Did the Thai government change the monthly state allowance for senior citizens from a sliding scale by age to 1,000 baht for all? No, that's not true: It was just a proposal from February 2024 that had no legal effect yet. Also, there hasn't been much progress on the proposal since its initial green light.
The claim appeared in a video (archived here) posted on TikTok on September 30, 2024, with the following on-screen caption (translated from Thai into English by Lead Stories staff):
Got some good news to tell. The Ministry of Social Development and Human Security is set to give 1,000 baht senior citizen allowance.
This is what the post looked like on TikTok at the time of writing:
(Source: TikTok screenshot taken on Wed Oct 16 12:19:59 2024 UTC)
The 36-second video continued, adding how the Ministry (MSDHS) is prepared to propose a 1,000 baht allowance for all older adults to a "committee." The video also stated that Minister of Social Development and Human Security Varawut Silpa-archa (archived here) chaired a meeting by the Sub-Committee for the Promotion of Government Welfare, which has approved four proposals including one on the allowance increase.
This is old news recirculating. The sub-committee's meeting took place on February 21, 2024, according to the MSDHS (archived here). But this TikTok video and other videos (archived here and here) with the same voiceover were posted towards the end of September 2024 and the beginning of October 2024.
According to the MSDHS, the February 2024 meeting approved four main proposals: Universal child care allowance, adjustment to the age limit for child care centers, universal senior citizen allowance, and disability allowance.
However, that approval was just an initial step needed before the proposals could go before the Committee to Solve The People's Movement's Problems for a Just Society, as translated by Lead Stories staff. After that, they will have to be presented before the cabinet, which hasn't happened yet. The initial approval had no legal effect but served as the sub-committee's recommendation.
The Ministry of Digital Economy and Society corroborated this in a post on October 9, 2024 (archived here), debunking a similar claim that the Comptroller General's Department will send a 1,000 baht payment to all senior citizens on October 10, 2024. It said the proposal is in the process of being presented to the cabinet.
The current welfare structure for senior citizens follows the 2023 Ministry of Interior's Regulations on the Criteria for Payment of Elderly Allowances by Local Administrative Organizations (archived here).
The payment of the monthly elderly welfare allowance is based on age groups: 600 baht for those 60-69 years old, 700 baht for 70-79, 800 baht for 80-89, and 1,000 baht for those over 90, according to the Department of Older Persons (archived here).
