Thailand, Myanmar ink visa exemption deal next week

[Jonathan Fairfield]

Thailand, Myanmar ink visa exemption deal next week

BANGKOK: The foreign ministries of Thailand and Myanmar will next week sign a visa exemption agreement in Chiang Mai next week.

The agreement will take effect from Aug 27 in the airports of both countries, The Irrawaddy reported.

A push by Myanmar officials to include land border crossings in the deal was reportedly left out of the final agreement, with their Thai counterparts arguing that any overland agreements should wait until the new protocols were tested by air arrivals.

Sein Oo, deputy director-general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the Thai government said commercial airports should be the first step.

Under the agreement, ordinary passport holders from both countries will be permitted 14 days of visa-free travel on passing through 23 Thai airports and Myanmar’s three international airports in Naypyidaw, Yangon and Mandalay. There are currently seven airlines running services between the two countries.

The agreement is expected to eventually encompass land crossings from Myawaddy, Tachileik, Htee Khee and Kawthaung, the four most frequently patronized checkpoints along the border of the two countries.

The deal, which was originally agreed to in a memorandum of understanding in late 2013, was stalled after the former Thai government under Yingluck Shinawatra was toppled in a coup on May 22 last year.

The news has been welcomed by Myanmar’s hotel and tourism sectors. Thai nationals have for years comprised the highest proportion of foreign travelers, including during last year’s record 3 million tourist arrivals.

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/thailand-myanmar-ink-visa-exemption-deal-next-week

-- Thai PBS 2015-07-24

[DanceAllNight]

Darn... maybe the flights to Myanmar won't be cheap any longer.

[HerbalEd]

Darn... maybe the flights to Myanmar won't be cheap any longer.

Increased passengers tends to lower air fares, not raise them.

[phuketrichard]

my Cambodian GF got a 14 day visa exempt entry at Kwathong back in Jan so figured they would expand it to thai's as well

[Tomtomtom69]

my Cambodian GF got a 14 day visa exempt entry at Kwathong back in Jan so figured they would expand it to thai's as well

Kawthoung is a land border crossing and is thus invalid for Thais wishing to enter Myanmar visa free (except on border passes or using their passport for short trips within the vicinity of the border, which has been the case for many years now). Read the article again - only air entry will be allowed without a visa.

Up until my friend, a former immigration officer at the Myawady checkpoint confirmed that since sometime last year, Myanmar quietly allowed Vietnamese, Cambodians, Laotians, Bruneians and Filipinos, the ASEAN nationalities permitted to enter Myanmar visa-free for 14 days to enter visa-free at the 4 Thai-Myanmar border checkpoints, it was widely assumed it only applied to air arrivals, and indeed this was initially the case. While those nationalities can now enter visa free at land checkpoints too, Thais can only enter visa-free by air, but could presumably leave by land. That is, if they can convince the airline to let them fly to Myanmar on a one way ticket with no visa, something which I doubt would work.

[phuketrichard]

for thais

even the website mentions that they will look at expanding the visa free AIRPORT arrivals for 14 days for this to land borders soon. which is what i said

A push by Myanmar officials to include land border crossings in the deal was reportedly left out of the final agreement, with their Thai counterparts arguing that any overland agreements should wait until the new protocols were tested by air arrivals.

Sein Oo, deputy director-general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the Thai government said commercial airports should be the first step.

[nkped]

Anybody have first hand experience with a Thai passport holder being admitted visa free at Yangon under the new agreement?

[Tomtomtom69]

for thais

even the website mentions that they will look at expanding the visa free AIRPORT arrivals for 14 days for this to land borders soon. which is what i said

A push by Myanmar officials to include land border crossings in the deal was reportedly left out of the final agreement, with their Thai counterparts arguing that any overland agreements should wait until the new protocols were tested by air arrivals.

Sein Oo, deputy director-general of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the Thai government said commercial airports should be the first step.

Don't hold your breath.

The Thais don't want Burmese crossing freely by land. Hence only air arrivals are permitted visa free. That may change but it won't be anytime soon.

This is not a problem for most tourists - Thais have few holidays and very few of them would be interested in crossing overland, except for one day shopping haunts to Tachilek or Myawady, which they have been able to do for years [decades] just on a border pass. Also, with cheap flights from Bangkok to Yangon and even Bangkok to Mandalay, your average savvy young Thai tourist is able to head over to the land of a million pagodas and spend 3-4 days checking out the sights, taking tons of pictures and bragging to their friends about how interesting it was.

[Tomtomtom69]

Anybody have first hand experience with a Thai passport holder being admitted visa free at Yangon under the new agreement?

Yes, I have. Some Thai friends went over last August and flew into Yangon, and out of Mandalay. They didn't need a visa.

The agreement is not that new anymore. It's been in effect since last June.