Court overturns Labour Ministry rule allowing foreign pilots to fly in Thailand

Thailand’s Administrative Court has ruled to annul a Labour Ministry announcement that authorised foreign pilots to operate flights within the Kingdom, finding the decision to be an unlawful exercise of ministerial discretion.

The decision, issued on Monday (November 17), arose from a lawsuit brought by the Thai Pilots Association and its president against the Labour Ministry and other government bodies. The court’s order annuls the ministry’s announcement allowing foreign nationals to serve as flight crew on wet-leased aircraft operating within Thailand.

The dispute arose after the Thai Pilots Association sought the cancellation of a ministerial announcement dated December 13, 2024. 

The announcement had been issued at the request of a single private aviation company, which asked the Labour Minister to allow the temporary use of foreign pilots as part of its plan to lease two A320 aircraft under a wet-lease arrangement, citing tourism-stimulus policy.

While the court acknowledged that the Labour Minister at the time was empowered under the Royal Ordinance on the Management of Foreign Workers Employment BE 2560 (2017) to grant exemptions for foreigners to work in Thailand, it emphasised that such powers may be exercised only in special circumstances relating to national security, the economy, or disaster prevention — and must not diminish employment opportunities for Thai nationals.

The court found that the exemption was issued solely in response to a request from one company, without evidence that the situation constituted a legally defined special case or that the measure served the public interest.

As such, the court held that the minister’s decision amounted to an improper use of discretion under Section 9(1) of the  Act on Establishment of Administrative Courts and Administrative Court Procedure, BE 2542 (1999)

The ruling nullifies the Labour Ministry’s announcement with effect from the date of the court’s judgment.