Current Arrival restrictions Thailand - work permit?

[tgw]

What are the current regulations for the arrival in Thailand via air (Suvarnabhumi) of foreigners with a work permit?

 

Are they allowed to enter Thailand?

If yes, are they subject to quarantine?

If yes, are they allowed to go to their Thai home address for self-quarantine?

[ubonjoe]

At this time you cannot fly to Thailand.

"THAILAND - published 15.04.2020
Flights to Thailand are suspended.
- This does not apply to state or military aircraft, emergency landing, technical landing without disembarkation, humanitarian aid, medical, relief and repatriation flights.
Source: https://www.iatatravelcentre.com/international-travel-document-news/1580226297.htm

At this time it is unknown what will be needed when they start allowing flights into the country again.

[bbi1]

"No entry" is the current situation for non-Thais

[tgw]

12 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

At this time you cannot fly to Thailand.

"THAILAND - published 15.04.2020
Flights to Thailand are suspended.
- This does not apply to state or military aircraft, emergency landing, technical landing without disembarkation, humanitarian aid, medical, relief and repatriation flights.
Source: https://www.iatatravelcentre.com/international-travel-document-news/1580226297.htm

At this time it is unknown what will be needed when they start allowing flights into the country again.

There are dozens of flights starting and landing every day at Swampy.

 

Qatar Airways, Egypt Air, China Airlines, Hong Kong Airlines, Eva Air, etc. Flying to Doha, Muscat, London Heathrow.

Are these all cargo flights?

Or repatriation?

How can there be so many repatriation flights?

 

Edited April 26, 2020 by tgw

[tgw]

HX775 for example is a scheduled passenger flight

Edited April 26, 2020 by tgw

[ubonjoe]

9 minutes ago, tgw said:

here are dozens of flights starting and landing every day at Swampy.

But there are no passengers getting off the flights to here unless the are Thai and it is considered to be repatriation. When they do enter they are required to go into a strict 14 day quarantine.

Most of those flights are transiting through and picking up passengers.

Several of those shown are cargo flights and a few domestic ones as well.

 

[ubonjoe]

7 minutes ago, tgw said:

HX775 for example is a scheduled passenger flight

Again maybe Thais repatriating and passengers going out.

[Puccini]

9 minutes ago, tgw said:

HX775 for example is a scheduled passenger flight

The question was not whether there are flights to Thailand, was it?

 

The question was whether foreigners with a work permit are allowed to enter Thailand.

Edited April 26, 2020 by Puccini
added link

[tgw]

8 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

But there are no passengers getting off the flights to here unless the are Thai and it is considered to be repatriation. When they do enter they are required to go into a strict 14 day quarantine.

Most of those flights are transiting through and picking up passengers.

Several of those shown are cargo flights and a few domestic ones as well.

 

good explanation, thanks

 

I hope they open up some travel options soon.

Edited April 26, 2020 by tgw

[thedemon]

This is what Air Asia has to say on the subject. Taken from an email received today.

 

