Thailand’s visa waiver programme for Chinese nationals has come under scrutiny after the high-profile alleged kidnapping of a Chinese actor and similar crimes stoked worries over tourism and security.

The incident involving actor Wang Xing was widely shared on Chinese social media earlier this month, prompting Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra to reassure Chinese tourists of their safety ahead of the Lunar New Year.

Tourism is a key driver of Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy, which saw a record of 39.9 million visitors in 2019 before the pandemic hammered the sector.

In 2023, the government dropped visa requirements for Chinese arrivals, its largest source market, in a bid to boost the industry. Since then, foreign tourist arrivals have jumped by 26% annually to 35.5 million, of which some 6.73 million travelled from China, up 91%.

The surge in arrivals from China may have led to more illicit activity, especially along towns bordering Laos and Myanmar where criminal enterprises run scam centres and online gambling operations, said Senator Wanchai Ekpornpichit.