Single tourism visa expected to benefit ASEAN members

The ASEAN single visa is a scheme that would allow its holders to travel between member states, saving time and resources. The idea behind the new travel community would be to market the entire region as a tourist destination - one which could be explored under a single visa, taking full advantage of the budget regional air travel network.

The boost in tourism will, in turn, create jobs, enable growth and reduce poverty. But even if the idea sounds practical on the surface, ASEAN nations are subject to their own immigration and visa policies as well as different approaches to security and screenings for inbound travellers.

There will undoubtedly be challenges from the diversity of political situations, opinions, and policies across ASEAN. Yet with closer cooperation among ASEAN members, every country can eventually enjoy the full scope of tourism economic benefits brought by the single visa system.

Tourism is one of the major revenue earners for ASEAN countries, accounting for 12.3 percent of the region's GDP with more than 104 million international arrivals in 2015.