JAKARTA - Thailand’s e-WorkPermit portal reportedly keeps crashing despite the government’s efforts to digitize the work permit process for migrant workers.

Thailand’s public broadcaster Thai PBS reported that users say the portal has crashed multiple times and failed to connect to foreign worker data, leading many employers and migrant workers to register and renew their permits after its expiration. 

In some cases, applicants risk falling out of the system altogether, with potential legal and employment implications.

Violating these could result in hefty fines and possible jail time.

Workers themselves can be fined THB 500 per day, up to THB 20,000, for overstaying or holding an expired permit, with possible re-entry bans for longer violations.

Companies, meanwhile, can be fined THB 10,000 to 100,000 per worker, and repeat offenders risk THB 50,000 to 200,000 per worker, up to one year in jail, and a three-year ban on hiring migrant labor.

Due to the repeated errors, authorities have allowed on-paper manual filing temporarily for certain cases through early 2026.

The e-WorkPermit portal launched back in October 2025 for migrant workers and their employers.

The platform is meant to cut paperwork and make applications faster, although authorities may still allow some manual filings during the transition phase. 

Employers and workers will need to sign up on the system and verify their identities through the ThaiID mobile app before they can apply.

Most migrant workers in Thailand come from its neighboring CLMV countries — Myanmar (Burma), Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam.

The country also hosts migrant workers from several other countries, though in much smaller numbers. These include China, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka.

In related news, Thailand is hunting visa abusers nationwide amid concerns over cybercrimes in scam-prone areas. Officers will tighten screening of frequent visa-free entrants and will deny entry to anyone who has made more than two visa runs without a clear explanation.