Thailand's sex trade remains illegal, but its presence is highly visible from Soi Cowboy in Bangkok's Sukhumvit area to Pattaya's Walking Street, where nightlife businesses continue to draw visitors from around the world.
The issue has again come under scrutiny following the case of an Australian man who murdered a 17-year-old Thai teenager, putting the safety of sex workers and Thailand's night-time economy in the spotlight.
A large and visible informal economy
Thailand has long been linked with sex tourism, particularly in Pattaya, despite tourism authorities repeatedly distancing themselves from that market as they promote the country as a premium destination for higher-spending travellers.
Surang Janyam, director of the Service Workers in Group Foundation, known as Swing, said the country has more than 200,000 sex workers. The majority are in Bangkok and Pattaya, she said.
Swing is a non-profit organisation which promotes equal rights and provides education and healthcare for service workers. Ms Surang said the industry did not slow down after the pandemic, even though many entertainment venues shut their doors.
Some workers moved from venues to freelance work advertised through social media platforms, she said. Swing has also observed that the workforce is becoming more diverse in gender, reflecting changing demand.
Pattaya is estimated to be home to more than 50,000 sex workers. The scale of its night-time economy is believed to generate between 100 billion and 200 billion baht each year, with Walking Street widely seen as the centre of the city's sex industry.
"Sex workers are part of the tourism sector. They provide services to tourists, who also travel to other parts of the city and take part in a range of other activities," Ms Surang said.
Thanet Supornsahasrungsi, president of the Association of the Chonburi Tourism Federation, said tourism operators were trying to market Pattaya as a family-oriented destination, but could not deny the existence of sex work.
He said some entertainment venues and massage parlours were known to covertly offer sexual services. That grey area, he argued, creates opportunities for officials to demand bribes or extort money from workers.
Arrests fall as calls for reform grow
Royal Thai Police data show that 19,648 people were arrested for offences under the prostitution law in 2023, down from 38,139 arrests in 2022.
Ms Surang said the illegal status of sex work leaves workers effectively outside the formal employment system and wider economy, without meaningful power to negotiate their livelihoods.
"The law treats them merely as objects rather than human beings entitled to certain rights," she said.
She said Thailand's reputation as being open to foreign tourists was reflected in abuse and crimes against sex workers reported in the media. Swing works with workers who have been assaulted or abused by clients, helping them coordinate with police to seek arrests and prosecutions.
The foundation helped the family of a transgender woman who was murdered and mutilated to coordinate the case through to trial and an order for compensation. It also assisted the family of the teenager murdered by the Australian man.
Ms Surang said police had become more aware of issues affecting sex workers and their broader social impact. Officers were now less likely to view workers purely as criminals or pursue excessive or exaggerated charges against them, she said.
Swing regularly brings police officers and sex workers together in Pattaya workshops intended to improve understanding and reduce conflict.
Under the 2022 Act on the Imposition of Regulatory Fines, offences under Section 5 of the prostitution law are punishable only by fines and are no longer treated as criminal offences. Authority to impose the fines was transferred from police to officials under the Social Development and Human Security Ministry.
In many cases, Ms Surang said, workers may be ordered to perform community service rather than serve a prison sentence.
Zoning proposal divides campaigners
Swing wants the 1996 law abolished, decriminalising sex work for people aged 18 and over. Ms Surang said this would allow workers to receive labour protection, join the social security system, access welfare and pay taxes.
She argued that stronger state oversight would also help reduce crimes against sex workers. However, Swing said a major challenge after decriminalisation would be training law enforcement and administrative officials to work under a new system.
"Decriminalising sex work does not necessarily mean that more people will choose to enter the profession," Ms Surang said, adding that anti-human-trafficking laws could still be enforced to protect minors and people coerced into sex work.
While waiting for the law to be repealed, Swing is seeking a ministerial regulation guaranteeing fair wages, social welfare and labour rights for workers.
Mr Thanet instead proposed a designated red-light district with zoning and regulated oversight, similar to systems in other countries. He said this would limit the effect on visitors who do not want to encounter such activity, while improving safety and Pattaya's wider brand image.
Ms Surang disagreed, saying a restricted zone could increase bribery and corruption if uncertainty remained over services outside the approved area.
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11 August 2026
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