Thailand News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, and lifestyle—get breaking updates from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. Stay informed on Thai society, economy, tourism, and expat life with The Thaiger.
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Sponsored Long-term life in Thailand? 5 reasons private health insurance pays off in the long run
Thailand is a great place for expats and retirees, offering a warm climate, affordable living, and rich culture. However, healthcare can be tricky for foreigners since they aren’t eligible for public health coverage, and private care can be expensive. Private...
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Gender Health Clinic opens in Bangkok for transgender needs
One of the first clinics focused primarily on the needs of the transgender community has opened as part of Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital in Bangkok. The new Gender Health Clinic opened with the goal of being leaders in the ways clinics communicate and give treatment to transgender people. A co-founder of GHC pointed out that trans people often have special needs…
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30 million baht added to vaccine side effects compensation fund
The National Health Security Office had set up a 100 million baht fund to be used as compensation for vaccinated people experiencing side effects. Now the government has approved an additional 30 million baht to be made available as needed in the Loan Executive Decree in paying out those affected negatively by the vaccine. A previous poll showed 80% of…
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Plan for 16-week gap between AstraZeneca vaccines dropped
Thailand’s plan to milk 2 extra vaccines from each vial of AstraZeneca may have seemed shady, though the technique to do so was safe and did not reduce efficacy, but yesterday the government dropped an actual dangerous plan to cut corners and pump up their vaccination figures. A senior health official confirmed that they were giving up on a plan…
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CCSA: 120 day reopening will proceed with conditions
If you believed that PM Prayut Chan-o-cha’s declaration that Thailand will reopen in 120 days no matter what was set in stone, you don’t know much about Thailand. While the plan is still on, The Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration held a meeting yesterday where they watered down the exuberant international tourism restart announcement with conditions and exceptions for the…
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Covid UPDATE Saturday: 3,667 new infections and 32 deaths
The trend of new Covid infection continues to steadily rise. Saturday’s totals are 32 new Covid-related deaths and 3,667 cases. 435 of today’s announced cases are from Thai prisons. Provincial totals will be available early afternoon on The Thaiger as usual. In other Covid-related news today… • The Department of Land Transport is resuming driving tests, issuing and renewing licences…
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Thamanat elected to role of head ‘fixer’ in Palang Pracharat party
Thamanat Prompow, still the Thai deputy agricultural minister, now has a firm grasp of the reigns of the ruling Palang Pracharat Party, the leading coalition party of the Thai government. Thamanat’s stay in an Australian prison for 4 years of a 6 year sentence on heroin trafficking charges back in the 90s, has not swayed his fellow MPs in electing…
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List: China has over 50% of all foreign-owned condos in Thailand
A list was recently released to the media regarding condo ownership in Thailand and from what countries condo owners originated. Foreigners have purchased approximately 1.4 million condominiums throughout the country. Of those, the top 10 list showed that over half of all foreign-owned condos in Thailand hail from China. Nearly 730,000 condominiums throughout Thailand are owned by Chinese nationals, just…
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Government plans 10 million vaccines for July
As vaccinations are finally picking up around much of Thailand, some areas are reporting shortages of vaccines, but the government announced plans to administer 10 million vaccines in July and every month thereafter. A senior spokesperson for the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration said that the vaccines will be distributed with a priority focus on Bangkok and making sure 70%…
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Colour-coded zoning revised, restrictions to ease nationwide
Disease control restrictions are easing nationwide and the colour-coded zoning was recently revised by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. The new regulations will go into effect on Monday. Nationwide, all entertainment and nightlife venues including bars, pubs and nightclubs must remain closed. Face masks are still required to be worn in public. All zones have limits on the number…
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Department of Land Transport will reopen, issue licenses
After suspending services on April 16th due to the third wave outbreak of Covid-19, the Department of Land Transport has announced they will reopen next week. The agency will restart renewing driving licenses in issuing new licenses, as well as giving driving tests. Services are set to resume all across the country at all DLT offices on June 21, according…
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Friday Covid Update: 3,058 new cases; provincial totals
Thailand’s latest and most severe wave of Covid-19, infecting 176,410 people since April 1, continues to be on a downward trend. Today, 3,058 new Covid-19 cases and 22 coronavirus-related deaths were reported by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration, raising the tally since the start of the pandemic to 210,782 total confirmed cases and 1,577 fatalities. There are now 32,795…
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Worker falls off roof in Chon Buri, sustains multiple injuries
Last night, a worker suffered multiple injuries after falling off an incomplete factory roof. The tumble happened in Bang Lamung, a district in the Chon Buri province, central Thailand. At 8:30 pm emergency responders were alerted to the man’s fall at the construction site. The emergency responders and local media got to the site to find the injured worked, 31…
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Thai DDC probe into Covid-19 vaccine recipient deaths to finish next week
Thai health officials are finishing up an investigation into deaths involving those who had received the Covid-19 vaccine. The Department of Disease Control is looking into 68 deaths and plans to report the cause of death of each case next week. So far, 13 of the cases are not directly related to the vaccine, according to the director of the…
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Thammanat Prompaew said to be PPRP’s next secretary-general
MP Thammanat Prompaew, the controversial convicted drug smuggler turned politician, is favoured to become the next secretary-general of the ruling Palang Pracharath Party, sources say. A meeting of the party’s general assembly will take place in Khon Kaen province today where an announcement may be made. The embattled Deputy Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister is considered to be the likely successor…
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Pattaya security guard dies after crashing into garbage truck
