Integrity Legal

It is becoming increasingly clear that Thai Immigration officials are becoming ever more concerned with those who are working illegally in Thailand. Therefore, this state of affairs begs the question: how does one obtain and/or maintain work authorization in Thailand?

It should be noted that there are two ways in which one can obtain employment authorization in Thailand. One way is to receive an offer of employment from a Thai company. Generally, if the prospective employee is offered employment while abroad, then a WP3 work pre-authorization letter will need to be obtained and the foreign worker will need to apply for a Thai business visa before traveling to Thailand to have their work permit booklet issued. However, if the foreign worker is not abroad, then that individual may need to travel abroad in order to see to it that a WP3 is issued as the Thai Labor Department will only issue such documentation on foreign workers who are physically residing outside of Thailand. Within Southeast Asia, the WP3 is increasingly necessary as those Royal Thai Embassies and Consulates in the region which issue Thai business visas will only do so for those who have been issued a WP3.

Once in Thailand with a B visa, the prospective employee can seek their work permit booklet. Their employer must formally request such documentation as the employer is the sponsor of the work permit. After the permit is issued it should remain either on the premises of the place of business or if the employee must travel to another location to undertake work-related activity a copy should go along with the employee. It is worth noting that in March of 2018 the Thai Labor Department relaxed Thai work permit rules and therefore it is now possible for foreign work permit holders to engage in work activity away from their sponsoring-business’s premises.

The protocols regarding work permit issuance in the context of a business owner are qualitatively different compared to work permit issuance for someone wishing to be employed at a company in Thailand. One significant difference, especially in the context of an SME or a startup company is the “Catch-22” situation some prospectively self-employed foreigners find themselves in. For example, in order for an entrepreneur to obtain a work permit, they need a business visa, a WP3 is often necessary, and in order to obtain a WP3 a company is necessary. Therefore, Thailand company registration is often the first step toward obtaining a Thai business visa and work permit. Those wishing to setup a Thai company are well advised to seek professional guidance as there are multiple ways to incorporate a Thai business which, depending upon the legal structure, may provide differing benefits.

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In recent months, the rules upon which the regime for issuing and maintaining Thai work permits and visas have been undergoing some changes. However, the permanence of these changes remains to be seen and the practical implications of these changes are also open to speculation. Hopefully the following posting with provide some clarification with respect to where work permit and visa rules currently stand.

Work Permit Restrictions Appear to be Loosened

Since the promulgation of the Emergency decrees regarding work permits in Thailand analysts seem increasingly convinced that regulations regarding time, place, and manner of work in Thailand have loosened. In the past, Thai work permit regulations (and the enforcement agencies associated therewith) viewed the rules very strictly when it came to the specific locations where foreigners could undertake labor, the specific functions foreigners could perform, and the timing of when a foreign worker could begin working. For example, foreign temporary workers had to await issuance of a work permit book or temporary work document in order to begin working. Meanwhile, those issued with long term work permits were at one time restricted to performing their job only within the premises of the business acting as the work permit sponsor. Later, the geographic scope of labor endeavor was expanded to allow foreigners to undertake work throughout a specific province in Thailand. However, under any circumstances the foreign national with work authorization had to be circumspect in their endeavors as the work activities they undertook had to fall within the boundaries of the job description specified within the provisions of the work permit itself.

Pursuant to the provisions of the second emergency decree regarding the management of foreign workers in Thailand it appears that many of the restrictions regarding geographic scope of activity have been lifted. Meanwhile, the strict scrutiny of job functions appears to be a thing of the past as well (although a list of occupations restricted to Thai nationals is still in force so long as the activity in question is not specifically in violation of that list the foreign worker should be free from sanction). Furthermore, it appears that certain temporary workers who are brought into Thailand for a short period of time may be able to perform their function in a much more immediate manner compared to the past as, depending upon circumstances and subject to the aforementioned list of restricted activity, many workers may be able to immediately begin performing their functions.

The Return of the One Year Multiple Entry Visa?

It would seem that there is another possible change to Thai regulations regarding work authorization and business visas in Thailand. Apparently, regulations now stipulate that some of those working for a foreign company in Thailand (such as a Representative Office) are no longer required to obtain a work permit. This new exemption apparently only extends to Directors of such organizations. Furthermore, it appears that so-called Amity Treaty Companies (those corporations certified as American and therefore accorded protections pursuant to the US-Thai Treaty of Amity) are now subject to such exemption. Under such circumstances the directors of such companies are able to apply for a 1 year multiple entry visa from their country of origin. As of the time of this writing, this blogger has yet to personally deal with a matter arising under these new rule changes, but the creation of new immigration options is always noteworthy. It should be noted that these regulatory changes appear to be exclusive to Labor matters. Thai immigration regulations have not changed with respect to the rules regarding visa extension in the Kingdom. At the present time a work permit appears to still be required for those wishing to remain in the Kingdom long term via a Thai business visa extension application.

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