Practical Tips for Dawn Raid in Thailand

1. Introduction

A number of government agencies in Thailand have the power to enter premises to search for and seize material as an initial step of investigations. An unannounced inspection of a company by a regulatory or law enforcement agency (known as a “dawn raid”) may be initiated by a complaint or information learned from a whistleblower. Although such raids are not typically conducted at dawn, they often (but not always) occur at the start of the business day. The goal is to catch the target company by surprise so it has no time to conceal or dispose of key evidence deemed relevant to investigations. If a company responds to a dawn raid in the wrong manner, it can lead to a deterioration of its relationship with the government agency, and furthermore, expose the company to criminal penalties for “obstruction of an investigation”. It is therefore vital for all companies to…