Countries	Entry Restrictions
Australia	All foreign nationals are denied entry into Australia with exception for   1.Australians and Permanent Residents and their immediate family, legal guardian, and spouse.    2.New Zealand citizens residing in Australia   *Australians and permanent residents returning home mandatorily must perform a 14-day self-quarantine
Bangladesh	1.All nationals arriving from mainland China, Iran, Italy or Republic of Korea and Nationals of Taiwan, Hong Kong or Macau can no longer obtain a visa on arrival.   2.All nationals arriving from mainland China, Iran, Italy or Republic of Korea with a pre-arranged visa must have a medical certificate* stating that the person is not affected by Coronavirus (COVID-19). The certificate must be duly certified by the embassy.   *This does not apply to nationals of Bangladesh.
Brunei	All foreign nationals are not allowed to enter/transit except with special consideration by the Department of Immigration and National Registration (JIPK), subject to matters of interest to the country.
Cambodia	All nationals who have travelled from the following countries are not allowed entry into Cambodia:   *France *Germany *Spain *Italy *USA   Exception for Holders of Visa (A) and Visa (B).
China	Effective from;   8th April - 22nd April 2020 (transition period)   Chinese nationals who have purchased flights must fill in their personal info, health conditions, travel history on a daily basis via an app for the prevention of an epidemic in Wechat’s international version.    23rd April 2020   1.Chinese nationals must fill in the details on a daily basis 14 days prior to boarding the flight.   2.Chinese nationals who have not filled out information as required will not be accepted for travel   Denied Entry   Chinese nationals returning from the following countries: Italy, the USA, Span, Germany, Iran, France, Korea, Switzerland, UK, Netherland, Austria, Belgium, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, Australia, Brazil, Turkey, Malaysia, Demark, Canada, Israel, Czech, Ireland, Philippines, Thailand
Hong Kong	All non-Hong Kong residents coming from overseas countries and regions by air travel will be denied entry to Hong Kong   Non-Hong Kong residents coming from mainland China, Macao and Taiwan will be denied entry to Hong Kong if they have been to any overseas countries and regions in the past 14 days;   All transit services at Hong Kong International Airport will be suspended; and all passengers arriving from Macao and Taiwan, including Hong Kong and non-Hong Kong residents, will be subject to a 14-day compulsory quarantine, which is the same as the arrangements for people entering Hong Kong from the mainland China
India	Effective 24th of March 2020: All domestic flights in India will be suspended    1.All existing visas (including e-visa/VOA), except diplomatic, official, UN/International Organizations, employment, project visas are suspended until 15th April 2020. Visa free travel facility granted to OCI card holders are suspended until 15th April 2020.    2.All incoming passengers, including Indian nationals, arriving from or having visited China, Italy, Iran, Republic of Korea, France, Spain and Germany after 15th Feb 20 will be quarantined for 14 days.    3.All incoming passengers coming from Afghanistan, Malaysia,and Philippines, to India is prohibited (including Fly-Thru) with immediate effect.   4.Until cases of COVID019 subsides, all nationals travelling from/having visited Italy or Republic of Korea and desirous of entering India will need a certificate having tested negative for COVID-19 from the designated laboratories authorized by the health authorities of these countries.    * Indian nationals presently abroad are advised to avoid non-essential travel. They are hereby informed that they can be quarantined for a minimum of 14 days on their arrival in India.    * Visa for all foreigners already in India remain valid.
Indonesia	As of 2nd of April 2020 International flights   All foreign nationals will be denied entry into Indonesia except   1.Foreigners with work permit 2.Diplomats 3.Humanitarian, Medical, and Food Aid Support    Those accepted for entry will be required to produce the following documents and    1.Health Medical Certificate   2.Proof of not having visited any areas affected by COVID-19 for the past fourteen (14) days.    Domestic flights   Passengers that are not wearing mask will be denied entry.
