Maternity Insurance in Thailand for Expats

What is maternity insurance in Thailand?

Maternity insurance is a health insurance benefit that pays eligible costs linked to pregnancy and childbirth. It is rarely sold on its own. It usually sits inside a local or international health plan, either on the higher plan levels or as a maternity package.

Regular hospital cover pays for illness and injury. Pregnancy is not an illness, so plans leave it out unless you choose a level that includes it. Allianz Care's Care Base plan and Cigna Global's Silver plan both exclude maternity, while higher levels of each include it.

Maternity cover is worth a look if you are:

• Planning a baby in the next one to two years: the waiting period sets your timeline.
• Hoping to give birth at a private hospital: the THB 15,000 Social Security payment covers only part of a private package.
• Self-employed, freelance or retired: you generally cannot claim Section 33 maternity benefits unless you kept Social Security cover through Section 39.
• A non-working spouse: you have no cover of your own, although an insured husband can claim some Section 33 birth benefits for his wife.
• On a group plan with a low or no maternity limit: the gap is yours to fund.

What does Social Security pay for a birth in Thailand?

Social Security pays fixed cash amounts toward a birth, not the hospital bill. If you work in Thailand with a work permit and a formal job, your employer will normally register you under Section 33, so ask HR to confirm you are enrolled. You pay 5% of your wage and your employer pays another 5%. From 1 January 2026 the wage used to work out contributions is capped at THB 17,500 a month, so the most each side pays is THB 875 a month.

That THB 26,250 is the wage cap worked through: THB 17,500 ÷ 30 days × 50% × 90 days. The Social Security Office's own maternity page still footnotes the old THB 15,000 wage base, so the higher figure comes from the Office's statement reported by Thai PBS.

To claim the prenatal and childbirth benefits you need at least five months of contributions in the 15 months before the month of birth. Claims go through the SSO e-Self Service system or any SSO branch, and the SSO hotline is 1506. A husband claiming for his wife needs a marriage certificate or, if the marriage is not registered, a signed declaration. The Social Security Office has said the prenatal benefit applies whether or not the marriage is registered.

How much does it cost to give birth in a Bangkok private hospital?

Your bill depends on the hospital, how your baby arrives and how long you stay. Private hospitals set their own package prices. The figures below come straight from each hospital's published 2026 packages.

A caesarean costs more at both hospitals. At Nakornthon the gap is THB 24,000 at every tier. At MedPark the caesarean package starts THB 15,210 above the normal delivery package, though the stays differ by a night. Longer stays and premium rooms push the bill higher.

What the packages leave out. Packages are priced for a healthy mother and an uncomplicated birth. Nakornthon's 2026 terms leave out or charge extra for:

• Complications for the mother: such as diabetes, high blood pressure or bleeding.
• Complications for the baby: such as low blood sugar or fast breathing.
• BMI over 35 on the day of delivery: costs move to actual rates.
• General anaesthesia for a caesarean: an added THB 6,000.
• A planned normal birth that becomes a caesarean: you move to the caesarean package, and costs before surgery are billed at actual rates.
• Extras: nights beyond the package, phone bills and other personal costs.

MedPark's normal delivery package is for pregnancies that are not high risk and past 36 weeks. If severe complications develop, the package no longer applies and the hospital bills at normal rates. Ask the hospital what pain relief, such as an epidural, adds to the package price.

Complications for the mother or baby are what turn a fixed-price birth into a much larger bill. They are also the main reason to read the complications and newborn sections of any policy.

How does Social Security compare with private maternity insurance?

Section 33 and private maternity insurance do different jobs. One pays fixed amounts. The other pays eligible bills up to a limit.

At the published 2026 prices in Table 2, the THB 15,000 lump sum covers about 31% of Nakornthon's cheapest normal delivery package (THB 48,900) and about 13% of MedPark's normal delivery package (THB 118,690).

The maternity allowance replaces part of a mother's income. It does not pay medical bills. So even a fully insured employee can face a large balance at a private hospital, and that balance is what private cover is for.

What does maternity insurance cover?

