YOUR ULTIMATE GUIDE TO:
SETTING UP A BUSINESS IN THAILAND

If you’re an international company that wants to set up and employ individuals in Thailand, you’ll need to arrange for work permits and visas.

A reliable Employer of Record partner can provide you with the advice on the type of visa required, how to deal with immigration services when workers come to Thailand, work permit applications, employment passes and dependent passes. Your foreign workers must have the right entry, renewal, and exit forms on file with government ministries.

The ratio of Thai to foreign workers must be at least 4-to-1 or higher. So for every five employees at your company, just one can be a non-Thai citizen. Keep this in mind when your company applies for work visas for staff coming from other countries.

Another thing to note is that you can only hire a non-Thai resident when you prove that a Thai citizen cannot do the work you require. With a low unemployment rate, you’ll need to have some specialized criteria to justify hiring a foreign worker.

Getting a job in Thailand as a foreigner faces other challenges. First, each prospective employee needs a non-resident visa before they can even get a work permit. Then, once they’ve found a job, the employer has to apply for a work permit for that person and the employee must come to Thailand in person to apply for a work permit.

This takes time and money and can be a complex process. Hiring a business that specializes in Employer of Record (EOR) services for foreign companies looking to do business in Thailand allows you to shorten time frames and potential costs by leveraging their knowledge of how to effeciently navigate through the necessary processes.

Applying for Work Visas in Thailand

Workers and business owners both must begin applying for visas through a Thai consulate or embassy in their home country. Thailand has five different visa options, depending on the type of work an employee will be performing in the country.

Most foreign workers require a Non-Immigrant Category B visa to work in Thailand.

Before you apply for a work visa, you should gather these documents. You’ll need to present them to the Thai consulate or embassy in your country.

• Passport valid for 6 months into the future or longer. It must have a minimum of two blank pages to be filled out. One-year work visa applications require you to have another 18 months of validity on a passport.
• Signed and dated Thai work visa application.
• Passport-sized picture taken within the last six months. It must have a white background and a neutral facial expression showing your entire face.
• Proof of sufficient financial means to pay for your entire stay. This means 20,000 Thai baht for solo travelers ($650) and 40,000 Thai baht ($1,300) for a family for three months.
• Official police clearance certificate validated by Thai authorities.
• Letter of Approval from the Thailand Ministry of Labour. A Thai employer must apply for this at the Office of Foreign Workers Administration in the Department of Employment.

The process of getting a work visa is as follows:

• Set an appointment with the Thailand embassy or consulate in your country. Some payments or appointments can happen online.
• Prepare your visa documents as shown above.
• Submit your visa application and documents through the consulate.
• Pay for the visa fees

Non-immigrant work visas last for three months in Thailand. You’ll need to enter Thailand before it expires to apply for a work permit, so you should enter Thailand soon after approval of the work visa to give you enough time to get your permit.

Once you have secured the proper Thai work visa, you can apply for a work permit (different from a work visa) in Thailand through the Department of Employment.