Climate and Visa Exemption Policies on International Tourism Revenue: A Cross-Country Panel Study
Downloads
Climate change is a pressing issue in the whole world. It has harmed the tourism industry, human activities, life cycles, and the economy. There are various policies declared to solve the problems of climate change and tourism receipts. The objective of the study is to investigate the impact of climate change and policy-related issues on tourism receipts in Thailand, focusing on the effectiveness of climate policy and visa exemption policy. The collected data consists of 11 ASEAN-China countries from 1995 to 2023 using the STATA18 tools. There are 3 models in the investigation, including the environmental model with the climate change policy dummy variable, the economic model with the visa exemption dummy variable, and the combined model. The methods are compared by using random effects and a robust Poisson maximum likelihood estimator to measure how effective the policies are. The findings indicate that climate change initiatives boost both sustainable tourism and tourism receipts. A free visa for ASEAN-China countries boosts the quantity of tourists, but it doesn't significantly impact tourism receipts. According to the results, the government's integration of environmental, economic, and policy-related factors will help conserve sustainable tourism in Thailand over the long term. Sustainable tourism will solve the weather condition and support climate change policy. Moreover, the visa exemption policy should concern increasing tourism revenue and tourism immigrants.
Downloads
[1] Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) (2022). Climate Change 2022 - Mitigation of Climate Change. doi:10.1017/9781009157926.
[2] Scott, D., & Gössling, S. (2022). A review of research into tourism and climate change - Launching the annals of tourism research curated collection on tourism and climate change. Annals of Tourism Research, 95, 103409. doi:10.1016/j.annals.2022.103409.
[3] Pongsakornrungsilp, P., Pongsakornrungsilp, S., Jansom, A., & Chinchanachokchai, S. (2022). Rethinking Sustainable Tourism Management: Learning from the COVID-19 Pandemic to Co-Create Future of Krabi Tourism, Thailand. Sustainability (Switzerland), 14(18), 11375. doi:10.3390/su141811375.
[4] Becken, S., Hess, J. S., Scott, D., & Wisansing, J. (2019). Climate Change Risk Assessment for Thailand’s Tourism Sector. Bangkok: Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH.
[5] Pinudom, B. (2024). Future tourism "Coping with the transition to valuable and sustainable growth". Bangkok: Bank of Thailand. Available online: https://www.bot.or.th/content/dam/bot/documents/th/research-and-publications-pdf/articles-and-publications/articles/download/2024/article-2024nov12.pdf (accessed on November 2025).
[6] Nguyen, P. C., Schinckus, C., Chong, F. H. L., Nguyen, B. Q., & Tran, D. L. T. (2025). Tourism and contribution to employment: global evidence. Journal of Economics and Development, 27(1), 22–37. doi:10.1108/JED-07-2024-0269.
[7] Nation, T. (2025, January 22). The nation Thailand. Thailand tops the list as ASEAN travellers’ number one dream destination. Available online: https://www.nationthailand.com/life/travel/40045425 (accessed on November 2025).
[8] Hsiao, W., Chiang, H., & Amornchaiyakij, N. (2024). Study of Economic Growth and Tourism Industry in Thailand. European Journal of Development Studies, 4(4), 62–68. doi:10.24018/ejdevelop.2024.4.4.370.
[9] Katircioglu, S. T. (2014). International tourism, energy consumption, and environmental pollution: The case of Turkey. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 36, 180–187. doi:10.1016/j.rser.2014.04.058.
[10] Simpson, M. C., Gössling, S., Scott, D., Hall, C. M., & Gladin, E. (2008). Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation in the Tourism Sector: Frameworks, Tools and Practices. Paris: University of Oxford, UK. Available online: https://wedocs.unep.org/handle/20.500.11822/9681 (accessed on November 2025).
[11] Seetanah, B., & Fauzel, S. (2019). Investigating the impact of climate change on the tourism sector: evidence from a sample of island economies. Tourism Review, 74(2), 223–232. doi:10.1108/TR-12-2017-0204.
[12] Uddin, H., Ahammed, S., Rana, M. M., & Majumder, S. C. (2024). Investigating the relationship between environmental quality and tourism industry in Thailand. Environment, Development and Sustainability, 26(5), 12339–12365. doi:10.1007/s10668-023-03801-0.
[13] Hein, L., Metzger, M. J., & Moreno, A. (2009). Potential impacts of climate change on tourism; a case study for Spain. Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, 1(2), 170–178. doi:10.1016/j.cosust.2009.10.011.
[14] Azam, M., Mahmudul Alam, M., & Haroon Hafeez, M. (2018). Effect of tourism on environmental pollution: Further evidence from Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. Journal of Cleaner Production, 190, 330-338. doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.04.168.