Japan	The countries and regions listed below are the areas subject to the entry ban;    Albania, Armenia, Israel, Indonesia, United Kingdom, Ecuador, Egypt, Australia, Canada, Republic of Korea, North Macedonia, Cyprus, Greece, Croatia, Kosovo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ivory Coast, Singapore, Slovakia, Serbia, Thailand, Taiwan, Czech, China (including Hong Kong and Macau), Chile, Dominica, Turkey, New Zealand, Panama, Hungary, Bahrain, Philippines, Finland,Brazil, Bulgaria, Brunei, United States, Vietnam, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bolivia, Poland, Malaysia, Moldova, Morocco, Montenegro, Mauritius, Latvia, Lithuania and Romania   All foreign nationals who have visited the areas listed above within the last 14 days will be denied entry except   1. Japanese nationals   2. Foreigners Under certain special circumstances such as   *With the status of residence of “Permanent Resident”, “Spouse or Child of Japanese National”, “Spouse or Child of Permanent Resident” or “Long Term Resident”, who have departed Japan with Re-entry Permission by 2nd April 2020. This however is not applicable to foreigners who will depart Japan on and after 3rd April 2020.   Those accepted for entry are subject to 14 days at a location designated by a quarantine station chief and refrained from using public transportation.
Korea	Effective 1st April 2020.   All foreign nationals arriving into the Republic of Korea without a Self-Isolation Exemption Certificate issued by the Embassy of Korea (or consulate) will be quarantined at a government center at a cost of KRW1,400,000 paid by the passenger.    Passengers will have to sign a form to acknowledge this condition and payment prior acceptance on the flight.
Laos	From 20th March 2020 until 20th April 2020:   1.Visa On Arrival for all nationals will be suspended   2.ASEAN countries without visa will not be accepted for entry. (Thailand, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Cambodia, Vietnam and Singapore)    3. e-Visa for all nationals will be suspended
Macau	Effective 25th of March 2020   1. Hong Kong and Taiwan nationals who have visited countries or regions outside of China in the past 14 days   Exception: Hong Kong and Taiwan nationals who have visited countries or regions outside of China more than 14 days.    2. All transit passengers via Macau airport will be suspended until further notice
Malaysia	Peninsular Malaysia   1.Transit from an international to a domestic flight is not allowed.   2.Arriving passengers of ALL nationalities including Diplomats and Long-term pass holders and registered dependents will be subject to health screening.    Passengers will be sent to a facility for 14-day quarantine and if symptomatic, will be sent to hospital.    Sarawak   Effective 5th April 20:    All passengers that are allowed entry into Sarawak will be required to undergo for 14 days quarantine at the government quarantine centers   Passengers that are allowed entry into Sarawak are                                                                                                                                          1.Offshore oil & gas employees returning to the platform.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          2. Sarawakians returning from West Malaysia/Sabah/Labuan will be quarantined for 14-days at home or at the government quarantine centers for those who are non-residents.    3.Sarawakians arriving on international flights into Sarawak. will be quarantined at the government quarantine centers. If 14-day quarantine performed in West Malaysia, passengers will be issued with 14-days Stay Home Notice.                                     Sabah   Entry into Sabah:   From 22nd March to 31st March 2020: All passengers arriving from an direct international flight into Sabah will be quarantined in a Quaratine Center for 14 days   Exit from Sabah: Malaysian passport   Domestic from/to West Malaysia & Sarawak Entry into Sabah: 1. All non-Malaysian nationals. 2. Mykad with BP code other than 12, 47, 48, 49 (7th and 8th digit of the 12-digit Malaysian Identity Card Number) including spouses of Sabahan. 3.From 22nd March to 31st March 2020: All passengers arriving from a domestic flight into Sabah will be quarantined in a Quarantine Center for 14 day   Exit from Sabah: Sabahan MyKad with the BP code 12, 47, 48, 49 (7th and 8th digit of the 12-digit Malaysian Identity Card Number)
Maldives	All passengers except tourists will be quarantined for 14 days at a designated place by the government   The following passengers will be accepted for entry;    1. Maldives nationals 2. Spouse of Maldivian nationals 3. Work Visa / Business Visa and work permit holders. 4 Tourist with confirm booking for a resort 5. All nationals with permission letter granted by the government of Maldives
