Thailand’s Association of Domestic Travel (ADT) is pushing for an ASEAN driver’s licence in a bid to boost regional tourism ahead of ASEAN economic integration at the end of this year.

ADT Chairman Yutthachai Sunthornrattanavej revealed the plan to the Bangkok Post on Tuesday, saying he would soon submit a letter to that country’s Ministry of Tourism and Sports.

“[Now] the tourism atmosphere in provinces bordering Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia are lively and these new tourist groups have purchasing power,” Yutthachai said.

Travelling abroad using private cars has already become popular in the region, and allowing such licences would “encourage more Cambodians to travel abroad by car”, said Thoun Sinan, managing director of travel company B2B Cambodia

Ho Vandy, co-chair of the Tourism Working Group, said discussions about such a licence have been ongoing since 2005 between Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam, but that little progress had been made.

“We are still discussing a single administrative application for travellers,” he said.