[15] Tanoamchard, W., & Limjirakan, S. (2012). Impacts of Climate Change on Water Resources Affecting Tourism Industry in a Small Island: A Case Study ofKoh Chang, Thailand. International Journal of Environmental Science and Development, 3(2), 109–113. doi:10.7763/ijesd.2012.v3.198.
[16] Thinkampheang, S., Nakashizuka, T., Suksavate, W., Kachina, P., Hermhuk, S., Asanok, L., Phumphuang, W., Chouibumroong, B., Wu, J., Kurokawa, H., & Marod, D. (2024). Impacts of climate change on forest restoration dynamics in the lower montane forest of Doi Suthep-Pui National Park, Northern Thailand. Biodiversitas, 25(12), 4829–4845. doi:10.13057/biodiv/d251219.
[17] Office of Natural Resources and Environmental Policy and Planning (ONEP) (2015). Climate Change Master Plan 2015-2050. Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment. Available online: https://faolex.fao.org/docs/pdf/tha203759.pdf (accessed on November 2025).
[18] Elsayed, M. R. A. E. (2023). The Impact of Climate Change on International Tourism: Evidence from Egypt. International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, 13(2), 379–390. doi:10.32479/ijeep.14045.
[19] Atstāja, D., & Cakrani, E. (2024). Impact of Climate Change on International Tourism Evidence from Baltic Sea Countries. Sustainability (Switzerland), 16(12), 5203. doi:10.3390/su16125203.
[20] Lenzen, M., Sun, Y. Y., Faturay, F., Ting, Y. P., Geschke, A., & Malik, A. (2018). The carbon footprint of global tourism. Nature Climate Change, 8(6), 522–528. doi:10.1038/s41558-018-0141-x.
[21] Corboș, R.-A., Bunea, O.-I., & Moncea, M. I. (2025). A Literature Review on Tourism Infrastructure Investments and Their Impact on Tourism Development. Proceedings of the 18th International Management Conference, Bucharest, Romania, 268–275. doi:10.24818/imc/2024/03.01.
[22] Gössling, S. (2002). Global environmental consequences of tourism. Global Environmental Change, 12(4), 283–302. doi:10.1016/S0959-3780(02)00044-4.
[23] Leenoi, P. (2024). Research Intelligence. Available online: https://www.krungsri.com/th/research/research-intelligence/sustainable-tourism-2024 (accessed on November 2025).
[24] Shine, I. (2023). Rising global temperatures are already affecting the tourism industry - here's how. World Economic Forum. Available online: https://www.weforum.org/stories/2023/08/temperatures-tourism-climate-impact/ (accessed on November 2025).
[25] Goh, C. (2012). Exploring impact of climate on tourism demand. Annals of Tourism Research, 39(4), 1859–1883. doi:10.1016/j.annals.2012.05.027.
[26] Rosselló-Nadal, J. (2014). How to evaluate the effects of climate change on tourism. Tourism Management, 42, 334–340. doi:10.1016/j.tourman.2013.11.006.
[27] Dilshan, N. W. T., & Nakabasami, C. (2025). Overtourism: A systematic review of global issues and management strategies. International Journal of Tourism Policy, 15(1), 50–66. doi:10.1504/IJTP.2025.144178.
[28] Jayasinghe, M., & Selvanathan, E. A. (2021). Energy consumption, tourism, economic growth and CO2 emissions nexus in India. Journal of the Asia Pacific Economy, 26(2), 361–380. doi:10.1080/13547860.2021.1923240.
[29] Lee, J. W., & Brahmasrene, T. (2013). Investigating the influence of tourism on economic growth and carbon emissions: Evidence from panel analysis of the European Union. Tourism Management, 38, 69–76. doi:10.1016/j.tourman.2013.02.016.
[30] Shimizu, T., & Okamoto, H. (2024). Tourism infrastructure and the environment: how does environmental regulation affect welfare, tourism industry, and domestic wage inequality? Japanese Economic Review, 75(1), 147–179. doi:10.1007/s42973-021-00109-4.
[31] Sun, G., Liu, Y., Qian, Q., He, Y., Shi, Y., & Zhu, Y. (2023). Environmental regulation and tourism industry development: evidence from China. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 30(34), 81531–81549. doi:10.1007/s11356-022-24917-2.
[32] Chen, Q. (2023). The impact of economic and environmental factors and tourism policies on the sustainability of tourism growth in China: evidence using novel NARDL model. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 30(7), 19326–19341. doi:10.1007/s11356-022-22925-w.
[33] Gössling, S., & Hall, M. C. (2006). Tourism and Global Environmental Change. Routledge, London, UK. doi:10.4324/9780203011911.
