Logo of Phnom Penh Post newspaper Phnom Penh Post - Migrants get Thai warning

Migrants get Thai warning

A truck of Cambodian migrant workers deported by Thai authorities arrives at the Poipet border crossing in July last year.
A truck of Cambodian migrant workers deported by Thai authorities arrives at the Poipet border crossing in July last year. Sahiba Chawdhary

Migrants get Thai warning

The Cambodian Embassy in Thailand has warned migrant workers that Thai authorities will begin punishing them in April if they fail to renew their work permits.

Holders of temporary documents would need to get them extended by March 31.

“Beyond this ultimatum, Thai authorities will take strict measures on all the foreign workers who don’t have permission to live and work in Thailand,” Monday’s announcement reads.

Chhiv Chhantak, second secretary at the Cambodian Embassy in Bangkok, urged Cambodian workers to apply for the relevant documents at official offices“If a foreign worker is late filling out the renewing form as stated by Thai authority, the authorities will take tough measure,” he said.

According to Chhantak, pink cards given to undocumented workers and letters from an employer had to be renewed every two years, but workers would need additional travel documents before returning legally to Cambodia. Migrant workers would have until June 30 to receive those travel documents, he said.

Khun Tharo, senior program officer at labour rights organisation Solidarity Center, said yesterday the use of pink cards should be abandoned completely, as they are only a temporary solution.

“This document causes complications and loss of money for the workers,” he said.

According to Tharo, about 1.5 million Cambodians live in Thailand, with around one-third undocumented.

Earlier in March, the Thai cabinet approved a legal amendment that would significantly reduce punishments for irregular migrants, scrapping all prison sentences for undocumented migrant workers.

If the draft amendment is implemented, the government would reduce fines against employers for hiring undocumented workers from as much as $25,493 per irregular worker to between $319 and $3,190 per worker.

MOST VIEWED

  • Wing Bank opens new branch in front of Orkide The Royal along Street 2004

    Wing Bank celebrates first anniversary as commercial bank with launch of brand-new branch. One year since officially launching with a commercial banking licence, Wing Bank on March 14 launched a new branch in front of Orkide The Royal along Street 2004. The launch was presided over by

  • Girl from Stung Meanchey dump now college grad living in Australia

    After finishing her foundational studies at Trinity College and earning a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Melbourne in 2022, Ron Sophy, a girl who once lived at the Stung Meanchey garbage dump and scavenged for things to sell, is now working at a private

  • Ministry using ChatGPT AI to ‘ease workload’; Khmer version planned

    The Digital Government Committee is planning to make a Khmer language version of popular artificial intelligence (AI) technology ChatGPT available to the public in the near future, following extensive testing. On March 9, the Ministry of Post and Telecommunications revealed that it has been using the

  • Wat Phnom hornbills attract tourists, locals

    Thanks to the arrival of a friendly flock of great hornbills, Hour Rithy, a former aviculturist – or raiser of birds – in Kratie province turned Phnom Penh tuk tuk driver, has seen a partial return to his former profession. He has become something of a guide

  • PM urges end to ‘baseless’ international Ream base accusations

    Prime Minister Hun Sen urges an end to “baseless” foreign accusations surrounding the development of the Kingdom’s Ream Naval Base, as the US has consistently suggested that the base is being expanded to accommodate a Chinese military presence. Hun Sen renewed his calls while

  • Almost 9K tourists see equinox sunrise at Angkor Wat

    Nearly 9,000 visitors – including 2,226 international tourists – gathered at Angkor Wat on March 21 to view the spring equinox sunrise, according to a senior official of the Siem Reap provinical tourism department. Ngov Seng Kak, director of the department, said a total of 8,726 people visited Angkor Wat to