A representative office operates a service company in Thailand for its registered office, a subsidiary or a group company in another country. It provides these services without income other than reimbursement of expenses and has no legal form in the sense that the representative office cannot take orders, conclude sales contracts or negotiate transactions (either on its own account or on behalf of the parent company). A representative office may only sign contracts that are essential for its own business, such as the rental of premises. A representative office provides non-revenue-generating services to a foreign-based headquarters by engaging in a limited range of activities, such as: Child, early and forced marriage: The legal age of marriage for both sexes is 17, while anyone under the age of 21 requires parental consent. A court may allow children under the age of 17 to marry. Thailand had a sophisticated legal system before Western influences led it to adopt a European-style legal system. The first legal texts – already from the 15th century – were based on the Indian codex of Manu, which came via the Mon and Khmer. As part of the modernization reforms of the late 19th century, a new legal system was developed, based mainly on the French (Napoleonic) model. King Chulalongkorn`s modernizing government also received legal advice from British advisers. A key aspect of the legal reforms of the late 19th century was the creation of an independent judiciary. However, this ideal has proven difficult to achieve due to political interference and the persistent presence of corruption in the system.
As part of a series of judicial reforms initiated in the late 20th century, the Supreme Court, with judges appointed by the monarch, was declared the last court of appeal in civil and criminal matters. A system of interlocutory courts of appeal has been established to deal with cases before courts of first instance throughout the country. Financial disclosure: Financial disclosure laws and regulations require elected and appointed officials to publicly disclose their assets and income using standardized forms. The law penalizes public servants who fail to make statements, make inaccurate statements or hide assets. Sanctions include a five-year ban on political activity, seizure of assets and removal from office, as well as imprisonment for up to six months, a symbolic fine, or both. Summary of Thai legal framework: The Thai legal system is a legal system, which means that it is mainly based on a written law passed by the legislature. The main sources of law are the constitution, which was the supreme law, laws such as codes and laws, decrees and customs. Few electoral irregularities were reported during the March 2019 national elections, although there were frequent reports of vote-buying by ruling and opposition parties. The NGO Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL) – the only global organization authorized by the government to observe the elections – called the election “partially free, not fair.” ANFREL noted that many positive aspects of the election were mainly related to polling day activities, including high turnout, free access to the ballot boxes, and peaceful conditions during the election campaign and election day. However, ANFREL noted that a restrictive and biased legal framework and the lack of transparency of the electoral commission meant that the authorities “failed to create the healthy political climate that is at the heart of a free and fair electoral process.” Under the law, stateless hill tribe members are not allowed to vote and their movements are restricted to their province of origin. As non-citizens, they cannot own land.
Stateless persons are legally allowed to practice any profession, but licenses for certain professions (including doctors, engineers, and lawyers) are only granted to Thai citizens. Stateless people have struggled to access credit and government services such as health care. The law allows undocumented migrants and stateless children to enroll in school alongside Thai children, even though access to education has been unequal. According to reports, school administrators have assigned the term “non-Thai citizen” to the secondary school certificates of these students, which has severely limited their economic opportunities. Stateless persons are allowed to enrol in higher education, but do not have access to state loans for education. Employment: Refugees are prohibited by law from working in the country. The government allowed undocumented migrant workers from Burma, Cambodia, and Laos to work legally in certain sectors of the economy if they registered with the authorities and followed a prescribed procedure to document their status (see section 7.d). The law allows victims of human trafficking and witnesses who cooperate with ongoing court cases to work legally during their trial and for up to two years (with possible extensions) after the end of their participation in the trial. The work permit must be linked to a specific employer. For some foreign victims of trafficking, including the Rohingya, the government has failed to identify suitable employment opportunities for the issuance of work permits, citing a lack of local opportunities and migration policy considerations. Registration, medical examination and health insurance costs remained a deterrent effect on potential employers of trafficked persons.
The Constitution guarantees freedom of expression, including for the press. However, this right has been restricted by laws and government measures. For example, the government has imposed legal restrictions on criticism of the government and monarchy, favored pro-government media organizations in regulatory measures, harassed anti-government critics, monitored media and the internet, and blocked websites. A large number of national and international human rights organizations are active in the country. NGOs dealing with politically sensitive issues such as political reform or opposition to state-sponsored development projects were regularly harassed. Women generally enjoy the same legal status and rights as men, but are sometimes discriminated against, particularly in employment. The law provides for a maximum prison sentence of six months, a fine, or both, for anyone found guilty of discrimination on the basis of sex. The law prescribes non-discrimination based on gender and gender identity in policies, rules, regulations, notifications, projects, or procedures by governments, private organizations, and individuals, but also provides for two exceptions criticized by civil society groups: religious principles and national security. Major political parties since the 1990s have included the New Aspiration Party, the Democratic Party, the National Development Party, Thai Rak Thai, Thai Nation, the Social Action Party, and the Thai Citizens Party. After a parliamentary election, the parties with the highest number of seats in Parliament usually form a coalition government. In 2007, Thai Rak Thai, the party of the ousted prime minister, was dissolved and a new party, the People`s Power Party, was formed. He has been widely regarded as the reincarnation of Thai Rak Thai.
Elected parliaments began to gain influence in the political process in the 1980s, and since 1992 governmental power has been exercised by an elected National Assembly, with the exception of a 15-month period in 2006-07 when the military took control. The Constitution provides that a person has the freedom to unite and form an association, cooperative, trade union, organization, community or other group. The law provides for the right of employees of certain private and public enterprises to form and join independent trade unions. The law does not allow the civil service and migrant workers to form trade unions. Civil servants may meet in groups, provided that this assembly does not compromise the efficiency of the national administration and the continuity of public services and does not pursue a political objective. The law provides for the right of certain workers to bargain collectively and to conduct lawful strikes, although these rights are subject to certain restrictions. In ordinary criminal courts, accused persons enjoy a wide range of legal rights, including access to a lawyer of their choice, prompt and detailed information on the charges against them, the free assistance of an interpreter, the right to attend the trial if necessary, and the right to reasonable time and facilities to prepare their defence. They also have the right not to be compelled to testify or confess guilt, to confront witnesses, to present witnesses and to appeal. The authorities did not always automatically provide impoverished defendants with a lawyer at state expense, and it was alleged that the authorities did not grant defendants all the above-mentioned rights, particularly in small or remote provinces. Although arbitration agreements cannot be considered precedents, courts and the judicial system have recognized the importance of arbitral tribunals as well as the essential role of arbitral tribunals. The government continued to restrict internet access and punish those who criticized the monarchy or shared unverified information about the spread of COVID-19. The government also monitored social media and private communications for fake content and “fake news.” There were reports that the government was monitoring private online communications without proper legal authorization.
UNHCR`s capacity to provide protection to certain groups of refugees outside official camps remained limited. Access to asylum seekers in reception centres to conduct status interviews and monitor new arrivals varied throughout the year, in part due to COVID-19-related restrictions on visits to remand centres.
