What should an Employment Agreement include under Thai law?

1. Definitions and Interpretation
2. Employment, Position and Duties
3. Changes to Duties, Position and Place of Work
4. Probation
5. Salary, Benefits and Deductions
6. Working Hours, Overtime and Holidays
7. Leave
8. Work Permit and Visa
9. Confidentiality
10. Intellectual Property
11. Personal Data
12. Restrictions after Employment
13. Termination of Employment
14. Notices
15. Governing Law and Disputes
16. General

• No stamp duty is payable on this Agreement. An employment contract is not an instrument listed in the Stamp Duty Schedule of the Thai Revenue Code. This is different from a contract with a freelancer or contractor, which is usually a hire of work and does carry stamp duty.
• If someone signs for the Employer under a power of attorney, the power of attorney itself carries stamp duty of 10 THB for a single act or 30 THB for more than one act (Instrument 7).

• This is an employment contract under section 575 of the Civil and Commercial Code, so the Labour Protection Act B.E. 2541 (1998) applies in full. A term that gives the Employee less than that Act is replaced by the statutory standard (Clause 16.1), and a court may limit any term or work rule that gives the Employer an unfair advantage to what is fair (Labour Protection Act, section 14/1).
• The detailed rules on maximum working hours, overtime rates, holidays, leave and the minimum wage are in the Labour Protection Act and in notifications that change from time to time. That is why the Agreement refers to "not less than the Act requires" instead of fixing numbers that may go out of date.
• An employer with 10 or more employees must have work rules in Thai and make them available to staff. Keep them consistent with this Agreement.

• Salary is income under section 40(1) of the Revenue Code. The Employer must withhold personal income tax from each salary payment and file the monthly return. Ask your accountant or the Revenue Department how to calculate the monthly amount.
• The Employer must register the Employee with the Social Security Office within the required time and pay both the employer's and the Employee's contributions each month (Clause 5.3). This applies to foreign employees as well.
• An employment contract is outside the scope of VAT.

• Probation is not a separate kind of contract. Under section 17 of the Labour Protection Act, a probationary contract counts as a contract for an indefinite period, so the Employer must give notice (Clause 13.1) or pay in lieu of notice (Clause 13.2) to end it.
• Severance pay starts once the Employee has worked continuously for 120 days (section 118(1)). What counts is the date the termination takes effect, not the date of the notice.
• Example: salary is paid on the 25th of each month and the Start Date is 1 March, so day 120 falls on 28 June. A notice given on 25 May takes effect on 25 June, before day 120, and no severance is due. A notice given on 26 May takes effect only on 25 July, after day 120, and severance of at least 30 days' wages is then due. With a probation period of … days, plan the assessment so that any notice can be given on a pay day that falls at least one full pay period before day 120.
• Do not rely on payment in lieu of notice to get round the 120-day line without taking advice.

Continuous service	Severance of at least
120 days to less than 1 year	30 days' wages
1 year to less than 3 years	90 days' wages
3 years to less than 6 years	180 days' wages
6 years to less than 10 years	240 days' wages
10 years to less than 20 years	300 days' wages
20 years or more	400 days' wages

• These amounts come from section 118 of the Labour Protection Act and are calculated at the last rate of wages.
• Retirement is a termination for severance purposes (section 118/1). If the retirement age in Clause 13.5 is above 60, an Employee aged 60 or over may still choose to retire by telling the Employer, with effect 30 days later, and receives severance.
• Severance may be withheld only for the six grounds in Clause 13.4, which follow section 119. The Employer must state the facts in the termination letter or tell the Employee at the time of termination; a ground not stated cannot be raised later.
• Keep written warnings. A warning is effective for no more than one year from the date of the breach.
• Unpaid wages, pay in lieu of notice and severance carry interest of 15% per year if paid late, and a wilful failure to pay for more than 7 days adds a surcharge of 15% of the unpaid amount every 7 days (section 9).

• The Employer may not reduce the Employee's position, rank, salary or benefits without written consent (Clause 3.2). Ask the Employee to sign a short written consent for any change of that kind.
• If the Employer moves its establishment to a new location, it must post a notice at the workplace at least 30 days in advance. An Employee whose normal life is seriously affected may refuse to move by written notice within 30 days and receive special severance at least equal to normal severance (section 120).

• The Employee may start work only after the work permit is issued (Clause 8.1). Working, or allowing someone to work, without a valid permit is an offence under Thai law for both the Employer and the Employee.
• The Employee usually needs a non-immigrant visa that allows employment before the work permit can be issued. Companies promoted by the Board of Investment may use a different, faster channel. Check the current requirements with the Department of Employment and the Immigration Bureau before fixing the Start Date.
• The Employee must report to immigration every 90 days while staying in Thailand, and must keep the passport valid. The Employer must notify the authorities when the employment ends.
• If the permit cannot be renewed, ending the employment is still a termination by the Employer: give notice or pay in lieu, and pay severance (Clause 8.6).

• Under section 9 of the Copyright Act, copyright in a work that an employee creates in the course of employment belongs to the employee unless they agree otherwise in writing. Clause 10 is that written agreement. A transfer of copyright must be in writing and signed by both parties (section 17), which is why both Parties must sign this Agreement.
• Clause 10.2 deals with moral rights (section 18): the Employee agrees not to use them against the Employer's normal use of the work.

• Give the Employee a privacy notice explaining what personal data you collect and why. Health data, criminal records and biometric data (such as fingerprints for time clocks) are sensitive data and need explicit consent or another legal basis (Personal Data Protection Act, sections 24 and 26).

• A restriction on working for a competitor is not void, but a Thai court enforces it only as far as it is fair and reasonable (Unfair Contract Terms Act, section 5; Labour Protection Act, section 14/1). The court looks at the area, the length of time and whether the Employee can still earn a living. Keep the field and area in Clause 12.1 as narrow as your real business need.

• Give a termination or resignation notice as a signed letter, and send a copy by email as well, so there is no argument that the notice was not "in writing".
• Count the notice from pay day to pay day (Clause 13.1). Notice given after a pay day takes effect only on the pay day after the next one.
• On the last day, give the Employee the final payslip, the withholding tax certificate and, if asked, the certificate of employment (Clause 13.6).

• Make two originals, or sign electronically, and give the Employee a complete copy with both Schedules on the day of signing.
• Keep a copy of the Employee's ID card or passport, visa and work permit, and of the Employer's company affidavit showing the signatory's authority.
• If the Employee does not read English well, explain the Agreement or provide a Thai translation (Clause 16.8), and keep a record that you did so.

• Employment disputes go to the Labour Court. The court works in Thai, so a Party relying on this Agreement or on English emails must file a certified Thai translation. Budget for this cost.
• The Employee may also complain to a labour inspector, who can order payment of wages and severance without a court case.

Compiled from the notes that accompany the English contract templates on this site, published by Phuwara Krobtaku (ภูวรา ครอบตะคุ), Thai attorney-at-law, licence no. 477/2558. The short answer and summary at the top of this page are put together by the site from the template's clause headings and notes. Statutes are quoted only in the official Thai text: Thai is the only official language of Thai legislation, and an unofficial translation can mislead. Article registry OKC-D92130. If you reuse this content, please credit the author and link to the original.