Labour Minister General Sirichai Distakul said after the Cabinet meeting that a royal decree on the Social Security Office (SSO) insurance qualifications and a royal decree on the SSO contribution criteria and rates, and criteria and conditions for benefits, as well as a ministerial regulation on the rate of government contributions were approved.

Voluntarily insured persons under the Social Security Act’s Article 40 will enjoy increased benefits, including:

Bt300 per day of hospitalisation due to accident or sickness to compensate for a lack of income (up to 90 days per year).

An additional Bt3,000 on top of the Bt40,000 death/funeral-assisting compensation if the voluntarily insured person has paid contributions to the SSO fund for more than six months.

Bt200 per head per month in child support (for up to two children).

Bt10,000 one-time old-age pension if the voluntarily insured person has paid contributions to the SSO fund for more than 180 months.

Being a voluntarily insured person under the Social Security Act’s Article 40 does not require a health check and can be used along with the universal healthcare scheme.

The country’s 21 million informal-sector workers can benefit from the changes. The Labour Ministry planned to cover 3 million such workers this year and the changes will require a Bt400-million budget if implemented.

In the long term, a Bt3-billion budget is meant to cover the entire informal-sector workforce in line with the 20-year national strategy’s framework.