hire employees in

Thailand,
made easy.

SALARY PAYMENT IN Thai baht (THB, ฿)

CONTRACT LANGUAGES Thai / English

PAYROLL TAX 5.2% – 6%

PAYROLL CYCLE Monthly

TIME TO HIRE 12 hours
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The Horizons PEO solution allows you to hire in Thailand, without setting up a costly subsidiary.

Horizons has the most fair price point for Thailand PEO on the market with zero hidden fees. Contact us for a cost breakdown

With extensive experience in the Thailand hiring market, Horizons can hire new employees in as little as 12 hours.

Horizons' HR management platform was built to easily manage Thai & international teams, based on client feedback at each step of development.

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Thailand

Hire Employees in Thailand — Overview

The Thailand: Business Environment

Recruiting employees in the Thailand

Interviewing candidates in the Thailand

Onboarding employees in the Thailand

FAQs

Hiring in Thailand, Made Easy

Client Testimonials

Simple, compliant hiring with Horizons PEO

Hire Employees in Thailand — Overview

Thailand is a country with sustained economic growth, expected to break into the ranks of “high income” countries by 2037 (according to the OECD). Its major industries include tourism, textiles and light manufacturing.

When hiring in Thailand it is important to be aware of Thai cultural practices, as well as being compliant with Thai labor and tax laws. For this reason, many companies hiring in Thailand consider engaging a global Employer of Record solution.

Facts & Stats

Population 70M (48M labor force)	Capital City Bangkok	Languages Spoken Thai (33rd worldwide)
Currency Thai Baht (THB)	GDP per capita 7,233.39 USD	Ease of Doing Business 21st in the world
Minimum Wage $261 USD/month	Average Wage $435 USD/month	Paid Leave 6 days

The Thailand: Business Environment

Business outlook in Thailand

Thailand is beautiful, prosperous, and an easy country to do business in. While affected by the pandemic — like all countries with a strong tourism sector — the economy bounced back in 2021, with a 7.4% increase in growth compared to the relevant period the year before.

Through 2022, the rebound is forecast to continue with growth of 3.0% – 3.5%. While Thailand has been affected by inflation, at around 4.5 percent the increase has been less than half the rate of most developed nations. The OECD estimates that if Thailand stays on its current growth trajectory, it will be in the group of high income nations by 2037.

Business regulation in Thailand

Over the last few years, business regulation in Thailand has gone through numerous reforms to make it quicker and easier to open a business.

Note, however, that there are still strict rules around foreign ownership of Thai companies. These rules are found within the Foreign Business Act 1999 (FBA) 1999. This is one of the reasons why it is often easier for global businesses looking at hiring in Thailand to go with an Employer of Record solution (more on this below).

When it comes to labor regulation, the key legislative instrument is the Thai Labor Protection Act (LPA). There are also more specific laws that aim to protect employees within the agricultural industry and maritime sector.

Business culture in Thailand

Thai people are extremely friendly and courteous, and these underlying traits carry over into the Thai business culture. Relatedly, it is important to engage in small talk before a meeting or business deal in Thailand, as not doing so can be considered rude in Thai business culture. Thai people value all of their business relationships very highly.

While friendly, it is worth noting that Thai culture is still relatively traditional. In the workplace, this can mean a hierarchical in structure with a significant distance between employees and executive-level roles.

Recruiting employees in the Thailand

Recruiting employees in Thailand — Overview

Thailand has a very low unemployment rate, so attracting and recruiting top talent requires competitive packages. The best way to recruit employees in Thailand as a foreign company is to use some of the most popular recruitment sites.

Some of the most popular include: jobsDB.com, jobthai.com, jobbkk.com, indeed.com, or jobth.com. Some of these fora are free, while others charge a fee.

Posting on LinkedIn is also a popular way to recruit talent in Thailand if you find it difficult to navigate through the local Thai recruitment boards.

Most important recruitment tools in Thailand

jobsDB.com
This Thai job board, by international job site congomerate, SEEK, is one of the largest online job boards across China and Southeast Asia including Thailand. In Thailand in particular, it is the most popular online job resource.

jobthai.com
This site is often ranked equally with jobsDB as the most popular online jobs board to recruit Thai employees.

th.indeed.com
Indeed is the world’s largest online job site, and also a popular site to recruit top talent in Thailand.

Interviewing candidates in the Thailand

Interviewing candidates in Thailand — Overview

The interviewing process in Thailand follows structures commonly seen across other developed nations. This can include online interviews, phone interviews or face-to-face interviews. Whatever the method, interviews should be well-structured and any information that a candidate is required to know should be indicated prior. For competitive positions in large companies, the inclusion of psychometric testing or an assignment that is relevant to the role is becoming common.

When Thai people interview, they are inherently polite so Thai candidates will not talk over or interrupt an interviewer. This means that questions should be open and direct: It is also important to give candidates enough time to answer. Due to the importance of social status which is judged by how a person dresses and acts, it is common for Thai candidates to dress formally and take interviews very seriously.

Can I ask the candidate’s previous salary in Thailand?

There are no specific laws in Thailand that regulate if you can ask a candidate about their previous salary. There are also no explicit laws that mandate for a candidate to answer this question if asked.

What is the typical salary increase at a new job in Thailand?

For those looking to move to a new job, the typical salary increase expectation varies based on the industry. The range is anywhere from a 9% increase up to a 20% increase.

Onboarding employees in the Thailand

Onboarding employees in Thailand — Overview

The expectations of the onboarding process in Thailand are similar to other nations basic requirements. It’s important to have an induction day to assimilate an employee into the new role and team, fill out any forms relevant for salary or by regulation. Any immediate training will be during this period also unless it is incorporated into the probation period. Onboarding in Thailand should only take a few days.

Best remote working tools to use in Thailand

Thailand has some of the highest internet speeds in South East Asia, so remote working tools popular all over the world are consistently utilised for remote work and hybrid working conditions. Slack, Zoom, Skype, Microsoft teams and Google suite are used throughout Thailand.

Holiday season in Thailand— 2023

There are usually 19 public holidays a year in Thailand. It is a requirement that a company allows employees to take at least 13 at minimum of these days off per year. These holidays are:

Holiday Schedule in Thailand [2023]

Thailand has a range of national public holidays that are celebrated annually. In 2023 these holidays are:

Date	Holiday name
1 Jan Sunday	New Year’s Day
2 Jan Monday	Day off for New Year’s Day
6 Mar Monday	Makha Bucha
6 Apr Thursday	Chakri Day
13 Apr to 14 Apr	Songkran
1 May Monday	Labor Day
4 May Thursday	Coronation Day
11 May Thursday	Royal Ploughing Ceremony Day (Tentative Date)
3 Jun Saturday	Visakha Bucha, Queen Suthida’s Birthday
5 Jun Monday	Day off for Visakha Bucha, Day off for Queen Suthida’s Birthday
28 Jul Friday	King Vajiralongkorn’s Birthday
1 Aug Tuesday	Buddhist Lent Day
12 Aug Saturday	The Queen’s Birthday
14 Aug Monday	Day off for The Queen’s Birthday
13 Oct Friday	Anniversary of the Death of King Bhumibol
23 Oct Monday	Chulalongkorn Day
5 Dec Tuesday	King Bhumibol’s Birthday/Father’s Day
10 Dec Sunday	Constitution Day
11 Dec Monday	Substitute Holiday for Constitution Day
31 Dec Sunday	New Year’s Eve

What is the typical salary increase employees in Thailand expect?

The typical salary increase for employees in Thailand sit at around 2.2% a year on average. This is consistently above the global average for salary increases.

FAQs

Should I hire freelancers or employees in Thailand?

Either may be appropriate, depending on the circumstances. Where there is a need for fulltime hours on an ongoing basis, hiring an employee is usually more appropriate.

