Foreigners who have no work permit are considered by the Kingdom of Thailand as a tourist. By law they are not allowed to work in any type of company that is within the exclusive jurisdiction of Thailand regardless of its line of business or a self-employment like virtual offices. This is because the resources and income that are being utilized are within the jurisdiction of Thailand. In effect, a foreigner who wishes to work in Thailand must have a valid document known as “Work Permit.”
A work permit is a legal document which serves as the license which allows you to perform an allowed occupation inside the Kingdom. It contains the full name of the foreigner, occupation, Name of Employer and the activities that are being performed. Its validity can be either a 6 month or 1 year depending on the documents submitted to the Ministry of Labor which must be on the jurisdiction of the office.
Before a work permit is obtained, a foreigner must obtain a Non-Immigrant Visa which can be applied through a. Conversion of Tourist Visa to Non-Immigrant Visa inside the Kingdom of Thailand or b) at the Thai Embassy in other countries. These two processes need preparation of paperwork on behalf of the employer and the foreigner’s personal data and identification.
An employer and the foreigner must provide documents to the Ministry of Labor before a work permit will be granted which generally takes 7 days to 14 days. The Ministry of Labor Office will be depending on the registered address of the Office of the employer. These documents which are enumerated below must be certified accordingly:
Upon receiving the Work Permit, a foreign employee must bring it all times, especially inside the workplace. An extension of work permit must be done at least a month before it expires. A foreigner also must keep posted on the changes of Labor Rules for work permit.
Juslaws & Consult has a special department which caters individual or company’s registration of Work Permit of their foreign employees either through conversion or application in Thailand. Our Visa and Work Permit team will assist you and your company obtain the necessary documents for application of Work Permit.