Myanmar	1. Foreign nationals: present laboratory evidence dated not more than 72 hours prior to the flight that they are free COVID-19    2. Diplomats accredited to Myanmar and United Nations Officials working in Myanmar: present laboratory evidence dated not more than 72 hours prior to the flight that they are free COVID-19   3. Myanmar nationals returning home are required to undergo home quarantine for 14 days.
Philippines	All inbound foreign nationals except    1.Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) 2.Foreign spouses and children of Filipino nationals (Must be travelling with a Filipino national) and 3.Foreign Government and International Organization Officials
Saudi Arabia	1.Suspension of entry for the purpose of Umrah   2.All nationals who have travelled or arriving from mainland China, Taipei, Hong Kong, Macau, Iran, Italy, Republic of Korea, Japan, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Philippines, Singapore, India, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Somalia ad Vietnam   3.All nationals, including those holding a valid residence permit for Saudi Arabia, who have transited in the countries above in the last 14 days   4.All nationals who have been to mainland China, Taipei, Hong Kong, Iran, Italy, Republic of Korea and Macau in the past 14 days.   *Nationals of GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) can only enter Saudi Arabia with a passport and not the national ID
Singapore	Effective from 23rd of March 2020: All nationals from all countries including those transiting through Singapore will be banned entry.    Entry Ban is exempted for:    *Singapore nationals, permanent residents and long term pass holders .    *Work pass holders with approval letter from Ministry of Manpower.
Sri Lanka	Colombo Airport will be closed for all inbound passengers until further notice.   Visas   1.All types of visa issuance to enter Sri Lanka for all foreign nationalities will be temporarily suspended until further notice   2.All types of Electronic Travel Authorization (ETA), Entry Visas, Landing Endorsements, Multiple Entry Visas and Residence Visas already granted to all the foreign nationals and not arrived to Sri Lanka yet will be temporarily suspended and they will not be allowed to enter Sri Lanka until 31st March 2020.
Taiwan	Effective date: 00:01 am on 19th March 2020   1. All nationals except for;    1) Taiwanese citizens 2) All nationals with Taiwan ARC card 3) All nationals holding diplomatic entry permit issued by Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Taiwan   Quarantine Policy Those who are qualified for entry from the above restrictions will be subject to a home quarantine for 14 days.
Thailand	All international flights to Thailand will be temporarily banned until further notice.    All foreign nationals will be denied entry except    1. Foreign nationals with work permit   2. Diplomats and families   However, the following documents must be presented at the airport before acceptance;   1. Medical Certificate having tested negative for COVID-19 from the designated laboratories issued within 72 hours.    2. Health Insurance Certificate of USD100,000 per person which covers Covid-19 to cover their stay in Thailand.    Thai Nationals   Thai Nationals travelling into Thailand from abroad must present the following documents at the airport before acceptance;   1. Medical Certificate stating “Fit To Fly” and;   2. Approval Letter from the Royal Thai Embassy, Thai Consulate Office or Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kingdom of Thailand.
USA   (State of Hawaii)	Effective 26th of Mar 2020:   Mandatory 14-day self-quarantine for all visitors and residents arriving in Hawaii.
Vietnam	As of 22nd of March 2020   1. Entry to all foreign nationals will be suspended 2. Entry to all Vietnamese overseas and relatives having visa exemption certificates   Exemption for   1.Vietnam nationals with Approval Letter from local Consulate.   2.Officials, diplomatic and other special cases (important diplomatic missions, specialists, business managers, highly skilled workers etc whose visa granted by Ministry of Police, Ministry of Defense, Ministry of Health)   *Effective from 23rd of March 2020: It is a prerequisite for Vietnam nationals prior returning home to consult with Vietnamese Diplomatic Representative agency in the country from where Vietnamese national is taking the flight back to Vietnam .

