The Labour Ministry will open 99 centres, including 11 in the capital, to legalise the status of 1.5 million illegal workers by properly registering them in compliance with an executive decree to regulate the employment of migrant labourers.
The centres aim to give unregistered migrant workers who have been working in Thailand without the required documents, including a work permit and a certificate of identity (CI), legitimate working status.
They are scheduled to open from July 24 to Aug 7, a 15-day window during which the government will upgrade the legal status of undocumented workers who can confirm they have valid employment as well as prove their identity.
Around 1.5 million people are expected to flock to the centres based on estimates of how many migrant labourers were working in Thailand in 2014, said Pichit Nilthongkham, inspector-general of the Employment Department.
Each centre is expected to handle 30,000 migrant labourers a day, officials said, adding that the facilities will all be furnished with 30 booths.
Employers are required to submit documents and photos of workers to the centres. The migrant labourers will then have their nationality verified to obtain a CI, which will be used in issuing the work permit.
Myanmar workers can get a CI at verification centres in Sumut Sakhon, Samut Prakan, Ranong, Tak and Chiang Rai.
The ministry is negotiating with Laos and Cambodia about ways of issuing their nationals with a CI in Thailand so they can avoid the inconvenience of travelling home.
Details and necessary documents are available on the ministry's website (www.doe.go.th) or by calling the labour hotline 1694.
Mr Pichit said the locations of the centres will be announced after all the details have been finalised. Some of them will be in military areas, he added.
Four sections of the decree have been suspended until Jan 1 to give employers a grace period during which they can prepare the registration papers, said Petcharat Sinauy, deputy spokesman for the Labour Ministry.
Meanwhile, migrant workers whose current employer does not match the name stated in their work permit can submit a request to update this at Employment Department offices nationwide, he said.
Those who have all the necessary paperwork but miss the 15-day window can submit their application to register at their local employment office, he added.