Thailand Officially Drops Thailand Pass, Insurance Requirements for Travel

Travel to Thailand is returning to normal.

Thailand this month dropped two of its last remaining requirements for travel—the Thailand Pass, the web-based system to upload documents needed for inbound travel to Thailand; and the $10,000 health insurance requirement.

Going forward, all inbound travelers to Thailand will still be required to show proof of complete vaccination (either paper or digital forms are acceptable), or a negative PCR test taken within 72 hours of travel. Unvaccinated travelers without a PCR test will have to pay for and take one on-site upon entry, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT). Those under 18 traveling unaccompanied must show at least one dose of an approved vaccine (those traveling with parents are exempt).

Aside from that, and passport and visa requirements, travel to Thailand is close to back to normal. The country dropped its public facemask policy in June, though it is still recommending people wear them in crowded settings.

The country hopes that dropping those requirements will help restore its tourism sector to close to its pre-COVID health. According to Reuters, Thailand had close to 40 million travelers in 2019, and less than 1% of that last year. Travel and tourism is typically responsible to close to 12% of the country’s GDP.

Currently, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has Thailand in its Level 3: High Level of COVID-19 category, the highest level outside of Level 4: Special Circumstances.

“Make sure you are up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines before traveling to Thailand. If you are not up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines, avoid travel to Thailand,” the CDC’s advisory reads. “Even if you are up to date with your COVID-19 vaccines, you may still be at risk for getting and spreading COVID-19.”