 

 

[mortenaa]

Flights to Thailand are suspended, so doesn't matter if you are a diplomat... 

Edited April 26, 2020 by ubonjoe
removed unneeded oversized text

[DrJack54]

3 hours ago, tgw said:

good explanation, thanks

 

I hope they open up some travel options soon.

It will NOT be soon.

Have a good look at other "stuff" .

Forget about flights etc. 

Thai nationals only being drip feed via borders with Malaysia etc. Then in quarantine. 

You won't get into Thailand any time soon.

I have ticket to Saigon June 12. I have a visa Vietnam. Already cancelled accom.

 

[DrJack54]

18 minutes ago, mortenaa said:

Flights to Thailand are suspended, so doesn't matter if you are a diplomat... 

Incorrect. Thai nationals and others are flying into Thailand. 

On an aside the member you quoted a ridiculously long list.

Link would have been good idea and then you quote the whole thing. 

[ubonjoe]

31 minutes ago, thedemon said:

This is what Air Asia has to say on the subject. Taken from an email received today.

The one for Thailand is a mixture of the current status "All international flights to Thailand will be temporarily banned until further notice." and the previous requirements for entry.

[ubonjoe]

6 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

Thai nationals and others are flying into Thailand. 

But only on pre arranged repatriation flights.

[DrJack54]

17 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

But only on pre arranged repatriation flights.

That's a given.

Oz last week flew in from India in successive days 800 AU nationals.

And today from other countries.

I imagine many Thai still trying to fly back from places like Japan etc. 

Point of my speech is that flights into Thailand from countries such as Europe Au, USA etc without significant restrictions such as quarantine etc is LONG way off.

The Oz citizens returning are under quarantine 14 day with police guard. BTW they still have state border controls and maximum gathering even in own home of TWO PEOPLE. 

This perhaps sounds over the top, however the folk here hoping to do border bounce for another visa exempt prior to amnesty end, should have plan B&C

[Maestro]

5 hours ago, thedemon said:

This is what Air Asia has to say on the subject. Taken from an email received today.

 

Air Asia has emailed you outdated information. The current information is here:

https://www.iatatravelcentre.com/international-travel-document-news/1580226297.htm

 

At present, there is no official information available regarding the requirements that will apply when flights are resumed.

[drbeach]

I've looked at the flight schedules being proposed by various airlines such as Emirates, THAI and SIA updated within the past week. All of them plan to tentatively restart normal operations (although on a reduced schedule) to cities in their network, which include Bangkok and Phuket on July 1. The Emirates schedule is for 3 daily flights (one of which continues to Phnom Penh) to begin on that date, followed by a 4th service that continues to Hong Kong on Aug 1 and a 5th daily service terminating in Bangkok on Sep 1. Phuket will be served by a daily flight starting in July.

 

This is a good indication of things more or less returning to normal by then, otherwise there is no way they could justify such a flight volume. Of course there is always a chance of changes, but I think at this point it seems reasonably likely to go ahead. After all, domestic services will resume this coming Friday.

[cornishcarlos]

I hope when things are opened up and they start letting people back in, they don't restrict it to Thais, WP holders and diplomats again... Some countries on that list provided are actually recognising family of citizens too, maybe Thai will wake up to that ???

[chainarong]

16 hours ago, tgw said:

There are dozens of flights starting and landing every day at Swampy.

 

Qatar Airways, Egypt Air, China Airlines, Hong Kong Airlines, Eva Air, etc. Flying to Doha, Muscat, London Heathrow.

Are these all cargo flights?

Or repatriation?

How can there be so many repatriation flights?

 

Qantas are still picking up stragglers around the world for Australia. Special flight arr Melbourne this morning from Brazil.

[khwaibah]

Inbound flight ban extended another 15 days. Front page Bangkok Post.

[Harveyg]

What about entry by land crossing from Myanmar?

[ubonjoe]

25 minutes ago, Harveyg said:

What about entry by land crossing from Myanmar?

Closed until further notice.

[Max69xl]

20 hours ago, tgw said:

There are dozens of flights starting and landing every day at Swampy.

 

Qatar Airways, Egypt Air, China Airlines, Hong Kong Airlines, Eva Air, etc. Flying to Doha, Muscat, London Heathrow.

Are these all cargo flights?

Or repatriation?

How can there be so many repatriation flights?