Benefits vary by insurer and plan level. A full maternity benefit usually includes:

• Antenatal care: prenatal consultations, ultrasound scans and routine tests.
• The birth: normal delivery, plus caesarean sections that are medically necessary.
• Complications: complications of pregnancy and childbirth, often under a separate benefit with its own limit.
• Postnatal care: routine care for the mother after delivery. Allianz Care's Individual Benefit Guide defines it as routine care for up to six weeks after delivery.
• Newborn care: some policies include routine checks straight after birth, while further treatment or neonatal intensive care may have its own limit or need the baby's own cover.

What is usually not covered:

• A pregnancy that started before the maternity benefit was active: it falls outside the waiting period.
• Costs above the maternity limit: the balance is yours.
• Co-payments, deductibles and excluded items: you pay these yourself.

Routine maternity is usually capped per pregnancy, and that cap often has to cover prenatal visits, the delivery and postnatal care together. Compare the limit with the full cost of pregnancy care at your hospital, not just the delivery package, and check whether the insurer pays the full eligible amount or a percentage.

Complications and caesareans. Many insurers keep routine maternity and complications as separate benefits with separate limits. Allianz Care's Individual Benefit Guide limits complications of pregnancy to a closed list: ectopic pregnancy, gestational diabetes, pre-eclampsia, miscarriage, threatened miscarriage, stillbirth and hydatidiform mole. Where a plan includes routine maternity, Allianz counts a medically necessary caesarean as a complication of childbirth. A caesarean chosen without a medical reason is paid on narrower terms. Cigna Global pays it only up to the mother's routine maternity limit, and Allianz pays it only up to the cost of a routine delivery at the same hospital. Ask how your plan treats each case before you book a planned caesarean.

For what maternity adds to a premium, see our expat health insurance cost guide, where we keep premium figures and their sources in one place.

How long are maternity waiting periods?

On the plans we checked in October 2026, maternity waiting periods run from 10 to 18 months for a birth in Thailand. Waits vary by insurer, by plan and sometimes by where you give birth, so treat any single number as a starting point, not a rule.

When you compare policies, check when the waiting period starts, whether it has to end before conception or before delivery, and how the insurer treats a pregnancy that begins before benefits are available. Babies can arrive early, so leave a buffer. Our guide to maternity waiting periods and the six-month rule works through the timing.

A simple planning order:

1. 1

   Before trying for a baby: compare plans early enough to finish the waiting period.

2. 2

   Before conception: start the policy with maternity included.

3. 3

   During the waiting period: keep the policy active with no gaps. Switching plans can restart the clock.

4. 4

   Once benefits are available: eligible prenatal and delivery costs can be claimed, within the policy's limits and exclusions.

5. 5

   After the birth: add your baby to the policy before the deadline, register the birth within 15 days and claim any Section 33 benefits.

Can you get maternity cover if you are already pregnant?

Usually not for this pregnancy. A newly bought individual policy will normally exclude a pregnancy that is already under way, and Luma states it does not cover existing pregnancies. You still have options:

• Social Security: claim Section 33 maternity benefits if you meet the contribution rule.
• Existing cover: check whether your employer plan, or a spouse's group plan, includes maternity.
• Budget for the birth: compare hospital packages using Table 2 and plan to pay yourself if nothing else applies.
• Plan ahead: arrange health cover for the future, but do not assume a new policy will cover this pregnancy or your baby from birth.

Which schemes and plans include maternity for expats in Thailand?

Eligible foreign employees get maternity benefits through Social Security. Ministry of Public Health insurance, mainly for migrant workers from neighbouring countries and their dependants, includes pregnancy care and childbirth. Most Western expats will rely on Social Security, an employer plan or private cover.

Employer group cover. Many expats hold a group plan on top of Section 33. Group plans vary widely, so read the benefit schedule before you assume maternity is included. Ask HR:

• Routine or complications only: is routine maternity covered, or only complications?
• Limit: what is paid per pregnancy, set against Table 2?
• Spouse: is your spouse covered if she does not work for the company?
• Waiting period: is there one for new joiners or newly added dependants?
• Changing jobs: what happens to cover if you leave during the pregnancy?

International plans. An international plan can follow a family that may move, or that wants treatment options outside Thailand, and some offer direct billing at selected private hospitals. Check that a change of residence, country of treatment or area of cover will not change your maternity eligibility. Plan details are on our reviews of Cigna Global and Allianz Care.

Already have cover? An ExpatMedicare adviser can check the maternity limit, waiting-period trigger and newborn wording before you rely on the policy.

