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We have already discussed in detail the question of what rights are needed to manage transport in Thailand and some of the subtleties of renting transport in the article "Motorcycle and car rental in Thailand". In short, to manage transport in Thailand now (from 2020), an international driver's license (IDP) is not necessarily required, Russian national rights are also accepted.
But often tourists have a question about whether they even need a license to drive a low-powered motorcycle or scooter in Thailand. After all, everyone is used to the fact that at home (at least in the Russian Federation), no rights are needed to control a moped or scooter with an engine capacity of less than 50 cubic centimeters and a maximum design speed of no more than 50 km / h. At least, this was the case until recently, until the "M" category was introduced in 2014.
So do I need a license to drive a scooter in Thailand?
Despite the well-established opinion that the rights to drive a scooter in Thailand are not needed, in fact, a law has been in force here for a long time, according to which a driver's license is required to drive any mechanical vehicle, to which low-powered mopeds and scooters are equated, on public roads in Thailand. This follows from the 1979 law "Motor Vehicle Act", article 42:
Anyone who wishes to drive a motor vehicle on public roads must possess an appropriate driver's license. The driver must carry the driver's license and a photocopy of the registration book and show them to competent officers upon request. This does not apply for those who are learning to drive a motor vehicle according to the provision of Section 57.
If the driver is an alien who doesn't have an immigrant visa, he may drive a motor vehicle with a driver's license specified in the Section 42-2. In such a case, he must carry documents specified by the treaty between the Thai government and the government which issued such driver's license, and show them to competent officers upon request.
Now as for what kind of category is needed to control a motorcycle. Everything is not as simple here as in any laws, but let's try to figure it out. The above-mentioned Thai law establishes a separate category for motorcycle management, regardless of engine capacity and speed. And Thais do not know any category "M" for mopeds with a volume of less than 50 cubic centimeters. But the police are well aware of the categories established by the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic, and these are categories A and A1 (A1 for motorcycles with an engine capacity of less than 125 cubic centimeters). And our current procedure is when you can control low-power mopeds that fall under the category "M", in the presence of any open category "A", "B", "C", etc. It doesn't work here either.
Bottom line: in order to drive a motorcycle, moped or scooter with any engine capacity on public roads in Thailand completely legally, you need to have a license with an open category "A".
Previously, in practice, it was the case that when renting a motorcycle or scooter, almost no one will ever ask you for the right. But in 2019, the police issued an official message that landlords should check for VU, otherwise they will also be punished. So most likely in the near future the situation will change a lot. In addition, the police sometimes arrange raids and massively check the availability of/at tourists, especially on popular Thai resorts. Also, if you break the rules and are stopped, you will also be fined for driving without a license (see fines for traffic violations in Thailand).
Of course, you can almost always pay off, and it all depends on the ability to bargain. As experienced tourists say, they got off with a bribe from 300 to 1000 baht for driving without a license (see the currency of Thailand and the exchange rate). But still, we recommend that you open category "A" at home and go to Thailand not for problems on the roads, but for completely different adventures.