Thailand
The commencement of the period for starting the collection of savings and contributions to the Employee Welfare Fund
Impact date: 1 October 2025 In November 2024, Thailand issued a series of regulations implementing the Employee Welfare Fund, which was established under the Labour Protection Act B.E. 2541 (1998), effective on 1 October 2025. The Employee Welfare Fund provides financial support to employees in cases of resignation, termination (regardless of any clauses) or death.
The Employee Welfare Fund scheme will not apply if employees provide employees with a provident fund or an equivalent employee welfare fund managed by the employers.
Employer implications/action needed From 1 October 2025 onwards, employers who employ ten or more employees and who do not provide employees with a provident fund or an equivalent employee welfare fund are required to:
- Register employees with the Employee Welfare Fund
- Deduct 0.25% from the employee’s wages and remit it to the Employee Welfare Fund and
- Contribute 0.25% of the employee’s wages to the Employee Welfare Fund
The deduction of employee’s wages (item 2) and the employer’s contribution (item 3) must be made on a monthly basis and remitted to the Employee Welfare Fund by the 15th of the following month.
Employer risk Employers failing to remit the savings or contributions to the Employee Welfare Fund by the 15th of the following month shall be subject to a late payment penalty, amounting to a 5% monthly surcharge. Employers failing to submit the required forms, notify changes or provide false information shall be subject to no more than six-month imprisonment or a fine not exceeding THB 10,000 or both.
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