Jingjok
The certificate culture
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In Thailand a lot of life runs on a ใบรับรองแพทย์, a medical certificate. Employers can ask for one when you take sick leave, typically for three days or more; the Department of Land Transport wants a recent one for a driving licence; work permits, some visas, schools and insurance claims all ask for them. Getting one is easy: a clinic or hospital will check you briefly and sign a form for a small fee, usually a few hundred baht. Tell them what it's for (ลาป่วย, ใบขับขี่, เคลมประกัน), because the forms differ. Ask for a copy for yourself, and check your name is spelled like your passport.
Try this today
Ask your local clinic how much a ใบรับรองแพทย์ costs before you need one.
Learn this in “Hospital and insurance” →
Your first 90 days of Thai
Culture cards in Jingjok are tied to the words that carry them, each ending in one thing to try today.
- WEEKS 1–2 · SURVIVEGreet anyone, pay, and order food and 7-Eleven exactly how you like it.
- WEEKS 3–6 · SETTLE INGet around by taxi, Grab and skytrain, find anything, and handle your landlord.
- WEEKS 7–12 · RUN YOUR LIFEPharmacy, bank, SIM and apps, how you feel, and a weekend away, all in Thai.
The first week is free.