Thai Property Law for Foreign Buyers

Foreigners can legally own property in Thailand, but only within specific limits, and it is easy to confuse a proposal reported in the press with an actual change in the law. This overview separates what is currently in force from what is still under study.

At a glance

Foreigners may hold freehold title to condominium units, subject to a 49% foreign-ownership quota per project, but cannot own land outright under the Land Code. Structuring around the land ban through nominee Thai shareholders is illegal and under active enforcement in 2026. A widely discussed proposal to raise the condo quota to 75% and a separate 99-year leasehold proposal have not been enacted — both remain outside the law as of 15 September 2026.

Rules and requirements

Under the Condominium Act, foreigners may hold freehold ownership of up to 49% of the total unit area (by registered floor space, not unit count) in any single condominium project; this quota remains the governing law in 2026 [1]. There has been a proposal, under cabinet study since late 2024, to raise the quota to 75% — potentially with zoning restrictions or a price floor — but no bill has been submitted to parliament, and it should be treated as unconfirmed, not a change buyers can rely on [2].

Foreigners cannot own land in Thailand under the Land Code, with one narrow exception: a Board of Investment (BOI) route allowing land ownership for investments of at least THB 40 million, capped at 1 rai (about 1,600 m²), subject to ministerial approval [3]. Structuring land control through a Thai nominee company or nominee shareholders to circumvent this ban is illegal [3]. Enforcement intensified through 2026: the Cabinet reviewed enforcement measures including AI-assisted screening at the Land Department in February 2026; a Foreign Business Act amendment went through public consultation, closing in April 2026; and Thailand's Ombudsman stated on 23 July 2026 that amendments carrying penalties of up to 3 years' imprisonment and fines of roughly THB 3 million for both Thai and foreign shareholders involved in nominee structures had been submitted to Cabinet [4]. A separate proposal to allow forfeiture of land to the state in confirmed nominee cases is also under study [4]. None of the 2026 nominee-crackdown items should be read as enacted law yet — they are reported policy activity, not a published statute.

A separate, frequently discussed proposal — allowing foreigners 99-year leaseholds on land — has not been enacted; reporting indicates the new government shelved the proposal [5]. Current law on leases remains unchanged: a lease term is capped at 30 years, renewable only by a fresh registration (not an automatic extension), and any lease exceeding 3 years must be registered at the Land Office to be enforceable for its full term [5].

For a condominium purchase, funds must be remitted from abroad in foreign currency; for remittances of USD 50,000 or more, a Foreign Exchange Transaction (FET) form is required, and the Land Office will ask for it at the point of transfer [6].

Costs, taxes and timelines

Transfer of a condo purchase typically involves a transfer fee (normally 2% of the appraised value, though a temporary 0.01% reduced rate applies to qualifying Thai-buyer transactions under separate rules, not automatically to foreign buyers), seller-side withholding tax, and either specific business tax (3.3%, if the seller has held the property under 5 years) or stamp duty (0.5%) if specific business tax does not apply. Buyers should also budget for the Land and Building Tax once they hold the unit, with statutory ceilings of 0.3% for residential property, though actual assessed rates and any exemptions depend on the property's use and value. These figures and the 0.01% transfer/mortgage-fee reduction are covered in more detail in the Thai-buyer property law overview, since that reduced rate is specifically for Thai individual buyers on qualifying transactions.

Step by step

1. Confirm the specific unit falls within the project's remaining 49% foreign-freehold quota before making an offer — this is checked at the juristic person office, not assumed [1].
2. Arrange to remit the full purchase price from abroad in foreign currency, keeping the remittance advice; obtain a Foreign Exchange Transaction form for amounts of USD 50,000 or more [6].
3. Commission independent title and project due diligence, including confirming the seller's title deed (Chanote is strongest), any encumbrances, and the project's juristic person financial standing.
4. Sign a sale and purchase agreement with clear conditions and a deposit structure.
5. Complete transfer at the Land Office, paying applicable transfer tax, withholding tax and either specific business tax or stamp duty, and present the FET form.
6. If considering a leasehold or BOI land-investment structure instead of freehold condo ownership, obtain independent legal advice — these routes carry materially different risk and cost profiles from condo freehold.

Common pitfalls

The most consequential pitfall is entering a nominee arrangement to hold land — whether knowingly or via an agent's suggestion — given active 2026 enforcement and proposed penalties of up to 3 years' imprisonment [4]. A second is assuming a foreign-ownership quota is available in a popular project without checking; quotas fill up, particularly in central Bangkok and resort markets. A third is treating the 75% quota proposal or the 99-year leasehold proposal as if they were already law when budgeting or negotiating — neither has been enacted as of 15 September 2026 [2][5]. Finally, buyers sometimes remit funds domestically (for example, via a Thai bank transfer from an account already in Thailand) rather than from abroad, which can invalidate the FET documentation the Land Office requires for foreign freehold registration [6].

What changed recently

Enforcement against nominee structures intensified through 2026: a February 2026 Cabinet review of AI-assisted Land Department screening, an April 2026 close of public consultation on Foreign Business Act amendments, and a 23 July 2026 statement from the Ombudsman that amendments with penalties up to 3 years' imprisonment and roughly THB 3 million in fines had been submitted to Cabinet [4]. The 75% foreign-quota proposal remains under cabinet study with no bill submitted to parliament [2], and the 99-year leasehold proposal has reportedly been shelved by the new government [5]. The underlying law — the 49% condo quota, the land ownership ban, and the 30-year lease cap — is unchanged.