Who does what
The arrangement splits one job across several parties, and most mistakes come from assuming that the split also moves the cost or the risk. It moves the paperwork. The table shows where each duty lands.
Employer of record (Thai company)
Signs the contract, pays net salary, withholds income tax and files PND.1, registers the worker and remits social security, issues a tax invoice to the client.
Client business
Directs the work, approves the monthly payroll figures, pays the invoice on time, and books the cost correctly in its own accounts.
Worker
Receives the payslip and the annual withholding certificate, and keeps any other Thai-source income reported if it is outside the payroll.
Immigration and legal side
Work permit and visa for a foreign worker are applied for separately and are not part of the accounting service.
What stays with you after you sign
- Severance. Dismissal pay under the Labour Protection Act is still triggered by the worker's length of service, and the provider will recharge it. Build it into your cost view from the first month rather than at exit.
- Equal treatment. A labour-supply structure that pays a worker less than your own staff doing the same work can be challenged under the Labour Protection Act. Compare pay and welfare before you agree the package.
- Thai-source income. Wages for work done in Thailand are assessable in Thailand wherever the payer sits. If the employer is a foreign entity without Thai registration, the worker may have to file personally.
- Permanent-establishment questions. Staff in Thailand who negotiate or conclude contracts for a foreign company can create taxable presence for that company. A treaty may change the answer, so this is assessed on the facts, not assumed away.
- Your own books. The client still has to record labour cost, accruals and the invoice in the right period, and the VAT treatment on the invoice must be settled before the first filing.
Employer of record or your own Thai company
| Topic | Employer of record | Own Thai company |
|---|---|---|
| Legal employer | The provider | Your own Thai company |
| Payroll tax and social security filings | Made by the provider under its own registrations | Made by your company, or by us on its behalf |
| Cost shape | Salary cost plus a fee on top, billed monthly | Salary cost plus the running cost of the company (bookkeeping, annual accounts, audit) |
| Contracts with Thai customers and a Thai bank account | Not provided by the arrangement | Available because the company exists |
| Time to start | Depends on the provider's onboarding | Depends on registration steps and the bank's own checks |
| Exit | Contract notice and the severance rules still apply to the worker | Close or keep the company, with its own closing steps |
A short pilot with one or two hires often suits an employer of record. A permanent team, a need to invoice Thai customers or a plan to apply for BOI promotion points towards company registration, with payroll handled through outsourced payroll. Foreign-owned businesses can read the wider picture on the foreign business accounting hub.
How we help on the accounting side
We read the employer-of-record contract and the first invoice for the tax and bookkeeping points, set up the ledger accounts for pass-through payroll and fees, check how the invoice is built for VAT and withholding, and reconcile each month against the provider's statement. If you employ through your own Thai company instead, we run the payroll cycle, the PND.1 and social security filings and the posting directly. Work permits, visas and employment disputes belong to the law practice at tla.co.th and are referred there.
Frequently asked questions
What is an employer of record in Thailand?
An employer of record is a company that becomes the legal employer of a worker on behalf of another business. It signs the employment contract, runs payroll, withholds personal income tax, registers the worker with the Social Security Office and issues an invoice to the client. The client keeps directing the daily work. Thai law does not give the arrangement its own tax category, so the usual employment, tax and social security rules apply to whoever is the employer.
Does using an employer of record remove my Thai tax or labour exposure?
It moves the filing duties to the employer of record but not the economics. Salary, social security and severance are still paid for by the client through the invoice. A worker who sits in Thailand also keeps earning Thai-source employment income, and the Labour Protection Act can look through a labour-supply structure when the worker's pay and welfare fall below those of the client's own staff.
Who withholds personal income tax on the salary?
The employer withholds monthly and files with form PND.1. If the employer is a Thai company, that is the employer of record. If the employer is a foreign entity with no Thai registration, nobody in Thailand withholds, and the worker may have to report the income personally after year-end, so this route should be checked before the first payday.
How are the employer of record's invoices booked?
Split each invoice into the pass-through payroll cost and the service fee, and book both against labour cost in the period they relate to. Input VAT is only claimable on a proper tax invoice that carries the particulars Thai rules require, so ask the provider to show the fee and the reimbursed cost as separate lines. Whether the reimbursed salary sits inside the VAT base depends on how the contract is built, which is one of the points we read before posting.
