Hello guys,

I am currently director of 1 company, and I d like to be director of a second one ?

I heard that to be director of the second one I need a work permit in this company.

Can I get 2 employers on my current work permit ?

Or

Can I get 2 different work permit ? Add a second one ?

I did not find any answer to my problem ?

Thanks for your help

Coco

You don't need a work permit to be a director unless you actively involved in operating the company and/or sign certain paperwork.

It is possible to add another place of work to a work permit if it is within the same province and you have permission from the company that sponsored the work permit. If not a new work permit is required.

Work permits require 4 Thai employees.

There is section in the back of your work permit to add additional jobs and/or places of work with the employer, on the conditions mentioned by Ubonjoe. The second company needs to meet the necessary conditions to employ a foreigner, i.e. 4 Thai staff etc. Actually there only a few situations where you need a WP to be director, although legally it is required. Some government depts may want to see the WP of a director who signs as an authorised signatory, although the basic ones for filing annual returns in the past didn't ask for this (this may have changed since I did it years ago).

One situation where having no WP as a director can land you in hot water is the case where you apply for permanent residence. I know two people whose applications were rejected for this and I don't think they were even authorised signatories. Both were advised by Immigration to withdraw their applications before they went the next stage where the Labour Ministry would scrutinise them and insist on prosecution. They were welcome to reapply after fixing the problem but both lost heart as it had taken them about 3 years to get to that stage and neither was sure he could pass the Thai language test anyway.

As Ubonjoe already confirmed you do not need a work permit to be a director.

I am a shareholder in 2 Thai companies but only come for the AGM and overlook the P/L statements.

being a director on the board implies responsibilities in Thailand that can have serious consequences, this is why you can take a course as Director to know your potential liability. (re: http://www.thai-iod.com/en/index.asp)

Being a Director might not require a WP, however, attending board meetings, signing documents, sitting in a board roam or meeting room requires a work permit, this is where it becomes tricky and in Thailand, requirement is all left to the appreciation of the officer who interrogates you.

Obtaining a work permit for a second company, when you already have one, is a very simple matter, worth the trouble considering the alternatives...

The traditional requirements might not be applicable, ie

• if you are resident, capital required is halved
• Some NGO have no requirement for capital or staff
• BOI companies have no requirement for capital or Thai staff number
• Association also are different
• Chamber of Commerce have limited requirement and are very easy to satisfy

It all depends on what your second company does/is and in my opinion, it is important you get one.

I have witnessed 2 overseas directors from a large European based multinational I was working for being expelled from Thailand after spending a day at the SuanPlu detention center (they were lucky they could leave on an evening flight or they were jailed overnight), all this just for sitting in a board room attending a simple meeting when the labor dept came in... They only had a tourist visa and it went very nasty and costly...

Overseas Director temporarily attending business meetings is also required to have a temp work permit, quite easy to process but REQUIRED before entering the country and attending the meeting.

oz