Section 269/1 — Definition of electronic card
English translation
In this Chapter, "electronic card" means: (1) a document or any other object, of whatever appearance, that an issuer has issued to an entitled user, whether or not it bears a name, on which data or a code has been recorded by applying electronic, electrical, electromagnetic, or other similar methods, including the data so recorded, such as a credit card or an ATM card; or (2) data, a code, an account number, or anything else that can be used in an electronic system or any other similar system, to access and obtain money, goods, or services, or to make the system perform work for oneself or another person.
This English translation is provided for reference only and has not yet been firm-verified — always rely on the Thai original.
Firm annotation
Section 269/1 is the definitional provision that opens the Chapter on Offences Relating to Electronic Cards, which was inserted to modernise the Penal Code for card and electronic payment fraud. It sets a deliberately broad two-limb definition: (1) physical instruments issued to a user, such as credit and ATM cards, together with the data recorded on them; and (2) intangible data, codes, or account numbers usable in an electronic system to obtain value or make the system act. This definition anchors the operative offences that follow, Sections 269/2 to 269/7. Case law has separately recognised that a payment card can also qualify as a document and a right document under the general definitions in Section 1.
Why this matters in practice
Section 269/1 sets no penalty of its own; it matters because it fixes the scope of every card offence that follows. Its breadth means that account numbers, PINs, and stored data, not just plastic cards, can be the subject matter of the offences in Sections 269/2 to 269/7. In practice, conduct involving a payment card is frequently charged under several provisions at once, including document forgery under Sections 264 to 266 and theft under Section 334, because the courts treat a card as both an electronic card and a right document. Anyone facing such charges should map exactly which limb of the definition and which operative section the prosecution relies on. For background see fraud and scam laws in Thailand.
Supreme Court decisions interpreting this section
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 1517/2564 (2021)
A card used to pay for goods, services, or debts in lieu of cash, or to withdraw cash from a bank account, is evidence of the creation, change, transfer, reservation, or extinction of a right, and so qualifies as a document and a right document under Section 1(7) and (9) of the Penal Code.
In a prosecution spanning document forgery and electronic card offences under Sections 264, 265, 266, 269/1, 269/2, 269/4, 269/7, and 334, the court characterised the payment card as both a document and a right document, and the defendant was convicted on multiple counts.
Curated decisions with case numbers verified against the Supreme Court database. English renderings are the firm's editorial translation for study.
Frequently asked questions
Does electronic card cover more than a physical card?
Yes. Section 269/1 covers both physical cards such as credit and ATM cards and intangible data, codes, or account numbers usable in an electronic system to obtain money, goods, or services.
Is a credit card also a legal document?
Courts have held that a credit or ATM card used to pay for goods and services or to withdraw cash is also a document and a right document under Section 1 of the Penal Code, so card offences often overlap with document forgery charges.