In highly scrutinized marketplace, the Trade Competition Commission of Thailand (TCCT) is pivoting away from voluntary guidelines toward strict, punitive enforcement. For digital platforms in ride-hailing and on-demand delivery, upcoming directives set for enforcement in October and November will mandate rigid service standards. Platforms will be legally required to verify driver backgrounds and vehicle registrations to level the playing field with traditional transport. Furthermore, operators must maintain structured, searchable logs of driver data to instantly trace identities and physical addresses during customer emergencies. The directives also target “black-box” algorithms and “dark patterns” such as manipulating job allocation to prevent drivers from qualifying for bonuses while requiring transparency on surge pricing triggers. Crucially, the TCCT rejects the notion that platforms are “neutral intermediaries,” establishing shared, joint liability for public safety and the supply chain. Non-compliance carries severe financial risks, with administrative fines of up to 10% of a company’s sales revenue in the year the offense occurs.
Simultaneously, large enterprises with annual sales exceeding 500 million baht must rapidly align their commercial practices with strict new credit term regulations taking effect in early September. Designed to inject an estimated 100 billion baht of locked-up liquidity back into the SME ecosystem, the rules render any non-compliant credit clauses legally void. Credit terms must be secured in writing and are strictly capped at 45 days for trade, manufacturing, and services, and 30 days for agricultural products. The payment clock begins ticking immediately once the seller delivers compliant goods or services along with proper documentation. Any deviations are prohibited unless justified by provable business, marketing, or economic reasons, and unilateral contract modifications are banned without reasonable grounds or at least 60 days of prior notice. Violators face devastating administrative fines of up to 10% of their annual revenue, with the penalty capped at 1 million baht for new businesses.
TCCT’s Unprecedented Crackdown on Digital Platforms and Commercial Credit Terms_Bangkok Global Law