Thailand adds BT 62 temporary work permit for already-approved foreign workers

Approval must come before the temporary permit

Thailand's Ministry of Labour says the Department of Employment added the temporary work permit through an amendment to the rules governing application forms and supporting documents for foreign workers. The amendment was published in the Royal Gazette on 9 July 2026 and was made effective from 1 July.

The important threshold is the registrar's approval. BT 62 is not designed for someone who has merely filed an application, received an appointment or is still waiting for a decision. It documents an existing approval when the standard permit cannot yet be produced because of a procedural issue.

That distinction also matters for employers. The new form does not create a separate route around the ordinary work-authorisation process, and it does not amount to automatic permission for any foreign national to start working.

For practical context, see Visas and long stays in Asia. This development also connects with Thailand Opens Work-Permit Renewals for Three Nationalities.

The document records the approved employment

The Ministry of Labour says BT 62 carries key information about the worker, passport and visa, employer or establishment, job and workplace, as well as information related to healthcare entitlement. Its purpose is to provide lawful evidence of the approved right to work during the interim period.

Those details make the document specific to the underlying approval. Holding a BT 62 should not be taken as permission to work for an unrelated employer, in another role or at a different workplace unless that change has itself been authorised through the relevant process.

Later official announcements have also referred to BT 62 as interim proof of work rights in particular migrant-worker extension procedures. Those programmes can have their own deadlines and service steps, so their conditions should not be assumed to apply to every BT 62 holder.

The regular permit process still has to be completed

BT 62 solves the documentation gap; it does not turn a temporary stage into the end of the process. Where the worker must attend a service centre, complete identity-related steps or obtain the regular permit, those obligations continue under the procedure that applies to that case.

For an employer or worker checking whether the employment is compliant, the safest reference point is the registrar's approval together with the details shown on the temporary permit. A system status or application receipt by itself should not be treated as equivalent to BT 62.