No extension of migrant workers' registration in Thailand

BANGKOK, July 28 (TNA) - The Department of Employment, under the Ministry of Labour, has announced that there will be no extension of this round's registration of migrant workers from neighbouring countries after its deadline, set on July 29, 2016. The department's Director-General, Arrak Phrammani, told journalists of the policy on Thursday, explaining that under a Thai Cabinet resolution on February 23, 2016, there will be no extension of the legal registration of migrant workers after the July 29 deadline. Arrak warned that after the July 29 deadline, employers would face a maximum fine of 100,000 baht for each illegal migrant worker they have hired, while the migrant workers from neighbouring Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar could each face a jail term of up to five years and a fine of 2,000-100,000 baht before they would be repatriated to their home countries. Arrak, thus, urged employers to complete the registration process of their migrant workers by the deadline. So far, Arrak said, a total of 936,250 migrant workers have been registered with the authorities, 19,991 of whom were recorded as followers of the legalised migrant workers. According to the senior official, migrant workers must undergo a health check-up before they apply for the official registration to get their work permits in Thailand. The senior official stated that in case migrant workers are later found to be infected with serious communicable diseases, their work permits will be revoked, noting that his department has a hotline number, 1694, for further inquiries or information. (TNA)