THAILAND Trends and Developments Contributed by: Jutharat Anuktanakul, Suphakorn Chueabunchai and Pitchaya Roongroajsataporn, Chandler Mori Hamada Limited
Building the Compliance Ecosystem: Trust Mark Preparations and BCR Certification Rules Trust Mark: moving from compliance to demonstrable assurance The PDPC has been developing compliance infra - structure that may influence market behaviour in 2026 – most notably through a proposed “data protection standard mark” or “Trust Mark”. The PDPC is currently preparing the final draft of the Trust Mark questionnaire, with an announcement expected in the second or third quarter of 2026. This initiative reflects the regulator’s intention to establish a structured framework through which organisations may demonstrate alignment with PDPA requirements and recognised data protection practices. From a trends perspective, the Trust Mark initiative is significant because it has the potential to reshape incentives beyond merely avoiding regulatory pen - alties. If the Trust Mark is used in procurement pro - cesses, public tenders, platform partnerships or consumer-facing trust signals, whether formally or informally, it may emerge as a meaningful commercial differentiator. Over time, this could shift PDPA com - pliance from a predominantly reactive legal risk man - agement exercise towards a more proactive model focused on assurance and competitiveness, particu - larly for service providers handling large volumes of personal data, such as those in e-commerce, cloud and outsourcing services, digital health, fintech and data analytics BCR certification: cross-border transfer compliance becomes operational Cross-border transfer compliance has been one of the most challenging operational areas under the PDPA, especially for multinational groups that routinely share data within affiliated entities. A major 2025 development was the issuance of for - mal rules for the review and certification of BCRs. The PDPC Office published its Regulations on the Review and Certification of BCRs (B.E. 2568 (2025)) on 29 September 2025, establishing clearer pathways for intra-group transfers under Section 29 of the PDPA.
Even more importantly, the PDPC Office approved BCRs for two companies operating in Thailand on 30 September 2025, marking an important “first concrete progress” milestone in moving BCRs from theory into practice. Key features of the 2025 BCR framework that will shape trends in 2026 include: • two categories of BCRs: BCRs for Controllers (BCR-C) and for Processors (BCR-P); • Thai-language documentation requirements, including expectations around translation formali - ties; • a published review timeline (up to 180 days from submission of complete documentation) and no government fee stated for certification; and • no fixed expiry date, although BCRs remain subject to amendment/suspension/revocation and ongoing compliance expectations. For multinational groups, the 2025 BCR rules (togeth - er with the first approvals) meaningfully shift BCRs into the category of “realistic strategic options” for transfer compliance, particularly where groups are seeking a durable intra-group mechanism rather than transaction-by-transaction contracting. For 2026, it is reasonable to expect more organisa - tions to explore BCR certification, especially those already operating under EU/UK GDPR BCR regimes and seeking to align their global privacy governance models with Thai PDPA requirements. Practical Checklist for Organisations Operating in Thailand in 2026 In light of developments in 2025, the following actions are likely to represent the most defensible “baseline priorities” entering 2026. Breach readiness as a tested capability Breach simulations must be run, and it must be ensured that incident response processes can triage PDPA notification triggers, co-ordinate with proces - sors, and produce regulator-ready reporting.
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