(Phnom Penh): As the traditional Khmer New Year approaches, Cambodian workers are taking time off work and returning from Thailand through various Cambodia-Thailand international border checkpoints to visit their hometowns. Notably, workers have reported that there are no entry-exit fees at the Cambodia-Thailand international border checkpoints, and Ministry of Labor working groups are present to assist with processing workers' documentation. This is a gift from both the Cambodian and Thai governments for Cambodian workers during the traditional New Year period, effective from April 1, 2025, to May 15, 2025.
Ms. Mean Srey Nok, a Cambodian worker in Thailand originally from Banteay Meanchey Province, stated that entering Cambodia through international border checkpoints requires no entry-exit service fees. She expressed great joy in being able to return home for the New Year without these expenses, which helps reduce costs for workers returning to Cambodia. She thanked the Cambodian government, Samdech Hun Manet, and the Ministry of Labor for their efforts in facilitating and intervening on behalf of Cambodian workers in Thailand, resulting in the annual waiver of entry-exit fees. This demonstrates the government's care and attention to workers' well-being.
Similarly, Mr. Tola, another Cambodian worker, mentioned that the waiver of entry-exit fees to Thailand during the New Year period greatly helps workers as it significantly reduces their expenses. Moreover, it serves as a factor encouraging Cambodian workers in Thailand to visit their families and reunite with relatives during the New Year. He is delighted to travel home this year without paying entry-exit fees at the border checkpoints in both directions. He expressed gratitude to the government and the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training for consistently facilitating the annual entry-exit fee waiver at the border and for their constant attention to the welfare of Cambodian workers in Thailand.
It should be noted that since April 1, 2025, leaders and working groups from the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training have been stationed to coordinate with working groups at various Cambodia-Thailand international border checkpoints, particularly at the Doung (Ban Laem) International Border Checkpoint in Kamrieng District, Battambang Province, and the Poipet International Border Checkpoint in Banteay Meanchey Province, to welcome Cambodian workers returning from Thailand for the traditional Khmer New Year celebrations.
It is worth mentioning that the waiver of Re-entry permit fees for Thailand, implemented from April 1, 2025, to May 15, 2025, for Cambodian workers during the traditional New Year festival, is an agreement between the Royal Government of Cambodia and the Royal Thai Government, reached during the official visit of Samdech Moha Borvor Thipadei Hun Manet, Prime Minister of Cambodia, to Thailand recently.
