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You are here: Home / Work & Money / Doing Business Vs. Working in Thailand: Key Differences & Visa Requirements

Doing Business Vs. Working in Thailand: Key Differences & Visa Requirements

There's often some confusion regarding conducting business in Thailand versus working in Thailand.

For example…

What visa would you require if you were coming to Thailand to meet with export companies?

What if you were visiting a Bangkok-based branch of the company you work for?

Or what if you were coming to Thailand to start a job?

It's actually pretty simple…

Doing Business in Thailand

Although doing business and working in Thailand are two different things, they actually require the same visa route: the Non Immigrant B Visa.

Let's first look at doing business.

If you want to come to Thailand to do any of the following, you need a visa:

  • Visit companies for business meetings
  • Attend seminars or trade shows with a view to doing business
  • Invest in or conduct business with a company

B Visa Categories

There are different categories under the B visa, a couple of which are quite similar.

  1. Intending to conduct business in Thailand “B”
  2. Intending to work in Thailand (you have a job offer and will secure a work permit once you arrive)  “B”
  3. Intending to invest in or conduct business “B-A” 
  4. Will work on investment projects under the Board of Investment of Thailand (BOI). “IB” 
  5. Teaching “B” (Teaching) 

For now, let's concern ourselves with the first in the category list: those intending to conduct business in Thailand.

Your first question might be: how does this differ from the third type of B Visa on the list, which is to invest or conduct business.

Whether you are issued a standard B visa or the “B-A” (Business Approved Visa)  will be determined by the embassy or Consulate you apply at.

The latter gives you 1-year stay in Thailand upon entry, whereas the former gives you either single entry, with a 90-day stay; or a multiple entry (leave every 90 days), with a 1-year validity.

B Visa Requirements

Along with the usual passport, photographs, and evidence of adequate finance (20,000 Baht per person), you'll need some documentation from the company you intend to do business with.

Of course, depending on your intention this could take on a number of formats. Here's the official list

  • Documents showing correspondence with business partners in Thailand.
  • Evidence of financial status in the case where the applicant is self-employed
  • Letter of invitation from trading or associated partners/companies in Thailand.
  • Corporate documents of associated partners/companies in Thailand such as:
    1) business registration and business license
    2) list of shareholders
    3) company profile
    4) details of business operation
    5) map indicating location of the company
    6) balance sheet, statement of Income Tax and Business Tax (Por Ngor Dor 50 and Por Ngor Dor 30) of the latest year
    7)  value-added tax registration (Por Por 20)

You won't need to provide all of these documents because the majority of them won't apply to every circumstance.

For example: if you have been invited to a trade show and you have a number of meetings set up with potential clients, you would probably just need a letter of invitation from the trade show or one of those clients, and perhaps a copy of the business registration and business licence documents of one of the clients you have a meeting set up with.

It's easy enough to provide details of the business operation, and a map indicating the location of the trade show.

If you are visiting a business in Thailand and you're worried about asking for a copy of their business registration and business licence; don't be: Thai companies are used to having to provide these documents for various accountability reasons.

How Easy Is It to Get a B Visa?

As you can imagine, there are people visiting Thailand every day on business trips, so it's pretty straight-forward to get a visa for this purpose.

To give you a real life example: A few years back, a friend of mine was doing some business with a tile-making company in Bangkok. He came to visit Thailand for a combined holiday and business trip.

While he was here he met up with the company director a number of times and schmoozed over drinks and a trip to the casinos in Cambodia.

To get the visa he gave relevant information on his own company and the company that he was visiting. It was issued with no drama.

Working in Thailand

Physically living in Thailand and working a job is a different thing to doing business in Thailand (meetings, sourcing, seminars and trade shows). If your intention is to come to Thailand to work, then you most likely have a job lined up already.

Perhaps you have agreed a job in principle with an employer and you are set to move to Thailand.

In this case, you would get a B Visa from your local embassy or consulate, and then when you get to Thailand your employer will help you get your work permit so that you can start work.

If you are already in Thailand and get offered a job, you will need to go to a neighbouring country to a get a B visa. Only then can you come back to Thailand and set about getting a work permit to start that job.

To get the B visa, you'll need a bunch of documents from your prospective employer, including a letter of approval from the Ministry of Labour. To obtain this letter, your prospective employer is required to submit Form WP3 at the Office of Foreign Workers Administration.

You can see a full list of the requirements here:

For the record: If you are coming to Thailand to do a job search, for example you want to come for two weeks and do some research on companies and potentially where you might be able to get a job, you probably don't need to apply for a B Visa. You can just come on a tourist visa or enter on an exemption stamp.

The reason for this is that there is no guarantee that you are actually going to sit down and have any meetings with any companies or that you will be doing any business at all. It may just be that you get off the plane and spend 13 days partying and one day popping into an agency to ask about jobs.

