Is It A Must To Have 4 Thai Employees To 1 Wp?

[Zen]

My company has less than 4 Thai employees....can i still apply for the work permit?

[Indo-Siam]

Since late 2002, the WP office has not asked anything about Thai employees. You do not need any Thai employees to obtain a work permit. The company sponsoring your WP must have 2,000,000 baht REGISTERED capital (or - if you are married to a Thai - 1,000,000 baht registered capital) to be eligibleto sponsor your WP.

If you are not married to a Thai, and do not have four Thai employees, you will not be able to get an extended entry permit - this is an Immigration Department requirement for an extension based upon "qualifying employment for a qualified employer". Without such an extension, your work permit will only be valid until your 90 day entry permit expires. You will have to depart Thailand, and reenter with a valid non-immigrant visa, prior to the expiration of your work permit. With a fresh 90 day entry permit, you can then revalidate your work permit for another 90 days.

Good luck!

Steve Sykes

Managing Director

Indo-Siam Group

Bangkok

[email protected]

www.thaistartup.com

Skype: sykesbkk

[Zen]

Since late 2002, the WP office has not asked anything about Thai employees.  You do not need any Thai employees to obtain a work permit.  The company sponsoring your WP must have 2,000,000 baht REGISTERED capital (or - if you are married to a Thai - 1,000,000 baht registered capital) to be eligibleto sponsor your WP.

If you are not married to a Thai, and do not have four Thai employees, you will not be able to get an extended entry permit - this is an Immigration Department requirement for an extension based upon "qualifying employment for a qualified employer".  Without such an extension, your work permit will only be valid until your 90 day entry permit expires.  You will have to depart Thailand, and reenter with a valid non-immigrant visa, prior to the expiration of your work permit.  With a fresh 90 day entry permit, you can then revalidate your work permit for another 90 days.

Good luck!

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Thank you for the reply. So let's say i manage to get my "short term work permit", having to fly in and out of thailand every 90 days...will i still be able to apply for an Import Permit? Normally the import permit will be vaild for how long? One year?

[Sunbelt Asia]

Spot on Steve.

You would not believe how many clients of ours that have been told their company needed 4 Thais employed to get a work permit, I even hear the number 7 employees tossed around. When told the correct number is zero, most people are shocked.

By the way, if you have an extension of stay based on education( or marriage as you pointed out), and you have the work permit. The work permit will be valid however long that visa is ( up to a year) in this case no need even for a 90- day visa run and the minimum of 4 Thais employed by your employer are not required as well.

www.sunbeltasia.com

www.lawyer.th.com

www.property.th.com

[Sunbelt Asia]

So let's say i manage to get my "short term work permit", having to fly in and out of thailand every 90 days...will i still be able to apply for an Import Permit?

Yes

Normally the import permit will be vaild for how long? One year?

Three years

www.sunbeltasia.com

www.lawyer.th.com

www.property.th.com

[Zen]

Thanks alot guys

[Indo-Siam]

Greg -

My work permit booklet dates from May 2002, and it has a typed in section on one page that specifies that I must have four Thai employees to keep my work permit valid. So - people that have work permits from that time or earlier are probably reporting what they believe - from first hand experience - to be true. As I now have ten Thai employees, I do not know if the entry in my work permit booklet is still enforced - but there it sits.

Cheers!

Steve

Indo-Siam

[Sunbelt Asia]

Steve,

Similar to the tax clearance certificate you used to have to get if you stayed more than 90 days. You still see it posted but as we both know, it’s an obsolete law.

Regards

Greg

Greg -

My work permit booklet dates from May 2002, and it has a typed in section on one page that specifies that I must have four Thai employees to keep my work permit valid.  So - people that have work permits from that time or earlier are probably reporting what they believe - from first hand experience - to be true.  As I now have ten Thai employees, I do not know if the entry in my work permit booklet is still enforced - but there it sits.

Cheers!

Steve

Indo-Siam

[bukmba]

You only need 4 Thai Employees if you want to get a 1 year Visa based on your work permit.

If you don't have them, you won't get it and need to stay on 90 days Visa.

By the way, just have been told by an Immigration officer that they will start to visit the companies to check whether 4 Thai employees are real in the office or only real on the paper.

[Sunbelt Asia]

By the way, just have been told by an Immigration officer that they will start to visit the companies to check whether 4 Thai employees are real in the office or only real on the paper.

" Will start" They have been doing that for over a year now. If the employees are not in the office. they have several hours to show up.

www.sunbeltasia.com