What is a Work Permit?
A work permit is an official document that allows a foreigner to work legally in Thailand. The document is a blue color booklet that specifies the identity of the owner (similar to a passport), the name of the company and the specific occupation of the foreigner. The foreigner is only entitled to work for the company and at the position that are specified in the work permit.
Is it mandatory?
According to the Working Alien Act (see WORKING OF ALIEN ACT,B.E. 2551 (2008), Official website of the Ministery of Labor), all foreigners need to hold a work permit to be authorized to work in Thailand. Actually there are few exemptions if you are member of a diplomatic corp, conducting specific mission with the agreement of the Thai government or coming temporary for attending meetings for example (see LEGAL ISSUES FOR INVESTORS – WORK PERMITS, Official website of the Board of Investment (BOI)). However, regular workers definitely need work permits.
What are the requirements?
The applicant should have got an employment agreement with a company located in Thailand
The qualifications of the applicant should be in accordance with the position
The position should not be listed in the restricted activities
The applicant should have a place of residency in Thailand
The applicant should have entered into Thailand temporarily using any visa other than tourists or transit passenger (it means entered in Thailand with a Non-immigrant visa, the most common being the Non-immigrant Business visa or Visa “B”)
Usually the work permit is valid for 1 year and should be renewed accordingly. Fo manager positions, it is valid for 2 years.
What is the process?
Step 1. Obtaining A Non-Immigrant Visa
The most reliable way to understand the requirement for getting a visa in general is to check the websites of the Thai embassy of the country where you want to apply. Documents that are requested are sometimes a little bit different from one embassy to another.
Officially any Non-Immigrant visa should be acceptable in order to apply for a work permit. According to the Foreign Alien Act, the foreigner should have been “permitted to enter into the Kingdom temporarily under the law on immigration in any status other than tourists or transit passenger”
In most cases, the visa that is suitable in order to get a work permit is the Non-Immigrant B visa (business) even if theoretically any Non-Immigrant visa works.
Indeed, if you are holding an Non-Immigrant ED (Education) visa, then you should respect a minimum attendance in class or at university. This is not consistent with a full time position in a company. Consequently the applicant should change to a Non-Immigrant B visa.
A visa cannot be obtained in Thailand. If the applicant is already in Thailand, he or she should visit an embassy in a country around Thailand. For some nationalities, it is requested to do the visa in their home country only.
Step 2. Obtaining the work permit
In general, the company that is hiring a foreigner will assist the applicant during the process as there are some documents to provide and some fees to be paid. In addition all forms and discussions with the Thai administration are in Thai language. The work permit is issued by the Ministry of Labor office.
The employer has to provide the following documents:
company certificate and objectives
list of shareholders
application for VAT
withholding tax of the company
financial statement
photocopy of the director’s passport and work permit with signature affixed
office map
letter of employment stating position and salary of applicant
employment agreement
The foreigner has to prepare the following documents:
2 inches photo
medical certificate
original passport
letter of employment
certificate of degree
address in Thailand
All documents (except the passport) have to be written in Thai language or being translated by a certified translator (an official translation company is ok).
Where to keep the work permit
Officially, the foreigner has to bring the work permit all the time. In practice, it is better to keep it at the workplace. by experience, it is not requested to show the work permit when re-entering Thailand as a special Re-Entry Permit is also diplayed on the passport after having received the work permit.
90 days notification
Holding a work permit does not exempt the foreigner from reporting his or her presence in Thailand every 90 days. A specific form (TM.47) has to be filled (see LIST OF FORMS ISSUED BY THE IMMIGRATION BUREAU, Official website of the Immigration Bureau). It is not necessary to report in person at the immigration office. In case you are late for few days, the fine is 2,000 THB and you have to go yourself. In case you do not declare after few months, the penalty is much higher including being banned from Thailand for few months or years.
Note:
Keep in mind that laws and regulations may evolve. The information above are available to provide a first understanding.
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