Thailand’s Delivery App Fee Rule: What It Means for Hua Hin
Thailand’s trade regulator wants delivery and ride-hailing apps to explain how they set their cut. The draft is open for comment until 20 November, two platforms have gone to court, and there is no price cap.
Thirty-seven complaints have reached Thailand’s Trade Competition Commission from riders and restaurants. About 90 percent of them are about one thing: the cut, known as GP, that delivery and ride-hailing apps take from each order. That is what pushed the regulator to draft a rule on how those fees are built and changed. Public comment is open until 20 November, and the rule is due to take effect in December.
In Hua Hin the rule touches both ends of every app order, the kitchen that pays the commission and the rider who carries the food. It does not cap the fee, so nothing on your delivery receipt is likely to change overnight. What it does is force the biggest platforms to explain themselves, and two of them have now gone to court to argue the regulator has no business asking.
What the draft does, and what it does not
Commissioner Worawan Chitarun described the draft to MGR Online. Platforms would have to set out what their fee is made of and why each increase happens, with evidence, for example higher fuel costs or new technology. The point is explanation, she said, not price-setting. The Nation lists five kinds of charge the draft covers, including service fees, revenue shares and waiting charges.
| Question | What the reports say |
|---|---|
| Does it cap commission rates? | No. The commission says it sets no percentage |
| What must platforms do? | Disclose each fee component and justify every change |
| Who is covered? | Platforms with sales of ฿500 million or more, and any with market power |
| Who is not? | Mid-sized and small platforms, to keep room for new entrants |
| Who is expected to explain themselves? | Grab, LINE MAN and Bolt, per MGR Online and The Nation |
| What are the penalties? | Not stated in the reports we found |
Thai PBS adds that platforms would give the commission their reasoning before a change, rather than after. The reports differ on how strict that step is, and the final text will settle it.
A market with two real players
The commissioner told MGR Online that the commission counted 14 or 15 ride and delivery platforms. The top two hold about 90 percent of the market, and the rest take 1 or 2 percent each. She said price dumping had already killed off Foodpanda and Robinhood. The Nation reports that a share of 10 to 33 percent may signal market power under the draft, and above 33 percent may signal dominance.
The complaints give that concentration a face. The commission found eight rounds of fee increases between April and August 2026, and says platforms raised charges without giving reasons. It also objects to what the commissioner called charging both sides: the restaurant pays commission on every order, while a rider carrying several bundled orders is paid once for the trip.
The same scrutiny reaches online shopping. The Nation reports figures from a commission report, cited by Bangkok Biz News, that Shopee raised its commission-related charges 10 times between 2022 and 2026 for a cumulative 433 percent. Lazada made seven increases totalling 367 percent, and TikTok is still under review.
Two platforms go to court
Daily News reports that two large delivery platforms have sued the commission. They argue its oversight of fee structures goes beyond the 2017 Trade Competition Act and amounts to price control. The report does not name them, and describes it as the first time a platform has challenged the regulator’s powers in court.
Outside voices are split. Dr Theerathat Chavisajinda of NIDA told Daily News that competition law is not mainly about controlling prices, and that a high commission does not by itself prove a violation. The US think tank ITIF warned in its comments to the commission that limiting fees would make it a de facto price controller. The commission replies that it only wants the structure explained.
What it means in Hua Hin
If you order dinner to a condo, the rule does not set what you pay, and no source says whether app menu prices in Hua Hin will move. If you run a restaurant or ride for an app, the gain is information: a fee increase from a covered platform would need a stated reason. Apps below the ฿500 million line are outside the rule. Thai PBS notes that many restaurants rely on the big platforms to reach customers, which is why they cannot easily walk away from changed terms.
The commission’s own timetable is short, and it is easy to lose track of which step comes when. These are the dates it gave.
| Date | Step |
|---|---|
| 21 October | Public consultation opens |
| 20 November | Consultation closes |
| 23 November | Commission reviews the comments |
| 30 November | Legal review due |
| 4 December | Commission chair expected to sign |
| By 18 December | Royal Gazette publication and enforcement, if on schedule |
The date to watch is 23 November, when the commission weighs the comments, and any court date set in the platforms’ case. A judge could slow the whole timetable.
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