[34] Li, Z. (2024). The Impact of Tourism on the Fluctuation of Thai Baht Exchange Rate: An Empirical Study Based on Seasonal Factors. Advances in Economics, Management and Political Sciences, 136(1), 88–93. doi:10.54254/2754-1169/2024.18706.
[35] Nyasha, S., Odhiambo, N. M., & Asongu, S. A. (2021). The Impact of Tourism Development on Economic Growth in Sub-Saharan Africa. European Journal of Development Research, 33(6), 1514–1535. doi:10.1057/s41287-020-00298-5.
[36] Zhang, J. (2022). A meta-analysis of econometrics studies of tourism and low-carbon development. Tourism Management Perspectives, 43, 101006. doi:10.1016/j.tmp.2022.101006.
[37] Gebbisa, M. B., Yasin, A. S., & Bacsi, Z. (2024). Impacts of Weather Variability on the International Tourism Receipts—Evidence from Ethiopia (1995–2019). Tourism and Hospitality, 5(2), 416–438. doi:10.3390/tourhosp5020026.
[38] Czaika, M., & Neumayer, E. (2017). Visa restrictions and economic globalisation. Applied Geography, 84, 75–82. doi:10.1016/j.apgeog.2017.04.011.
[39] Gu, J. (2024). Does the Visa-Free Policy Promote Inbound Tourism? Evidence From China. SAGE Open, 14(2). doi:10.1177/21582440241261676.
[40] Moufida, N., & Achour, M. (2017). The Impact of Visa Facilities on Tourism Sector: Case Study for Algeria. مجلة العلوم الاقتصادية والتسيير والعلوم التجارية, 1(June 2017), 14–28.
[41] Tz-Li, W., Azizurrohman, M., & Angga Pramuja, R. (2024). Attracting tourists to Indonesia: How SEZs and visa-free policies influence international arrivals. Journal of Policy Research in Tourism, Leisure and Events, 1–19. doi:10.1080/19407963.2024.2432634.
[42] Anyasor, M. O., Okocha, R. E., Agina, E. K., and Nwankwo, U. C. (2021). Effectiveness of Visa Facilitation and International Openness as Strategies for Tourism Development: A Comparative Study of Nigeria and Selected African Countries. European Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Research, 9(2), 28-44.
[43] Im, K. S., Pesaran, M. H., & Shin, Y. (2003). Testing for unit roots in heterogeneous panels. Journal of Econometrics, 115(1), 53–74. doi:10.1016/S0304-4076(03)00092-7.
[44] Hair, J. F., Black, W. C., Babin, B. J., & Anderson, R. E. (2013). Multivariate Data Analysis. Pearson New International Edition.
[45] Akadiri, S. Saint, Uzuner, G., Akadiri, A. C., & Lasisi, T. T. (2021). Environmental Kuznets curve hypothesis in the case of tourism island states: The moderating role of globalization. International Journal of Finance and Economics, 26(2), 2846–2858. doi:10.1002/ijfe.1938.
[46] Majumdar, S., & Paris, C. M. (2022). Environmental Impact of Urbanization, Bank Credits, and Energy Use in the UAE—A Tourism-Induced EKC Model. Sustainability (Switzerland), 14(13), 7834. doi:10.3390/su14137834.
[47] Environmental tourism Kuznets curve and RD Expenditure in South America. (2021). 16th Iberian Conference on Information Systems and Technologies (CISTI), Chaves, Portugal (23-26 June 2021), 1–4. doi:10.23919/cisti52073.2021.9476561.
[48] Katircioǧlu, S. T. (2014). Testing the tourism-induced EKC hypothesis: The case of Singapore. Economic Modelling, 41, 383–391. doi:10.1016/j.econmod.2014.05.028.
[49] Magazzino, C., Adedoyin, F. F., Bilgili, F., & Shahzad, U. (2023). If tourism induces the EKC hypothesis, how does governance moderate its impact in the EU without the UK? International Journal of Sustainable Development and World Ecology, 30(6), 685–698. doi:10.1080/13504509.2023.2189321.
[50] Awan, A. M., Saleem, S. F., & Khan, S. (2024). Navigating sustainable development: exploring the environmental Kuznets curve in the SAARC region with global stochastic trends. Environment, Development and Sustainability, 26(12), 31489–31510. doi:10.1007/s10668-024-04505-9.
[51] Ișik, C., Ahmad, M., Pata, U. K., Ongan, S., Radulescu, M., Adedoyin, F. F., Bayraktaroğlu, E., Aydın, S., & Ongan, A. (2020). An evaluation of the tourism-induced environmental Kuznets curve (T-EKC) hypothesis: Evidence from G7 countries. Sustainability (Switzerland), 12(21), 1–11. doi:10.3390/su12219150.
