Insurance specialists from Tilleke & Gibbins in Bangkok have contributed the Thailand chapter to the newly released 2025 edition of Thomson Reuters’ Practical Law guide to insurance and reinsurance. The Thailand chapter offers a comprehensive Q&A-style overview of the legal and regulatory framework governing insurance and reinsurance in the country. It provides key insights for businesses, insurers, reinsurers, and intermediaries operating in or entering the Thai market. Key topics covered include: Market structure and common types of insurance; Regulatory framework and oversight by the Office of Insurance Commission (OIC); Authorisation requirements for insurers, reinsurers, and intermediaries; Ownership restrictions and foreign investment rules; Corporate governance, capital requirements, and solvency obligations; Reinsurance arrangements, including fronting, risk transfer, and common contractual clauses; Policy content requirements, standard clauses, and consumer protections; Claims procedures, statutory time limits, and subrogation rights; Dispute resolution mechanisms, including OIC arbitration and court proceedings; Insolvency protections for policyholders; Tax treatment of insurance and reinsurance businesses in Thailand; Recent legal developments, including pending amendments to the Life and Non-Life Insurance Acts and updated OIC regulations on reinsurance and investment activities. The 2025 edition reflects Thailand’s evolving regulatory environment, including proposed legislative reforms to strengthen corporate governance, risk-based capital requirements, and financial stability in the insurance sector. It also highlights practical considerations for foreign insurers, reinsurers, and intermediaries seeking to participate in Thailand’s insurance market. Tilleke & Gibbins contributes regularly to the Practical Law series of guides for various jurisdictions in Southeast Asia, providing trusted legal insight for multinational companies. To access the latest Thailand chapter of the insurance and reinsurance guide, please visit the Practical Law website and enroll in the free Practical Law trial to gain full access.

Tilleke & Gibbins attorneys in Vietnam have contributed the 2025 edition of Doing Business in Vietnam, a comprehensive Q&A-style resource from Thomson Reuters Practical Law that provides essential insights for companies navigating business operations in Vietnam. The guide presents a detailed overview of the country’s legal framework and regulatory environment, reflecting recent updates in Vietnamese legislation and practice. This annually updated guide offers key information on the following areas: Legal system: Structure of the Vietnamese judiciary and the role of codified law. Foreign investment: Conditions for market access, licensing requirements, foreign ownership restrictions, and investment incentives. Business vehicles: Formation and operation of legal entities, including limited liability companies, joint-stock companies, and representative offices. Employment: Employment contracts, social insurance, labor rights, and procedures for hiring foreign nationals. Tax: Overview of corporate income tax, personal income tax, value-added tax, and other tax obligations. Intellectual property: Procedures for protecting and enforcing patents, trademarks, copyrights, and other IP rights. Data protection: Compliance requirements under Vietnam’s data privacy laws, including the Personal Data Protection Decree. Competition law: Antitrust rules and regulatory oversight under the Law on Competition. Anti-bribery and corruption: Legal framework and enforcement practices aimed at curbing corrupt activities. E-commerce and digital business: Regulations governing online platforms, digital content, and cross-border services. Marketing and advertising: Laws and guidelines on advertising standards and consumer protection. Product regulation and liability: Safety requirements, product liability issues, and roles of relevant authorities. Doing Business in Vietnam is part of Practical Law’s global series of legal guides designed to support international practitioners and businesses. To access the most recent edition of the Vietnam guide, visit the Practical Law website and sign up for a free trial.

Attorneys from Tilleke & Gibbins have updated the latest edition of Doing Business in Thailand, a Q&A-style guide from Thomson Reuters Practical Law that offers an overview of key legal considerations for companies operating in jurisdictions worldwide. The contribution outlines the country’s legal and regulatory framework for foreign investment and business operations and reflects the latest legislative developments. The chapter addresses the following core topics: Legal system: Structure of the courts and the codified nature of Thai law. Foreign investment: Business restrictions under the Foreign Business Act, sector-specific regulations, exchange control rules, and investment incentives. Business vehicles: Overview of partnerships, private and public limited companies, and other legal entities. Employment: Labor protections, employment contracts, foreign worker requirements, and termination procedures. Tax: Corporate and personal income tax, indirect taxes, and tax obligations for residents and non-residents. Intellectual property: Registration and enforcement of patents, trademarks, designs, and copyrights. Data protection: Key provisions of the Personal Data Protection Act and related compliance obligations. Competition law: Regulatory framework under the Trade Competition Act. Anti-bribery and corruption: Relevant legislation and enforcement mechanisms. E-commerce and digital business: Legal regime for online transactions and digital platforms. Marketing and advertising: Consumer protection laws and regulations affecting advertising and marketing practices. Product regulation and liability: Safety standards, liability regimes, and roles of enforcement authorities. Practical Law, a legal reference resource from Thomson Reuters, publishes a range of guides for hundreds of jurisdictions and practice areas. The insurance and reinsurance guide is a valuable resource for legal practitioners, covering numerous jurisdictions worldwide. To view the latest version of the guide, please visit the Practical Law website and enroll in the free Practical Law trial to gain full access.

On April 11, 2025, Thailand’s Office of Insurance Commission (OIC) released draft principles for two notifications for public comment, open until the end of April. These aim to amend the OIC Notifications on Guidelines for Customer Personal Data Protection for life and non-life insurance businesses, which were issued in 2021. Key Principles Both life and non-life insurance companies will be required to obtain consent for the following processing activities: Processing of general personal data: When requesting the OIC to disclose information related to a customer’s insurance policy for the purpose of underwriting or claims consideration. Processing of sensitive personal data: When requesting the OIC to disclose information related to a customer’s insurance policy for the purpose of underwriting or claims consideration; and When requesting the OIC to disclose information about a customer’s insurance fraud behavior for fraud monitoring, fraud risk management, and assessing and preventing insurance fraud risk for underwriting or claims payment. The consent for the above processing activities must be in accordance with the consent requirements prescribed by the OIC, and the disclosure of personal data must also comply strictly with the conditions set by the OIC. Life insurance companies may obtain consent for other purposes as long as they comply with Thailand’s Personal Data Protection Act B.E. 2562 (2019), and companies will be liable in the event of a personal data breach. Additional Principles for Non-Life Insurance Businesses Non-life insurance companies will be required to provide a privacy notice and a summary of the privacy notice for each type of insurance policy in accordance with the form prescribed by the OIC. The privacy notice and its summary must be provided prior to or at the time of offering insurance policies, or together with the consent form for data processing through any channels used for offering insurance.