{"id":6606,"date":"2026-09-05T19:10:36","date_gmt":"2026-09-05T12:10:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/glossary\/criminal-record\/"},"modified":"2026-09-05T19:22:36","modified_gmt":"2026-09-05T12:22:36","slug":"criminal-record","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/glossary\/criminal-record\/","title":{"rendered":"Criminal Record in Thailand: What Is Kept and Who Can See It"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><p>A <strong>criminal record<\/strong> (\u0e1b\u0e23\u0e30\u0e27\u0e31\u0e15\u0e34\u0e2d\u0e32\u0e0a\u0e0d\u0e32\u0e01\u0e23\u0e23\u0e21, <em>prawat atchayakam<\/em>, also <em>criminal history<\/em> ou <em>police record<\/em>) in Thailand is the file held by the Criminal Records Division of the Royal Thai Police on a person who has been fingerprinted as a suspect, indexed by fingerprints and identity details and updated with the outcome of the case. It is the database searched for a police clearance certificate. Foreigners meet it when applying for a visa abroad after living in Thailand, for permanent residence or citizenship, or when a past arrest surfaces in an immigration check.<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-rank-math-toc-block\" id=\"rank-math-toc\"><h2>Table des mati\u00e8res<\/h2><nav><ul><li><a href=\"#what-the-record-contains-and-who-keeps-it\">What the record contains and who keeps it<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#who-can-see-a-thai-criminal-record\">Who can see a Thai criminal record<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#how-a-record-affects-visas-residence-and-re-entry\">How a record affects visas, residence and re-entry<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"#frequently-asked-questions\">Foire aux questions<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"what-the-record-contains-and-who-keeps-it\">What the record contains and who keeps it<\/h2>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><p><strong>A file opens at the fingerprinting stage.<\/strong> When the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/glossary\/inquiry-official\/\">inquiry official<\/a> takes a suspect&#8217;s fingerprints for an offence carrying imprisonment, the prints and the charge are sent to the Criminal Records Division, which opens or updates the file. The court&#8217;s judgment is added later: conviction and sentence, acquittal, or a prosecutor&#8217;s decision not to indict. A settlement <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/glossary\/fine\/\">fine<\/a> paid at a police station or at immigration for a petty offence, a traffic matter or an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/glossary\/overstay\/\">overstay<\/a> is not a conviction and creates no record.<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><p>The Royal Thai Police&#8217;s own regulations govern what is kept. Under the rules adopted in the early 2020s, records of cases that ended in non-prosecution, withdrawal of a compoundable complaint, acquittal or dismissal are to be removed from the disclosure file on request, and petty offences and negligence offences punished by fine only are not disclosed. A conviction with a prison sentence, whether served or suspended, stays on the file.<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"who-can-see-a-thai-criminal-record\">Who can see a Thai criminal record<\/h2>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><p>The police, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/glossary\/public-prosecutor\/\">procureur g\u00e9n\u00e9ral<\/a>, the courts and the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/glossary\/immigration-bureau\/\">Bureau de l&#039;immigration<\/a> consult the database directly. Other government agencies see it when the law lets them ask: the work permit authorities, the permanent residence committee, the Department of Provincial Administration for citizenship applications, and the Teachers Council. A private employer, landlord or business partner in Thailand cannot search the database; the only route is to ask the person to obtain a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/glossary\/police-clearance-certificate\/\">certificat de police<\/a> and hand it over, which is what schools and some multinationals require.<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><p>Foreign authorities do not have access either. When a foreign immigration department asks for a Thai police certificate, it relies on the applicant applying in person or by power of attorney. The common mistake is to assume that a case that ended in a settlement or a suspended sentence has disappeared: a suspended sentence is a conviction and appears, and a case that was withdrawn stays on the internal file until removal is requested.<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"how-a-record-affects-visas-residence-and-re-entry\">How a record affects visas, residence and re-entry<\/h2>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><p>Section 12 of the Immigration Act bars entry to a foreigner who has been imprisoned by the judgment of a Thai or foreign court, other than for a petty offence, a negligence offence or an offence exempted by ministerial regulation. A Thai conviction can therefore lead to revocation of the stay, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/glossary\/deportation\/\">deportation<\/a> and a blacklist entry, and a conviction abroad is asked about in every long-stay visa, permanent residence and citizenship application. A fine-only sentence does not trigger Section 12 by itself, but immigration officers see the file and use discretion at each extension. Records abroad are not shared automatically with Thailand; they enter the file only if a foreign court or Interpol notice is brought to the attention of the Thai authorities.<\/p><\/p>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"frequently-asked-questions\">Foire aux questions<\/h2>\n\n<div id=\"rank-math-faq\" class=\"rank-math-block\">\n<div class=\"rank-math-list\">\n<div id=\"faq-question-1\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question\">Does a fine in Thailand show on a criminal record?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer\">\n\n<p>A fine imposed by a court after conviction is recorded, although petty offences and fine-only negligence offences are not disclosed on a clearance certificate under Royal Thai Police rules. A settlement fine paid at a police station, at immigration for overstay, or for a traffic offence is not a conviction and creates no record.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-question-2\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question\">Can a criminal record in Thailand be expunged?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer\">\n\n<p>Partly. Under Royal Thai Police regulations a person whose case ended without prosecution, was withdrawn, or resulted in acquittal or dismissal can ask the Criminal Records Division to remove the entry from the disclosure file. A conviction that carried a prison sentence, served or suspended, remains on the record.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"faq-question-3\" class=\"rank-math-list-item\">\n<h3 class=\"rank-math-question\">Can a foreigner with a criminal record enter Thailand?<\/h3>\n<div class=\"rank-math-answer\">\n\n<p>It depends on the sentence. Section 12 of the Immigration Act bars entry to anyone imprisoned by a Thai or foreign court except for petty or negligence offences, although this is enforced mainly when the record comes to the officer&#8217;s attention. A foreign conviction must be disclosed in applications for long-stay visas, permanent residence and citizenship.<\/p>\n\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><p>Voir aussi\u00a0: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/glossary\/police-clearance-certificate\/\">certificat de police<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/glossary\/suspended-sentence\/\">peine avec sursis<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/glossary\/blacklist\/\">immigration blacklist<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/glossary\/permanent-residency\/\">R\u00e9sidence permanente<\/a>, and the guides <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/criminal-records-checks-in-thailand\/\">criminal record checks in Thailand<\/a> ET <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/police-clearance-certificate-thailand\/\">how to get a police clearance certificate in Thailand<\/a>.<\/p><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A criminal record (\u0e1b\u0e23\u0e30\u0e27\u0e31\u0e15\u0e34\u0e2d\u0e32\u0e0a\u0e0d\u0e32\u0e01\u0e23\u0e23\u0e21, prawat atchayakam, also criminal history or police record) in Thailand is the file held by the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":214,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"pmpro_default_level":"","site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":"","rank_math_focus_keyword":"criminal record thailand","rank_math_title":"Criminal Record in Thailand: What Is Kept | ThaiLawOnline","rank_math_description":"Criminal record in Thailand is the Royal Thai Police file of arrests and convictions. What it contains, who can see it, visa effects and removal.","rank_math_breadcrumb_title":""},"class_list":["post-6606","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","pmpro-has-access"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/6606","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6606"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/6606\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6705,"href":"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/6606\/revisions\/6705"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/214"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.thailawonline.com\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6606"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}