How is your newborn covered?

A newborn benefit and health insurance for your baby are not the same thing. Some maternity benefits pay routine checks straight after birth, but treatment, a hospital stay or neonatal intensive care may sit under a separate limit or need the baby's own cover.

Most insurers set a deadline to add a newborn:

• Allianz Care: notify Allianz within four weeks of the birth. The baby is accepted without underwriting from birth if the birth parent has been insured for at least eight continuous months. Babies from a multiple birth are always underwritten.
• Cigna Global: a newborn added within 30 days needs no health questions if a parent has been covered for 12 months or more, according to Cigna's February 2025 customer guide.
• Luma Hi5 Maternity: neonatal care within 25 days of birth is capped at THB 20,000 or THB 30,000.

Before the due date, check what newborn care is included, whether your baby must be added as a dependant, when cover starts and whether any underwriting applies.

In Thailand you also need to register the birth at the local district office within 15 days. Keep the birth certificate to hand, because insurers often ask for it when you add your baby to the policy.

What maternity leave do employees get in Thailand?

Leave rights protect income. They do not pay hospital bills, so they work alongside insurance, not in place of it. Several rules changed in late 2025 and 2026:

• Longer maternity leave: since 7 December 2025, the Labour Protection Act (No. 9) B.E. 2568 gives female employees up to 120 days of maternity leave per pregnancy, with full pay from the employer for up to 60 days.
• Leave for the other parent: an employee whose spouse gives birth can take up to 15 days of fully paid leave, within 90 days of the birth.
• Extra leave when a newborn needs care: a mother can take 15 extra days at 50% of normal wages if the newborn has complications, a disability or a congenital disorder, with a medical certificate.
• A higher Social Security wage cap: from 1 January 2026 the wage used to work out contributions is capped at THB 17,500 a month, up from THB 15,000, set by a Ministerial Regulation under the Social Security Act, B.E. 2568 (2025). That lifts the most an insured mother can receive in maternity allowance to THB 26,250 per birth. The cap rises to THB 20,000 from 1 January 2029 and THB 23,000 from 1 January 2032.

How do you choose a maternity plan?

Choose on the maternity terms first and the price second. Two plans with similar premiums can have very different limits, waits and exclusions. Check:

• Waiting period: how long it is, and whether it has to end before conception or before the birth.
• Routine maternity limit: the cap per pregnancy and what it must cover, set against real package prices at your hospital.
• Prenatal and postnatal care: whether scans, tests and check-ups are covered, and whether they share the delivery limit.
• Complications: whether they have a separate, higher limit, and how premature delivery and emergency care for mother or baby are handled.
• Caesarean rules: how planned and medically necessary caesareans are treated.
• Newborn cover: the limit, how long it lasts and the deadline to add your baby.
• Direct billing and claims: whether your Bangkok hospital bills the insurer directly, whether pre-authorisation is needed and which documents a claim requires.
• Cost sharing: any deductible or co-payment on maternity claims.
• Portability: whether the plan still covers you if you leave Thailand.

Related: expat health insurance in Thailand · maternity and family cover.

How do the numbers work for three common families?

These examples use published prices to show how the numbers work. They do not reflect any one insurer's terms.

The couple planning ahead. A couple moves to Bangkok for work and hopes to start a family next year. They add maternity to a health plan straight away and keep it active with no gaps, because switching plans can restart the clock. Before they start trying, they confirm how long their insurer's waiting period is and whether it has to end before conception or before the birth.

The employee relying on Social Security. An expectant mother covered by Section 33 plans a normal delivery at MedPark Hospital, where the normal delivery package starts at THB 118,690. The THB 15,000 Social Security childbirth payment leaves THB 103,690 of the package price to fund, before any charges outside the package. Her maternity allowance, at most THB 26,250, replaces part of her income while she is on leave, but it is not meant for the hospital bill.

The freelancer without Social Security. A freelance expat in Bangkok has never paid into Thai Social Security, so she generally cannot claim Section 33 maternity benefits. At Nakornthon Hospital's published 2026 prices, a normal delivery package costs THB 48,900 to THB 75,900 and a caesarean package THB 72,900 to THB 99,900, before complications or extra nights. A maternity benefit started well before conception can pay eligible costs once its waiting period ends. If she is already pregnant, paying the hospital herself is the main option.