Thailand’s TouristDigiPay: An Overview of the New E-Wallet Scheme for Visiting Thailand

Thailand’s tourism sector is advancing into the digital era with the launch of TouristDigiPay, a regulatory sandbox initiative that allows foreign tourists to top up e-money wallets with various assets, including cryptocurrencies, other digital or tokenized assets, and traditional assets such as cash or possibly via telegraphic transfers (TT), converting them into Thai Baht for seamless electronic payments utilizing Thailand’s widespread QR payment scheme. 

Announced on 18 August, 2025, by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Thailand, in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance, the Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO), and the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, this 18-month pilot project is subject to stringent Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundrering Office (AMLO) regulations to ensure compliance with existing financial requirements by the BoT. The program attracts a broad range of tourists, including digital nomads, potentially holders of the Destination Thailand Visa (DTV), and all visitors seeking convenient payment options, with potential for broader rollout to other visitor categories in the future, enhancing access to Thailand’s QR payment and providing infrastructure for all tourists, who were previously excluded from such convenience.

What is TouristDigiPay?

TouristDigiPay is an innovative initiative designed to provide foreign tourists with an e-wallet for visiting Thailand, enabling them to top up e-money wallets with various assets, such as cash, cryptocurrencies (e.g., Bitcoin, Ethereum), which are then converted into Thai Baht for electronic payments using the QR code-based transactions that are widely accepted across Thailand. The program operates under a regulatory sandbox overseen by the SEC Thailand and the Bank of Thailand (BoT), ensuring strict compliance with financial regulations. It does not permit direct payments with assets or cash; instead, funds are converted into Baht and held in e-money wallets for spending at merchants nationwide, from large retailers to small vendors.

With a trial period of 18 months starting in Q4 2025, TouristDigiPay aims to enhance Thailand’s competitiveness as a global tourism and digital finance hub by catering to all tourists, including those using traditional payment methods like cash or TT, digital nomads, and DTV visa holders, with the potential to expand to other visitor categories.

How TouristDigiPay Works

TouristDigiPay enables foreign tourists to deposit funds from various sources, whether traditional finance or crypto, into accounts managed by SEC-licensed asset operators (for digital or tokenized assets) or BOT-regulated financial institutions (for traditional instruments like cash or TT). It is not certain if the same provider could take both traditional and crypto at this point.  These assets are converted into Thai Baht at market rates and credited to a BOT-regulated e-money wallet for use in electronic payments. The process includes:

  1. Fund Deposit: Tourists can deposit cryptocurrencies, tokenized assets, cash, or funds via TT. Digital assets are transferred to the operator’s platform and verified. Cash deposits may be made through partnered banks or authorized agents (e.g., 7-Eleven counters), while TTs are processed via bank accounts, subject to standard banking verification.
  2. Conversion to Baht: Assets or funds are converted into Thai Baht through licensed operators or banks, with funds credited to a linked e-money wallet.
  3. Payment Usage: Tourists use the e-money wallet for payments via QR code scans or other electronic methods at merchants across Thailand, facilitated by payment gateways like PromptPay. Direct payments with assets or cash are prohibited; only Baht from the e-money wallet is accepted.
  4. Spending Limits: Monthly caps are set at 50,000 THB (≈$1,429) for transactions at small retail merchants and 500,000 THB (≈$14,286) for transactions at merchants with card terminals (e.g., hotels, restaurants). These limits apply at the vendor level, meaning they restrict the amount a tourist can spend per month at each type of merchant, not the total spending across all vendors. 

For example, a tourist could spend up to 50,000 THB at one small merchant and another 50,000 THB at a different small merchant, and up to 500,000 THB at a hotel, within the respective vendor categories.

This process ensures accessibility for all tourists, by integrating with Thailand’s widely adopted QR payment system that is available everywhere from high end retailers to street-stalls, making it convenient for both tech-savvy and traditional travelers.

Expected Providers for TouristDigiPay

While the SEC and BOT have not yet released a definitive list of providers, TouristDigiPay requires participation from SEC-licensed asset operators for digital assets and BOT-regulated banks or e-money providers for both digital and traditional financial instruments like cash or TT. PromptPay, as a payment gateway, facilitates the QR transactions but is not an end-user provider; instead, traditional banks and e-money platforms are expected to serve as the primary interfaces for tourists. Based on our knowledge of Thailand’s financial ecosystem, several providers are expected to participate:

Digital Asset Operators

Traditional Banks

E-Money Providers

Role of PromptPay and Inclusivity for All Tourists

PromptPay serves as a payment gateway facilitating QR transactions. Traditional banks like SCBX, KBank, and others, along with e-money platforms, will act as the primary providers, offering e-wallets that support digital assets, cash (via branches, ATMs, or agents like 7-Eleven), and TT (via international bank transfers). 

