In this article
An annual employee health check is a yearly physical examination and set of laboratory tests an organisation provides to its staff to catch health risks early. For most employees in Thailand it is a benefit; for employees working with occupational risk factors, the law requires the employer to provide it.
This guide is for HR and benefits teams organising checks for tens to thousands of employees in Thailand: what the law requires, how to set check items for each group, how to request and compare quotes, how to run the day, and how to handle results, which are sensitive data. A free Excel template is included.
What the law requires
No law requires every organisation to provide annual checks for all staff. But Thailand’s 2020 ministerial regulation on health checks for employees working with risk factors, under the Occupational Safety, Health and Environment Act 2011, sets duties for employers whose staff work with risks such as hazardous chemicals, noise, heat or dust.
| Situation | Employer duty |
|---|---|
| Hiring into risk-factor work | First check completed within 30 days of hiring |
| During employment | At least once a year, or as often as the work requires |
| Moving to work with different risk factors | Check completed within 30 days of the change |
| Abnormal results or work-related illness | Treatment, investigation, and results and corrective action sent to the labour inspector within 30 days |
| Every check | Recorded in the employee’s health booklet (electronic is allowed) and kept for inspection |
The common slip is internal transfers: an employee moving to work with different risk factors needs a new check within 30 days; last year’s results from the old department do not count. Ask your safety officer to define each job’s risk factors before setting items.
Six steps to run the annual check
- Group employees by age, sex and job risk, such as office staff under 35, staff 35 and over, and risk-factor workers
- Set items with a doctor, such as an occupational medicine physician, adding risk-factor items and dropping items without indication
- Set the budget from headcount per group times the price of that group’s programme, not one price for all
- Get at least three quotes using the same groups and items, so they compare directly
- Choose the format: employees go to a hospital, a mobile unit comes on site, or both
- Run the day and follow up: tell employees how to prepare, send results to them directly, and arrange repeat tests or referral for abnormal results
Items commonly included
Check items should be set by a doctor by age, sex and job risk. This table lists what providers commonly include, so HR can discuss and compare quotes.
| Group of items | Examples | Note for HR |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | History and physical examination, blood pressure, weight, height, BMI | In almost every programme |
| Blood and urine | Blood count, blood sugar, lipids, kidney and liver function, urinalysis | Ask for the detailed list |
| Imaging | Chest X-ray | Some organisations require it for new hires or risk groups |
| By age and sex | Extra screening the doctor recommends by age | Let the doctor decide; do not add everything for everyone |
| By job risk | Hearing for noisy work, lung function for dusty work, chemical exposure tests | Required by law for risk-factor work; check the provider covers it |
More tests than needed do not make employees healthier; they raise the budget and can lead to unnecessary repeat tests.
On site or at the hospital
| At a hospital or clinic | Mobile unit on site | |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | Employees spread across areas, or small numbers | Many employees in one place |
| Pros | Wider range of items; employees choose day and branch | Less time off work; high attendance |
| Watch out for | Some employees never go; needs follow-up | Minimum headcount; some items cannot be done off site |
| Ask providers | How many branches near employees; how to book | Minimum headcount, space needed, results turnaround |
Compare quotes with the free Excel template
Price per person is only part of the decision. The template compares up to four providers: total budget by headcount per group, the conditions HR should ask about, and a total score using weights you set.
Employee health check quote comparison template
Questions to include in every request for quotation:
- Price per person per group, and the detailed items in each programme
- Whether all risk-factor checks are covered, and who interprets them
- Results turnaround, how results reach employees, and whether a doctor explains them
- Whether there is an anonymised organisation-level report
- How abnormal results are followed up, and any extra cost
- On-site conditions, minimum headcount and any extra charges
Handling results under PDPA
Health results are sensitive personal data under Thailand’s Personal Data Protection Act. Collecting and using them needs a lawful basis and usually explicit consent. Common practice:
- Providers send detailed results directly to employees
- The organisation receives only what it needs, such as fitness-for-work summaries and anonymised aggregate reports
- For risk-factor work, where the law requires the employer to record and keep results, limit access and set retention periods
- Write this into the provider contract and have your data protection officer review it
Getting more from the annual check
The organisations that gain most do three things after the day: use the aggregate report to plan next year’s benefits, make sure employees with abnormal results actually see a doctor, and link the check to other benefits such as vaccines, dental care and online consultations. Read next: employee health benefits.
A summary for benefits planning, not medical or legal advice. Items for each group should be set by a doctor.
Frequently asked questions
Must employers in Thailand provide annual health checks for all employees?
No law requires checks for every employee, but for staff working with risk factors such as hazardous chemicals, noise, heat or dust, employers must provide a first check within 30 days of starting and at least one a year, under the 2020 ministerial regulation. For others, the annual check is a benefit.
What should an employee health check include?
A doctor should set items by age, sex and job risk. Programmes usually include a physical examination, blood pressure and BMI, basic blood and urine tests, and sometimes a chest X-ray. Risk-factor workers need items matching their risks, such as hearing tests for noisy work.
How soon must new employees be checked?
Employees in risk-factor work must complete a first check within 30 days of hiring, and within 30 days of moving to work with different risk factors.
How should we set the budget?
Multiply headcount in each group by the price of that group’s programme, rather than one price for all, then get at least three quotes on the same items. The template in this guide calculates totals and compares providers.
Can the company see employees’ results?
Health results are sensitive data under PDPA, needing a lawful basis and usually explicit consent. Common practice is for detailed results to go to employees directly, with the organisation receiving only fitness-for-work summaries and anonymised reports. Ask your DPO to review the approach.
On site or at the hospital: which is better?
It depends on headcount and location. On-site units suit many employees in one place, with less time off and high attendance; hospitals and clinics suit dispersed teams and offer more items. Many organisations combine both.
Sources
- Thansettakij, Ministerial regulation on health checks for employees working with risk factors, 2020 (in Thai)
- Chulalongkorn University Center of Safety, Health and Environment, summary of the employee health check regulation (in Thai)
- Chulalongkorn University Center of Safety, Health and Environment, employee health booklet notification (in Thai)
