Capital punishment in Thailand remains legally active for around two dozen offenses across the Penal Code and narcotics law, but the country has carried out only one execution since 2009. As of December 2024, roughly 364 people were held under death sentences, most for murder or drug trafficking. Lethal injection is the sole method, every death sentence receives automatic appellate review, and royal pardons — both individual and collective — commute far more sentences than executioners ever carry out.
Which Crimes Carry the Death Penalty
Three categories of offense account for nearly all death sentences in Thailand: crimes against the monarchy, aggravated murder, and serious drug trafficking.
Offenses Against the Royal Family
The Penal Code protects the monarchy with its harshest provisions. Section 107 makes assassination of the King punishable by death with no lesser alternative, and an attempt carries the same penalty. Section 108 covers acts of violence against the King or restrictions on his liberty, punishable by death or life imprisonment; if the act endangers his life, the penalty is death. Sections 109 and 110 extend the same protections to the Queen, the Heir-apparent, and the Regent. Section 111 treats anyone who supports the commission of these offenses as a principal, meaning accomplices face the same punishment as those who acted.
Aggravated Murder
Section 289 of the Penal Code sets the death penalty for murders committed under specific aggravating circumstances: killing an ascendant (a parent, grandparent, or other direct ancestor), killing a government official performing their duties, premeditated murder, murder carried out with torture or cruelty, murder committed to facilitate another crime, and murder committed to conceal another crime or escape punishment for it.1Library of Congress. The Penal Code of Thailand
Ordinary homicide under Section 288 carries death, life imprisonment, or 15 to 20 years. The difference matters at sentencing: once prosecutors establish a Section 289 aggravator, death becomes the presumptive sentence unless the court finds extenuating circumstances such as prior good conduct, limited mental capacity, or genuine remorse.
Drug Trafficking
Drug offenses have long been death-eligible in Thailand. Under the original Narcotics Act B.E. 2522 (1979), producing, importing, or exporting Category I narcotics such as heroin for the purpose of sale carried a mandatory death sentence under Section 65.2ASEAN. Narcotics Act B.E. 2522 (1979)
Thailand overhauled its drug legislation in November 2021 with a new Narcotics Code, and the death penalty was retained for certain drug offenses. International human rights bodies have criticized this on the grounds that capital punishment for drug crimes violates international law. Large-scale trafficking of substances like heroin and methamphetamine remains death-eligible in principle, though courts have broad sentencing discretion and often impose life imprisonment instead.
Who Cannot Be Executed
Section 18 of the Penal Code bars execution of anyone who was under 18 at the time of the offense. When a minor is convicted of a crime that would otherwise carry death or life imprisonment, the sentence is automatically commuted to 50 years in prison. The substitution is mandatory once the court confirms the offender’s age.
The Criminal Procedure Code adds two further protections. A condemned person who develops a mental illness that impairs their understanding cannot be executed while in that condition; the execution is stayed and the person is transferred to a treatment facility until they recover or the sentence is formally commuted. Pregnant women sentenced to death receive a mandatory stay until after giving birth, and in practice the sentence is typically commuted to life imprisonment rather than carried out afterward.
How Executions Are Carried Out
Thailand switched from execution by firearm to lethal injection in 2003, when Article 19 of the Criminal Code was amended through Act No. 16, B.E. 2546. Lethal injection is now the sole method.
Executions take place at Bang Kwang Central Prison in Nonthaburi Province, managed by the Department of Corrections. A representative from the Ministry of Justice, a physician, and a member of the prison administration must be present. The physician confirms death after the chemicals are administered, and the full procedure is documented and filed with the court.
Automatic Appeals and Royal Pardon
Every death sentence in Thailand is subject to automatic appellate review. When a trial court imposes death, it must refer the case to the Appeal Court even if the defendant does not appeal. The Appeal Court reviews both the facts and the legal reasoning, and can affirm, reduce, or overturn the sentence. Either side may then seek Supreme Court review. Years typically pass between the original sentence and a final, enforceable judgment.
Once the Supreme Court confirms a death sentence, the condemned person has one further avenue: a petition for royal pardon addressed to the King, governed by Sections 259 through 267 of the Criminal Procedure Code. The petition must be filed within 60 days of the date the prisoner hears the final judgment.3Department of Corrections. Royal Pardon No execution may proceed while a petition is pending. If the King grants the pardon, the death sentence is commuted to life imprisonment. A denial leaves the original sentence in effect.
Collective Royal Pardons
Separately, the Thai government periodically issues collective royal pardon decrees on auspicious national occasions such as royal anniversaries and jubilee celebrations. Under Section 261 bis of the Criminal Procedure Code, the cabinet may recommend a pardon to the King without any action required from the prisoners.3Department of Corrections. Royal Pardon
These mass pardons sort inmates into tiers: some are released outright, others have their sentences reduced, and a third group is excluded from any leniency. Death sentences are typically commuted to lengthy prison terms. Major drug traffickers serving long sentences, repeat offenders, inmates with poor disciplinary records, and those convicted of sexual violence are commonly excluded. A screening committee led by the Justice Ministry’s permanent secretary and the head of the Department of Corrections reviews nominees before the decree is finalized. Collective pardons account for the vast majority of commutations from death row.
Death Row Today
Thailand’s most recent execution took place on June 18, 2018, when Theerasak Longji was put to death by lethal injection at Bang Kwang for a murder conviction.4European External Action Service. Statement on an Execution Carried Out in Thailand The previous execution had been in 2009, so the country has averaged roughly one execution per decade in recent years, even as courts continue to hand down death sentences.
As of December 2024, approximately 364 people were under sentence of death, with drug offenses and murder accounting for the overwhelming majority. All death row inmates are held at Bang Kwang Central Prison, a maximum-security facility north of Bangkok.
Conditions there have drawn international scrutiny. During a November 2024 dialogue with the United Nations Committee against Torture, committee experts flagged the continued use of permanent shackling on death row prisoners. The Thai delegation responded that the Corrections Act permits restraints only in limited situations, such as when detainees pose risks to themselves or others, and that the necessity of restraints must be reviewed every 15 days and removed when no longer required.5United Nations Office at Geneva. In Dialogue with Thailand, Experts of the Committee against Torture Welcome New Law Criminalising Torture and Enforced Disappearance, Ask about the Treatment of Detainees and Prison Overcrowding
Where Thailand Stands on Abolition
Thailand occupies a middle ground. The government has repeatedly stated a commitment to eventually abolishing the death penalty, describing its approach as a step-by-step process incorporated into its National Action Plans on Human Rights. At the same time, Thailand has consistently abstained from United Nations General Assembly votes calling for a global moratorium on executions, neither supporting nor opposing the resolution.
International organizations classify Thailand as a retentionist country because the death penalty remains legally available and sentences continue to be imposed. The long stretches between actual executions have led some observers to describe the situation as a de facto moratorium, but no such policy has been formalized. The 2018 execution, which broke a nine-year gap, showed that the machinery remains operational. For anyone facing serious criminal charges in Thailand, the death penalty is an active part of the sentencing landscape, not a relic.