A guard offers hand sanitizer to people in a shopping mall in Bangkok on March 9, 2020. (LILLIAN SUWANRUMPHA / AFP)

HONG KONG/BANGKOK - The Thai government will impose mandatory 14-day quarantine on visitors from the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions (SARs), as also the Chinese mainland, South Korea, Italy and Iran when they enter Thailand, the Tourism Authority of Thailand in Hong Kong announced on Monday.

The move is part of enhanced precaution and prevention measures taken to combat the spread of COVID-19 caused by the novel coronavirus, according to the Tourism Authority’s official social media account.

Hong Thai Travel Services, one of the city's largest travel agencies, canceled all tours to Thailand till March 31, beginning Monday. About 800 tourists were affected. Hong Thai Travel Services took the decision after tourists conveyed concerns about Thailand's latest immigration policy, it said in a statement. Wing On Travel and WWPKG Holdings also announced cancellation of tours to Thailand.

Thailand’s aviation regulator said airlines should ask passengers coming from high-risk territories for health certificates to establish they are free of the new coronavirus

The number of tourist arrivals in Thailand fell 44.3 percent in February from a year earlier, due to the coronavirus epidemic, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) said on Monday. Visitors from China, Thailand's biggest source of tourists, tumbled 85.3 percent, TAT Governor Yuthasak Supasorn said at a meeting of tourism operators in Bangkok.

Separately, Thailand’s aviation regulator said airlines should ask passengers coming from high-risk territories for health certificates to establish they are free of the new coronavirus.

Travelers who can't provide documentation should be prevented from boarding flights to the Asian nation, according to a Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand notice posted Monday. Carriers are liable for treatment costs if they fly in people who become sick with Covid-19, the notice said.

The new framework applies to China, including Hong Kong and Macao SARs, South Korea, Iran and Italy. Thailand has designated them danger zones for infection, as it steps up efforts against COVID-19 after so far restricting the number of confirmed cases to 50.

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All travelers have been asked to complete public health declaration forms on arrival.

If any passenger is found with high body temperature or indicative symptoms, the Ministry of Public Health officials at all Thai airports will immediately take away the passenger for additional check-up.

The government signaled Friday it prefers arrivals from China, including Hong Kong and Macao SARs, South Korea, Iran and Italy to self-quarantine for 14 days to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 disease. They also have to report daily to officials and face fines for non-compliance, the Thai government announced last week.

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HK on Sunday recorded its third death from the COVID-19 disease, as it confirmed four more infections from the deadly novel coronavirus, bringing the tally to 114. 

With inputs from agencies