookings for spontaneous and weekend trips.

Thailand’s visa-entry policy was introduced in November 2023 and has been attracting many Indian tourists since then. Even Malaysia introduced a visa-free policy for Indian travellers in December 2023. Following this, Malaysia climbed from eighth to fourth rank in most searched places by Indian tourists in the first six months of this year.

Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar and Vietnam have witnessed around 70 million tourists last year. With this tourism boost, Prime Minister of Thailand Srettha Thavisin is planning an initiative for a Schengen-type visa for six countries in Southeast Asia. This move aims to promote seamless travel across these countries and increase the number of tourists, according to a Bloomberg report. Srettha has deliberated a single-visa concept with other countries.

Thailand recorded 28.4 million tourists from January 1 to October 27, marking a 29 per cent rise from 2023, according to a report by Reuters. Currently, the government expects 36.7 million tourists this year which is less than 40 million tourists in 2019, the highest ever, it added.

Apart from Thailand, even Russia is planning to give visa-free access by the spring of 2025 to increase the number of tourists travelling from India to Russia, according to a report by the Economic Times.