Lawmaker Warns Of 80,000 Unregistered Hotels Posing Security Risk
Thailand has an estimated 80,000 unregistered hotels operating without licenses, creating security gaps that allow foreign criminals to evade tracking systems, a Democrat Party lawmaker warned.
On July 7, 2569, Deputy Democrat Party Leader Chaiyachon Detchdecho addressed legal gaps and regulatory failures in monitoring foreign nationals and capital flows in Thailand. According to current data, Thailand has only approximately 20,000 properly registered and licensed hotels, while over 80,000 accommodations—representing 70-80% of all lodging nationwide—operate without licenses or proper registration. Chaiyachon noted public complaints about tourist and foreign national conduct, pointing out that law clearly mandates hotels report guest names and information to the Department of Provincial Administration and Immigration Bureau. However, inspection revealed that of 20,000 legal hotels, only 12,000 comply with reporting requirements, split between 70% electronic submissions and 30% paper-based reports. The unregistered 80,000 establishments submit no reports whatsoever, creating massive gaps in Thailand's foreign national tracking system. "The proportion of unlicensed hotels at 70-80% is deeply concerning," Chaiyachon stated. "I urge the Interior Ministry and Department of Provincial Administration to enforce laws requiring these accommodations to register properly and implement strict foreign guest data collection systems." He emphasized that decisive measures are essential to prevent foreign nationals from using accommodation loopholes to establish criminal bases, particularly call center gangs, scammers, and online fraud networks causing extensive damage to Thai citizens. "The Interior Ministry, Department of Provincial Administration, and all relevant security agencies must urgently and strictly coordinate to tackle this problem," Chaiyachon concluded.
