The on-arrival testing requirement is being removed, but all foreigners must still register for a Thailand Pass.

Wat Chedi Liam, a temple outside Chiang Mai. (Photo: Mathew Schwartz/Unsplash)

It’s official: Thailand will be ending its Test & Go scheme next month. Taweesilp Visanuyothin, a spokesperson from the country’s national virus task force, confirmed the news at a press conference on Friday. He said the decision was taken in light of a continued decline in the numbers of infected foreign visitors over the first three months of the year: “As a result, we considered the plan to open up a little bit more to welcome international tourists and finally approved the easing measure.” Government data has shown that just 0.46 percent of the 260,000 overseas travelers who arrived under the Test & Go scheme this month had tested positive for Covid-19.

Starting on May 1, new entry protocols will be determined based on one’s vaccination status. All foreign nationals must still register for a Thailand Pass and have Covid-19 insurance cover of no less than US$10,000, half the previous requirement. Fully vaccinated travelers will be exempt from being tested on arrival (pre-departure tests have already been scrapped), in favor of voluntary self-testing with a rapid antigen test kit.

Meanwhile, unvaccinated travelers will either have to quarantine for five days upon arrival, and take a PCR test on day four or five, or show proof of a negative PCR test result within 72 hours of departure, which would allow them to skip mandatory self-isolation. All those coming in overland who are planning to stay in Thailand no more than two days must be fully vaccinated.