The Thai whiting is one of 29 species in the genus Sillago, which is one of three divisions of the smelt whiting family Sillaginidae.
The species was first recognized and named Sillago intermedius by Wongratana in 1977 after a number of unknown sillaginid individuals were found in a Thai fish market whilst Wongratana was collecting specimens of sillaginids to be sent to McKay for his review of the Sillaginidae [REF].