Section 269/6 — Tools for forging electronic cards
English translation
Whoever makes, or possesses, a tool or material for forging an electronic card shall be liable to imprisonment from one year to seven years, or a fine from twenty thousand baht to one hundred forty thousand baht, or both.
This English translation is provided for reference only and has not yet been firm-verified — always rely on the Thai original.
Firm annotation
Section 269/6 is a preparatory or preventive offence within the Chapter on Offences Relating to Electronic Cards. Rather than punishing the forgery or use of a card, it reaches back to the tools of the trade, penalising anyone who makes or possesses an instrument or material used to forge electronic cards, such as card-encoding or skimming equipment. Its elements are simply making or possessing such a tool or material, without any requirement that a card has yet been forged. This lets prosecutors intervene earlier against card-fraud operations, and it commonly accompanies the making offences of Sections 269/2 and 269/3 when equipment is seized alongside forged cards.
Why this matters in practice
Section 269/6 matters because possession alone of card-forging equipment is an offence, with exposure up to seven years, so a defendant need not have produced a single forged card to be liable. In organised cases it is charged together with the forging, using, and possessing offences of the Chapter, and seizure of skimming or encoding devices is often the linchpin of the evidence. The defence typically contests whether the item is genuinely a tool or material for forging cards, or whether the accused knowingly possessed it for that purpose. Because possession is enough, the intent and knowledge elements are the practical battleground. For background see fraud and scam laws in Thailand.
Frequently asked questions
Is it a crime to possess card-forging equipment even without making a card?
Yes. Section 269/6 punishes making or possessing a tool or material for forging an electronic card, so possession alone is an offence, with exposure of one to seven years, even if no card has been forged.
What is the penalty under Section 269/6?
Making or possessing tools for forging electronic cards carries imprisonment of one to seven years, a fine of 20,000 to 140,000 baht, or both.