Thailand Pass -- What is the health screening process at the airport?

[wasabi]

I've seen various sources lauding the continued simplification of Thailand Pass. Ideally it goes away completely but till then I am glad they are chipping away at it. In its current incarnation what is meant by "Travelers are required to go through the health screening process at the airport?"

 

[problemfarang]

Me and my friend entered 2 weeks ago... no face sensor or whatever. 

 

they just check your vaccination status and give you some sticker to put on your shirt. Green for no quarantine and red for quarantine. Then you continue walking and then immigration check your thai pass QR... thats all

if you will stay at quarantine hotel the drivers are waiting before all the process so they can lead you

 

no sensor at all. I think they mean temperature scanners. which i didnt even see 1

 

but if you think you are covid, better not to come. Get well and come is better. dont risk other people

Edited May 25, 2022 by problemfarang

[aidenai]

12 hours ago, wasabi said:

In its current incarnation what is meant by "Travelers are required to go through the health screening process at the airport?"

I arrived on 4 May 2022. I had to go through a gate where a health official scanned my QR-code and checked it against the names in my passport. After confirmation, I got a logo and date stamp on the last page of my passport. Then, before passport control, an Immigration officer checked whether I had the Thailand Pass. Showing the QR-code on my mobile phone was enough.

Edited May 26, 2022 by aidenai

[amexpat]

How long did all that take?

 

[aidenai]

6 minutes ago, amexpat said:

How long did all that take?

Perhaps 5 minutes at the most. There was no queue when I arrived.

Edited May 26, 2022 by aidenai

[wasabi]

The addition of a health screening process is something I've only seen in the past week. So visitors prior to that may not have experienced whatever it is. I also expect it will now include Monkey Pox screening.

[wasabi]

I'm bumping this up since I am traveling to Thailand in a few days and no one has specifically answered. Has anyone very recently arrived in Thailand and experienced the latest health screening process? If yes what is it?

[ubonjoe]

8 hours ago, wasabi said:

I'm bumping this up since I am traveling to Thailand in a few days and no one has specifically answered. Has anyone very recently arrived in Thailand and experienced the latest health screening process? If yes what is it?

As far as I know they just check your Thailand Pass and your temperature is checked.

[Sheryl]

I just passed through the airport this Sunday returning from Cambodia.

 

Nothing special and the Thailand Pass screening has been much simplified/streamlined. Just a quick scan of the QR code, nothing else.

 

At one point, shortly past the Thailand Pass kiosk and before immigration , there was some signage about a thermal screen (at area where one just walks through normally). I have no idea if it was turned on. No one appeared to be manning it or watching results if so.

 

I did see a section off to the left  for people arriving from Latin America and Africa. Might have always been there (?yellow fever vaccination check?), I don't know as never paid attention before.. Possible that those folks were screened more or asked something more, I don't know.

[KhunBENQ]

4 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

and your temperature is checked.

And you will hardly notice. Done with infrared camera, same like entering the airport.

[richard_smith237]

22 minutes ago, Sheryl said:

I just passed through the airport this Sunday returning from Cambodia.

 

Nothing special and the Thailand Pass screening has been much simplified/streamlined. Just a quick scan of the QR code, nothing else.

 

At one point, shortly past the Thailand Pass kiosk and before immigration , there was some signage about a thermal screen (at area where one just walks through normally). I have no idea if it was turned on. No one appeared to be manning it or watching results if so.

 

I did see a section off to the left  for people arriving from Latin America and Africa. Might have always been there (?yellow fever vaccination check?), I don't know as never paid attention before.. Possible that those folks were screened more or asked something more, I don't know.

Thats good news... fewer bottle necks etc...

 

It seems that the Thailand Pass, more than a covid measure is being utilised to ensure that foreign arrivals have insurance cover. 

 

The insurance issues and debate has been running for years now with the government struggling to find a way to ensure that arrivals have insurance when they slide off their Honda Wave or get wiped out by a speeding delivery at a pedestrian crossing etc etc... 

 

The Thailand pass is a perfect way for them (the Thai Authorities) to control and ensure arrivals have insurance cover, so I wonder how easily they will let it go. 

 

 

[BritTim]

It is possible that, in addition to the scan of the QR code from your ThaiPass, you might also be asked to fill out a health declaration card to the effect that you do not feel ill, and are not suffering symptoms of monkeypox.

[OJAS]

35 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

The Thailand pass is a perfect way for them (the Thai Authorities) to control and ensure arrivals have insurance cover, so I wonder how easily they will let it go. 

