Buying property in Thailand as a foreign buyer

Researched from official sources ยท May 22, 2026

Foreigners may own a Thai condominium unit outright under the 49% foreign quota in Section 19 of the Condominium Act.

A registered 30-year lease under Civil and Commercial Code Sections 538 and 540 is the alternative pathway over a house, land, or quota-full condominium. Direct foreign ownership of land is prohibited under Section 86 of the Land Code. The Foreign Exchange Transaction form (เนเธšเธš เธ˜.เธ•.3) is the single most consequential document in the condominium pathway โ€” without it, the Department of Lands will refuse to register the transfer.

Estimated time

Four to eight weeks from reservation to registered title for a resale condominium, governed by the inward-remittance wire timing and the building's 49% foreign-quota verification; new-build transactions track the construction schedule and commonly run six to twenty-four months

Cost

Approximately 6โ€“6.3% of the condominium price in one-time transfer taxes and fees, split by custom between buyer and seller; a registered lease adds 1.1% of total rental over the lease term in registration fee plus stamp duty

What You Need

Tap to check off items as you gather them

Additional Items

  • Condominium freehold under the 49% foreign quota โ€” เธžเธฃเธฐเธฃเธฒเธŠเธšเธฑเธเธเธฑเธ•เธดเธญเธฒเธ„เธฒเธฃเธŠเธธเธ” (Phra Ratcha Banyat Akhan Chut โ€” Condominium Act) Section 19. Open to foreigners falling into one of five Section 19 categories; the modal foreign-buyer basis is category five (foreign-currency funded), which requires the purchase funds to enter Thailand as foreign currency, be converted to baht by an authorised Thai commercial bank, and be evidenced by the Foreign Exchange Transaction form (เนเธšเธš เธ˜.เธ•.3, Baeb Tor Tor 3). The quota is measured against total saleable floor area in each building โ€” at least 51% must remain in Thai ownership at all times.
  • Registered leasehold under the 30-year maximum โ€” Civil and Commercial Code Section 538 (registration of leases over three years) and Section 540 (30-year ceiling). Applies to house-and-land, raw land, and condominium units alike. Leases over three years must be in writing, signed by the parties, and registered at the Department of Lands to be enforceable beyond three years. Renewal cannot be pre-contracted; any renewal must occur as a genuine renegotiation at the end of the original term and itself cannot exceed 30 years.
  • Foreign ownership of land is prohibited under Section 86 of the Land Code. Narrow exceptions: inheritance by a foreign lawful heir up to the residential acreage limit under Section 93 (1 rai for residential land per individual, subject to Ministerial permission), and Board of Investment Section 96 bis residential acquisition for foreign investors meeting the 40-million-baht investment threshold (up to 1 rai in designated municipalities).
  • Below the USD 50,000 automatic-threshold per inward remittance, the receiving bank may issue a credit note or bank letter of guarantee in lieu of the Foreign Exchange Transaction form; both are accepted by the Department of Lands as substitutes. Splitting a single purchase across multiple sub-threshold wires is not a workaround โ€” the Land Department aggregates the documents and requires the total to match or exceed the purchase price.
  • Future-watch โ€” unenacted reforms. Two proposed reforms have been publicly floated by Thai cabinet committees through 2024 and 2025 but have not been enacted: raising the foreign-ownership quota in condominiums from 49% to 75%, and extending the maximum lease term from 30 to 99 years specifically for foreign-buyer residential property. Buyers should plan transactions on current law and treat the proposals as speculative until parliamentary action or Royal Gazette publication.
  • Usufruct (เธชเธดเธ—เธ˜เธดเน€เธเน‡เธšเธเธดเธ™, Sit Kep Kin) under Civil and Commercial Code Section 1417 and superficies (เธชเธดเธ—เธ˜เธดเน€เธซเธ™เธทเธญเธžเธทเน‰เธ™เธ”เธดเธ™, Sit Nuea Phuen Din) under Section 1410 are two further personal property rights a foreigner may hold over Thai land โ€” each for a fixed period of up to 30 years or for the lifetime of the holder. Both must be registered at the Department of Lands to be enforceable against third parties. Neither confers ownership of the underlying land.
  • Company-ownership nominee structures (a Thai-registered company composed of nominee Thai shareholders existing solely to hold land for a foreign principal) are prohibited under Section 96 of the Land Code and the Foreign Business Act B.E. 2542. Enforcement intensified through 2024 and 2025, with Department of Lands cancellations and Department of Business Development prosecutions. A Thai company that genuinely operates a business and incidentally holds land for that business is lawful; a shell built solely to defeat the foreign-ownership prohibition is not.

