What’s the difference between a legal and an illegal teacher?

last updated 23rd July 2009

A legal teacher has a teacher’s license (from the Thai Ministry of Education), a work permit (from the Thai Labor Department) and a one-year visa (from the Thai Immigration Dept) The one year visa is issued on the strength of you having a work permit. If you don’t get the work permit, you don’t get the one year visa. They are inextricably linked.

An illegal teacher has no teacher’s license and no work permit, and of course - no one year visa. Illegal teachers are resigned to doing border hops and consulate runs to neighboring countries every month or every 2-3 months depending on how they’ve got things organized.

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About Ajarn.com

Ajarn.com was started as a small hobby website in 1999 by Ian McNamara. It was a simple way for one Bangkok teacher to share his Thailand experiences and pass on advice. The website developed a loyal and enthusiastic following. In 2004, Ian handed over the reins to Phil Williams and 'Bangkok Phil' has run the ajarn website ever since.

Ajarn.com has grown enormously and is now the most popular TEFL site in Thailand - possibly even South East Asia. Although best-known for its vibrant jobs page, Ajarn has a wealth of articles, blogs, features and help and advice. But one principle has always remained at Ajarn's core - to tell things like they are and to do it with a sense of humor. Thailand can be Heaven or Hell for an English teacher. It's always been Ajarn.com's duty to present both sides of the equation. Thanks for stopping by.