But I'm not so sure that it is, in fact, an effective way of ensuring that foreigners have adequate insurance cover. In particular, the incidences which you have exemplified (sliding off Honda Waves and getting wiped out by speeding delivery persons at pedestrian crossings) would be covered by accident insurance. However, the FWD policy, on the basis of which my Thailand Pass application was approved recently, provides absolutely zero accident cover, just cover for 3 explicitly COVID-related benefits (+ a token 1,000 THB for "Funeral expenses in case of loss of life from injury or illness").

 

[Sheryl]

53 minutes ago, BritTim said:

It is possible that, in addition to the scan of the QR code from your ThaiPass, you might also be asked to fill out a health declaration card to the effect that you do not feel ill, and are not suffering symptoms of monkeypox.

Not the case when I arrived on Sunday, unless being done selectively for j6st arrivals from certain countries.

[Sheryl]

55 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Thats good news... fewer bottle necks etc...

 

It seems that the Thailand Pass, more than a covid measure is being utilised to ensure that foreign arrivals have insurance cover. 

 

The insurance issues and debate has been running for years now with the government struggling to find a way to ensure that arrivals have insurance when they slide off their Honda Wave or get wiped out by a speeding delivery at a pedestrian crossing etc etc... 

 

The Thailand pass is a perfect way for them (the Thai Authorities) to control and ensure arrivals have insurance cover, so I wonder how easily they will let it go. 

 

 

Since all it is requiring is COVID cover it hardly serves that purpose.

 

Other countries have managed to have insurance requirements without a "Thailand Pass" equivalent.

 

However the MoPH has made so much noise about the necessity of insurance  that they can't drop the requirement until something else is in place without losing face.

 

I think that something will be the 300 baht surcharge coming into effect next quarter.

 

Should be noted that not all of the unpaid bills of tourists/expats  is due to lack of insurance. Failure/inability of some government hospitals to provide the documentation needed for insurance payment also plays a role. Especially at Vachira in Phuket which has been one of the most vocal in complaining about unpaid bills.   

 

Of course some people really are uninsured or underinsured. But there is also a lot of potential insurance reimbursement being lost because some hospitals don't have the necessary staff and systems in place to access it.   

[wasabi]

Thank you for all the replies.

[jayboy]

22 hours ago, Sheryl said:

Since all it is requiring is COVID cover it hardly serves that purpose.

 

Other countries have managed to have insurance requirements without a "Thailand Pass" equivalent.

 

However the MoPH has made so much noise about the necessity of insurance  that they can't drop the requirement until something else is in place without losing face.

 

I think that something will be the 300 baht surcharge coming into effect next quarter.

 

Should be noted that not all of the unpaid bills of tourists/expats  is due to lack of insurance. Failure/inability of some government hospitals to provide the documentation needed for insurance payment also plays a role. Especially at Vachira in Phuket which has been one of the most vocal in complaining about unpaid bills.   

 

Of course some people really are uninsured or underinsured. But there is also a lot of potential insurance reimbursement being lost because some hospitals don't have the necessary staff and systems in place to access it.   

It would be interesting to do a cost benefit analysis on the insurance issue.My hunch is that the problem of foreign tourists lacking insurance cover and/or being unable to pay hospital bills is relatively small.Does anyone have the numbers?

 

[Sheryl]

1 hour ago, jayboy said:

It would be interesting to do a cost benefit analysis on the insurance issue.My hunch is that the problem of foreign tourists lacking insurance cover and/or being unable to pay hospital bills is relatively small.Does anyone have the numbers?

 

Numbers (large numbers) have been bandied about in the media but not likely to he strictly accurate and would also include unpaid costs of insured people due to lack of hospital submitting documentation etc.

 

The problem is not only tourists.  It is also resident exists especially those who die .  Even if they have enough money in the bank, once dead it takes months and probate to release it (at which point who ever gets it may not choose to spend it on a now long ago hospital bill).

 

The immigration rules restrictng peopmle from spending the 800k of retirement funds doesn't help either (for resident experts still living and suddenly faced with big  hospital bill).

[Eff1n2ret]

2 hours ago, Sheryl said:

The problem is not only tourists.  It is also resident exists especially those who die .  Even if they have enough money in the bank, once dead it takes months and probate to release it (at which point who ever gets it may not choose to spend it on a now long ago hospital bill).

 

The immigration rules restrictng peopmle from spending the 800k of retirement funds doesn't help either (for resident experts still living and suddenly faced with big  hospital bill).

Good point. They've shot themselves in the foot. To combat the fraudsters who only have 800k to show on the day they apply, they say it's got to stay in the bank for 5 months of the year, and half of it for the other 7, so the funds can't be used for hospital bills or anything else unless they can quickly be replaced, and, as you say, whoever gets the money when you die can spend it how they want.

[wasabi]

Well I arrived in Thailand last week. What was the additional health screening process? From what I could tell only a thermal scan screen that I walked past with no conversation about it whatsoever.