Thailand wants foreign visitors to pass immigration counter in 40 seconds with its new app

Thailand's Immigration Bureau has launched the Thai Immigration (THIM) mobile app to simplify procedures and improve international visitors' stay experience, amid efforts to realize its target of welcoming 33 million foreign visitors in 2026.

Pol Lt Gen Panumas Boonyalug, commissioner of the Immigration Bureau, said increasing numbers of foreign visitors have put pressure on immigration control infrastructure at airports and border gates.

The bureau aims to cut the time each traveler spends at the immigration counter to no more than 40 seconds, Pol Maj Gen Pratchaya Prasansuk, deputy commissioner of the Immigration Bureau, told Khaosod English in May.

The launch of THIM is a strategic step in the immigration authorities' comprehensive digital transformation roadmap, he noted.

Immigration officers stand in front of an empty arrivals hall at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi International airport amid the spread of the coronavirus disease (Covid-19), Thailand, June 3, 2020. Photo by Reuters

THIM currently integrates a Digital Arrival Card, allowing visitors to submit information online before their trips. In subsequent phases, the system will expand to include public services such as queue appointment booking, visa extensions, 90-day residence reporting, residence certificate issuance and visa-on-arrival applications.

In terms of information security, THIM uses passport chip scanning, facial recognition, and biometric data encryption technologies. The application also features an "Explore Thailand" function, providing QR codes for discounts on tourism and accommodation services.

After nearly two months of pilot operation on the App Store, Google Play and Huawei AppGallery since Aug. 1, THIM had recorded more than 600,000 downloads, with an activation rate of over 97%.