The COVID-19 outbreak has had a devastating effect on Thailand’s aviation industry. Both international and domestic flights have been dramatically curtailed or stopped altogether. When operations do resume, it is uncertain how many passengers will actually fly because of virus fears and economic impacts. Meanwhile, while airlines’ revenue drops, their expenses continue. A lack of cash flow has resulted in airlines resorting to laying off employees or having their employees take leave without pay.

Thailand’s Ministry of Interior has proposed a second round of automatic visa extensions for non-Thai citizens in Thailand whose visas will expire on or after April 30, 2020, along with a temporary exemption from the 90-day report duty, due to the continued travel restrictions in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.On April 21, the Cabinet approved the second automatic visa extension. All types of visas will therefore be automatically extended to July 31, 2020. A temporary suspension of the 90-day report requirement has also been granted until July 31, 2020.

On April 2, the president of the Supreme Court issued further details and guidance on the handling of cases during the COVID-19 outbreak in Measures for Case Management according to the Declaration of an Emergency Situation between March 26, 2020, and April 30, 2020, in all areas of the Kingdom of Thailand. The Thai judiciary’s initial response to the crisis had come in an announcement on March 24, 2020, that postponed most hearings until the end of May 2020 and enumerated a list of exceptions to this postponement.

The Government Office of Vietnam recently announced the conclusions of Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc regarding the combat of the COVID-19 pandemic following government meetings on April 20 and 22, 2020. Accordingly, the country has now moved into long-term epidemic combat, and thus needs to practice appropriate social distancing while facilitating the supply of goods and business development. As such, the strict social distancing guidelines under Directive No. 16/CT-TTg issued on March 31, 2020, have been lifted for most localities.

Most economists agree that the COVID-19 pandemic is hastening a global recession on a scale unseen since the Great Depression. As large-scale quarantines, business closures, and a sharp fall in consumer and business spending progress, they will inevitably spiral down to more corporate layoffs and bankruptcies.

On April 21, 2020, following the Prime Minister’s extension of the lockdown measures in Laos to May 3, the National Taskforce Committee for COVID-19 Prevention and Control (the Taskforce) issued guidance on what companies must do to be allowed to operate during the lockdown, entitled Instructions on the Conditions and Measures for Eligible Private Companies to Operate during the COVID-19 Outbreak. 

Laos’ Ministry of Finance previously announced that the submission deadline for 2019 financial reports was postponed from March 30, 2020, to April 30, 2020 (as detailed in our earlier alert, here), subject to further extensions that may be necessary as the COVID-19 situation developed. On April 21, 2020, the Ministry issued Notification No. 0764 which confirms an extension of that deadline to May 29, 2020.