21st November, 2011
Travel industry stakeholders will be hoping for progress in the development of a pan-ASEAN visa at the members summit in Bali. With increased interest in Asian travel, leaders are trying to aside their differences and design a common visa framework, similar to Europe’s Schengen visa, to boost foreign visitors.
Foreign ministers will contribute ideas in the development of a common ASEAN visa for non-nationals in meetings this week. Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand are committed to the process, though differences remain, but Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam are not.
The difficulty in agreement stands on exiting visa discrepancies whereby some members permit visa on arrival to foreign nationals, when others do not. Governments therefore, face losing non-tax income from such a scheme, reports the Jakarta Post.
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