As mandated by law, foreigners who wish to work in Thailand as teachers in any government or private educational institution are required to obtain a professional license. This is in accordance with the regulations of the 2016 Teachers Council regarding professional licenses. 

The registration and licensing process for foreign teachers working in Thailand follows certain guidelines, procedures, and conditions as follows:

1. Be at least 20 years of age.
2. Hold educational qualifications, one of the following:
   1. Have an education degree or equivalent.
   2. Hold another degree and possess a foreign teaching license.
   3. Hold another degree and possess a teaching professional certificate that requires at least 1 year of study.
   4. Hold another degree and have passed the professional teacher knowledge certification as per the standards of the Teachers Council.
3. Have completed at least 1 year of teaching practice in an educational institution.
4. Possess a work permit to work in Thailand.
5. Have evidence of residence in Thailand.
6. Do not possess any of the disqualifications according to Section 44 of the Teachers and Educational Personnel Act, B.E. 2546 (2003).
   • Be a person of degraded or deficient morals.
   • Be an incompetent or quasi-incompetent person.
   • Have been convicted and imprisoned in a case that the Teachers Council deems may bring the profession into disrepute.

Required Documents

1. An assessment form completed by the educational institution after the foreign teacher has completed 1 year of teaching (1 original copy)
2. Report card/Diploma or Qualification certificate/Diploma certificate (1 copy)
3. Front page of the passport and the current valid visa page (1 copy)
4. Front page of the work permit and the current valid page (1 copy)
5. Translation documents of educational qualifications/professional licenses or other documents (1 copy)
6. In case of having a professional teaching license from abroad, submit the professional teaching license from abroad (1 copy)
7. Memorandum explaining the case of having a professional license from abroad (1 original copy)
8. Report card (Original Official Transcript) or a completion certification letter from a foreign educational institution. The letter must confirm completion of the course from the actual institution, specify the field of study, dates of enrollment, and graduation, printed on the institution’s letterhead, sealed in the institution's envelope with an official stamp. Any document opened before reaching the Teachers Council will be void (1 original copy)
9. Professional Standing certification from an institution or professional organization with the authority to issue professional licenses as per the law. Printed on the institution’s letterhead, sealed in the institution's envelope with an official stamp. Any document opened before reaching the Teachers Council will be void (1 original copy)
10. In case of a change of first or last name, submit evidence of the name change (1 copy)
11. A half-body, frontal, decently dressed photograph taken within the last 6 months (1 original copy). Scan the actual photo, save as an image file in the jpg format, and attach it to the system

Note: The copied documents must be signed to certify that they are true copies, then scanned and attached to the system. If they are original documents, they should be scanned and attached to the system.

Data updated on June 17, 2023
Source: Ministry of Labour
Tel. +66 2232 1162