What is included in outsourced payroll in Thailand?

A full monthly cycle: gross-to-net calculation for each employee, statutory withholding on employment income remitted with form PND.1 by the 7th of the following month (the 15th when filed online), the social security contribution schedule and payment by the 15th, provident fund splits where a fund exists, individual payslips, a payroll journal posted into the ledger, and the annual PND.1 Kor summary plus the employee's 50 Tavi withholding certificate.

How is the social security contribution calculated?

Contributions are a percentage of monthly wages applied to a capped wage band, matched by employer and employee, and remitted to the Social Security Office with the monthly schedule. Because both the rate and the wage cap have been changed by ministerial announcement more than once, we apply the rate in force for the payroll month and state it on the payroll report rather than quoting a figure that may be superseded. Confirm the current rate with the Social Security Office before budgeting a full year.

How is personal income tax withheld from Thai salaries?

Employers withhold monthly under a projected annual method: the expected full-year employment income is reduced by the standard expense deduction and the employee's declared allowances, the progressive personal income tax scale is applied, and the resulting annual tax is spread across the remaining pay periods. When an employee joins mid-year, changes allowances, or receives a bonus, the projection is recalculated so the December payroll does not carry a large correction.

What do you need from us to run the first payroll?

The employee list with ID or passport number, start date, salary, position and bank account; signed employment contracts; the social security registration number and each employee's registration status; declared allowance forms for tax; provident fund rules if applicable; and the current payroll register if you are transferring from another provider or from in-house processing mid-year.

Can you take over payroll in the middle of a tax year?

Yes. The critical step is importing year-to-date gross pay, tax withheld and social security paid per employee, because the withholding projection for the rest of the year is built on those cumulative figures. Without them the remaining months are calculated from a false base and the annual reconciliation produces a surprise for every employee.

How do you keep salary data confidential?

Payroll files are exchanged through a restricted channel rather than open email threads, access is limited to the assigned payroll staff and the reviewing accountant, and payslips are distributed individually. Personal data handling follows Thailand's Personal Data Protection Act, and the scope of processing is written into the engagement rather than left implied.

Do you handle foreign employees and work permits?

Payroll for foreign employees is handled the same way, including withholding on their employment income and social security where they are covered. Work permit and visa applications are an immigration matter handled separately; employment disputes and contract litigation belong to the law practice at tla.co.th, not to this accounting firm.

What does payroll outsourcing cost?

We quote per engagement rather than publishing a rate, because the drivers are headcount, pay frequency, the number of variable elements such as overtime, commission and per-diem, whether a provident fund is in place, and whether reporting is needed in English as well as Thai. Send your headcount and a sample month and you get a written fee.

Payroll desk

Payroll outsourcing in Thailand

One monthly cycle covering gross-to-net calculation, payslips, PND.1 withholding, the social security schedule, provident fund splits and the payroll journal into your ledger — with reporting available in English. Filings go to the Thai authorities in Thai; your reports and answers come back in your language. Fees are quoted after we see headcount and pay structure.

Ask for a payroll quote contact@thailaw-accounting.co.th

Phone +66-94-895-8999 · LINE and email accepted in English.

What the monthly payroll service covers

Payroll in Thailand is three deadlines stacked on one calculation: withholding remittance, social security payment and the internal pay date. Outsourcing works when all three are owned by the same team that posts the cost into your accounts.

Gross-to-net calculation

Base salary, overtime, allowances, commission, deductions and one-off payments processed into a net figure per employee, with the calculation shown so an employee query can be answered from the register.

PND.1 withholding filing

Monthly employment-income withholding prepared and filed, with the projection method applied consistently so annual reconciliation matches what was withheld.

Social security schedule

Monthly contribution schedule, new-hire registration and leaver notification to the Social Security Office, and the payment reference for treasury to settle before the deadline.

Payslips and employee queries

Individual payslips issued each cycle in Thai or bilingual format, plus a defined channel for employee questions so HR is not translating tax calculations.

Payroll journal into the ledger

The payroll cost is posted into the accounting records in the same month, so labour cost in management reports matches what was actually paid.

Year-end payroll reporting

Annual PND.1 Kor summary, the 50 Tavi certificate for each employee, and the reconciliation between total payroll cost, tax withheld and social security remitted.

