India, July 16 -- There's good news for tourists but bad news for travellers. After Thailand's proposal to scrap the visa-free scheme for Indians and revert to a paid visa-on-arrival (VoA) system, the country has introduced a twist. Now, Thailand's Tourism Minister Surasak Phancharoenworakul has announced that Indian passport holders will be allowed to enter the country without a visa, but the maximum stay limit will be reduced to 30 days instead of the current allowance of 60 days. This decision was taken after a sudden decline in Indian tourists in Thailand, which typically attracts approximately 2.5 million Indian tourists annually. The Thai cabinet, in May 2026, had proposed to reduce the list of visa-free travel countries from 93 to 65. Under the new rules, 59 countries (including all 27 European Union states and India) will be granted 30-day visa-free entry, while other nations will receive 15-day visa-free or VoA status. As per reports, this decision was made by the Thai cabinet with the primary goal of enhancing the country's security and preventing misuse of visa-free entry for non-tourism activities. Surasak further said, "If a problem arises from this measure in the future, the government can review it then." htc...