You wouldn't be able to provide any official information on who you were meeting, so you probably wouldn't be issued a visa just for a job search.

Note that you can't get a B Visa and start working in Thailand. You always need the work permit. The B Visa is a route to getting a work permit.

Neither can you set up your own business and start trading from Thailand.

For example, no visa will give you permission to start living in Thailand, sourcing products from Thai companies and shipping them abroad. This would be considered working in Thailand. This would technically require you to set up a company.

However, in the case that  you have a company registered in your home country, and that is where you pay tax, you could argue that this is “conducting business in Thailand” and therefore carry this out under a B Visa. In this case, you would apply for a B visa using information from one of your intended suppliers.

That being said, there are lots of people who do this sort thing and don't have any sort of visa. Why?  Because setting up a Thai company is quite difficult and the requirements do not really suit a foreign one-man band type of operation.

Indeed, a number of lawyers would probably tell you – off the record – that if you are freelancing in some way it is better just to be discreet about what you are doing and go about your business, particularly if your tax liability is held in your home country.

That being said, always seek proper legal advice on these matters.

How Much Does a Non-Immigrant B Visa Cost?

The cost of a single-entry visa is 2,000 Baht, three-month validity, and 5,000 Baht for multiple entries with a one-year validity.

——–

That's all you need to know about B visas, except for teaching of course.

If you you want the full lowdown on teaching in Thailand and what that entails in terms of visa arrangements, you should read the following post.

=> A guide to teaching in Thailand

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Comments Sort by : newest | oldest

  1. wider says

    November 15, 2019 at 9:29 am

    Hi TTL,

    My job requires me to make monthly visits to Thailand branch for about 1 week/visit. Would having Non-Immigrant Visa Category “B” legally allow me to make these visits? or do i need to have work permit as well?

    Thanks
    Reply

    Nov 15, 2019 at 9:29 am

    • TheThailandLife says

      November 16, 2019 at 6:17 pm

      Yes it would. Most people don't bother, not if it's just for a very short period. They just enter on the tourist stamp for 30 days. But legally you should have that visa, particularly if you are conducting meetings or seeing clients. Your company should arrange this for you.
      Reply

      Nov 16, 2019 at 6:17 pm

      • Wider says

        November 21, 2019 at 1:13 pm

        Yes, company is arranging it for me now. However im not sure if i have to apply for work permit as well?
        Reply

        Nov 21, 2019 at 1:13 pm

        • TheThailandLife says

          November 22, 2019 at 7:36 pm

          Not if you are just visiting.
          Reply

          Nov 22, 2019 at 7:36 pm

          • Wider says

            November 28, 2019 at 11:01 am

            What if after i was granted the multiple entry Non Immigrant B visa for business meetings, i had to work full time in Thailand? Is it possible to just apply for work permit on my current Visa? Or do i need to apply a new single entry Non Immigrant B Visa?
            Thanks again for your answer.
            Reply

            Nov 28, 2019 at 11:01 am

            • James E says

              November 29, 2019 at 12:09 am

              The B visa is the basis for the work permit. The work permit is something arranged by your company.
              Reply

              Nov 29, 2019 at 12:09 am

              • wider says

                December 6, 2019 at 2:20 pm

                i was under the impression that there are 2 types of non immigrant B visa, the 3 months single entry visa for foreigners who wish to work in Thailand (which must be added with work permit) and the 1 year multiple entry visa which is intended for business meetings.
                i wanted to confirm if the 1 year multiple entry visa can also be added with the work permit
                Reply

                Dec 06, 2019 at 2:20 pm

                • James E says

                  December 21, 2019 at 12:21 am

                  It's the same visa, only difference is if you're allowed multiple entries under it or not. The work permit is subsequent to the B visa. Check your home countries Thai Embassy website for the details and differences in documents required for a "Business" B visa and a "Working" B visa.
                  Reply

                  Dec 21, 2019 at 12:21 am

  2. Juergen H says

    October 16, 2019 at 2:06 pm

    Hi, I am a German citizen with US residency who is a self employed contractor in the United States. One of my clients has a Thai location and I have been sent a letter by them for a 5 day job inspecting machinery.
    I do not have a business visa and am unable to get one in the short amount of time prior to the start of the job.
    I was looking into an 'Emergency Visa' but the Thai company doesn't seem to know about those.
    The entire 'hurry and get a visa' thing has been time consuming and appears impossible.
    What I am wondering, is there an expedited way to get the B visa and then work permit? And, if not, is there any other way for me to approach this.

    Thank you
    Reply

    Oct 16, 2019 at 2:06 pm

    • James E says

      October 16, 2019 at 5:34 pm

      "B" visa, yes. Work permit, no. You can visit a Thai consulate or the Embassy and get your visa processed in 5 days (according to the embassy website). The work permit takes place in Thailand and will be processed by the company on your behalf. It'll take some time. Your best bet is to get the B visa in person and state the reason for the visit is a meeting with the Thai based staff of your client (you'll need a letter from your client to that effect). But...If this is just a few day job, you could always go in under a visa waiver as a tourist. It's not strictly legal (by any definition) but happens frequently enough.
      Reply

      Oct 16, 2019 at 5:34 pm

      • Juergen H says

        October 16, 2019 at 7:12 pm

        Thank you for the information.

