Thai national ID card
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The Thai identity card ( th, บัตรประจำตัวประชาชนไทย; ; ) is an official identity document issued to Thai nationals between the age of 7 and 70 years.ราชกิจจานุเบกษา
พระราชบัญญัติบัตรประจำตัวประชาชน (ฉบับที่ ๓) พ.ศ. ๒๕๕๔
เล่ม ๑๒๘ ตอนที่ ๓๔ ก, ๑๑ พฤษภาคม ๒๕๕๔ (National Identification Card amendment act, 2011)
It was first introduced in 1943 when
Plaek Phibunsongkram Field Marshal Plaek Phibunsongkhram ( th, แปลก พิบูลสงคราม ; alternatively transcribed as ''Pibulsongkram'' or ''Pibulsonggram''; 14 July 1897 – 11 June 1964), locally known as Marshal P. ( th, จอมพล ...
was the
Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...
. The minimum age was originally 16 years but later altered to 15 in 1983 and 7 in 2011. The card is used for proving the holder's identity and receiving government services. Other private services, such as applying for a
mobile phone A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over a radio frequency link whi ...
contract or opening a
bank account A bank account is a financial account maintained by a bank or other financial institution in which the financial transactions between the bank and a customer are recorded. Each financial institution sets the terms and conditions for each type of ...
, also require a production of valid identity card. Failure to produce a card without good reasons can result in up to ฿200 fine.


History

Prior to the introduction of an identification card in 1943, anyone who wanted to travel can apply for an internal passport at the district office. However, the
law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...
was rarely enforced until 1943, when a compulsory identification book law was enacted. Thai nationals who were 16 and older and lived within designated areas were required to have an identification book, similar to the existing internal passport. In 1963, an identification book was replaced by a smaller
laminated Lamination is the technique/process of manufacturing a material in multiple layers, so that the composite material achieves improved strength, stability, sound insulation, appearance, or other properties from the use of the differing materia ...
paper card featuring holder's photo with height scale. All personal information was
typewritten A typewriter is a mechanical or electromechanical machine for typing characters. Typically, a typewriter has an array of keys, and each one causes a different single character to be produced on paper by striking an inked ribbon selective ...
on the obverse side. Date of issue and expiry were typed on the reverse. The cost charged was ฿5 (around ฿90 today) for any issuance, whether of a new card or a replacement. It was at this time that identification cards became legally required by every Thai citizen. However, the card could be forged easily as there was no security features. It could also be damaged easily due to being made with paper. With the introduction of
microfilm Microforms are scaled-down reproductions of documents, typically either photographic film, films or paper, made for the purposes of transmission, storage, reading, and printing. Microform images are commonly reduced to about 4% or of the origin ...
,
dot matrix printer A dot matrix printer is an impact printer that prints using a fixed number of pins or wires. Typically the pins or wires are arranged in one or several vertical columns. The pins strike an ink-coated ribbon and force contact between the ribbon ...
and mainframe computer, the 1963 card became obsolete in 1987. At that time, Thai nationals were assigned unique 13-digit personal numbers that integrated the card issuance with other registrations. Thai nationals who turned 15 had to apply for a card in person at a district office. The card production was centralized; this meant all application forms and thumb prints had to be microfilmed and submitted to the registration administration bureau in
Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populati ...
for further processing. The card was made of paper printed by dot matrix printer and laminated with special coating. In 1996, all identification cards issued in Bangkok were printed on site using a
computer system A computer is a machine that can be programmed to carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations ( computation) automatically. Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic sets of operations known as programs. These prog ...
. Outside Bangkok, on the other hand, a registrar had to submit paper forms for manual processing. Since then, the card issuing system was subsequently implemented nationwide. However, the information provided on the card is all in Thai; one had to translate the card for use in foreign countries. As a result, in 2005, a bilingual national identification card was adopted and is still in use today. In 2011, the government led by Abhisit Vejjajiva proposed that the minimum age for identification card should be reduced from 15 to 7 years, in order to reduce the use of birth certificate and other evidences for children.


Identification number

In 1909, the Thai government launched a
census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...
surveying people across the country, including
immigrants Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, a ...
, for the purpose of
taxation A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, o ...
and conscription. The system was simple and home owners were not obliged to register an entry. Eight years later, home owners in selected areas were required to register deaths and births in their home to authorities The law was then expanded nationwide in 1956. Despite the existence of a citizen register, there was no unique identification number for a person. This later raised a security problem, especially when
communism Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a ...
expanded into Thailand. Foreign criminals might forge identification cards and personal records relatively easily. On 19 September 1985, the Central Bureau of Registration (now the Bureau of Registration Administration) was established and a 13-digit national identification number was introduced. The structure of the Thai identification number is:
x_1 - x_2 x_3 x_4 x_5 - x_6 x_7 x_8 x_9 x_ - x_ x_ - x_
The meaning of each section is as follows: denotes the category of the particular person, which can either be: stands for the
ISO 3166-2 ISO 3166-2 is part of the ISO 3166 standard published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), and defines codes for identifying the principal subdivisions (e.g., provinces or states) of all countries coded in ISO 3166-1. The ...
code for the registrar's office. x_6 x_7 x_8 x_9 x_ - x_ x_ is either the birth certificate number, which comprises book number and sheet ID, or a personal number (for people who were born before 1 January 1984). Finally denotes a
checksum A checksum is a small-sized block of data derived from another block of digital data for the purpose of detecting errors that may have been introduced during its transmission or storage. By themselves, checksums are often used to verify data ...
. An identification number appears on all identification cards, house registration books and other official
document A document is a written, drawn, presented, or memorialized representation of thought, often the manifestation of non-fictional, as well as fictional, content. The word originates from the Latin ''Documentum'', which denotes a "teaching" o ...
s. It helps identify different people who might share the same name as well as aids legal enforcement.


Format

The identification card comprises basic information on the holder, including * Identification number * Title, given and family name; *
Date of birth A birthday is the anniversary of the birth of a person, or figuratively of an institution. Birthdays of people are celebrated in numerous cultures, often with birthday gifts, birthday cards, a birthday party, or a rite of passage. Many re ...
*Address * Date of issue * Date of expiry, 6 years after issue date *Photo of the card holder All entries except the address are provided in both Thai and
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
and printed on bluish white card. In addition to this, the issuer's
signature A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a handwritten (and often stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. The writer of a ...
and seal is printed on the same side of the card. Prior to 2005, all information was given in Thai only. The issuer's signature was on the reverse side as there was not enough space.


Other identity documents

* Identity card for person without Thai nationality ( th, บัตรประจำตัวคนซึ่งไม่มีสัญชาติไทย) * Identity card for person without registration status ( th, บัตรประจำตัวบุคคลที่ไม่มีสถานะทางทะเบียน)http://office.bangkok.go.th/ard/Manual_regis.html, Bangkok Metropolitan Authority, Citizen's Manual


See also

*
List of national identity card policies by country This is a list of identity document policies by country. A national identity document is an identity card with a photo, usable as an identity card at least inside the country, and which is issued by an official authority. Driver's licenses and ...


References


External links


DOPA website


{{DEFAULTSORT:Thai National Id Card Law of Thailand
Thailand Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...