The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) would like to provide an update on the latest announcement by the Royal Thai Government to further ease the nationwide COVID-19 controls by expanding the colour-coded zones to three: The Pilot Tourist Areas or blue zone, the Surveillance Areas or green zone, and the Areas under Stringent Surveillance or yellow zone.
Published in the Royal Thai Government Gazette on 30 May, 2022, the announcement expanded the designation of ‘Blue Zone’ provinces from 12 to 17 and maintained ‘Blue Zone’ districts in 12 other provinces, while Areas under Stringent Surveillance or yellow zone has been decreased from 65 to 46 provinces, and Surveillance Areas or green zone has been reintroduced with 14 provinces.
The announcement also stated that the COVID-19 controls in each of the three zones will continue to be in accordance with Announcement No. 37, dated 30 October, 2021. That said, peaceful mass gatherings or large-scale events are allowed to take place in the green and blue zones under communicable disease control guidelines, while in the yellow zone the number of attendees must not exceed 1,000 or at 75% of the capacity for sports events. Group gatherings in crowded places must receive advance permission unless the activities are for public health and safety; regular gatherings of individuals at residences, offices, or meeting venues; sports events, or those arranged by public agencies.
The Royal Thai Government also continues to empower the Bangkok Governor and all 76 provincial governors to oversee the COVID-19 prevention and control measures in their respective areas. Venues and businesses are allowed to resume new normal operations under the Ministry of Public Health’s COVID-Free Setting guidelines, except for entertainment venues in the yellow zone.
In the blue and green zone, only entertainment venues including pubs, bars, and karaoke lounges that have been certified with the Thai Stop COVID 2 Plus by the Ministry of Public Health will be allowed to resume operations under the COVID-Free Setting guidelines. Staff must be fully vaccinated, including a booster dose, wear a mask at all times, undergo a weekly SARS-CoV-2 test with an ATK, and assess risks of contacting the disease using the Thai Save Thai application. Likewise, customers must be fully vaccinated, including a booster dose and adhere to the communicable disease prevention guidelines. The sale and consumption of alcoholic beverages on the premises can be served up till 24.00 Hrs.
