Section 95 — Prescription for criminal prosecution
English translation
In a criminal case, if the prosecution is not brought and the offender not brought before the court within the following periods counted from the date of the commission of the offence, prescription bars the case:
(1) twenty years for an offence punishable by death, imprisonment for life, or imprisonment of twenty years;
(2) fifteen years for an offence punishable by imprisonment of more than seven years but less than twenty years;
(3) ten years for an offence punishable by imprisonment of more than one year up to seven years;
(4) five years for an offence punishable by imprisonment of more than one month up to one year;
(5) one year for an offence punishable by imprisonment of one month or less, or by another punishment.
If the prosecution has been brought and the offender brought before the court, but the offender then absconds or becomes insane and the court orders the proceedings stayed, then when the applicable period above has elapsed counted from the date of absconding or the date of the stay order, the case is likewise barred by prescription.
This English translation is provided for reference only and has not yet been firm-verified — always rely on the Thai original.
Firm annotation
Section 95 is the master prescription rule for prosecution, part of Book 1's chapter on prescription. It fixes five tiers keyed to the maximum penalty of the offence, running from the date of commission, and requires that both the charge be filed and the offender be brought before the court within the tier. Its second paragraph addresses interruption by absconding or insanity after the accused has been produced, restarting the count from the date of flight or the stay order. It sits alongside Section 96, which adds a separate three-month complaint window for compoundable offences, expressly subject to Section 95, and alongside Sections 97 to 101 dealing with prescription of preventive detention, execution of sentence, and related measures. Correctly identifying the applicable tier depends on the statutory maximum, not the sentence actually imposed.
Why this matters in practice
Prescription is one of the strongest and simplest defences: if the charge was filed and the accused brought to court after the tier expired, the case is barred outright, whatever the merits. The period runs from the date of the offence and is measured by the statutory maximum penalty, so identifying the correct tier is the first thing to check when a complaint concerns older conduct. For compoundable offences remember the extra three-month complaint window under Section 96, which still operates within these outer limits. Absconding after being produced can restart the clock. If you are unsure whether a case is time-barred, review the dates with counsel; you can book a consultation.
Supreme Court decisions interpreting this section
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 2140/2568 (2025)
The prescription period is fixed by the statutory penalty of each offence, so offences carrying the higher penalties in Section 95(1) and (2) have twenty-year and fifteen-year periods respectively.
The offences charged carried prescription periods of twenty and fifteen years under Section 95(1) and (2). Because the anti-corruption body investigated and reached its decision within those periods, the court held the prosecution was within time.
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 740/2566 (2023)
The three-month complaint window in Section 96 operates within the outer prescription limits of Section 95, so a case filed within the ten-year period under Section 95(3) is not time-barred.
Although the plaintiff filed more than three months after learning of the offence and offender, the case was brought within ten years of the offence under Section 95(3). The court held that because Section 96 operates subject to Section 95, the case was not barred.
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Supreme Court Judgment No. 2318/2565 (2022)
An offence punishable by imprisonment of one to ten years carries a fifteen-year prescription period under Section 95(2), counted from the date of the offence.
The offence for which an arrest warrant was sought carried imprisonment of one to ten years, giving a fifteen-year prescription period under Section 95(2). Counted from the date of the offence, that period had already expired, so the offence was time-barred.
Curated decisions with case numbers verified against the Supreme Court database. English renderings are the firm's editorial translation for study.
Frequently asked questions
How long does the prosecution have to bring a criminal case?
Under Section 95 the period ranges from one year to twenty years depending on the maximum penalty, counted from the date of the offence. Both the charge and the offender must reach the court within that period.
Which penalty decides the prescription period?
The maximum penalty the offence carries by law, not the sentence actually imposed, determines which tier of Section 95 applies.