BASIC INFORMATION
If you work in Thailand, you need to have a work permit. If you're not married to a Thai person and get your visa for work reason, your valid work permit is an especially important document. If you don't have it, they don't renew your visa. At the same time, if you don't have a valid visa, they don't renew your work permit. Sometimes how long they allow you to have the latest work permit stamp also depends on your visa expiration date.
You don't have to go to do the application by yourself. If someone is doing it for you, fill out the power of attorney form and get a 10-Baht stamp from a tax office for it.
Time frame: Your work permit can be granted for different periods of time: 1 year (expiring on the date your work contract ends), 6 months, 3 months, or even a few days (if your visa expires in a few days). You pay a different amount of money for a different amount of time granted.
RENEWAL APPLICATION PROCESS
1. Document preparation (see next section for the current list of required documents): This takes quite a while since you need documents from your workplace as well as your own, so plan well and way ahead of time.
2. Renewal application at the Office of Foreign Workers Administration: You get a number and you wait, which can take you 1 to 3 hours. The officer looks at your documents and check and stamp this and that. He/she will ask you if you want to have the work permit on that same day--say yes. Then his/her boss checks everything again and signs on the page.
3. You go write your name down in a record book and then pay a fee of 100 Baht. Then find a seat and wait.
4. An officer will call your name and tell you to go pay the amount you have to. After the payment, you take the receipt to that officer and he/she gives you your stamped work permit, and you're done!
DOCUMENTS FOR RENEWAL APPLICATION (GOVERNMENT WORKER CASE ONLY)
This year's work permit application came with new rules.1. An application form called WP. 5 or TT.5 (ตท.5). Download here. Look for the name WP.5 and click on "Fillable form."
2. Your work permit and its photocopy
3. the Employment Certification form (included in the WP.5 form file to download)
4. Your valid passport
5. Medical certificate* showing that you are not insane or mentally sick, suffer from leprosy, tuberculosis, drug addiction, alcoholism, elephantiasis and tertiary syphilis (issued within the last six
months) (Make sure the doctor knows you have to be tested for syphilis, which involves poking the tip of your finger for blood test--most other times a medical certificate only says you're free from the other five.)
6. A copy of your employer's ID card with his/her signature
7. A certificate letter from your government organization which shows your name, position, and work period
8. Cash (up to 3,000 Baht)
*If you do not have a medical certificate with you, ask the officer to let you go get it and submit it when you come back to get the renewed work permit. The easiest way is to take a motorcycle taxi to the nearest clinic. There is one called "Wate-Pracha Polyclinic" (เวชประชาโพลีคลินิก) whose doctor can get you all tested and good to go in 5 minutes. The fee is 300 Baht. The fee for a taxi bike from the work permit place to that clinic is 15 to 20 Baht.
