Thailand plans teacher debt overhaul to cut monthly payments
A joint Thai government committee will study cheaper funding and repayment options for teachers, with findings due within 30 days.
Thailand is drawing up a teacher-debt reform plan aimed at reducing monthly repayments and preventing further borrowing, with officials reporting that some teachers have less than 30% of their salaries left for everyday living expenses.
Capt Phatdarasmi Thongsaluaykorn, deputy government spokesperson, said the Education Ministry and the Agriculture and Cooperatives Ministry were working on a system-wide response to debt affecting teachers and educational personnel, rather than focusing solely on reducing interest rates.
“The government’s objective is not simply to make teachers pay less interest. Teachers must have debts that can be managed, enough money left for their living expenses, and a system that prevents them from falling further into debt,” she said.
Teachers’ savings cooperatives are a central focus. Figures from the Cooperative Promotion Department show that the country has 116 such cooperatives, with 862,539 members and combined lending of 1.141545 trillion baht.
Cheaper funding and more manageable repayments
The cooperatives’ lending rates average 5.60% and reach as high as 9%. Fifteen cooperatives, accounting for about 13% of the total, charge rates above 7%, according to the department.
Phatdarasmi said interest-rate cuts alone would not resolve the problem if cooperatives continued to face high funding costs, members’ debt burdens and repayment periods remained unsuitable, and borrowers could continue taking on additional loans.
The measures under study therefore cover both the cost of funding for cooperatives and the management of individual members’ debts.
The department has proposed working with other government agencies to secure low-interest funding. This would reduce cooperatives’ borrowing costs and help ensure they have sufficient liquidity, while easing financial pressure on members.
For borrowers, options include refinancing with lower-cost lenders, consolidating debts into a single loan, restructuring repayment plans and extending repayment periods. The aim is to bring monthly instalments more closely into line with members’ income and ability to repay.
Credit Lock and responsible lending
Preventing new borrowing is another part of the approach. The Cooperative Promotion Department is working with National Credit Bureau Co., Ltd (NCB) on Credit Lock, a mechanism intended to prevent participating members from taking out additional loans with financial institutions or other lenders under specified conditions.
Fourteen cooperatives are already using the mechanism with 914 members. These include nine teachers’ savings cooperatives covering 864 members.
Another proposal would keep dividend rates at levels appropriate to each cooperative’s operating performance. The intention is to maintain balanced management and reduce pressure to generate income through riskier lending.
Proposed changes to lending criteria would also follow responsible lending principles, taking account of members’ long-term repayment capacity and financial commitments after retirement.
Phatdarasmi said addressing teacher debt required lower funding costs, reduced monthly repayments, debts structured to match income and safeguards against further borrowing to be pursued together.
Joint committee to report within 30 days
Education Minister Prasert Jantararuangtong and Deputy Agriculture and Cooperatives Minister Piyarat Tiyapairat agreed to establish the joint committee during talks on September 2, 2026.
The panel is to be co-chaired by the secretary-general of the Office of the Welfare Promotion Commission for Teachers and Educational Personnel and the director-general of the Cooperative Promotion Department.
Representatives from the Office of the Council of State will be invited to examine legal issues so that the proposed solutions can proceed quickly and be implemented in practice.
The committee will study the measures, funding sources, debt restructuring options and legal requirements before reporting its findings within 30 days.
“The ultimate goal is for teachers to achieve financial security, have enough money left for daily life, and be able to devote themselves fully to teaching and caring for their students,” Phatdarasmi said.
