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Mandatory Minimum Wages for Foreigners Working in Thailand

Transcript of the above video:

In this video today we're going to be discussing the mandatory statutorily prescribed minimum wages associated with foreigners here in the Kingdom of Thailand.

What are we talking about? Well basically a foreign National wishing to live and work in the Kingdom needs to obtain a business Visa and/ or a work permit. I say “and/or”,I should actually say "and"; they basically should be going hand-in-hand. In order to undertake any type of employment like endeavor in the Kingdom, and I use that phrase specifically, “employment like endeavor” in the Kingdom, one must have a work permit. I state that because even volunteer activities have been have been construed to require a work permit, it's just the way the officials here in the Kingdom, it's just the way they take their perspective on that issue and that's the stand they take even if you are not necessarily working for monetary remuneration you need to maintain a work permit in the Kingdom. For this reason I bring up the mandatory minimum wages. There are, and it goes by nationality, there are mandatory minimum wages that have to be paid to workers of a given nationality within the Kingdom. Now, as an American it's always been my experience that it's is 50000 baht a month for Americans but it does vary. It's my understanding there are a few nationalities that require a little bit higher wage than that and there are a number of nationalities that only require less of a wage than that. That being said, the so-called commonwealth countries in the Anglo sphere as well as the EU countries, the European Union countries, it's been my experience that almost all of them operate on a Bt 50,000 a month statutory minimum. That being said people sometimes at first question that and say, “well the Thai minimum wages is so much lower why do they require the foreigner minimum wage to be so much higher?” Well the foreigner’s minimum wage puts foreigners on paper for sure, without doubt, in a high enough tax bracket that the Thai government is immediately taking tax revenue in the form of income tax from those folks who are operating with a work permit in the Kingdom. So this is something to keep in mind with respect to, with respect to those who want to come to Thailand to get a work permit and remain is that there is a statutory prescribed minimum wage in the Kingdom, it is somewhat dependent upon one's nationality and it's there for the purpose of making sure that those foreign Nationals are paying into the tax system here in the Kingdom of Thailand.