8 hours ago, Soikhaonoiken said:

(...) so it's another 300B, and if people think it will stay at 300B there kidding themselves... TIT 

Spot on! Once tourists return, and the revenue from those 300 baht is revealed, people in charge will have dollar signs in their eyes like in the cartoons (not literally, that is), and raise this fee significantly, and I wouldn't hold my breath that even 10 baht out of the 300 baht is actually used for "tourists' insurance"...

 

And yes, as someone mentioned, I think it is not impossible that Chinese and Malaysian tourists will be exempted, while Western expats, crossing the border, say 7 times a year, will have to pay that fee 7x.

 

No, 300 baht is not much money, but how about 7x 300 baht, or 7x 800 baht? What could you buy your kids or wife for 5,600 baht instead?

12 hours ago, cjinchiangrai said:

it is $10 on a $1000 plane ticket. I could not care less.

 

Perhaps, but it is the perception: gouge some more cash from foreigners, with a few vague statements about what it is to be used for.

 

If anything like the number of visitors TAT is burbling on about materialise ( unlikely I know) then it is potentially rather a lot of cash, and I repeat: essentially unaccounted for, and unlikely to be accounted for. That perception, at a time when they are trying to re-establish their tourist base, when added to all the other equally unregulated ways devised to gouge ( double pricing, broken meters etc) has now rather been confirmed as policy.

 

There is also the possibility of waiving (or increasing) the fee in the case of particular nationalities - which given the Thai government's tendency to xenophobia and racism, together with their almost pathetic subservience to China is very likely.

It will be 1,000 baht, it is 700 baht now.

 

1,000 baht is said to be a very small amount for foreigners, and if they can't afford it then they shouldn't come to thailand.

 

Of course this begs the question, why not raise it to 2,500 or 5,000?

 

A 300 baht increase might impact the the zero-baht tourists.

 

It would put thailand #3 on the linked article's chart.

 

 

 

1,000 baht is fine but dual-pricing must be abolished in return.

 

 

 

 

On 2/7/2022 at 11:15 AM, Henryford said:

Isn't there another 500 baht already built into air fares. We used to pay it in cash at the airport.

Nope, it is 700 already hidden.

We all have different income streams, but I really don't care if it is 300 baht of 30,000 baht (or more if I am staying a long time).

 

I will still come to Thailand.

 

As an expat, I do not care what they spend the money on, as it is none of my business.

On 2/6/2022 at 9:58 PM, internationalism said:

so pandemic is used as a backdoor for taxing, supposedly for medical care. 
not so. 
From those 300b only 20% will go for health insurance ie 60b. 
same 20% goes for administrative cost running this scam - serves impoverished tourists as much as civil servants getting their inflated wages. 
the rest 60% suppose to go for tourism infrastructure, which might again be just more income for tourism moguls getting their share of free money. 
From April, just after my 2 covid specific insurances expire, I would not say at private hospital, that i have 3mln health policy with 300k deductible. 
i would ask to be put at the governmental hospital for a very moderate fee 2k per night plus medicines. If it comes free that would be even better. 
i would refuse up to 300k rip off by private hospitals with an additional up to 3500% mark up on favinopavir

If you haven't picked up on such as yet, you'll be finding that the broad Covid Era has been used in conjunction with blame or justification regarding most everything - especially the repressive corporate/political side, and to a lesser degree societal. 

 

And usually quite acceptable toward the ever-growing dumbed down populations.

On 2/7/2022 at 2:20 PM, webfact said:

The fee will be collected from April and will be added to the tax when a visitor purchases an airline ticket to Thailand.

So when I return from an overseas trip as a retiree, living here in the LOS, I too will be considered a tourist, or do the airlines have a questionnaire asking if I live in Thailand, doubt it.

 

Again, one size fits all policy, absolute disgraceful, why not make it mandatory that people have travel insurance, surely they can have an office the the airports before immigration let's them through so as to steer those who don't have any, to pay at the counter, as opposed to filling in their own pockets.

 

This in nothing but another rort and won't be going anywhere except into many people's pockets in power, in my opinion because they can get away with it.

 

One size fits all, doesn't mater who pays for it, as long as they collect it from everyone. 

1 hour ago, 4MyEgo said:

So when I return from an overseas trip as a retiree, living here in the LOS, I too will be considered a tourist, or do the airlines have a questionnaire asking if I live in Thailand, doubt it.

 

Again, one size fits all policy, absolute disgraceful, why not make it mandatory that people have travel insurance, surely they can have an office the the airports before immigration let's them through so as to steer those who don't have any, to pay at the counter, as opposed to filling in their own pockets.

 

This in nothing but another rort and won't be going anywhere except into many people's pockets in power, in my opinion because they can get away with it.

 

One size fits all, doesn't mater who pays for it, as long as they collect it from everyone. 

You will always be a tourist in this country and nothing more.

55 minutes ago, MadMac said:

You will always be a tourist in this country and nothing more.

Actually I feel better here than in my own country and only feel like a tourist when I go on holidays.