FATF Status

Thailand is no longer on the FATF List of Countries that have been identified as having strategic AML deficiencies

Latest FATF Statement  -  21 June 2013

The FATF welcomes Thailand’s significant progress in improving its AML/CFT regime and notes that Thailand has established the legal and regulatory framework to meet its commitments in its Action Plan regarding the strategic deficiencies that the FATF had identified in February 2010. Thailand is therefore no longer subject to FATF’s monitoring process under its on-going global AML/CFT compliance process. Thailand will work with the APG as it continues to address the full range of AML/CFT issues identified in its Mutual Evaluation Report.

Compliance with FATF Recommendations

The last follow-up Mutual Evaluation Report relating to the implementation of anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing standards in Thailand was undertaken in 2023. According to that Evaluation, Thailand was deemed Compliant for 4 and Largely Compliant for 29 of the FATF 40 Recommendations. It was also deemed Highly Effective for 0 and Substantially Effective for 4 with regard to the 11 areas of Effectiveness of its AML/CFT Regime.

APG Yearly Typologies Report  -  2015

Emerging Trends; Declining Trends; Continuing Trends (INCSR)

Emerging trend: use of a nominee to hold assets or accounts, especially by corrupt politicians.

Declining trend: smurfing has declined because money launderers now know that authorities are monitoring this type of transaction.

Continuing trend: buying precious metals or gems and real estate.

In general, the same methods are still being used. However, there is a tendency for criminals to make their techniques more complex such as combining methods e.g. using of non-related nominee to open an account to receive the proceed and use the fund to buy precious metal or stones and carried overseas, and thus make it more difficult for authorities to detect.

US Department of State Money Laundering assessment (INCSR)

Thailand is categorised by the US State Department as a Country/Jurisdiction of Primary Concern in respect of Money Laundering and Financial Crimes.

Overview

Thailand is emerging as a logistics and financial hub within Southeast Asia.  The country’s porous borders and uneven law enforcement make it vulnerable to money laundering, drug trafficking, and other categories of transnational crime.  Thailand is a source, transit, and destination country for illicit smuggling and trafficking in persons, a production and distribution center for counterfeit consumer goods, and a center for the production and sale of fraudulent travel documents.  The proceeds of illegal gaming, official corruption, underground lotteries, and prostitution are laundered through the country’s informal financial channels.  

Rating                                                                           (100-Good / 0-Bad)

Transparency International Corruption Index                          35

World Governance Indicator – Control of Corruption             36

There are high risks of corruption in most sectors in Thailand. Even though Thailand has the legal framework and a range of institutions to counter corruption, companies may regularly encounter bribery or other corrupt practices. Ousted Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra has been put on trial for losses to the state allegedly amounting to at least USD 8 billion stemming from a rice subsidy scheme. The military junta that overthrew the government in 2014 has further entrenched its power and corruption is said to have worsened under the military regime. The Organic Law on Counter Corruption criminalizes corrupt practices of public officials and corporations, including active and passive bribery of public officials. The Penal Code also criminalizes embezzlement and trading in influence. Anti-corruption legislation is inadequately enforced, and facilitation payments and gifts are common in practice. For further information - GAN Integrity Business Anti-Corruption Portal

Thailand is an upper middle-income country with a half-trillion-dollar economy, generally pro-investment policies, and well-developed infrastructure. Despite some political uncertainty, Thailand continues to encourage foreign direct investment as a means of promoting economic development, employment, and technology transfer. In recent decades, Thailand has been a major destination for foreign direct investment, and hundreds of U.S. companies have invested in Thailand successfully.

The Foreign Business Act (FBA) of 1999 governs most investment activity by non-Thai nationals. Many U.S. businesses also enjoy investment benefits through the U.S.-Thai Treaty of Amity and Economic Relations, signed in 1833 and updated in 1966. The Treaty allows U.S. citizens and U.S. majority-owned businesses incorporated in the United States or Thailand to maintain a majority shareholding or to wholly own a company or branch office located in Thailand and engage in business on the same basis as Thai companies (national treatment). The Treaty exempts such U.S.-owned businesses from most FBA restrictions on foreign investment, although the Treaty excludes some types of businesses outlined below. Notwithstanding their Treaty rights, many U.S. investors choose to form joint ventures with Thai partners who hold a majority stake in the company, leveraging their partner’s knowledge of the Thai economy and local regulations.

The Board of Investment (BOI) is Thailand’s principal investment promotion authority. It offers businesses assistance in navigating Thai regulations and provides investment incentives to qualified domestic and foreign investors.

Additional incentives are also available for investment in the Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC), an investment zone spanning Thailand’s three eastern seaboard provinces – Chachoengsao, Chonburi, and Rayong. The EEC seeks to leverage cutting-edge infrastructure, tax breaks, and regulatory concessions to promote the development of high-tech and other advanced industries. Sectors targeted include: next-generation automotives; intelligent electronics; advanced agriculture and biotechnology; food processing; tourism; advanced robotics and automation; digital technology; integrated aviation; medical hub and total healthcare services; biofuels/biochemical; defense manufacturing; and human resource development.

The Thai government is also actively pursuing foreign investment related to clean energy, electric vehicles, and related industries. Thailand is currently developing a new National Energy Plan that will set a 20 percent target for renewable energy by 2037. Revised plans are expected to increase clean energy targets in line with the Prime Minister’s November 2021 announcement during COP26 that Thailand will increase its climate change targets, as well as domestic policies focused on sustainability, including the “Bio-Circular Green Economy” model.

Country Links

Anti-Money Laundering Office Thailand (AMLO )​

Bank of Thailand