Thailand’s Cabinet on 28 July 2026 gave final assent to a scheme granting Indian nationals 30 days of visa-free entry—up from the current visa-on-arrival regime—for tourism and business trips. The provision will take effect once published in the Royal Gazette, expected in August, and will run for an initial 18-month trial period. Thai authorities predict arrivals from India could reach 2.7 million next year, comfortably eclipsing the pre-pandemic peak of 1.9 million. The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) said the waiver was strategically timed: Indian carriers have added 66,000 weekly seats on India-Thailand routes, and secondary Indian cities such as Jaipur, Lucknow and Bhubaneswar now enjoy direct connections to Bangkok or Phuket. TAT research shows Indian travellers spend an average of THB 6,200 (₹14,500) per day, among the highest of any source market; business-events and wedding segments are particularly lucrative. From a global-mobility angle, the policy simplifies short-term travel for Indian executives attending regional meetings in ASEAN. Companies should note that the visa-free stay is non-extendable inside Thailand and does not permit paid work; staff on longer assignments or remunerated activities must still apply for the appropriate Non-Immigrant or Smart Visa in advance. The move positions Thailand in a growing cohort of destinations—Indonesia, Malaysia and Sri Lanka among them—competing for India’s fast-expanding outbound market, forecast to hit 50 million trips by 2030. Mobility planners should expect heightened demand for seats around the Diwali and Christmas peaks and review expatriate travel policies to capture the cost savings of waived visa fees (currently USD 50 per passenger).
Source: The Indian Express (World Desk)