The monthly cycle, step by step

1. Cut-off and variable input
An agreed cut-off date each month for overtime, commission, unpaid leave, new hires and leavers. Everything after the cut-off moves to the next cycle so the calculation is not reopened after approval.
2. Calculation and approval file
We return a payroll register showing each employee's gross, withholding, social security and net. You approve it before any payment or filing is made, which is the point where a wrong salary change is caught cheaply.
3. Payment instruction and payslips
A bank upload file for the net pay run, and individual payslips distributed to employees on the pay date.
4. Statutory filing and remittance
PND.1 withholding filed and paid, social security schedule submitted and paid, both before their monthly deadlines, with filing receipts returned to you.
5. Posting and reporting
The payroll journal is posted to the ledger in the same period, and the English management summary shows labour cost against the prior month.

Contribution rates, wage caps and filing deadlines are set by announcement and do change. Verify the figures applying to your payroll month with the Revenue Department and the Social Security Office, or ask us to confirm them in writing for your case.

When outsourcing is worth it

Small teams with no HR function

Under about twenty employees, running payroll in-house usually means one person holding both the calculation and the deadlines, with no backup during leave. Outsourcing removes the single point of failure.

Foreign-owned companies reporting to head office

Head office needs labour cost in a comparable format each month. We produce the Thai statutory output and the English management view from the same register, so the two never disagree.

Companies with variable pay

Overtime, service charge, commission and per-diem each behave differently for tax and social security. Getting the treatment wrong is only visible at year-end reconciliation, when correcting it costs more.

Growth from a handful of staff to headcount

Registration of new employees with the Social Security Office, leaver notifications and withholding projections for mid-year joiners are routine when someone owns them and error-prone when they are ad hoc.

Payroll usually sits alongside monthly bookkeeping and tax filing — see the English-speaking accounting desk, monthly bookkeeping, tax filing services or all accounting services.

Payroll questions we are asked most

What is included in outsourced payroll in Thailand?: A full monthly cycle: gross-to-net calculation for each employee, statutory withholding on employment income remitted with form PND.1 by the 7th of the following month (the 15th when filed online), the social security contribution schedule and payment by the 15th, provident fund splits where a fund exists, individual payslips, a payroll journal posted into the ledger, and the annual PND.1 Kor summary plus the employee's 50 Tavi withholding certificate.
How is the social security contribution calculated?: Contributions are a percentage of monthly wages applied to a capped wage band, matched by employer and employee, and remitted to the Social Security Office with the monthly schedule. Because both the rate and the wage cap have been changed by ministerial announcement more than once, we apply the rate in force for the payroll month and state it on the payroll report rather than quoting a figure that may be superseded. Confirm the current rate with the Social Security Office before budgeting a full year.
How is personal income tax withheld from Thai salaries?: Employers withhold monthly under a projected annual method: the expected full-year employment income is reduced by the standard expense deduction and the employee's declared allowances, the progressive personal income tax scale is applied, and the resulting annual tax is spread across the remaining pay periods. When an employee joins mid-year, changes allowances, or receives a bonus, the projection is recalculated so the December payroll does not carry a large correction.
What do you need from us to run the first payroll?: The employee list with ID or passport number, start date, salary, position and bank account; signed employment contracts; the social security registration number and each employee's registration status; declared allowance forms for tax; provident fund rules if applicable; and the current payroll register if you are transferring from another provider or from in-house processing mid-year.
Can you take over payroll in the middle of a tax year?: Yes. The critical step is importing year-to-date gross pay, tax withheld and social security paid per employee, because the withholding projection for the rest of the year is built on those cumulative figures. Without them the remaining months are calculated from a false base and the annual reconciliation produces a surprise for every employee.
How do you keep salary data confidential?: Payroll files are exchanged through a restricted channel rather than open email threads, access is limited to the assigned payroll staff and the reviewing accountant, and payslips are distributed individually. Personal data handling follows Thailand's Personal Data Protection Act, and the scope of processing is written into the engagement rather than left implied.
Do you handle foreign employees and work permits?: Payroll for foreign employees is handled the same way, including withholding on their employment income and social security where they are covered. Work permit and visa applications are an immigration matter handled separately; employment disputes and contract litigation belong to the law practice at tla.co.th, not to this accounting firm.
What does payroll outsourcing cost?: We quote per engagement rather than publishing a rate, because the drivers are headcount, pay frequency, the number of variable elements such as overtime, commission and per-diem, whether a provident fund is in place, and whether reporting is needed in English as well as Thai. Send your headcount and a sample month and you get a written fee.