Refugees at the Mae La refugee camp in Mae Sot, Thailand, March 5, 2025. © 2025 Valeria Mongelli/Anadolu via Getty Images
On August 26, Thailand’s cabinet approved measures allowing Myanmar refugees living in camps along the border to work legally. For many, it will be the first formal employment of their lives.
About 108,000 refugees live in the nine camps that have sheltered people fleeing Myanmar military abuses since the 1980s. Nearly half were born there.
The new work permits will only be available to about 80,000 refugees registered with the Thai government, an estimated 42,000 of whom are working age. Refugees will be required to apply for permission to leave the camps and for work permits valid up to one year.
For decades, the Thai government barred camp refugees from working legally, moving freely, or accessing public services, leaving them largely dependent on foreign aid. Desperation in the camps soared this year following drastic US government aid cuts to core food and healthcare services, with monthly rations slashed first to US$2.30, then to zero.
In July, I spoke with eight refugees who described feeling hopeless and forgotten after decades restricted to the camps. All were eager to work outside them if allowed. “If we could have some sort of status to grant us protection, to live and work freely and make money, then we wouldn’t be a burden on Thailand or the international community,” one refugee said.
The cabinet decision comes at a critical juncture not only for the refugees, but also for the Thai labor force, which is facing shortages due to an aging population and the exodus of at least 100,000 Cambodian migrant workers following recent border clashes.
Thai authorities should ensure the permit application process is transparent, accessible, and prompt, with protections in place to avoid exploitation or extortion by brokers. If properly implemented, the work policy will build refugees’ self-reliance and independence, boost local economies, and be a rights-respecting, prosperous model for refugee populations elsewhere in Thailand and in the region.
“As young people, we want to make a living, we want to use our knowledge and skills,” another refugee told me. “If there’s any chance for us to leave the camp to work, to get a job and provide for our families, I would take it.”
