Bhutan has announced that international tourists entering the Himalayan kingdom via land don’t have to pay the sustainable development fee (SDF) if they spend not more than 24 hours at four designated places.

Bhutan also dropped the user fee of 10 Ngultrum (around Rs 10) that a pedestrian needed to pay every time when he/she exited the country through Phuentsholing, the commercial capital of the country. From April 14, the fee will have to be paid only during the entry through the pedestrian gate at Phuentsholing.

Located on the other side of Jaigaon in Alipurduar district in Bengal, Phuentsholing is the common entry route for tourists travelling to the Himalayan country via land.

Before the outbreak of Covid-19, Bhutan used to charge an SDF of $65 every day from international visitors, barring those from India, Bangladesh and the Maldives. In March 2020, Bhutan closed down its borders because of the pandemic.

After a gap of over two-and-a-half years, Bhutan reopened its borders on September 23 last year. The country also hiked the daily SDF to $200. Besides, a daily SDF of 1,200 Ngultrum (Bhutanese currency) was imposed on travellers from India, Bangladesh and the Maldives.

The decision had a direct impact on the hotel industry of Phuentsholing, along with Gelephu, Samtse and Samdrup-Jonkhar — three other towns which share borders with India and are prominent land routes to enter Bhutan.

Suresh Thakuri, who runs a travel house in Jaigaon, said anybody entering and staying in the four towns had to pay the SDF. Along with tourists, many others, particularly those from India, visit these places for business and other purposes every day.

“Because of the imposition of the SDF, all travellers were staying on the other side of the border, that is, in India. For example, a tourist preferred to spend a night in Jaigaon while entering Bhutan or after finishing the trip, instead of Phuentsholing, because of the SDF. As a result, the footfall at hotels at the five Bhutan towns has drastically come down,” he said.

Between September 23, 2022, and the end of January this year, 22,541 international tourists visited Bhutan. Of them, 12,425 were Indians.

According to a notification issued by the cabinet secretary on Thursday, any traveller who is staying for a period up to 24 hours at the four towns and is not moving further into Bhutan beyond a designated point will not have to pay the SDF.

“This will definitely help in the improvement of the hotel industry in Phuentsholing and other border towns,” said a hotel owner.

Bhutan started levying the user fee of 10 Ngultrum on pedestrians entering and exiting the country through Phuentsholing in October last year. The fee was levied both on foreigners and Bhutanese.

The decision will come into effect from April 14 and will remain in force for 12 months.