TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwan will introduce a visa waiver for transit passengers and landing visas for visitors from Southeast Asia, Vice Premier Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦) said Thursday (Feb. 22).

Taiwan welcomed 6 million visitors from overseas in 2023 and has set 12 million as a target for this year. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, about 11 million tourists visited Taiwan per year.

Each month, Cheng chaired a tourism promotion meeting where he heard valuable advice from the travel industry, he said. One possibility he heard was to allow the more than 6 million transit passengers per year to enter Taiwan without a visa, per CNA.

Travelers from Southeast Asia who need a visa can look forward to a simplification of procedures, with the possibility of a landing visa, according to Cheng. Discussions with Japan will also try to encourage more visitors from Taiwan’s northern neighbor, he added.

The vice premier said that foreign visitors should want to come again and again, with tourism serving as a postcard for the country. Data from Taoyuan International Airport Corporation (TIAC) showed that 6.25 million travelers transited through Taiwan’s main gateway last year, or 17.5% more than the 5.31 million in 2019.

Southeast Asians accounted for 38.4% of the total, and passengers from North America for 36%, TIAC said.