Step-by-Step

  1. 1

    Reserve the unit

    1. Sign a reservation agreement with the seller (developer or private resale party) and pay a reservation deposit, typically เธฟ50,000โ€“เธฟ200,000 depending on unit value and seller convention
    2. The reservation holds the unit while contract terms are negotiated
    3. Request the foreign-quota letter from the condominium juristic person at this stage โ€” turnaround is typically three to seven business days, and the letter is the gating check for the entire pathway

    ๐Ÿ’ก Tip: If the reservation agreement does not lock in a foreign-quota allocation for new-build purchases, a buyer who signs early may find at completion that the quota has been filled by other early registrants โ€” the contract converts to a forced leasehold or a refund-with-penalty exit. Confirm quota allocation in writing in the reservation agreement for new-build.

  2. 2

    Execute the Sale and Purchase Agreement

    เธชเธฑเธเธเธฒเธ‹เธทเน‰เธญเธ‚เธฒเธขเธซเน‰เธญเธ‡เธŠเธธเธ” (Sanya Sue Khai Hong Chut)

    1. Have Thai counsel review the *เธชเธฑเธเธเธฒเธ‹เธทเน‰เธญเธ‚เธฒเธขเธซเน‰เธญเธ‡เธŠเธธเธ”* (Sanya Sue Khai Hong Chut โ€” Sale and Purchase Agreement for a condominium unit) before signing
    2. Pay the contract deposit, typically 10โ€“20% of the purchase price
    3. New-build agreements often phase the remaining balance across construction milestones; resale agreements typically schedule the balance at registration
    4. Fix the buyer-seller cost-sharing convention in the agreement โ€” the transfer fee is customarily split 50/50, but allocation is negotiable

    ๐Ÿ’ก Tip: Engagement of a Thai-licensed property lawyer for the Sale and Purchase Agreement review typically runs เธฟ30,000โ€“เธฟ80,000 for a resale condominium file.

  3. 3

    Verify the foreign quota

    เน‚เธ„เธงเธ•เน‰เธฒเธ•เนˆเธฒเธ‡เธŠเธฒเธ•เธด 49% (Khwota Tang Chat 49%)

    1. Obtain the written letter of guarantee from the condominium juristic person confirming that the unit can be registered within the available 49% foreign quota at the planned transfer date
    2. Statutory basis: Section 19/2 of the Condominium Act โ€” aggregate foreign ownership in each building is capped at 49% of total saleable floor area
    3. If the quota is full, pivot to the registered leasehold pathway under Civil and Commercial Code Sections 538 and 540

    โš ๏ธ Watch out: Warning: If the condominium juristic person reports the quota is exhausted, the unit cannot be registered to a foreigner as freehold regardless of any other factor. Confirm in writing before paying any further deposit. The registered 30-year lease of the unit is the customary fallback offered by developers; following Supreme Court Case No. 4655/2566, automatic renewal clauses beyond 30 years are unenforceable, so the lease effectively caps at a single 30-year term.

  4. 4

    Remit the purchase funds in foreign currency

    เนเธšเธš เธ˜.เธ•.3 (Baeb Tor Tor 3)

    1. Wire the balance of the purchase price from a foreign bank account in foreign currency to your Thai bank account at an authorised commercial bank
    2. Include a 6โ€“8% buffer over the purchase price to cover transfer fees, taxes, and minor furnishing costs in a single eligible wire
    3. Brief the receiving Thai bank precisely on the wire purpose (to purchase a condominium unit at the named building) and the recipient name (as it will appear on the title) before the wire is sent
    4. For inward remittances of USD 50,000 or above (or equivalent), the receiving bank issues the Foreign Exchange Transaction form automatically
    5. For smaller amounts, request a credit note or a bank letter of guarantee from the bank โ€” both are accepted by the Department of Lands as substitutes

    ๐Ÿ’ก Tip: Required: the recipient name on the Foreign Exchange Transaction form must match the buyer name on the Sale and Purchase Agreement, and the stated purpose must reference the property purchase. Corrections after the fact are administratively painful and may require a fresh inward wire if the bank cannot amend the existing record.

  5. 5

    Register at the Department of Lands (condominium freehold)

    เธเธฃเธกเธ—เธตเนˆเธ”เธดเธ™ (Krom Thi Din)

    1. On the agreed transfer date, the buyer (or attorney under a Tor Dor 21 power-of-attorney form), the seller, and a representative of the condominium juristic person attend the Department of Lands branch with jurisdiction over the building's location
    2. Present the document package: passport, Foreign Exchange Transaction form (or credit note / bank letter of guarantee for sub-threshold remittances), foreign-quota letter, original unit title deed, เธ—เธฐเน€เธšเธตเธขเธ™เธšเน‰เธฒเธ™, signed Sale and Purchase Agreement, and cashier's cheques for the balance plus the registration fees and taxes
    3. The Land Office computes the transfer fee (2%), specific business tax (3.3%, where applicable), withholding tax, and stamp duty (0.5%, where business tax not charged); payment is made at the counter
    4. The new title is issued in the buyer's name on the same visit; routine registrations are typically completed within two to six hours at the office

    ๐Ÿ’ก Tip: Bring a 10โ€“15% buffer over the estimated tax-and-fee total in cashier's-cheque form. Withholding tax and specific business tax are computed on government-appraised values that may diverge from the negotiated sale price; a shortfall forces a return visit.

