Good day,

I have no idea how to solve this one but here goes! I had an employee that worked at my last company, he left last year in July,  he was on BOI visa and work permit. After leaving his employer he mistakenly thought that the visa stamp in his passport was good for him to stay until it expires in August this year, he hasn’t been working since. He is highly skilled and I want to employ him again in my new company. We thought his last employer hadn’t cancelled his visa with work as he never submitted his passport to cancel the visa and he has been able to do 90 day reports with no issue. We have just contacted his old employer today to ask them to cancel the visa and they did it last August. We were all set up today to cancel the old work permit and visa and change to our company today. I am aware he will be on a large overstay. He had no idea he had done something wrong, one of the most genuine and nicest people you could meet, if he flies out now will he get fined and will he be able to come back and do the non immigrant visa again? What are his options? 
I really need to employ him as he is mega specialized and great at what he does…

any advice greatly received 

If his previous employer did not formally cancel his extension and work permit if they would give him a termination letter dated for the same day he applies for a new extension it should not be a problem. 

Since he has been doing 90 day reports it appears immigration has no record of him quitting his job.

He could leave the country without a problem since immigrations records will show his extension is valid.

Thank you UbonJoe, the last employer says they cancelled it and have the paperwork although it was not processed in his passport as cancelled. He has also done his 90 day reports religiously with no issue, even the lawyer we have working on it thinks once we go to immigration we will have an issue 

Short of paying a huge bribe, leaving the country before his immigration record reveals the overstay is necessary and urgent. Unless this is done, blacklisting resulting from the long overstay becomes inevitable.

 

It should then be possible for your prospective employee to arrange to re-enter Thailand as a tourist with no drastic immigration consequences from the overstay. However, the failure to formally cancel his previous work extension is going to complicate the process of applying for a new work permit and visa.  Bribes will probably be necessary, but should not be too painful.

something that MAY help motivate his previous employer to just write a termination letter dated for contract termination (assuming it hasn't passed) is the fact that the labor dept (IF the WP hasn't been officially canceled) will (can) levi a fine against said employer up to around 20,000 TBH for not canceling the wp on time.