Thais get warning on carrying medicines to China as visa-free travel begins
Thai tourists travelling visa-free to China from Friday (March 1) have been advised to make sure that they bring no medical products containing cannabis or kratom into that country.
The Thai embassy and consulates in China have issued an advisory urging Thai nationals to prepare all their medicines before travel. The Thai missions also warned that medicines containing marijuana, kratom, or other addictive substances were prohibited in China. Thai tourists could end up facing severe punishment for carrying such medical products, they warned.
Cannabis and kratom are no longer considered illegal in Thailand, and many products including medical products have been produced with those ingredients.
Under a deal signed by Thailand and China in January, with effect from March 1 passport holders of the two countries can enter and stay in each other’s countries visa-free for 30 days, but not for longer than 90 days in a 180-day period.
The diplomatic missions in China also warned Thai tourists not to bring fresh and frozen plants, vegetables, and fruits into that country, which were against China’s customs regulations. Also, visitors are prohibited from entering China with animals and animal products, such as eggs, fresh bird's nests, and milk.
Visitors are allowed to bring no more than 400 cigarettes per visit, no more than two litres of alcoholic beverages, no more than 50 grams of silver or gold items, and no more than 20,000 yuan or US$10,000 in cash.
Thai travellers are advised to make sure that their passport must have at least six months left before the expiry date, or the airline may not allow them to board the flight. They are also advised to buy travel insurance before their trip.
Mobile banking is now widely used in China, and many shops do not accept cash. The Thai missions advised Thai travellers to link their credit cards to Chinese mobile apps Alipay or WeChat Pay for online payments while in China. Thai tourists are also advised to carry cash in case of emergency.
The embassy and consulates also suggested that Thai tourists use mobile roaming of Thai network providers to access internet services such as Facebook, Line, Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), Gmail, YouTube, and even Google Maps, which are all blocked in China. The missions also warned that using a VPN, which stands for virtual private network, to access the internet may be against the law in China.
