What do you need to know to hire in Thailand?
From 1 January 2026 the Thai social security ceiling rose to THB 17,500/month, capping each party's contribution at THB 875/month. Severance climbs by service band, from 30 days of pay under a year to 400 days at twenty years. Each guide below takes one layer.
· Thailand guide
How does Teamed handle Thai hiring for you?
Teamed becomes your legal employer of record in Thailand for from $599 per employee per month, with zero FX mark-up in any currency.
Payroll, contracts, and the full Thai employment law stack run on one platform.
Real HR and legal experts manage every Thai hire, from the first offer letter to the final settlement. An actual person, not a chatbot or a pooled queue, handles your Thai team alongside EOR, contractor onboarding, and entity payroll on one platform. There is no setup fee and no exit fee. Employer cost passes through at cost, itemised on every invoice.
A Thai contractor who converts to employment keeps their record, and that same employee can graduate from EOR to your own Thai entity without re-onboarding. Run the Crossover Calculator to see the month the model flips. EOR is the right model for a first Thai hire, until it isn't.
- Thailand raised the social security wage base on 1 January 2026. The contributory ceiling moved from 15,000 to THB 17,500/month, so each party now pays up to THB 875/month, not the old 750. Most EOR guides written before 2026 still quote the lower cap. The tax and payroll guide carries the current numbers.
- Thailand has no statutory minimum monthly wage. The floor is set per day, per province, by the Wage Committee. A national monthly figure does not exist, so any guide quoting one is guessing. The cost breakdown guide explains how to budget against the daily provincial rate instead.
- Severance here is mandatory on dismissal without cause, not a redundancy-only payment. An employee with one full year is owed 90 days of wages, rising to 400 days at twenty years. The termination guide runs every band.
Hiring in Thailand adds a employer social security charge of 5% of pay. The employee pays the same 5%.
Both sides are capped. From 1 January 2026 the wage base tops out at THB 17,500/month. That fixes each party's contribution at THB 875/month.
Payroll runs at least monthly. The employer remits social security by the 15th of the following month. There is no statutory minimum monthly wage. Thailand sets its floor by the day, by province.
Teamed runs Thai payroll, contracts, and compliance through its vetted partner-entity network. This page is the map. Each guide below is the detail.
Zero FX. No setup fees. 48-hour onboarding. The price your finance team can forecast against without an asterisk.
How much does it cost to hire an employee in Thailand in 2026?
Employer social security adds 5% of pay, capped.
From 1 January 2026 that cap is THB 875/month per employee, because the wage base now tops out at THB 17,500/month.
The headline employer cost in Thailand is the Social Security Fund contribution at 5% of monthly pay. Both the employer and the employee pay 5% each. Contributions sit on pay only up to the ceiling, which rose to THB 17,500/month on 1 January 2026, so the most either side pays is THB 875/month. Teamed's Thailand fee sits inside the total cost envelope, not outside it.
Teamed's Thailand price is a starting rate, with zero FX in any currency pairing. No setup fees. No exit fees. Salaries, taxes, and benefits passed through at cost on every invoice.
The full breakdown, with worked examples at current rates, is in the cost guide.
Do you need a Thai entity to hire employees in Thailand?
No. An Employer of Record runs Thai payroll and contracts from day one.
Your own Thai entity becomes cheaper than EOR somewhere around 5 to 8 employees, depending on salary.
Registering a Thai limited company means incorporation with the Department of Business Development, a corporate tax ID, social security registration, and work permits where foreign directors are involved. Setup runs several weeks and brings ongoing monthly filings. An Employer of Record is faster and cheaper at low headcount. Teamed runs Thai payroll, contracts, and compliance from day one.
The crossover point depends on Thai salary levels and your local accounting costs. For most professional-services roles it lands around 5 to 8 employees. The EOR vs entity guide runs those numbers.
Most EOR providers will not tell you when you have crossed it. We do, and we help you move. You progress from contractor to EOR to your own Thai entity on one platform under Teamed's Graduation Model, with tenure preserved.
What changed in Thai employment law recently?
The Social Security Fund wage base rose on 1 January 2026.
The ceiling moved from 15,000 to THB 17,500/month, lifting the maximum contribution to THB 875/month per party.
The biggest 2026 change is the Social Security Fund wage base. Under the Ministerial Regulation on the SSF wage base B.E. 2568 (2025), made under the Social Security Act B.E. 2533, the monthly ceiling rose from 15,000 to THB 17,500/month on 1 January 2026. The rate held at 5% for each party, so the maximum monthly contribution rose from 750 to THB 875/month. This first ceiling step runs to the end of 2028.
The 2019 amendment to the Labour Protection Act B.E. 2541 added a top severance band of 400 days of wages for twenty years of service, and lifted maternity leave to 98 days. The progressive income tax schedule, topping out at 35%, is unchanged for 2026. The hiring and tax guides cover each current rule in detail.
What benefits must you provide Thai employees in 2026?
The floor is 6 days of paid annual leave after one year, and at least 13 days paid public holidays.
Maternity leave is 98 days, with the employer paying wages for 45 days.
Statutory annual leave is 6 days per year once an employee completes one year of service under the Labour Protection Act B.E. 2541. Thailand also requires at least 13 days paid traditional holidays each year, Labour Day included. Many employers offer more than the floor, but the floor is the legal minimum.