Last night in Pattaya, a security guard drove his motorbike into the back of a garbage truck. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The 43 year old security guard was driving on Road Number 36 on the Pattaya Rayong Bypass. His name has been withheld from media until his relatives have been notified of his passing. Police say the…
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Killer’s sentence reduced from 10 years to 3, plus community service
4 years ago, 56 year old Suthep Pochanasomboon, was convicted of killing 17 year old Nawaphol Poengpai after an argument about a parking space. Now, Suthep’s sentence has been commuted by the Supreme Court to 3 years. The shooting which led to Suthep’s temporary incarceration happened close to the Ang Silla market, which is in the Chon Buri Province. Suthep…
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Krabi hotels pin hopes on Phuket sandbox success
Hotel operators in the southern province of Krabi will be watching Phuket’s imminent re-opening with great interest. The success of the Phuket “sandbox” will determine what happens in Thailand’s other tourism hotspots. According to the Bangkok Post, a successful re-opening for Phuket would mean Krabi and other destinations can look forward to re-opening their hotels and recruiting workers for the…
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Tourism bodies concerned vaccination uncertainty will disrupt re-opening
Earlier this week, Thai PM, Prayut Chan-o-cha, pledged to re-open the country to international tourism within 120 days. But tourism operators aren’t breathing a sigh of relief just yet. Many have voiced concerns over the delays in the vaccine rollout, fearing that if Thailand doesn’t get its act together on vaccination, the re-opening could be affected. According to the Bangkok…
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Nightlife businesses petition government to reopen, sell alcohol
After more than a year of closures, a coalition of nightlife business representatives is petitioning the government to reopen next month and to lift the alcohol ban. With the support of the Democrat Party deputy leader Prin Phannichphak, who also heads the Modern Business Group, a collection of event organisers, musicians, fitness business reps and entertainment industry reps submitted the…
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Expats in Phuket without a work permit can register for a Covid-19 vaccine
Expats living in Phuket, who do not have a work permit, can now register for a Covid-19 vaccine. Under the local vaccine registration website, www.phuket.win, there are now links for foreigners with work permits and foreigners without work permits to apply for a vaccine. Of course, with the ever-faulty websites run by the Thai government, we had to give it…
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Prayut going to Phuket, see if it’s Sandbox ready
Thailand’s Prime Minister, Prayut Chan-o-cha, is set to travel to Phuket and determine its “readiness” to reopen for the proposed reopening on July 1. This news comes from a report in Thai media. The report says Prayut and other ministers will go to Phuket next Friday. When he gets to the island, Prayut and his cohorts will “inspect” the full…
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Chulabhorn Royal Academy details Sinopharm vaccine insurance
Chulabhorn Royal Academy has announced key details of their insurance coverage included with Sinopharm vaccinations they provide as the business registration deadline approaches tomorrow. The new specifics for coverage include generous age restrictions, residence status, period of coverage, and payout totals for the insurance for those affected by the vaccine. In a post to their Facebook page yesterday, the academy…
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Thai-English auto-translate down on Facebook due to “technical issues”
Facebook’s Thai to English auto-translation feature on posts and comments has been taken down due to “technical issues,” the social media company’s communications manager for Thailand and Laos wrote in a statement to The Thaiger. Some have pointed out that auto-translate displayed an incorrect and derogatory word for a post on a recent royal ceremony in Thailand. Facebook did not…
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Police arrest 2 men for allegedly trying to extort 2 million baht from a man
Police arrested 2 men, including a Thai soldier, who allegedly extorted a businessman, threatening to post obscene photos of him on social media if he didn’t give them 2 million baht. 31 year old Nawatkorn Pongassaphon and 31 year old Vorasart Lailang, a Thai army corporal, were arrested yesterday evening at a shopping centre in Nonthaburi, a suburb just outside…
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EU Free Trade Agreement talks resume after 7-year coup hiatus
After a 7-year delay following Thailand’s military coup, talks have resumed to create a Free Trade Agreement between Thailand and the European Union. The Ministry of Commerce hosted a meeting this morning between Thailand’s Commerce Minister, also a Deputy Prime Minister, and the Ambassador of the European Union to Thailand. The two met to have conversations about a variety of…
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Thursday Covid Update: 3,129 new cases; provincial totals
Thailand’s latest and most severe wave of Covid-19 is on a downward curve with 33,853 active cases reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. Although the daily tally of new cases remains high, with 3,129 infections confirmed today, new recoveries recorded each day continue to exceed the number of new cases. Today, the CCSA logged 4,561 new recoveries. 30…
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Large orange juice order leads to large “fine”
5 officials from the Excise Department are currently under investigation for allegedly asking for a 12,000 baht “fine” from a shop proprietor who had filled a substantial order for orange juice. The officials had been working in Bangkok at the time of their orange juice related fine giving. The 5 Excise officials have since been transferred to a different office…
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Rain giving phallus cracks under the elements
The giant phallus that was erected on a road in accordance with an ancient rain making ceremony in Chachoengsao, a province in central Thailand, East of Bangkok is deteriorating due to sun and rain. The phallus is now showing deep, veiny cracks from the base of the structure, snaking up to the glans of the penis. The local villagers had…
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Covid vaccine advertisements by private hospitals to be tightly regulated
Advertisements for Covid-19 vaccines by private hospitals will be tightly regulated to prevent exaggeration or any statements that may mislead the public. The Public Health Ministry has set regulations for private hospitals offering to order Covid-19 vaccines for customers including guidelines on promoting injection services as well as rules to ensure quality and safety. Department of Health Service Support director-general…
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Thursday Covid Update: 3,129 new cases and 30 deaths
CORRECTION: An earlier version of the story reported an incorrect number for the confirmed cases at correctional facilities. The correct number is 457 infections. 3,129 new Covid-19 cases and 30 coronavirus-related deaths were reported today by the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. Since April 1, the most severe wave of Covid-19 infections in Thailand, the CCSA has reported 178,861 cases.…
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