Forms & Process — WP/BT Forms and Filing at the Department of Employment

The 2018 amendment defines work as engaging in an occupation, or using physical effort or knowledge for an occupation, whether or not there is an employer and whether or not any wage or benefit is received. In practice, short business meetings, negotiations and site visits are assessed case by case, so confirm with the relevant provincial employment office before acting.

Yes. The permit names the employer, the type of work and the workplace. Working for another employer, changing position, or performing duties at an unlisted location requires notification or an amendment with the registrar first; otherwise it counts as working outside the granted conditions.

A foreigner working without a permit, or outside the scope granted, faces the fines set by the 2018 amendment and may be deported with restrictions on obtaining a new permit. Employers who engage foreigners without permits face fines assessed per foreign worker, with heavier penalties for repeat offences. Please confirm the current penalty amounts with the Department of Employment.

Practice for remote work performed for a foreign employer is assessed case by case and has been revised periodically. If you want long-stay status for remote work, the routes designed for it are the DTV or LTR, each with its own conditions. A tourist visa is not designed for work and should not be used as a basis for working for a Thai employer.

The commonly applied benchmark is THB 2 million paid-up capital per foreign employee for a Thai company, and THB 3 million per foreign employee for a company holding a Foreign Business Licence. BOI-promoted companies and operators inside industrial estates follow their own criteria instead. Confirm the current benchmark with the provincial employment office before filing.

The Department of Employment and the Immigration Bureau apply minimum income benchmarks that differ by the applicant's nationality when considering an extension of stay for employment. Those benchmarks follow the Royal Thai Police order in force at the time of filing, so verify current figures with your local immigration office. The declared salary must also match the personal income tax actually remitted.

In some cases yes — for example a commercially registered sole proprietorship — where the registrar reviews the employer's income and tax records and confirms the work is not on the list closed to foreigners. Documentation differs from a corporate filing, so consult the provincial employment office first.

The Department of Employment has renumbered its forms several times. The older ตท. series has largely been replaced by the BT/WP series used under the current Emergency Decree, covering applications filed on behalf of a foreigner and applications for the permit itself. Always download the current form from doe.go.th or collect it at the office so you do not use a withdrawn version.

At the employment office covering the workplace address — the responsible Bangkok employment office in the capital, or the provincial employment office elsewhere. BOI-promoted companies and industrial-estate operators file at the One Stop Service Centre for Visa and Work Permit instead.

The Department of Employment operates e-services for certain application types and areas, but several steps still require original documents and collection in person. Check doe.go.th for the current system status and the application types it supports before planning around it.

Fees follow the ministerial regulation on foreign-worker fees, split between the application fee and the permit fee, which is calculated according to the period granted, with separate fees for replacements and amendments. Because the schedule is updated periodically, confirm current amounts with the Department of Employment or the receiving office.

The format has changed over time and by application type. Many offices now issue a card/sheet or electronic evidence instead of the old booklet. What matters is that the details match the actual employer, position and workplace.

It is the online system promoted companies use to request approval of foreign specialist positions and to appoint individuals to approved positions, before completing visa and work permit formalities at the One Stop Service Centre. Guides are published on the BOI website.

BOI-promoted companies, operators inside IEAT industrial estates, certain representative and regional offices, and holders of special visas such as SMART Visa and LTR — combining immigration and work-permit formalities at one location.

Make it specific and consistent with the company's registered objectives and the work actually performed — state the function and scope rather than a broad term such as 'Manager', which is frequently sent back for amendment. The role must also fall outside the prohibited-work list.

More than one workplace can be listed if applied for and approved. Working for a different employer requires a separate notification or application. Performing duties outside the stated conditions counts as working in breach of the permit.

Teaching in formal educational institutions also requires a teaching licence or a waiver letter permitting teaching without a licence from the Teachers' Council of Thailand (Kurusapha), together with school endorsement documents and criminal-record checks as the institution requires.

The Department of Employment issues work permits through the e-Workpermit system, and the digital record has the same legal effect as the former booklet. Employers and employees can check status and print verifiable evidence online. In practice some counterparties — banks, the Department of Land Transport, the Land Department — still ask for a printout with a QR verification code, so carry one. Confirm the spelling matches your passport exactly; a mismatch is the most common reason a downstream office rejects the document.

You restart the employer-side process. A work permit is tied to a named employer, position and work location. When you resign, the former employer must notify the Department of Employment of the termination, and your permission to stay begins to run out. The usual sequence is to file the new work permit application with the new employer first, then submit TM.7 for an extension of stay with the new company's full document set.

The general rule is THB 2 million paid-up capital and four insured Thai employees per foreign worker, but there are significant exceptions: BOI-promoted companies, businesses under the Thai-US Treaty of Amity, SMART Visa holders, representative offices, and teachers at licensed institutions. Check the requirements for your specific business category with the Department of Employment before designing your hiring structure.

No. The DTV is designed for remote work performed for employers or clients located outside Thailand, and for soft-power activity participants. Providing services to a Thai entity for remuneration is work that requires a permit. To work for a Thai employer you need the Non-B plus work permit route, or SMART/LTR if you qualify.

OSOS puts BOI, Immigration and Department of Employment officers under one roof, so position approval, visa and work permit issuance can complete in a single working day once documents are in order and the position is approved in e-Expert. The bottleneck is usually not the service centre but the e-Expert position approval, which requires degrees and experience letters matching the job title. Have those legalised and translated before you file.

If the director performs duties inside Thailand — signing documents, giving instructions, holding management meetings as a matter of routine — that is work under the statutory definition and requires a permit, even without remuneration. Attending an occasional shareholders' meeting may fall within the urgent and necessary work exemption, which is time-limited and requires a prescribed notification. Assess this case by case.

Yes, but you must show real operations. Newly formed companies are commonly asked for interior and exterior office photos with signage, a map, the office lease, evidence of paid-up capital, the PP.20 VAT registration or proof of filing, and the list of insured employees. Preparing this set upfront materially reduces document rounds.

Where the work is performed remotely for employers or clients outside Thailand with no Thai-sourced income, current practice does not require a work permit, and the DTV was created for this group. The line to watch is accepting work from clients inside Thailand, which does require a permit. Also consider Thai tax residency if you spend 180 days or more in a tax year here.

It can. The settlement record is visible in the system and informs the officer's discretion on later applications. Pay the fine, amend the permit conditions so they match the actual work, keep the receipt and the amendment record for the next filing, and avoid submitting information that contradicts the earlier record.

If the freelancer performs the work inside Thailand and is paid by a Thai entity, the engaging company risks being treated as the employer, and unlicensed work is an offence for both the worker and the person who takes them on. Safer alternatives are contracting with the foreign entity the freelancer works through, or arranging a proper work permit before the engagement starts.

Yes. The work location is a condition on the permit, so file an amendment with the Department of Employment together with the updated company affidavit, the new lease and office photos. Also update the TM.30 address record, and file a new residence notification if the employee moved home, otherwise the records will conflict at renewal.

Yes. A Thai work permit is tied to the employer, the workplace and the described duties, so it does not transfer. The former employer must notify the Department of Employment within 15 days of termination, and you must apply afresh with the new employer. Because a Non-B extension based on employment can be cut short after the job ends, the two filings should be sequenced so there is no gap in status.