Thailand has announced plans to impose a tourism fee of 300 baht (approximately 13,000 Korean won) per person on foreign tourists starting in the second half of 2025. Thai Minister of Tourism and Sports, Sermsak Pongpanit, stated that the fee will be officially implemented if the relevant regulation is published in the Royal Gazette in March.
The tourism fee collection will be linked to the newly introduced online arrival form, the "Thailand Digital Arrival Card" (TDAC). Thailand will launch the electronic arrival system on May 1, 2025, and the online arrival form will be free of charge. Tourists entering by land or sea, rather than by air, will also be charged 300 baht, but will be granted multiple entries for 30 to 60 days.
Minister Sermsak predicted that the relatively low fee would not significantly deter tourists, and added that all foreign visitors would be eligible for life or accident insurance benefits upon payment of the fee.
The Thai government has designated 2025 as the "Amazing Thailand Grand Tourism and Sports Year 2025" and aims to attract 39 million tourists.
However, the Thai tourism industry has expressed negative opinions regarding the introduction of the tourism fee. Concerns have been raised that the fee could further discourage tourists, especially Chinese tourists, whose numbers have already declined following the recent kidnapping incident involving a Chinese actor in Thailand.
Other Asian destinations that collect tourism fees include Japan and Bali, Indonesia. Japan introduced the "International Tourist Tax" in January 2019, charging 1,000 yen (approximately 9,660 Korean won) per person, while Bali started collecting a "tourism contribution fee" of 150,000 rupiah (approximately 13,000 Korean won) per person in February 2024.
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