For the last few months, foreigners living in Thailand have complained they feel very much like second-class citizens. This due to the Thai government initially announcing foreigners would not be given vaccinations against Covid-19 at the same time as Thais.
That situation has changed, however, and a health ministry website has now been opened specifically to allow foreigners in Thailand to register for Covid vaccinations.
The website is Thailand Intervac, and foreigners can now register to be given either the AstraZeneca vaccination or the Chinese vaccination Sinovac — one that currently seems to offer lower protection against Covid-19 than vaccinations like AstraZeneca and Pfizer.
The Thailand Intervac website is in English, and is accepting registrations from foreigners who are:
- 60 years of age or older
- Living with
- Severe Chronic Respiratory Diseases (CRDs)
- Coronary artery disease (CAD)
- Chronic kidney disease (CKD) (5th stage)
- Stroke
- Cancer patients receiving chemotherapy
- Diabetes
- Obesity (weight > 100 kg or BMI > 35 kg/m²)
Vaccinations will be opened up to younger age groups in the next few weeks.
The website has been launched by Thailand’s Public Health Ministry, with Foreign Affairs deputy spokesperson Natapanu Nopakun saying foreigners should make an appointment two weeks in advance from when they would like the vaccination. (continue reading below)
Foreigners in Thailand must also have the following before they can register for a Covid-19 vaccination:
- Passport
- Proof of living with one of the above illnesses
There is no word yet on when vaccinations for foreigners in other parts of Thailand will be available, but new vaccination centers are expected to be open soon.
Both vaccinations will require two shots to be administered over several weeks.
Due to huge demand, however, the Thailand Intervac website quickly crashed and is currently displaying the message: