Rules When Hiring Foreign Talent Under BOI Promotion

Since 1 January 2026, every BOI-promoted company hiring or renewing foreign employees must pass three tests. Salaries must run through the Thai payroll and appear in withholding filings, they must meet minimum monthly levels set by position, and manufacturers with more than 100 staff must keep at least 70% of the workforce Thai. A file that fails any of the three cannot be placed or renewed.

Salaries Must Show in Thai Payroll Filings

Income is tested through evidence. A new placement is approved on the employment contract. A renewal is approved on withholding filings, either the annual P.N.D.1 Kor or at least the past three months of monthly P.N.D.1 where the person has held the position for under a year. Salary paid offshore never appears in those filings, so in practice the qualifying salary must run through the Thai company's payroll.

Income paid by an overseas parent or an authorised affiliate can still count where it is declared in the employee's Thai P.N.D.90 or 91 return and certified in writing by a director of the promoted company. Withholding returns no longer need Revenue Department certification. Since April 2026, plain copies are accepted where the cover page, the employee's name page, and the payment receipt page show the same tax reference number.

Minimum Salaries Run From THB 35,000 to THB 150,000 a Month

Each position level carries a minimum average monthly income alongside age and experience tests.

• Executive level (Chairman, CEO, CFO, Managing Director). THB 150,000, minimum age 27, five years of experience. Chairman, President, CEO, and Managing Director skip the age and experience tests but not the income floor.

• Management level (Factory Manager, Assistant Managing Director). THB 75,000, or THB 50,000 with a bachelor's degree or higher. Minimum age 27, five years of direct experience.

• Operation level (Production Supervisor, Data Analyst, Marketing Consultant). THB 50,000, minimum age 22, two years of direct experience with related qualifications or five years without.

• Engineers, IT specialists, and researchers. THB 75,000, or THB 50,000 with a bachelor's degree or higher in the directly related field. Experience tests run from two years with a degree to ten years without one for engineers.

• Workstation operators in TISO activities within the IBPO scope and in BPO. THB 35,000, minimum age 22, and a relevant training certificate, with numbers capped by the workstations in the promotion certificate.

  
  

Levels follow the actual title and scope of work, so a Production Manager cannot be filed at operation level to reach a lower floor. Bonuses and allowances count only where the contract states them as a monetary amount, and an internal promotion or a substantive change of role requires a fresh placement application under the new level's criteria.

Manufacturers Above 100 Staff Need a 70% Thai Workforce

Manufacturing companies with more than 100 total employees must keep Thai nationals at 70% or more of the workforce. Positions are approved and renewed only within that ratio and within the position cap the BOI sets for each project. Smaller manufacturers and service activities are exempt, and manufacturing projects of significant importance can ask the Board to waive the ratio case by case.

The count runs off filings rather than the organisation chart. Thai personnel are full-time employees registered for social security with contributions paid. The foreign side counts personnel approved under manufacturing certificates in the Single Window system, excluding stays of six months or less, MOU workers, and foreigners under service-project certificates. A ratio below 70% blocks all placements and renewals until updated social security evidence shows compliance, and after full operation approval the company must reduce foreign nationals in operation-level roles to a level the BOI considers appropriate.

Assignments of Six Months or Less Are Exempt

Positions approved for a stay of up to six months are exempt from both the ratio and the income floors, which keeps commissioning engineers, trainers, and troubleshooters outside the framework. Standard positions run for up to two years at a time, TISO, BPO, and IBPO positions for one year, and IBC, ITC, IHQ, R&D, targeted technology, electronic design, and research positions for up to four years. The Secretary General can also relax the criteria case by case where valid justifications exist.

What to Do Before the Next Renewal

• Audit expat payroll now. Check each foreign employee against the level threshold, confirm the salary runs through the Thai entity, and close any gap months ahead so the filings show compliant numbers at submission.

• Run the ratio before requesting positions. Large manufacturers should reconcile the social security headcount against the approved position list quarterly, because a ratio below 70% blocks the file.

• File social security evidence on schedule. Companies with 30 or fewer foreign personnel on BOI privileges refile annually, the December wage form by the end of February. Manufacturers with more than 30 refile quarterly with the latest month's form. A form older than three months freezes all applications.

• Prepare renewal documents early. Since 28 July 2026 the entire work permit process runs through the e-WorkPermit platform, with manual filing accepted only on proof of system failure.

  
  

BizWings Thailand runs payroll, withholding filings, and social security compliance for promoted companies and supports BOI position requests and renewals end to end. To put expat payroll on a compliant footing before your next renewal, see our payroll and visa services or reach the team at contact@bizwings.co.

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