        Sounds like to obtain the B visa alone would probably take longer than I will even be there. I would be going Oct. 26th(on a weekend)...work 5 business days and then leave.
        Reply

        Oct 16, 2019 at 7:12 pm

  3. Justin says

    October 9, 2019 at 7:39 pm

    Hi, Thank you for all this wonderful insight. I’m researching the purchase of a coffee farm in Thailand and adding a roastery to it. It would include the purchase of the land and the business. I’m just beginning my research of starting a business there, but curious Are the Visa requirements to come and assess the property, potentially purchase the property, and stay 9 months a year to run the business?

    Best wishes
    Reply

    Oct 09, 2019 at 7:39 pm

    • James E says

      October 9, 2019 at 8:19 pm

      A couple of things. First - you can't own land in Thailand without jumping through some serious hoops. Your company can but your company will have to be 51% or more Thai owned in most cases. Plus, in a lot of cases, the land may be in some kind of ownership limbo which can range from a gangster-held mortgage to the farm being on a public land encroachment. TTL's got a post on buying land. It can be scary. Second agriculture is a restricted occupation in Thailand. You may supervise, but you can't grow, clip, harvest, dig, plant, whatever. Roasting the beans may be okay but you definitely want to talk to a lawyer familiar with all the current rules before you drop any coin on the farm. But as to the visa questions you can get a B visa for your initial entry, good for 90 days at a time, which would allow you to conduct business. After that you'll need a work permit which, again, would be best discussed with a pro on top of the current rules. Not to rain on your parade but Thailand has never been particularly welcoming to foreign-owned businesses. The rules also change all the time and are currently moving in a more draconian direction. And, unless you are working with someone you really, really, really, really trust, that 51% Thai ownership requirement can turn and bite you. Research this very well.
      Reply

      Oct 09, 2019 at 8:19 pm

      • TheThailandLife says

        October 11, 2019 at 7:16 pm

        Solid advice. Take your time and whatever you do use a reputable legal firm to ensure you are protected. Here's that post James mentioned: https://www.thethailandlife.com/buying-land-thailand
        Reply

        Oct 11, 2019 at 7:16 pm

  4. Declan says

    August 23, 2019 at 1:22 am

    Hi
    I work for an Irish owned company and we have a Thai branch in Chon Buri.
    I'm looking to relocate there.
    Do I require both non immagrant type b AND work permit?
    Thanks
    Reply

    Aug 23, 2019 at 1:22 am

    • TheThailandLife says

      August 23, 2019 at 6:06 pm

      The company will need to provide you with a job offer for you to get your Non Immigrant Visa. You will then relocate and the company will help you sort out the work permit.
      Reply

      Aug 23, 2019 at 6:06 pm

      • Declan says

        August 26, 2019 at 8:04 pm

        Thank you
        Reply

        Aug 26, 2019 at 8:04 pm

  5. samantha lindsey says

    February 5, 2019 at 3:59 pm

    I am looking for a shop fitting manufacturer in Thailand, how do I find one?
    thanks
    Reply

    Feb 05, 2019 at 3:59 pm

  6. John B says

    November 30, 2018 at 9:59 pm

    Hi Peter,

    I am a UK citizen, currently living & working in US. Can you confirm that I do not need any type of visa for a short 5 day visit to attend meetings at the offices of our in-country affiliate?
    Many Thanks
    Reply

    Nov 30, 2018 at 9:59 pm

    • TheThailandLife says

      November 30, 2018 at 10:53 pm

      Technically you would need a B visa under the condition that you are 'intending to conduct business in Thailand'. But is it worth it for 5 days, when no one will even know you attended a meeting, and the fact that the majority of the time you'll most likely be relaxing/shopping? Personally I'd say not. The rules, however, remain the rules. I can't advise you not to get one.
      Reply

      Nov 30, 2018 at 10:53 pm

  7. Martin Greenwood says

    November 29, 2018 at 8:37 pm

    Hi I'm Australian and planning to retire to Thailand in 2 years....I lived in Thailand previously for 7 years on a retirement OA visa...when I come there I want to open a small food business ...not restaurant...more a ready meal type of thing...can you advise on visa/work permit requirements in order to do this

    Many thanks
    Reply

    Nov 29, 2018 at 8:37 pm

    • TheThailandLife says

      November 30, 2018 at 10:50 pm

      Hi Martin, you'd need to set up a business. Please see this post here: https://www.thethailandlife.com/starting-a-business-in-thailand
      Reply

      Nov 30, 2018 at 10:50 pm

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