The
cross-border migration in this area can be divided into three patterns: seasonal labour migration, commuting labour
migration, and circular labour migration. A majority of seasonal migrant workers are Thai Muslims. They mostly
work in Kelantan, Perak, and Kedah by using a border pass but do not have a work permit. They can work because
of their language fluency, similar religion and culture, and relationships with relatives who have settled in Malaysia.
Commuting migrants are mainly people who live adjacent to the border and for whom it is easy to cross each day.
Some commuting migrants go to work by crossing the Sungai Kolok River without any official documents. This
group of workers holds two identity cards and they have relatives who live in Malaysia along the border or the river.
The last pattern of labour migration that migrant workers in this area are involved in is circular labour migration.
The time when they go to work in Malaysia is not governed by agricultural seasons. This group of migrant workers
mainly works in the service sector in food shops or restaurants in jobs such as cooks or waitresses. However, the
patterns of cross-border migration of people from the southern border provinces of Thailand to Malaysia have
changed through time.