  6. 6

    Negotiate and sign the lease (leasehold pathway)

    เธชเธฑเธเธเธฒเน€เธŠเนˆเธฒ (Sanya Chao)

    Expat Resident
    If the unit's foreign quota is full, or if the property is house-and-land rather than a condominium
    1. Negotiate lease term up to 30 years (any longer term is automatically reduced to 30 years by operation of Civil and Commercial Code Section 540); rental schedule (prepaid for the full term in foreign-buyer leasehold structures, or annual); covenants on use, maintenance, and end-of-term return
    2. Draft and sign the written lease โ€” a lease for more than three years must be in writing and signed by both parties under Section 538
    3. Bilingual Thai-English drafting is standard practice; the Thai version controls in case of dispute

    โš ๏ธ Watch out: Civil and Commercial Code Section 540 reads: "The duration of a lease of immovable property cannot exceed thirty years. If it is made for a longer period, such period shall be reduced to thirty years. The aforesaid period may be renewed, but it must not exceed thirty years from the date of renewal." Pre-agreed automatic renewals beyond 30 years (the 30+30+30 structure) are unenforceable beyond the initial term per Supreme Court Case No. 4655/2566. Up-front payment for 90 years of leasehold carries the risk of losing the value of years 31โ€“90 on a strict reading of the law.

  7. 7

    Register the lease at the Department of Lands

    Expat Resident
    If the lease term exceeds three years
    1. Both parties (or attorneys) attend the Department of Lands branch with jurisdiction over the property
    2. Present the document package: passport of lessee, title deed of the leased property, เธ—เธฐเน€เธšเธตเธขเธ™เธšเน‰เธฒเธ™ of the lessor, the signed written lease agreement, lessor's ID card or passport, and any power-of-attorney if either party is absent
    3. Pay the lease registration fee (1% of total rental over the lease term) and stamp duty (0.1% of total rental) at the counter
    4. The Land Office records the lease on the back of the title deed; once registered, the lease binds successors-in-title of the lessor (sale of the property does not extinguish the registered lease)

    ๐Ÿ’ก Tip: Renewal cannot be enforced as a pre-agreed right; any renewal must be a genuine renegotiation at the end of the original term per Supreme Court Case No. 4655/2566 (18 March 2025).

Local Tips from the Community

  • Verify the building's 49% foreign quota in writing from the condominium juristic person before paying any deposit. Quota status is rarely surfaced in developer brochures, and a quota-full building cannot register a freehold unit to a foreigner regardless of all other factors.
  • Brief the receiving Thai bank precisely on the wire purpose (to purchase a condominium unit at the named building) and the recipient name (as it will appear on the title) before the foreign-currency wire is sent. The Foreign Exchange Transaction form recipient name and stated purpose must match the Sale and Purchase Agreement exactly; corrections after the fact are administratively painful.
  • Bring a 10โ€“15% buffer over the estimated tax-and-fee total in cashier's-cheque form to the Land Department visit. Withholding tax and specific business tax are computed on government-appraised values that may diverge from the negotiated sale price, and a shortfall forces a return visit.
  • Pre-agreed automatic lease renewals beyond 30 years (the so-called 30+30+30 structure) are unenforceable beyond the initial 30 years under Supreme Court Case No. 4655/2566 (18 March 2025). Plan a foreign-buyer leasehold transaction on a single 30-year ceiling, with renewal treated as a genuine renegotiation at term-end.
  • Funds already sitting in a Thai baht account in the buyer's name do not satisfy the Section 19 category-five basis. The foreign-currency-in, baht-converted-at-receiving-bank chain is statutorily required, so buyers liquidating Thai-held assets typically need to wire the proceeds offshore and re-wire them back as a fresh foreign-currency inward remittance.

What Could Go Wrong

Verify the foreign quota letter: The condominium juristic person reports the 49% quota is exhausted at the planned transfer date

Recovery: Pivot to the registered leasehold pathway. The developer or seller may offer a 30-year registered lease of the unit with rent prepaid up-front for the full term. Negotiate the prepaid-rent figure on the same basis as the would-be purchase price, and confirm the lease will be registered at the Department of Lands. The lease cannot include enforceable pre-agreed renewal beyond the initial 30 years per Supreme Court Case No. 4655/2566.

