The Ministry of Tourism has teamed up with the Ministry of Finance to approve drawing 1.75-2 billion baht from the energy crisis loan fund to launch “Thai Teaw Thai Plus,” distributing entitlements through the Paotang app. Conditions will be finalized next week, while the airline ticket stimulus requires the 2027 budget.
On 6 August 2026, Mr. Surasak Pancharoenworakul, Minister of Tourism and Sports, revealed that on 5 August, he, together with the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports and officials from the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), held discussions with Mr. Akniti Nitithanprapas, Minister of Finance, and Mr. Lawaron Saengsanit, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance and Chair of the Loan Spending Screening Committee under the 400 billion baht loan decree, about the implementation approach for the Thai Teaw Thai Plus project.
The preliminary conclusion is that the budget from the energy crisis relief loan can be used, allocating around 1.75-2 billion baht, with the Paotang application as the platform. Regarding the project’s start date, originally targeted for September, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Finance is reviewing the Paotang backend system to confirm readiness. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Tourism will discuss usage conditions and the amount of financial support per entitlement further with operators and the private sector next week.
However, the Fly Thai All the Feelings and Thailand Air Connect projects cannot use the loan budget; they must rely on other funds such as the central budget or revenue from the TAT, and will have to wait for the 2027 fiscal budget.
Reporters noted that last week, Mr. Surasak stated that if the ministry had to wait for the central budget in 2027, the measures would begin at the earliest at the end of the year, which is the high season, losing the chance to stimulate the market during the low season (September-October). Therefore, the ministry plans to negotiate with the Ministry of Finance to use funds from the 400 billion baht loan decree’s energy crisis relief portion to push forward three projects expected to generate over 56 billion baht in economic circulation: 1. Thai Teaw Thai Plus (1.75 billion baht) with co-payment up to 3,000 baht per booking for 500,000 entitlements; 2. Fly Thai All the Feelings (200 million baht) providing discounts on domestic flight tickets; and 3. Thailand Air Connect (500 million baht) subsidizing international charter flights and co-marketing with commercial airlines.