The Foreign Ministry will double the current validity of new passports to 10 years, it was announced on Thursday.
Present Thai passports expire after five years from the date of issue; new ones will in future last for 10 years, the ministry's statement said.
The new valid period will apply for singles aged 20 years or more and married people aged 17 or more, it said.
The statement did not say when the new expiration period will take effect, but it will not be before February next year.
The move is part of the new third phase of passport improvements initiated by the ministry.
The office will also shorten the time needed to apply for a passport from the present 20 minutes to 12 and the new passport will contain more biometric data than just facial features and fingerprints.
The new passports will be issued after the ministry selects a winner for the 12-billion-baht production contract through e-bidding. The bidding process has still not begun.
The present passport contract, the second phase of improvements, ends in February next year.
