Renters' Rights and Rules in Thailand

Whether you are Thai or a foreign national, renting in Thailand is governed by the Civil and Commercial Code (CCC) for the basics of any lease, and, since September 2025, by a specific consumer-protection notification that limits what professional landlords can charge and keep from tenants. Foreign tenants have one extra administrative step their landlord must handle.

At a glance

A residential lease is a contract governed by the CCC: a deposit protects the landlord against damage or unpaid rent, and a lease longer than 3 years must be registered at the Land Office to be enforceable for its full term. Since 4 September 2025, landlords who are in the residential-rental business — generally those renting out 3 or more units, or managing rentals professionally — must comply with the Office of the Consumer Protection Board's (OCPB) Notification B.E. 2568, which caps combined deposit and advance rent, requires a documented condition report at handover, and limits what can be deducted from a deposit. Foreign tenants also trigger a landlord duty to register their address with Immigration.

Rules and requirements

Under the CCC, a lease is a private contract: the tenant pays rent and a security deposit, and the landlord is responsible for maintaining the structural condition of the property. A lease for a fixed term of more than 3 years — or for the tenant's lifetime — must be registered at the Land Office to be enforceable beyond 3 years; an unregistered lease longer than 3 years is still valid, but only enforceable for the first 3 years [1].

OCPB Notification B.E. 2568, in force from 4 September 2025, applies to landlords operating a residential-rental business — building on an earlier 2018 notification that covered landlords with 5 or more units, with the newer notification extending coverage to those with 3 or more units, or who manage rentals as a professional operation [2]. Under this notification: combined security deposit and advance rent may not exceed 3 months' rent in total; any deductions from the deposit at the end of a tenancy must be itemised, with the landlord providing evidence (such as receipts) for repair or cleaning costs claimed; and a condition report, ideally with photographs, must be prepared and agreed at handover, giving both parties a documented baseline to resolve disputes about damage when the tenant leaves [2]. The notification also requires standard contract terms be used, intended to prevent landlords from including unfair one-sided clauses [2].

For foreign tenants specifically, the landlord (or whoever hosts them) has a separate duty under the Immigration Act's Section 38: notify the local immigration office within 24 hours of the foreign national taking up residence, commonly called TM.30, filed online via the Immigration Bureau's Section 38 portal. Fines of up to THB 10,000 apply for non-compliance, though reported fines in practice tend to run THB 800–2,000 [3]. Separately, the foreign tenant themselves must file a 90-day report if their continuous stay exceeds 90 days [3].

Costs, taxes and timelines

For tenants renting from a business landlord covered by the 2025 notification, the combined deposit and advance rent cannot exceed 3 months' rent [2]. There is no rental tax charged directly to tenants; landlords bear their own income tax on rental income separately. TM.30 fines, where a landlord fails to register a foreign tenant, fall on the landlord — up to THB 10,000 by law, typically lower in practice [3].

Step by step

1. Before signing, confirm the lease term and whether it needs Land Office registration — anything over 3 years does, to be enforceable for its full length [1].
2. If your landlord operates 3 or more rental units or manages professionally, confirm the deposit plus advance rent does not exceed 3 months' rent combined, per the 2025 OCPB notification [2].
3. Complete a written condition report with photographs at move-in, signed by both parties — this is your primary evidence if there is a dispute over the deposit later [2].
4. If you are a foreign national, confirm with your landlord, in writing, that TM.30 has been filed within 24 hours of your move-in [3].
5. If you are a foreign national staying continuously over 90 days, file your own 90-day report on time [3].
6. At the end of the tenancy, walk through the property against the original condition report before agreeing on any deductions.

Common pitfalls

The most common dispute is over deposit deductions with no documented baseline — without a signed condition report from move-in, it is difficult for a tenant to dispute a landlord's damage claims, which is exactly the gap the 2025 OCPB notification's condition-report requirement is meant to close [2]. A second pitfall is assuming the OCPB deposit cap applies to every landlord — it applies to landlords operating a residential-rental business (3+ units or professional management), not necessarily to an individual renting out a single unit informally, though the CCC's general fairness principles still apply to those leases [2]. A third is signing a lease longer than 3 years without registering it, then discovering it is only enforceable for the first 3 years if a dispute arises [1]. Foreign tenants sometimes assume TM.30 is their own responsibility — it is the landlord's or host's legal duty, though it is worth confirming it was actually filed [3].

What changed recently

The OCPB's Notification B.E. 2568 took effect 4 September 2025, extending consumer-protection coverage from landlords with 5 or more units (under the 2018 notification) to those with 3 or more units or operating as a professional rental business, and adding the 3-month combined deposit/advance-rent cap, itemised-deduction rules, and the mandatory condition report [2]. The CCC's lease-registration rule for terms over 3 years, and the TM.30/90-day reporting duties, are long-standing and unchanged [1][3].