People traveling from African countries can now register for the Thailand Pass to enter the Kingdom under the Sandbox program starting January 11, 2022. Quarantine period under the Alternative Quarantine (AQ) program will be reduced by 14 days to 7 days for vaccinated travellers and 10 days for non-vaccinated visitors.
The Director General of the Department of Information and Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tanee Sangrat, reported that the Department of Consular Affairs has adjusted the entry measures.
The emergence of the Omicron Covid-19 strain, classified by the World Health Organization as a “variant of concern,” led the Thai government to impose a travel ban on people from eight African countries designated as being at high risk of contracting the new variant, and to restrict travel for people from other African countries.
Thailand Pass QR code issuance has been suspended for people from the following countries: Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Zimbabwe and South Africa. This restriction is still effective until further notice. Although Thai nationals from high-risk countries are allowed to return home, nationals from other countries are not allowed to return.
However nationals from other African countries traveling to Thailand will be quarantined in a hotel or certified facility for 14 days. They will be subjected to three Covid-19 RT-PCR tests before being released. These travellers are not allowed to enter the country under the Sandbox Program or the Test & Go Quarantine Exemption Program.
