Article 250: Forging the State Seal or the Royal Signature

Firm annotation

This is the most serious offence in the chapter on offences relating to seals, stamps and tickets, reflecting the special status of the State Seal and the Royal Signature as emblems of sovereign authority. The elements are simply (1) forging (2) the State Seal, an impression of the State Seal, or the Royal Signature; no use of the forged article is required for the offence to be complete. Its penalty of five to twenty years and a fine of 100,000 to 400,000 baht sets the ceiling for the graded scheme that follows. Forging the lesser seals of government departments, public organisations and officials is Section 251, at one to seven years. Using a forged seal, seal impression or Royal Signature of either kind is Section 252, which takes the penalty of whichever section the article falls under. Obtaining a genuine seal and using it unlawfully in a manner likely to cause damage is Section 253, at two thirds of that penalty. Bringing a counterfeit or altered article into the Kingdom is Section 255. Where the forger also commits a further offence in this chapter in relation to the article produced, Section 263 punishes the course of conduct once only, under this section.