 

Airlines have to fly into Suvarnabhumi to not lose their primary slots. They might fly empty or with a crew onboard for next outbound flight. You can read about repatriation flights online. Only 200 thai nationals/day are allowed to enter Thailand. On arrival everybody are taken to selected locations for 14 days quarantine,mostly hotels in BKK. If they arrive via land crossings they are taken to military bases or something equivalent to that. No one is allowed to go back home. 

Edited April 27, 2020 by Max69xl

[ubonjoe]

15 minutes ago, Max69xl said:

Airlines have to fly into Suvarnabhumi to not lose their primary slots.

I am not sure that is a reason for them to fly in at this time. That requirement is certainly not in effect due to the emergency situation. Perhaps by a force majeure clause in the contract.

[new2here]

5 hours ago, cornishcarlos said:

I hope when things are opened up and they start letting people back in, they don't restrict it to Thais, WP holders and diplomats again... Some countries on that list provided are actually recognising family of citizens too, maybe Thai will wake up to that ???

My guess - and it’s my guess only - is that they’re first going to get all the registered Thai nationals back home.. and remembering that they all have to go through a 14-day forced quarantine in a hotel of the government choice.

 

After most of the Thai nationals have come back, THEN I’d guess they'll revert back to what was the pre-foreigner ban policy —- that being work permit holders, diplomatic etc... in other words, a rather short list of eligible people. 

 

The reason I guess this, is because there is a limited number of Bangkok-area quarantine hotels set up - therefore, so long as the government chooses to follow the same 14-day forced quarantine upon arrival policy for all foreigners returning, and what will also most likely be a time period where there will still be no acceptable/recognized vaccine in existence, they’ll have to have some way to moderate/control/limit the inbound flow as to not exceed quarantine hotel capacity.

so.. my guess is that we’ll see a Thai-only re-entry policy until the end of May.. at that point, I’d hazard a guess that the vast majority of Thais who do want to return (by air) will have already done so.. and the majority of these nationals would have already cleared the 14-day period.. thus quarantine hotel space would be sufficient to begin accepting “new” guests.  
 

Therefore, my guess is that June will be the first window where those explicitly granted reentry ability (under the old policy) can return.. then after one month (assuming all goes well), the doors may open to larger groups - for instance other long-term visa holders or the like.. 

 

... and this timeline somewhat meshes up with what the major carriers are now pre-planning for their  operational resumption — July 1

Again.. all my guess 100%.

[BritTim]

32 minutes ago, new2here said:

... and this timeline somewhat meshes up with what the major carriers are now pre-planning for their  operational resumption — July 1

It costs airlines little to schedule flights and take bookings. They can choose to cancel them later, if desired. I think the (reduced) schedules airlines are hoping to meet are largely wishful thinking. In some cases, they may also be attempts to improve cashflow, with no real expectation of actually running the flights.

[geisha]

Most potential tourists won’t be able to fly no matter what the airlines say. If international flights and borders in their own countries are closed, you’re not going anywhere. That, plus the rules for entering Thailand , ( or any other county) ,mandatory health insurance and medical report letter.

[DrJack54]

13 minutes ago, geisha said:

Most potential tourists won’t be able to fly no matter what the airlines say. If international flights and borders in their own countries are closed, you’re not going anywhere. That, plus the rules for entering Thailand , ( or any other county) ,mandatory health insurance and medical report letter.

Some good points you make.

First up Thailand could not even handle quarantine if borders and airports opened up for aliens. They can hardly manage the number of Thai nationals that will enter over coming months and require quarantine.

I have flights in June to Vietnam. It's a given that won't be possible. I had flights also April and May to Saigon and AirAsia allow option to push them back. 

Sadly this will go on for some time. 

For land borders to open it would require no quarantine on both sides of border.

 

Edited April 27, 2020 by DrJack54

[ubonjoe]

10 hours ago, khwaibah said:

Inbound flight ban extended another 15 days. Front page Bangkok Post.

It is now officially May 31st.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) on Monday decided to extend the ban on all incoming flights for another month