Thailand to offer long-stay work permits to undocumented migrants to curb new Covid-19 surge

Thailand on Tuesday said it would allow undocumented migrant workers from Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar to work in the country legally for two years to curb the spread of Covid-19.

Migrants will have to sign up online and be registered with an employer in order to receive a work permit until February 2023, Reuters is reporting.

The announcement comes as Thailand deals with its worst coronavirus outbreak to-date, with more than 1,500 cases reported since mid-December.

Most cases have been linked to predominantly Myanmar migrant workers at a seafood market in central Samut Sakhon province.

“The government has been screening migrants in areas at risk, resulting in some employers moving illegal migrant workers out of certain areas to avoid breaking the law,” deputy government spokeswoman Traisuree Taisaranakul told reporters.

“Also, illegal workers are panicking and moving out of certain areas, which risks spreading Covid-19,” she said.

Once the registration period ends in mid-February, authorities will “check, crack down on, arrest and prosecute” undocumented migrant workers, according to the cabinet resolution.

Thailand has an estimated 2.2 million registered migrant workers – mainly from Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos – but many others work informally in sectors from fishing to farming, say activists.

The Migrant Working Group (MWG) estimates that up to 800,000 migrants would be eligible to register under the new measures.

Adisorn Kerdmongkol of MWG, said the government should also allow about 100,000 would-be migrants who have already secured work permits to enter Thailand despite the closure of its borders to contain the spread of coronavirus.

“Some of these migrants who are waiting to enter the country to work are in debt, having paid brokers or employers various fees to secure jobs,” he said.

The Thai labour ministry last month announced that about 130,000 migrants from Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos who had entered the country legally and whose permits were expiring could stay in Thailand to work for another two years.

Though low in comparison to many countries, Thailand’s average of 142 new daily cases is a setback for its efforts to keep the virus at bay, having recorded just 6,440 infections and 61 deaths since its first case in January.

The government said on Tuesday that more intensive measures might be necessary and urged the public to cooperate to contain a spread that has seen cases in most regions of the country.