Thailand's Justice Ministry is drafting tougher rules that would require prisoners sentenced to death or life imprisonment to spend far longer in jail before they can be considered for prisoner-classification upgrades, parole or other sentence-reduction benefits.
Under the draft regulation, death-row prisoners would need to serve at least 25 years before being considered for a classification upgrade. Those serving life sentences would have to complete at least 20 years, from reports on Sunday 23 August 2026, citing a senior Justice Ministry source
The proposal follows public scrutiny of the release of former drug kingpin Laota Saenlee. His life sentence was reduced through a series of royal pardons and he was released after serving a little over nine years in prison.
New minimum terms for serious offenders
The Justice Ministry source said the proposed minimum periods are intended as a public-safety measure, ensuring people convicted of the most serious crimes remain in prison for substantial periods before becoming eligible for sentence reductions or parole.
A government working group is reviewing the proposal as part of a wider examination of criminal-sentence enforcement and ways to prevent repeat offending. Officials say the framework would set clearer minimum prison terms for serious offenders and help strengthen public confidence in the justice system.
At its first meeting on Friday, the group examined prison policies in several countries. Data presented to the panel showed that serious offenders in Thailand can currently become eligible for certain benefits after an average of eight to 15 years.
The comparative figures were about 20 to 25 years in the United States, 15 to 30 years in the United Kingdom and 15 years in Germany.
Cases covered by the proposed rules
The proposed restrictions would also cover corruption, political and national-security cases where courts impose death or life sentences. Prisoners in those cases would be classified in the highest-risk category and could not be considered for advancement, sentence reductions or parole until they had served the new minimum term.
Less serious offenders would remain under the current regulations.
The draft additionally sets minimum terms for serious multi-count convictions under Section 91 of the Criminal Code. Prisoners would have to serve at least five years where combined sentences are up to 10 years, 10 years for combined sentences of up to 20 years, and 20 years for combined sentences of up to 50 years.
The working group is due to meet again on Monday 24 August 2026, before submitting the draft to the Corrections Committee for approval.
Picture courtesy of Daily News
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24 August 2026
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