In February 2024, the Thai Prime Minister's Cabinet decided to extend visa-free travel for tourists from Kazakhstan for another six months. Originally, this regulation was only supposed to apply from September 25, 2023, to February 29, 2024, but due to its positive impact on Thai tourism, it was extended from March 1 to August 31, 2024.

However, in April 2024, the cabinet decided to permanently introduce visa exemption for Kazakh tourists. This means that anyone who holds a Kazakh passport or equivalent documents can enter Thailand without having to apply for a visa beforehand.

New ways to enter Thailand: Eligible travelers have two options to enter Thailand without a pre-approved visa. They can either obtain a visa on arrival or enter through the Thai visa waiver program.

Each of these methods allows a stay in Thailand for a different number of days and is subject to similar requirements. Entry via the Visa Exemption Scheme is free of charge, while the Thai Visa on Arrival requires a fee of 2,000 THB in cash. Furthermore, the stay is significantly shorter at 14 days compared to the 30 days offered by the Visa on Arrival.

A boon for Thai tourism: The decision to permanently lift visa restrictions was based on data. Statistics show that Kazakhstan is one of Thailand's most important growth drivers after the COVID crisis and one of the fastest-growing markets for the Thai tourism industry.

According to the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), the number of Kazakh tourists who traveled to Thailand in 2023 was estimated at 172,000. This represents a significant increase compared to 60,000 in 2022. Many of the tourists traveled as families or couples and spent an average of 14 days in Thailand, with each person spending around 75,000 THB during their trip.

Thailand expects 220,000 tourists from Kazakhstan in 2024, partly due to the elimination of visa requirements. As a result, the Kazakh airline Air Astana has increased its flight connections to and from Thailand to meet the rising demand.

Joint efforts to attract more tourists to Kazakhstan have resulted in the kingdom benefiting from visa-free travel. Kazakhstan is not the only country to have recently benefited from such an arrangement. The governments of China and Thailand have also signed a permanent reciprocal visa waiver agreement, allowing Chinese visitors to enter Kazakhstan without a prior visa application. Russian tourists also do not require a visa for Thailand, as they currently benefit from a temporary visa waiver, which has been extended from May 1 to July 31, 2024.

These and other measures under consideration are part of a comprehensive effort by the Thai government to restore tourism and state revenues to pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels. Previous data, similar to the situation with Kazakhstan, shows that the relaxed entry requirements have led to more visitors from affected countries and increased spending in Thailand. Therefore, it is likely that the Thai government will implement similar measures in the future and possibly make the temporary visa waiver permanent.