Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin stated that the visa application between China and Thailand will be permanently abolished as of March.
Stating that visa exemption will be applied mutually for citizens of the two countries, Thavisin said, "This will further improve relations between the two countries."
A spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry said that the two countries will increase exchanges between the peoples with visa exemption, "The competent authorities of both sides are in close communication on the issue and we look forward to the implementation of the relevant regulation."
Thailand, Southeast Asia's second largest economy, lifted visa requirements for Chinese tourists in September until February this year.
With its visa waiver policy, Thailand aims to boost the country's tourism sector, which has suffered greatly from the coronavirus pandemic.
According to official figures, the country, whose economy is largely based on tourism, hosted 28 million foreign tourists in 2023, including 3.4 million from China, and earned more than $34 billion from tourism.
China is an important source of tourists for Thailand. The country welcomed 11 million Chinese tourists in 2019.
