Employer of record in Thailand: costs, rules and how to hire

Two of the rows below are new this year and one arrives next month, so a quote written earlier in 2026 may already be describing a different country.

Check these points before signing

Ask the provider to answer each of these against the actual role and location.

Understand the dates behind the figures

We check selected sources monthly and review relevant changes before updating the guide, and fact notes show the source, review date and applicable period. A successful website fetch does not verify the law. This guide distinguishes the April to June 2026 salary survey, the current social security ceiling and the welfare contribution scheduled for October. Failed checks and unresolved changes require further review.

Thailand recognises more contract forms than most countries do, which is a reason to write the terms down rather than a reason to relax about them.

Agree terms before the employee starts

The Labour Protection Act recognises written, oral, express and implied employment contracts. For an EOR hire, agree written terms covering the legal employer, duties, location, start date, contract duration, probation, hours, pay, payday, leave, benefits, confidentiality and exit process. Give the employee terms they understand, and check any work rules or collective agreement as well as the individual contract.

An indefinite contract continues until it is lawfully ended. A fixed-term contract reaches its agreed end without the advance notice required for indefinite employment, but that does not automatically remove severance. The two-year condition belongs to a narrow severance exception for specified project, occasional or seasonal work, and it is not a general maximum duration for every fixed-term contract.

Probation is the place where a familiar number misleads people. The Act treats a probationary contract as an indefinite employment contract for notice purposes, and the commonly used 119-day probation period relates to statutory severance starting at 120 days rather than to any statutory maximum for probation. State the assessment period and process in the contract, and check notice, final pay and any applicable severance before ending employment.

Check status and future employer changes

The Act defines an employee as someone who agrees to work for an employer in return for wages, regardless of the name used, so calling an employee a freelancer resolves nothing. Review the duties, supervision, working pattern and payment arrangement. A contractor arrangement should reflect an independent service, while an ongoing employee role needs the appropriate employment setup.

A change of employer resulting from a transfer, registration change or merger requires the affected employee's consent under section 13. The new employer takes over the employee's existing rights and the corresponding duties. If you may move an EOR hire to your own entity, agree how consent, service history, leave, benefits and records will transfer before you sign the service contract.

Cover remote work and ownership of work

The 2023 amendment allows suitable work to be performed at home or another location through an agreement recorded in writing or accessible electronic form. Set the term, working hours, breaks, overtime, leave, supervision, equipment and necessary expenses. After agreed normal or assigned working hours, the employee has a right to decline work communications unless prior written consent provides otherwise, and remote employees retain the same employment protection.

Ownership of work splits in two directions here. Employee-created copyright normally belongs to the author unless otherwise agreed in writing, while the employer has the statutory right to communicate the work for the employment purpose, and copyright assignments need signatures and a clear duration because an unspecified duration defaults to ten years. Employment inventions run the other way: the right to apply for a patent normally belongs to the employer unless the contract provides otherwise, and the employee's statutory remuneration right cannot be waived. Make the employee to EOR to client arrangements explicit.

Misclassification risk, and the statutory definition

Thailand's definition is short and it disposes of the label directly. The Labour Protection Act defines an employee as someone who agrees to work for an employer in return for wages, regardless of the name used, so calling an employee a freelancer does not resolve the question. Source: the approved Thai contractor-status guidance, Labour Protection Act via mol.go.th, checked 18 September 2026.

"Regardless of the name used" is the operative phrase, and it means the analysis starts with the duties, the supervision, the working pattern and the payment arrangement rather than with the contract. A contractor arrangement should reflect an independent service; an ongoing employee role needs the appropriate employment setup. Source: the approved Thai contractor-status guidance, checked 18 September 2026.

What a hirer does about it: decide on the duties and the supervision before the engagement, and remember that in Thailand the cost of a finding includes the severance steps the person would have accrued, which on a multi-year arrangement is the largest single number on the page. That is the reason to fix a doubtful arrangement early rather than to let it run.

Employer contributions in Thailand are capped low enough that the whole social security cost stops at THB 875 a month, which is the figure most people find surprising when they come from Europe.

Prepare for the October welfare contribution

The government's current timetable starts Employee Welfare Fund contributions on 1 October 2026. The initial rate is 0.25% of wages from the employer and 0.25% from the employee, through September 2031. Coverage targets establishments with at least 10 employees, subject to exemptions for qualifying provident-fund or other approved welfare arrangements, so ask the EOR how membership and any exemption apply to your employee. This contribution has not started as of 14 September 2026.

The Department of Labour Protection and Welfare says its Employee Welfare Fund e-Service opens on 15 September 2026 for advance registration before the 1 October contribution start. The steps include an account, PIN, employee membership list and registration certificate. Confirm the employing entity's obligations and the employee's coverage with the provider before the first affected payroll.