This ensures the e-wallet is accessible to all tourists aligning with Thailand’s goal of enhancing payment convenience. The BOT’s planned “Tourist Wallet” is expected to streamline these top-up options, integrating both modern and traditional methods.

Pre-consultation with operators began in August 2025, and the SEC and BOT are expected to announce confirmed providers closer to the Q4 2025 launch.

Documentary Requirements for TouristDigiPay

Participation in TouristDigiPay requires compliance with stringent Know Your Customer (KYC) and Customer Due Diligence (CDD) requirements, as mandated by AMLO and aligned with global anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing (CFT) standards. Below are the key documentary requirements.

For Foreign Tourists

Identity Verification Documents:

Account Setup with Regulated Providers:

Declaration of Asset or Fund Source:

Spending Limits Acknowledgment:

For Asset Operators, Banks, and E-Money Providers

Licensing and Partnership Documentation:

AML/CFT Compliance Framework:

Exit Strategy Plan:

Application for Sandbox Participation:

Regulatory Framework and Safeguards

TouristDigiPay operates within a tightly controlled regulatory sandbox to balance innovation with consumer protection. Key safeguards include:

The SEC has introduced exemptions, such as waiving suitability/knowledge tests for tourists and modifying advertising rules.

Challenges and Opportunities

TouristDigiPay presents significant opportunities but also faces challenges:

For businesses, participating in the sandbox offers a first-mover advantage, allowing operators and banks to tap into a growing market.

Conclusion

Thailand’s TouristDigiPay initiative is a groundbreaking step toward integrating digital assets, cash, and telegraphic transfers into the tourism economy, offering all foreign tourists, including digital nomads, DTV visa holders, and traditional travelers, a secure and regulated e-wallet for visiting Thailand. By topping up with various assets or funds for QR-based payments in Thai Baht via PromptPay, the program enhances accessibility to Thailand’s payment infrastructure. Compliance with KYC/CDD requirements, including passport verification, proof of temporary residence, and asset or fund source documentation, is non-negotiable due to stringent AMLO regulations. Traditional banks like SCBX, with Rubie Wallet experience, and others like KBank are poised to play a key role, alongside digital asset operators like Gulf Binance, the local entity for Binance. By understanding these requirements and leveraging the scheme’s opportunities, stakeholders can position themselves at the forefront of Thailand’s digital finance revolution.

It will be interesting to see how the no-cash withdrawals stipulation will work as when tourists leave, they will be expecting to be able to redeem unused funds. 

For guidance on navigating the TouristDigiPay sandbox or ensuring compliance with SEC Thailand regulations, contact SILQ’s expert team today.

Author

  • Paul is a highly experienced legal practitioner who specializes in restructuring, CAM (Conventional and Alternate Medicine), regulatory and general corporate law. Over the past 25 years, Paul has been based in a number of countries across the Asia-Pacific region and has worked with a variety of different multinational corporations as Corporate Counsel or Chief Financial Officer as well as being appointed as Board Member and Executive Chairman for a number of listed corporations.

    Paul holds a Masters of Law as well as a Masters in Business Administration. He obtained his undergraduate degrees in Law and Economics from Sydney University where he graduated with honours. He also has a postgraduate degree in Sharia Finance and completed his post-tertiary degree in economics. He is an admitted and practicing lawyer and notary in Australia as well as a Fellow of the Institute of Governance, Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbiters, and active in the International Association of Restructuring, Insolvency & Bankruptcy Professionals and the Inter-Pacific Bar Association.

Author

  • Paul is a highly experienced legal practitioner who specializes in restructuring, CAM (Conventional and Alternate Medicine), regulatory and general corporate law. Over the past 25 years, Paul has been based in a number of countries across the Asia-Pacific region and has worked with a variety of different multinational corporations as Corporate Counsel or Chief Financial Officer as well as being appointed as Board Member and Executive Chairman for a number of listed corporations.

    Paul holds a Masters of Law as well as a Masters in Business Administration. He obtained his undergraduate degrees in Law and Economics from Sydney University where he graduated with honours. He also has a postgraduate degree in Sharia Finance and completed his post-tertiary degree in economics. He is an admitted and practicing lawyer and notary in Australia as well as a Fellow of the Institute of Governance, Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbiters, and active in the International Association of Restructuring, Insolvency & Bankruptcy Professionals and the Inter-Pacific Bar Association.

    View all posts
Tagged , , , , , , , , , ,