Cabinet Approves Postponement of Employee Welfare Fund Contributions to 2026
HLB Thailand Legal Team
Thailand Cabinet Approves Postponement of Employee Welfare Fund Contributions to 2026
On 26 August, the Thai Cabinet approved a postponement of the start date for making contributions to the Employee Welfare Fund (EWF) to 1 October 2026.
The postponement comes in response to current economic challenges, including rising minimum wages, U.S. trade tariffs, and regional geopolitical tensions. The move aims to ease financial pressures on businesses and employees while supporting employment stability.
Contribution rates remain unchanged: 0.25% of wages from both employers and employees during the first five years (2026–2031), increasing to 0.5% from October 2031 onwards.
The Cabinet approved in principle three draft laws proposed by the Ministry of Labor — a draft Royal Decree and two draft Ministerial Regulations — to postpone the commencement date for the collection of contributions to the EWF.
Under the original Royal Decree, contributions from employers and employees were scheduled to begin on 1 October 2025. Following the Cabinet’s approval, the start date is postponed by one year to 1 October 2026.
As a result, the effective dates of the related Ministerial Regulations are also deferred to 1 October 2026, namely:
- The regulation prescribing contribution rates to the Fund, and
- The regulation setting out rules and procedures for providing welfare to employees in cases of termination or death.
The following is an unofficial English translation of the Cabinet meeting summary concerning the three draft laws proposed by the Ministry of Labor.
The Cabinet has approved in principle laws proposed by the Ministry of Labor as follows:
- The draft Royal Decree specifying the period for the commencement of the collection of employee savings and contributions to the Employee Welfare Fund (No. ..) B.E. ...., which has the main content as an amendment to the period for the commencement of the collection of employee savings and contributions to the Employee Welfare Fund from "from October 1, 2025 onwards" to "October 1, 2026 onwards".
- The draft Ministerial Regulation specifying the rate of employee savings and contributions to the Employee Welfare Fund B.E. ...., which has the main content. This is to postpone the payment of accumulated money and contributions to the Employee Welfare Fund to October 1, 2026, in order to be consistent with the draft Royal Decree Determining the Period for the Start of Collection of Accumulated Money and Contributions to the Employee Welfare Fund (No. ..) B.E. ....
- Draft Ministerial Regulation Determining the Criteria and Methods for Providing Welfare to Employees in the Event of Employee Leaving or Dying (No. ..) B.E. ...., which has the essence of amending the Effective Date of the Ministerial Regulation Determining the Criteria and Methods for Providing Welfare to Employees in the Event of Employee Leaving or Dying B.E. 2567, to be effective from October 1, 2026 onwards, in order to be consistent with the draft Royal Decree Determining the Period for the Start of Collection of Accumulated Money and Contributions to the Employee Welfare Fund (No. ..) B.E. ....
Essence
- Currently, there is a Royal Decree Determining the Period for the Start of Collection of Accumulated Money and Contributions to the Employee Welfare Fund B.E. 2567, the Ministerial Regulation Determining the Rate of Accumulated Money and Contributions to the Employee Welfare Fund B.E. 2567 and the Ministerial Regulation Determining the Criteria and the methods for managing employee welfare in the event of employee termination or death, B.E. 2567, a total of three editions, which specify the start date for collecting savings and contributions to the Employee Welfare Fund, the rate of savings and contributions that employees and employers must contribute to the Employee Welfare Fund, as well as various criteria for collecting savings and contributions.
This is to alleviate hardship and create employment security for employees in the event of termination or death, and is in line with the objectives of the Labor Protection Act B.E. 2541 (1998), which stipulates the establishment of an Employee Welfare Fund to collect savings from employees and contributions from employers as a welfare fund for employees in such cases, along with interest. It also specifies criteria and methods as an option for employers who provide welfare to employees according to the specified criteria to be exempted from being members of the Employee Welfare Fund, with the start of collection of savings and contributions effective from October 1, 2568 (2025).
- The Ministry of Labor has proposed three draft royal decrees and ministerial regulations on this matter to extend the start date for collecting employee welfare fund contributions under
the Royal Decree Determining the Start Date for Collecting Employee Welfare Fund Contributions B.E. 2567 (2024) by one year, from October 1, 2025 , to October 1, 2026.Following the postponement of the collection of employee welfare fund contributions under the draft royal decree, it is necessary to extend the enforcement of the Ministerial Regulation Determining the Rate of Employee Welfare Fund Contributions B.E. 2567 (2024) and the Ministerial Regulation Determining the Criteria and Procedures for Providing Welfare to Employees in the Event of Employee Termination or Death B.E. 2567 (2024), from October 1, 2025, to October 1, 2026, onwards. This is consistent with the current Thai economic situation, which is characterized by uncertainty due to various factors, such as the US trade tariff increase, the minimum wage increase, and the ongoing tensions arising from conflicts with neighboring countries, which remain unresolved.
This results in affected businesses having to adapt and face increased competition, which directly affects employees and employers. Therefore, it is appropriate to postpone the collection period for the said savings and contributions in order to maintain employment. Alleviate and reduce the financial burden of employers and employees from economic uncertainty. However, the rate of savings and contributions to be collected from employees and employers remains the same. In the first 5 years (October 1, 2026 – September 30, 2031), employees and employers (each party) must contribute to the fund at the rate of 0.25 percent of their wages .
From October 1, 2031 onwards, employees and employers (each party) must contribute to the fund at the rate of 0.5 percent of their wages. At the same time, the criteria for collecting savings and contributions remain the same. The Employee Welfare Fund Committee has approved this.
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