Example: a THB 50,000 gross monthly salary

This example assumes a covered section 33 employee, the 2026 contribution ceiling and no other benefits.

For a covered employee on THB 50,000 gross monthly wages, standard employer social security is capped at THB 875, giving THB 50,875 before other costs. If the Employee Welfare Fund applies from October 2026 to the full THB 50,000 wage, add THB 125, giving THB 51,000. Both figures exclude the employer's workers' compensation assessment, extra benefits, possible exit costs, equipment and EOR fees, and employee deductions do not reduce the agreed gross salary cost.

Calculate tax on net taxable income

Personal income tax runs on a progressive scale after deductions, so the marginal rate says little about the bill.

The standard scale exempts the first THB 150,000 of annual net taxable income, then applies 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 30% and 35% to successive bands, with the 35% rate starting above THB 5 million. These are marginal rates on income after applicable deductions and allowances rather than one rate on the full salary. As an illustration, THB 500,000 of annual net taxable income produces THB 27,500 of tax under this scale.

Employment income qualifies for an expense deduction of 50%, capped at THB 100,000 for the combined section 40(1) and 40(2) income categories, and the personal allowance is THB 60,000. Other allowances depend on the employee's circumstances and evidence. Ask payroll for a calculation that separates gross pay, taxable benefits, allowable deductions, annual tax and monthly withholding.

Thailand treats a person present for 180 days or more in a tax year as resident for income-tax purposes. Residence is only part of the payroll assessment, because where duties are performed, the payment arrangement and any applicable tax treaty all matter. Do not assume that staying fewer than 180 days makes Thai employment income tax-free, or that an EOR removes your business's tax obligations.

Complete registration and remittances

For covered employment, the employer must register a new employee with the Social Security Office within 30 days of the start date. The provider should also handle workers' compensation registration and record changes or the employee's departure using the applicable forms. Ask for confirmation that registration is complete and that the employee can access their benefits.

Employers must remit social security contributions and the required return by the 15th of the following month. For payroll withholding, the Revenue Department requires electronic submission channels under its current rules, and its September 2026 calendar sets 15 September for online PND 1 and other listed withholding returns. Have the provider track the applicable filing route, holiday adjustments and current calendar each month.

Check immigration before work starts

A foreign national taking employment generally needs the appropriate immigration status and work permission. Under the standard Non-Immigrant B route, a visa alone does not permit work, because the work permit must be granted before work begins. Have the provider check the occupation, employing entity, nationality and any special route or exemption, and remember that an EOR contract cannot guarantee approval.

Expect the employment visa process to require a passport, photograph, employer letter, company documents and work-permit approval or the applicable BOI documentation, with requirements differing by consular post and immigration route. The Kuala Lumpur employment checklist, for example, asks for company registration showing at least THB 2 million capital. Do not turn a particular route's capital or staffing condition into a universal promise about every EOR hire.

The Department of Employment launched its e-WorkPermit service nationally on 13 October 2025 for foreign-worker applications and related services. The EOR should identify the current system and process for the employee's category, track the application and retain the approval. Filing online does not replace a grant of permission or mean that work can start while an application is pending.

Thailand has a Destination Thailand Visa for eligible workcation and other specified activities, and the Taipei office's September 2026 guidance lists digital nomads, remote workers and freelancers, with evidence of the overseas work or professional activity. It describes five-year visa validity and stays of up to 180 days per entry. Do not assume the DTV permits employment by a Thai EOR, and assess local employment under the applicable visa and work-permit rules.

Handle suspensions, workplace moves and restructuring

Four separate procedures sit here, and they are easy to confuse with one another.

An employer can suspend an employee during an investigation only where the work rules or employment-conditions agreement authorise it. Give a written order stating the allegation and a period of no more than seven days, and pay at least 50% of normal wages during that period. If the employee is found not guilty, the Act requires the balance of wages plus the specified 15% annual interest.

Where a necessary business interruption other than force majeure meets section 75, the employer must pay at least 75% of normal wages while it does not require employees to work. Written notice to employees and the labour inspector is required at least three working days before the suspension. This rule is separate from the seven-day disciplinary-investigation suspension.

A covered workplace relocation requires a visible announcement at least 30 days in advance identifying the affected employees, location and date. An employee whose normal life or family life is substantially affected can give written notice within the statutory 30-day window and qualify for special severance at least equal to the ordinary severance entitlement. Failure to announce the move can create an additional 30-day payment, and covered relocation payments are due within seven days after the contract ends.

