News and societyID card (Thai national identity card) noun
- bàt low
- bprà low
- chaa mid
- chon mid
- Low: flat and lower than your normal voice, dropping a little at the end.
How to use it
Thai citizens get a บัตรประชาชนbàt-bprà-chaa-chon at the age of seven: an ID card with a 13-digit number that's asked for everywhere, at banks, hospitals, phone shops and hotels. Foreigners show their passport instead.
Foreigners who live in Thailand long-term can have their name entered in a yellow house registration book and then get a pink ID card for non-Thais, the บัตรชมพูbàt chom-puu, from their district office. It's handy for banks and government offices, but it doesn't replace your passport or visa.
Other spellings you'll see
There's no single official way to write Thai in English letters. We mark the tone of every syllable; online you'll also find:
- bat prachachon
- bat pra cha chon
- batprachachon
- bat bprachachon
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Written by the Learn Thai For Free team
Audio: AI voices, quality-checked for tones