[52] Rudež, H. N. (2020). Is international tourism growth supported by increased tourism receipts? Academica Turistica, 13(2), 153–156. doi:10.26493/2335-4194.13.153-156.
[53] Lee, C. K., Song, H. J., & Bendle, L. J. (2010). The impact of visa-free entry on outbound tourism: A case study of South Korean travellers visiting Japan. Tourism Geographies, 12(2), 302–323. doi:10.1080/14616681003727991.
[54] Amaghionyeodiwe, L. A. (2012). Research note: A causality analysis of tourism as a long-run economic growth factor in Jamaica. Tourism Economics, 18(5), 1125–1133. doi:10.5367/te.2012.0155.
[55] Dogru, T., & Bulut, U. (2018). Is tourism an engine for economic recovery? Theory and empirical evidence. Tourism Management, 67, 425–434. doi:10.1016/j.tourman.2017.06.014.
[56] Assaker, G., & Hallak, R. (2012). Examining a Supply-side Predictive Model in Tourism Using Partial Least Squares Path Modeling: An empirical analysis at the country aggregate level. Tourism Analysis, 17(5), 587–599. doi:10.3727/108354212X13485873913840.
[57] Akar, C. (2012). Modeling Turkish tourism demand and the exchange rate: The bivariate GARCH approach. European Journal of Economics, Finance and Administrative Sciences, 50, 133–141.
[58] Aratuo, D. N., Etienne, X. L., Gebremedhin, T., & Fryson, D. M. (2019). Revisiting the tourism-economic growth nexus: evidence from the United States. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 31(9), 3779–3798. doi:10.1108/IJCHM-08-2018-0627.
[59] Tang, C. F. (2013). Temporal granger causality and the dynamics relationship between real tourism receipts, real income and real exchange rates in Malaysia. International Journal of Tourism Research, 15(3), 272–284. doi:10.1002/jtr.1869.
[60] Sofuoğlu, E. (2022). The Validity of Tourism-Led Growth Hypothesis for the Top Ten Tourism Revenue Generating Countries. Advances in Hospitality and Tourism Research, 10(1), 95–108. doi:10.30519/ahtr.855879.
[61] Vatsa, P., & Balli, F. (2024). How important are prices in long-haul travel? Evidence from New Zealand. Tourism Economics, 30(6), 1492–1507. doi:10.1177/13548166231215382.
[62] Chaisumpunsakul, W., & Pholphirul, P. (2018). Does international trade promote international tourism demand? Evidence from Thailand’s trading partners. Kasetsart Journal of Social Sciences, 39(3), 393–400. doi:10.1016/j.kjss.2017.06.007.
[63] Hoti, S., McAleer, M., & Shareef, R. (2007). Modelling international tourism and country risk spillovers for Cyprus and Malta. Tourism Management, 28(6), 1472–1484. doi:10.1016/j.tourman.2007.02.014.
[64] Joshi, R. M., & Malhotra, S. (2014). Impact of WTO on Growth and Development of International Tourism. Transnational Corporations Review, 6(3), 290–303. doi:10.5148/tncr.2014.6306.
[65] Hair, J. F. (1995). Examing Your Data. Multivariate Data Analysis (3rd edition). New York: Macmillan.
[66] Hausman, J. A. (1978). Specification Tests in Econometrics. Econometrica, 46(6), 1251. doi:10.2307/1913827.
[67] Santos Silva, J. M. C., & Tenreyro, S. (2006). The log of gravity. Review of Economics and Statistics, 88(4), 641–658. doi:10.1162/rest.88.4.641.
[68] Kocak, E., & Cavusoglu, M. (2024). Is there a conservation relationship between tourism, economic output, and forest areas? Conservation Science and Practice, 6(8). doi:10.1111/csp2.13171.
[69] Chang, D., Bu, N., Zhang, N., & Xiao, H. (2024). Climate change and tourism demand: Risks for extreme heat? Heliyon, 10(17). doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e37186.
[70] Walsh, J. & Tachavimol. (2007). Chinese tourism in Thailand: experiences and satisfaction. ASEAN Journal on Hospitality and Tourism, 6(2), 105-13.
[71] Alcoriza, G. B., & Policarpio, J. E. A. (2023). Post-disaster tourism: Building resilient and sustainable communities. In Resilient and Sustainable Destinations After Disaster: Challenges and Strategies (pp. 97–107). Emerald Group Publishing Ltd. doi:10.1108/978-1-80382-021-720231008.
- The authors retain all copyrights. It is noticeable that authors will not be forced to sign any copyright transfer agreements.
- This work (including HTML and PDF Files) is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