Where a qualifying machinery or technology change reduces staff, section 121 requires at least 60 days' notice to the labour inspector and affected employees. Failure to give the employee that notice creates a special 60-day payment in addition to ordinary severance. Employees with more than six years' continuous service can also qualify for special severance of 15 days per completed year, capped at 360 days, with the Act's rule for a remaining period over 180 days.

Thailand's wage floor is a daily rate that varies by place and by business category, so the first payroll question is where the person actually works.

Choose the correct minimum-wage rate

Notification 14 sets daily minimum wages from THB 337 to THB 400, effective 1 July 2025. The applicable rate depends on the location and covered business. Bangkok is THB 400, the same rate applies in specified provinces and Koh Samui, and it also applies to designated hotel and service-establishment businesses nationwide. Confirm the work location and category before converting a daily floor into an employment offer.

Mueang Chiang Mai and Hat Yai are THB 380. Nakhon Pathom, Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Samut Prakan and Samut Sakhon are THB 372. Narathiwat, Pattani and Yala are THB 337. Covered hotel categories 2 to 4 and Service Establishment Act businesses have a nationwide THB 400 floor, and that category does not mean every service-sector employer.

Use salary averages as a starting point

The National Statistical Office reports mean monthly employee wages of THB 15,853 for April to June 2026. The private-sector mean is THB 14,533 nationwide and THB 19,049 in Bangkok. These are survey averages across jobs rather than a current quote for a particular occupation or an employee's take-home pay, and the gap between the national and Bangkok figures is the reason to benchmark the role, experience and location before setting an offer.

Agree payday and extra benefits

Wages calculated by month, day, hour or a period no longer than a month generally must be paid at least once a month, unless a more favourable arrangement is agreed. Overtime and holiday payments are also due at least monthly. Put the payday and payroll cutoff in writing, and note that tax and social security remittance deadlines are separate from the employee's payday.

List any bonus, private health insurance, provident-fund contribution, allowances and extra leave in the offer. Ask which amounts are guaranteed, which depend on stated conditions and how they are treated in payroll and at exit. Do not assume a provider quote includes a thirteenth-month payment or a particular bonus, because existing work rules, collective terms and contractual commitments need to be checked.

Statutory annual leave is thin at 6 working days, and the holiday calendar does most of the work instead, with at least 13 traditional holidays a year.

Make the leave policy clear

The family-leave rows below changed in December 2025 and are the ones most likely to be out of date in an older policy document.

Annual leave, holidays and illness

An employee who completes one uninterrupted year is entitled to at least 6 paid working days of annual leave. The employer sets the dates in advance or agrees them with the employee, and before one year the employer may grant leave proportionately. Unused leave can be carried forward by prior agreement, the contract can provide a higher entitlement, and annual leave is separate from traditional holidays.

Employers must announce at least 13 traditional holidays each year, including National Labour Day, selected with reference to official, religious or local traditional holidays. When one falls on an employee's weekly rest day, the following working day is generally the substitute holiday. Check the employer's calendar and sector exceptions, because every government office closure is not automatically a private-sector holiday.

Employees can take sick leave for actual illness, with employer-paid wages for up to 30 working days per year. For an absence of three days or more, the employer may request the specified medical certificate, and the Act provides for an explanation when the employee cannot produce one. Occupational injury and maternity leave are treated separately, and the 30-day pay limit is not a rule that genuine illness must end after 30 days.

Employees have a statutory right to at least 3 working days each year for necessary personal business, and the employer must pay ordinary wages for up to 3 working days under this provision. Agree the request process in the work rules and check any more favourable contractual entitlement. This paid minimum was added in 2019.

Maternity and family leave

From 7 December 2025, an employee is entitled to up to 120 days of maternity leave per pregnancy, with the employer paying normal wages for up to 60 days. The leave includes pregnancy examinations and holidays within the leave period. Check any separate Social Security Office benefit eligibility, and do not assume that the employer or social security automatically pays normal wages throughout all 120 days.

After taking maternity leave, an employee can take up to 15 further continuous days to care for a child with illness risking complications, an abnormality or a disability. A medical certificate is required and the employer pays 50% of wages for this additional leave. This is the specific additional entitlement introduced by Amendment 9 rather than a general right to years of paid parental leave.

An employee can take up to 15 days to assist a spouse who has given birth, requesting the leave before or on the day it is taken, within 90 days of the birth, with the employer paying normal wages for up to 15 days. This private-sector entitlement took effect on 7 December 2025. Ask the provider to include the notice and supporting-document process in the leave policy.

Other leave and extra benefits

The Act provides paid sterilisation leave for the medically certified period and paid qualifying military-service leave for up to 60 days per year. It also provides training or skills-development leave under ministerial rules, where pay is not automatically required on the same basis as sick leave. Agree extra bereavement or other leave benefits in the employment terms instead of treating them as universal statutory allowances.