MORE than 12,000 foreign tourists have applied to visit Phuket after the Thai government launched its sandbox programme on July 1.
Its Foreign Ministry said the foreign tourists have applied for a Certificate of Entry (COE) at its various embassies and almost 6,000 have been approved.
The ministry's statement comes following media reports that the number of visitors on the first day of the island's reopening was below target.
The Bangkok Post reports Ministry spokesman Tanee Sangrat explaining that no bookings could be taken prior to the announcement of the policy in the government's Royal Gazette that legalised the return of tourists to the province.
He said the ministry could not approve a number of applicants whose documents were incomplete or who did not meet the programme's requirements regarding travel history or vaccination.
Between July 1 and 8, 12,356 people applied for a COE through Thai embassies and consulates and as of Thursday, 5,652 applications have been approved and 594 rejected.
The remaining 6,110 have been asked to submit further documents.
To get a COE, visitors must have resided in their countries for at least 21 days prior to arrival, a Covid-19 health insurance policy, a certificate of vaccination, a negative RT–PCR Covid-19 test within 72 hours prior to departure and proof of payment for their accommodation.
All visitors are also tested during their stay and they are required to spend at least 14 days in Phuket before being allowed to visit other provinces.
Meanwhile, Phuket authorities said so far one tourist, from the UAE, had tested positive since the sandbox scheme began.
Other tourists in his travel group have been placed in a 14-day quarantine at a designated hotel provided by the authorities.
However, 13 tourists from the group decided to fly back on Saturday.
Authorities said it will take two weeks for the strain analysis of infected tourist to be known.
Phuket has also recorded its first case of the Delta variant as officials decided to close all schools until July 23 due to a surge in infections.
Phuket public health office chief Dr Koosak Kookiattikul said the Delta variant was confirmed on Friday, on a foreign businessman who lives in the province.
He is believed to have contracted the virus from a visitor from Bangkok.
The two-week closure comes over concerns about a rise in the number of Covid-19 patients aged under 18 and the emergence of school clusters where students below 18 years are not vaccinated and cannot fully comply with Covid-19 restrictions.
The Post said that there were a total of 10 Covid-19 cases in Phuket on Saturday, the highest in several days, and this has raised concerns.
Most patients were Thai nationals who travelled to Phuket from other provinces and authorities are discussing on whether entry requirements should be tightened.
Dr Koosak said three Covid-19 variants have been reported in the province and most were of the Alpha variant while the others were the Beta and Delta variants.
The developments in Phuket are being closely watched by other provinces as the Thai government has given them the green light to start similar programmes.
The tourism industry in the Samui Plus model, which consists of Koh Samui, Koh Phangan and Koh Tao resort islands, are preparing for their reopening on Thursday.
For both schemes, the government has said that should infections begin rising again at levels in excess of 15 to 20 cases per 100,000 people a week, it is ready to pull the plug and again close the country to new arrivals.