Cabinet approves drafts to clarify rules for employing longtime resident foreignersTHE CABINET has approved in principle a ministerial regulation draft and two draft Prime Minister’s Office announcements that will be issued to clarify the Working of Alien Act BE 2551 (2008), a source said.
The ministerial regulation draft would waive a working permit fee, not including the application fee, for foreigners who had lived in Thailand for a long time and were granted special leniency to stay.
It would also include their children who were born in Thailand but did not receive Thai nationality, as well as foreigners awaiting the completion of a Thai nationality identification process.
The PM’s Office announcement drafts relate to the types of work that these three groups of foreigners could do under the Article 13 and Article 13 (2) of the Act.
The first announcement draft would allow them to work in all jobs suitable to their skills and capacity, while the second announcement draft would let Cambodian, Lao and Myanmar nationals work in their native tongues as language coordinators.
The regulations would carry a condition that the job advertisements for such positions must be open for 15 days and prioritise Thai applicants.
After this period, if no employee has been hired, the companies could hire foreigners at the ratio of one to every 100 Thai employees working at the company.
If the employers are public or state enterprise offices, foundations, or non-governmental development organisations, they will be able to hire foreigners as necessary. Employed foreigners must also undergo the required training with related state agencies, the draft specified.
The drafts were passed on to the Council of State for consideration. The Ministry of Labour was also urged by the Cabinet to heed recommendations from the Office of the Council for National Security in implementing the regulations.
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