Is withholding tax due on what I pay the employer of record?
A Thai service provider usually has withholding applied to the fee element, and the invoice structure decides whether the pass-through salary is treated the same way. A foreign provider can trigger reverse-charge VAT filed on form P.P.36 for services used in Thailand, and may bring income-tax withholding (form PND.54) depending on where the work is done and which tax treaty applies. We map the payment first, then set the filing.
Do you arrange work permits and visas?
No. Work permit and visa applications are immigration and legal work handled by the separate law practice at tla.co.th. We pick up after approval: payroll set-up, withholding for the foreign employee, social security status and the books.
Can your team act as the employer of record?
This page explains the arrangement and the accounting around it. Whether a particular engagement is one we take on is confirmed by our staff when you send the details, so please do not assume it before you have a written answer.
When is setting up a Thai company better than an employer of record?
Once headcount is steady, the fee on top of payroll cost becomes a recurring premium for services you could run yourself. A Thai company also gives you a contracting party for customers, a bank account and the ability to hold a work permit for foreign staff. The trade-off is registration, annual accounts, audit, and the administrative load, so the decision is usually about how long you expect to stay and how many people you will hire.
Social security bases, contribution rates and filing deadlines are set by announcements and change from time to time. Confirm the figures for your payroll month with the Revenue Department and the Social Security Office. This page is general information and not advice on a specific case.
แหล่งอ้างอิงที่ตรวจสอบได้
ทุกข้อความในหน้านี้อิงตัวบทและเอกสารของหน่วยงานที่ออกกฎเอง ลิงก์ด้านล่างเปิดไปยังเว็บไซต์ต้นทางโดยตรง หากตัวบทมีการแก้ไข ให้ยึดฉบับที่ประกาศในราชกิจจานุเบกษาเป็นสำคัญ
1. พระราชบัญญัติ
พระราชบัญญัติคุ้มครองแรงงาน พ.ศ. 2541กระทรวงแรงงาน
ค่าจ้าง ค่าล่วงเวลา วันหยุด ค่าชดเชยเลิกจ้าง และหน้าที่นายจ้างที่กระทบการคำนวณเงินเดือน
2. พระราชบัญญัติ
พระราชบัญญัติประกันสังคม พ.ศ. 2533สำนักงานประกันสังคม
การขึ้นทะเบียนนายจ้างและผู้ประกันตน ฐานค่าจ้าง อัตราเงินสมทบ กำหนดนำส่ง และสิทธิประโยชน์เจ็ดกรณี
3. พระราชบัญญัติ
สำนักงานประกันสังคม: บทแก้ไขมาตรา 34 และ 47สำนักงานประกันสังคม
ขึ้นทะเบียนภายใน 30 วันเมื่อลูกจ้างเป็นผู้ประกันตน และนำส่งเงินสมทบภายในวันที่ 15 เดือนถัดไป; ตรวจฐาน อัตราและประกาศเฉพาะงวดแยก
4. ประมวลกฎหมาย
ประมวลรัษฎากร: มาตรา 50, 50 ทวิ และหน้าที่รายงานเงินได้กรมสรรพากร
แยกการหักภาษี หนังสือรับรองและรายการนำส่ง; 50 ทวิกรณีมาตรา 50(1) ออกภายใน 15 กุมภาพันธ์ปีถัดไป หรือหนึ่งเดือนหลังออกจากงานระหว่างปี
5. ประมวลกฎหมาย
ประมวลรัษฎากร มาตรา 86/4: รายการใบกำกับภาษีกรมสรรพากร
รายการอย่างน้อยในใบกำกับภาษี และประกาศเกี่ยวกับข้อความเพิ่มเติม; แยกการมีเอกสารจากสิทธิใช้ภาษีซื้อ
6. ประมวลกฎหมาย
ประมวลรัษฎากร มาตรา 82/5: ภาษีซื้อต้องห้ามกรมสรรพากร
ตรวจกรณีไม่มีใบกำกับภาษี สาระสำคัญไม่ครบ รายจ่ายไม่เกี่ยวกิจการและค่ารับรอง พร้อมเงื่อนไขประกาศที่อ้างในตัวบท
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