Can I hire foreigners in Thailand

Thai laws provide numerous barriers for Thai companies looking to hire foreigners in Thailand. For example, for a Thai company to hire a foreigner in Thailand, they must have a ratio of 4 Thai nationals to every 1 foreign employee to meet Thai employment laws. On top of this, a company must prove they have around 30 million THB per 1 foreign employee. Another criterion is that a foreigner must hold a valid Thai working permit or residence permit.

How do I open a Thai subsidiary?

The FBA put several restrictions on what foreign entities can do in Thailand. This extends to the requirements to open either a subsidiary or branch office.

To open a foreign subsidiary in Thailand, foreign entities must fulfil the following criteria.

Two fifth of the elected board of directors must be Thai nationals
Approval of name by the Ministry of Commerce (MOC)
Completed Memorandum of Association (MOA) form
Paying a to the MOC fee in TBH
All foreign entities that want to do business in Thailand must follow the regulations set out under the FBA and seek relevant approvals from the MOC.

How do I hire employees in Thailand?

To hire employees in Thailand, you’ll need to have a legal entity such as a foreign subsidiary set up. An alternative is using a global EOR/PEO which can help support your company by taking on the administrative, legal, and human resources work when hiring employees in Thailand.

Hiring in Thailand, Made Easy

Your business can easily hire employees in Thailand without opening a local entity. We handle local employment law, complex tax regulations, and international payroll in 185 countries worldwide. All you need to do is focus on your business.

Success stories from businesses we’ve helped enter and grow in new markets.

Client Testimonials

"As a seed-stage, London-based startup, we were initially hesitant to expand internationally due to the administrative workload involved. Horizons completely took the headache out of the process, allowing us to hire a team of software engineers in Germany."

Gabor SzedlakCo-founder & COO

"I truly appreciated the thoroughness and the professionalism of Horizons personnel while we hired internationally with them. When they advised our international expansion, they spoke confidently and were knowledgable on all subject matters pertaining to international employment."

Gary PaskyVice President of Software Development

"On deciding to begin commercial activities in Asia Pacific, we needed a provider to handle the employment and remuneration of our workforce. With Horizons the result was fast, efficient, and fit-for-purpose. We recommend Horizons as an EOR provider.”

Chris MorrellManaging Director

"The collaboration with the Horizons team is excellent. Both our local employee as well as our HQ in Germany are more than pleased with the support provided and the simplicity of the service. We can highly recommend the Horizons solution to anyone."

Christoph EngelbertCo-Founder & CTO

"We needed an EOR that could provide expert support for payroll in APAC. We are pleased with Horizons’ expertise and the fact that they are flexible, responsive, and easily accessible from Belgium. They were able to provide services within the short timeline we required."

Katia FlamandHuman Resources

Horizons has been very effective in providing our company support in all the administrative procedures, sometimes complex, required by the Singaporean administration.

Gerald iannoneSales Director

Horizons’ team provided a superb service from start to finish, making a complex process a simple one. Everything was taken care of in an efficient and accurate manner, with quick communication whenever required. Highly recommended and would use again in the future if the need arises.

Philipp RinbergerManaging Director

hire employees in

Thailand, made easy.

Simple, compliant hiring with Horizons PEO

Hire Employees in Thailand — Overview

Facts & Stats

The Thailand: Business Environment

Business outlook in Thailand

Business regulation in Thailand

Business culture in Thailand

Recruiting employees in the Thailand

Recruiting employees in Thailand — Overview

Most important recruitment tools in Thailand

Interviewing candidates in the Thailand

Interviewing candidates in Thailand — Overview

Can I ask the candidate’s previous salary in Thailand?

What is the typical salary increase at a new job in Thailand?

Onboarding employees in the Thailand

Onboarding employees in Thailand — Overview

Best remote working tools to use in Thailand

Holiday season in Thailand— 2023

What is the typical salary increase employees in Thailand expect?

FAQs

Hiring in Thailand, Made Easy

Success stories from businesses we’ve helped enter and grow in new markets.

Client Testimonials

Hire Anywhere. Today.

Thailand,
made easy.