Thailand · Insurance
Insurance in Thailand — health, travel, and digital-nomad cover, what is mandatory, and how to choose a plan.
AI-drafted, editorially reviewed. Confirm specifics with the official authority.
Thailand's Social Security system, run by the Social Security Office, gives employees a bundle of five benefits: medical care, maternity, disability, unemployment and old-age pensions — funded by contributions shared with the employer, so the payslip line is your half. Compulsory motor third-party insurance is required for vehicles and is known locally as Por Ror Bor, which is the term you will actually encounter. Insurers are regulated by the Office of Insurance Commission.
Thailand's Social Security system (administered by the Social Security Office) provides employees with benefits including medical care, maternity, disability, unemployment and old-age pensions, funded by contributions shared with the employer. Compulsory motor third-party insurance (Por Ror Bor) is required for vehicles. Insurers are regulated by the Office of Insurance Commission (OIC).
- Social Security provides employees with medical, maternity, disability, unemployment and pension benefits.
- Compulsory motor third-party insurance (Por Ror Bor) is required for vehicles.
- Insurers are regulated by the Office of Insurance Commission (OIC).
- 1
Count the five Social Security benefits
Social Security provides employees with medical, maternity, disability, unemployment and pension benefits. Knowing all five tells you what your contribution is actually buying.
- 2
Read the payslip as a shared cost
Contributions are shared with the employer, so the amount deducted from you is only part of what funds the benefits. The package is worth more than the payslip line suggests.
- 3
Confirm SSO registration through your employer
The system is administered by the Social Security Office. Because registration runs through employment, confirm with your employer that it has actually been completed for you.
- 4
Ask for Por Ror Bor by name
Compulsory motor third-party insurance is required for vehicles and is called Por Ror Bor locally. Using the local name makes buying and renewing considerably simpler.
- 5
Verify the insurer with the OIC
Insurers are regulated by the Office of Insurance Commission. Check the provider there before buying either the compulsory motor line or any voluntary cover on top.
- All five benefit types understood
- Employer share recognised on top of your deduction
- SSO registration confirmed as completed
- Unemployment and pension entitlements noted
- Por Ror Bor arranged for every vehicle
- Insurer confirmed as OIC-regulated
- Voluntary top-up cover decided separately
- Social Security Office (SSO)
Official social-security system.
- Office of Insurance Commission (OIC)
Insurance regulator.
Frequently asked questions
What does Thai Social Security give employees?
A bundle of five benefits: medical care, maternity, disability, unemployment and old-age pensions. Knowing all five is useful because it tells you what your contribution is actually buying, and unemployment cover in particular is easy to overlook.
What is Por Ror Bor?
The local name for Thailand's compulsory motor third-party insurance, required for vehicles. It is worth learning the term because it is what you will actually encounter when buying or renewing, rather than a generic description.
Is my Thai payslip deduction the whole contribution?
No — contributions are shared with the employer, so what is deducted from you funds only part of the benefits. The five-benefit package is worth more than that single payslip line suggests.
How to choose cover
Which cover you need is decided by your residence status and how long you are staying, not by price. Most people end up in one of three situations — and the wrong one is usually chosen by buying travel cover for what is actually a residence, or paying twice for cover the statutory scheme already provides.
Statutory or employer cover — if you live and work here
Once you register as a resident or start a local job, enrolment is usually mandatory and often automatic through payroll. This is the cheapest and broadest cover available to you, so check whether you qualify before buying anything private — see what is mandatory in this country above.
Private or top-up cover — to fill what the statutory scheme leaves out
Dental, vision, prescriptions, private rooms and shorter waiting times commonly sit outside the statutory scheme, and employers often provide a top-up policy. Read what your statutory cover excludes first — buying a full private policy when you only need a top-up is the most expensive mistake here.
International, travel or nomad cover — for short stays and the gap before enrolment
This is the right product in three cases: you are staying too briefly to become a resident, your visa requires proof of cover before arrival, or the statutory scheme has a waiting period after you arrive. It is a bridge, not a substitute — once you are enrolled locally, most people drop it.
Check before you pay
- Does it satisfy the visa or residence requirement? If a permit asks for proof of cover, the policy must meet that authority's stated minimum — not merely exist.
- Where does it cover you? Check whether your home country and any country you transit are included — many international policies exclude your country of citizenship or limit it to a few weeks a year.
- How are pre-existing conditions handled? This is the most common claim refusal — look for the definition, the look-back period and whether a declaration is required.
- Outpatient or hospital-only? Cheap policies often cover hospitalisation but not GP visits, tests or prescriptions — which is most of what you will actually use.
- Direct billing or reimbursement? If the insurer does not pay the hospital directly, you need the cash up front and the paperwork afterwards.
- Is the insurer licensed to operate here? The country's financial regulator — listed in the official authorities below — publishes the register. An unlicensed policy can be unenforceable locally.
- What happens at renewal? Check age limits, whether premiums rise after a claim, and whether cover ends the day your visa status changes.
International providers people commonly use
Richbay is not an insurer or a broker and does not assess your circumstances. These are widely used international providers, listed for the third case above — check eligibility, the terms in the list above, and whether the provider is licensed where you are going.
- SafetyWing
Subscription travel-medical cover aimed at remote workers and long trips; monthly rolling rather than a fixed trip length.
- Genki
Monthly international health cover for nomads and expatriates, with a longer-term plan for people who stay abroad indefinitely.
- Cigna Global
Full international private medical insurance — modular, aimed at people relocating rather than travelling, and generally priced accordingly.
General information, not insurance advice. Cover, eligibility and legal requirements differ by country, visa type and personal circumstances — confirm with the authority and the insurer before relying on any of this.
Government portals
- Royal Thai Government — Official portal of the Royal Thai Government
- Thai Immigration Bureau — Visas, 90-day reporting, and re-entry permits
- Revenue Department — Thai personal income tax and VAT
- Board of Investment (BOI) — Foreign-investment incentives and the LTR long-term visa