The move is part of ongoing efforts to prevent the misuse of student visas by foreign nationals seeking to work illegally in the kingdom, reports the Bangkok Post.
Minister Sudawan Wangsuphakijkosol said on Friday (Aug 22) that she had assigned Supachai Pathumnakul, permanent secretary of the MHESI, to meet with Pol Col Yos-aek Raksasuwan, acting commander of the IB’s Administration Division. The meeting addressed the implementation of the ministry’s guidelines concerning short-term (non-degree) programmes for international students.
These discussions are based on the official MHESI announcement outlining the criteria and operational procedures for offering non-degree courses to international students in higher education institutions, as issued in 2025, she said.
At the meeting, both agencies agreed to jointly develop and implement a centralised database system for international students enrolled in short-term (non-degree) programmes offered by institutes of higher education in Thailand.
All short-term (non-degree) programmes must submit reports on their educational operations to the Office of the Permanent Secretary of the MHESI. These will be used to forward the names of enrolled international students to the IB for consideration in issuing visas and granting temporary stay permits, she said.
This aims to prevent the misuse of student visas by foreign nationals seeking to work here unlawfully. Institutes of higher education must establish internal procedures for monitoring the attendance of international students and submit monthly progress reports through the MHESI’s centralised international student tracking system.