Maternity leave runs to 98 days, including pregnancy-related medical visits. The employer pays wages for 45 days of that, and the Social Security Fund may cover the rest. Paid sick leave is up to 30 days per year at full wages, and a medical certificate can be required once sick leave runs past 3 days. There is no statutory paternity leave for the private sector. The benefits guide covers each entitlement in full.
Read the full Thailand benefits guide
What are payroll taxes in Thailand in 2026?
Employer social security is 5% of pay, capped at THB 875/month per employee.
Personal income tax is progressive, from 5% on the first taxable band up to 35% on income above 4,000,000 THB a year.
The employer side is the Social Security Fund contribution at 5% of monthly pay, capped at THB 875/month per employee from 1 January 2026. Employers withhold the matching employee 5% and remit both by the 15th of the following month, under the Social Security Act B.E. 2533.
Personal income tax runs on a progressive scale set by the Revenue Code. The first 150,000 THB of taxable income is exempt. The next band is taxed at 5%, and the rate climbs through the bands to 35% on income over 4,000,000 THB a year. The annual return is due by the 31 March (last day of March following the taxable year). Teamed payroll handles every deduction and remittance. The tax and payroll guide sets out each band.
How do you terminate an employee in Thailand?
Give 30 days of notice on an indefinite contract, or pay it out.
Dismissal without cause owes severance by service band, from 30 days of wages up to 400 days at twenty years.
For an indefinite contract, give at least 30 days of written notice, served on or before a pay date to take effect at the next one, or pay it out. Severance is separate from notice and is owed whenever an employer dismisses without cause under the Labour Protection Act B.E. 2541. An employee with 120 days to under a year is owed 30 days of wages.
The ladder then climbs: 90 days from one to under three years, 180 days from three to under six, 240 days from six to under ten, 300 days from ten to under twenty, and 400 days at twenty years or more. Severance for misconduct may be withheld only on the narrow grounds the Act lists. The termination guide runs the full process.
What should you know before hiring in Thailand?
Two things catch US buyers out. The first is that there is no statutory minimum monthly wage.
Thailand sets its floor by the day, by province, so budget against the daily rate, not a national salary minimum.
There is no national minimum monthly wage. The Wage Committee sets a daily minimum for each province, and those rates differ across the country. A guide that quotes a single national monthly minimum is making it up. Budget from the daily provincial rate that applies where your employee works, and the cost breakdown guide shows how.
Severance is mandatory on dismissal without cause, not a redundancy-only payment. US buyers expecting at-will exits are caught out here. An employee with one full year is already owed 90 days of wages, climbing to 400 days at twenty years. Plan the cost of any exit before you start the conversation. The hiring guide and the termination guide both cover safe process in detail.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to hire an employee in Thailand?
The headline employer cost is the Social Security Fund contribution at 5% of pay. From 1 January 2026 it is capped at THB 875/month per employee, because the wage base tops out at THB 17,500/month. Teamed's Thailand fee is one flat number per employee per month, with zero FX mark-up in any currency pairing. The cost breakdown guide has worked examples.
Can a US company hire in Thailand without an entity?
Yes. An Employer of Record like Teamed runs Thai payroll, contracts, and compliance through its vetted partner-entity network. You direct the work. Teamed becomes the legal employer of record. Setup takes 48 hours once terms are confirmed. Registering your own Thai company takes several weeks and brings ongoing monthly filings.
What is the statutory notice period in Thailand?
For an indefinite contract, give at least 30 days of written notice, served on or before a pay date to take effect at the next one. Payment in place of notice is permitted. Notice is separate from severance, which is owed on top whenever the dismissal is without cause.
What severance is owed when you dismiss an employee in Thailand?
Severance is owed on any dismissal without cause and rises by service band under the Labour Protection Act B.E. 2541. It runs 30 days of wages for 120 days to under a year, 90 days for one to under three years, 180 days for three to under six, 240 days for six to under ten, 300 days for ten to under twenty, and 400 days at twenty years or more.
What is statutory maternity leave in Thailand?
Maternity leave runs to 98 days, including pregnancy-related medical visits, under the Labour Protection Act B.E. 2541 as amended in 2019. The employer pays wages for 45 days of that, and the Social Security Fund may cover the remainder. There is no statutory paternity leave for the private sector.
What is the minimum annual leave for a Thai employee?
The minimum paid annual leave is 6 days per year once an employee completes one year of service, under the Labour Protection Act B.E. 2541. Thailand also requires at least 13 days paid traditional holidays each year, including Labour Day. Paid sick leave is up to 30 days per year at full wages.
Thailand reads as a light-touch market until the first exit. There is no minimum monthly wage and only six days of annual leave, so the floor looks low. Then severance lands: a full year of service already owes ninety days of pay, with no cause needed for it to apply. The 2026 social security ceiling change is easy to track. The severance ladder is the one that surprises new employers.
Thailand pays severance by service band on any dismissal without cause, from 90 days of wages at one year to 400 days at twenty.
There is no national minimum monthly wage to anchor to. The floor is daily and provincial.
Read the right Thailand guide before the first hire, not after the first claim.
