Thai tourism committee backs visa proposal for Mexican and Colombian visitors
The committee also endorsed a draft tourism plan targeting at least ฿4 trillion in revenue in 2032 and a place among the top 30 in a global tourism index.
Thailand’s National Tourism Policy Committee has backed referring a proposal for visa-free visits by Mexican and Colombian travellers to the Foreign Ministry. The proposed exemption would cover stays of less than 30 days, but still requires consideration by the visa policy committee.
Deputy Prime Minister Suphajee Suthumpun chaired the Oct 30 meeting, which also endorsed the draft fourth National Tourism Development Plan for 2028-2032. Its goals include at least ฿4 trillion in tourism revenue in 2032 and a top-30 position in the global Travel & Tourism Development Index, compared with 38th in 2026.
The plan’s five priorities cover tourism products reflecting Thai identity and better infrastructure; sustainability and low-carbon destinations; AI-driven investment and operator development; safety and crisis preparedness; and collaboration supported by data.
According to the Tourism Authority of Thailand, Mexican and Colombian visitors accounted for 77,445 arrivals and nearly ฿4 billion in tourism revenue, spending an average of ฿50,932 each. The committee had previously approved proposals covering visitors from Uzbekistan and Belarus.
The Tourism Minister also asked the Foreign Minister to speed up e-visa processing because travellers from these countries face delays. Separately, the committee said congestion at Suvarnabhumi Airport had eased after automated arrival gate coverage expanded from two countries to 33 countries and territories. Those covered accounted for 57% of arrivals last year.
Suphajee also instructed the committee to create a tourism strategy subcommittee to oversee the plan’s implementation while the Tourism and Sports Ministry pursues a restructuring and merger of its tourism functions with those of the Culture Ministry.