Wire the purchase funds and obtain the Foreign Exchange Transaction form: Recipient name on the form does not match the buyer name on the Sale and Purchase Agreement, or the stated purpose does not match a property purchase

Recovery: Return to the receiving Thai bank with the Sale and Purchase Agreement and request a corrected form. Pre-correction is administratively painful and may require a fresh inward wire if the bank cannot amend the existing record. Brief the bank precisely on the purpose (to purchase a condominium unit at the named building) and the recipient name (as it will appear on the title) before the wire is sent.

Attend the Department of Lands for registration: The Land Office calculation of withholding tax or specific business tax exceeds the cashier's cheques the buyer has brought

Recovery: The Land Office computes taxes on government-appraised values that may diverge from the sale price. Bring a 10โ€“15% buffer in cashier's-cheque form to avoid a return visit. If the shortfall is discovered at the counter, the office holds the file and the parties return on a later business day with the corrected payment.

Costs

Item Amount Payment Notes
Transfer fee เธฟ0 Cashier's cheque or cash at the Land Department on registration day 2% of the government-appraised value of the unit. Statutory basis: Land Code schedule of Land Department fees. Customary practice splits this fee 50/50 between buyer and seller, but the allocation is negotiable and must be fixed in the Sale and Purchase Agreement.
Specific Business Tax (SBT) เธฟ0 Cashier's cheque or cash at the Land Department on registration day 3.3% of the higher of sale price or appraised value (3% specific business tax plus 10% municipal surcharge = effective 3.3%). Applies when the seller has held the unit less than five years. Statutory basis: Revenue Code Section 91/2(6). Customary payer: seller.
Stamp duty เธฟ0 Cashier's cheque or cash at the Land Department on registration day 0.5% of the higher of sale price or appraised value. Applies only when specific business tax is not charged (i.e., when the seller has held the unit five years or more). Statutory basis: Revenue Code. Customary payer: seller.
Withholding tax เธฟ0 Cashier's cheque or cash at the Land Department on registration day Progressive personal income tax computed on a notional gain figure published by the Revenue Department for individual sellers; or 1% of the higher of sale price or appraised value for corporate sellers. The Land Office calculates the exact figure at registration. Customary payer: seller.
Land Office service fees เธฟ500 Cash at the Land Department Nominal service charge per the Department of Lands schedule, typically under เธฟ500.
Foreign Exchange Transaction form issuance เธฟ0 No separate fee โ€” issued by the receiving Thai bank on settlement of the inward remittance The bank does not charge a discrete fee for the Foreign Exchange Transaction form itself; standard inward-remittance fees apply (typically เธฟ200โ€“เธฟ500 per transaction plus the bank's foreign-exchange spread). Below-threshold remittances (under USD 50,000 equivalent) generate a credit note or bank letter of guarantee on request without separate fee.
Lease registration fee เธฟ0 Cashier's cheque or cash at the Land Department on lease-registration day 1% of the total rental value over the full lease term. Statutory basis: Department of Lands schedule. Customary payer: lessee or split per contract.
Lease stamp duty เธฟ0 Cashier's cheque or cash at the Land Department on lease-registration day 0.1% of the total rental value over the full lease term. Statutory basis: Revenue Code. Customary payer: lessee or split per contract.
Condominium sinking fund เธฟ0 Bank transfer or cashier's cheque to the condominium juristic person at registration One-time contribution at first registration, typically เธฟ400โ€“เธฟ800 per square metre of unit area. Set by the condominium juristic person's by-laws; varies by building.
Condominium common-area fees เธฟ0 Monthly to the condominium juristic person Typically เธฟ30โ€“เธฟ80 per square metre per month; varies by building amenity profile. Ongoing recurring cost, not a closing cost.
Transfer fee เธฟ0
Payment:
Cashier's cheque or cash at the Land Department on registration day
Notes:
2% of the government-appraised value of the unit. Statutory basis: Land Code schedule of Land Department fees. Customary practice splits this fee 50/50 between buyer and seller, but the allocation is negotiable and must be fixed in the Sale and Purchase Agreement.
Specific Business Tax (SBT) เธฟ0
Payment:
Cashier's cheque or cash at the Land Department on registration day
Notes:
3.3% of the higher of sale price or appraised value (3% specific business tax plus 10% municipal surcharge = effective 3.3%). Applies when the seller has held the unit less than five years. Statutory basis: Revenue Code Section 91/2(6). Customary payer: seller.
Stamp duty เธฟ0
Payment:
Cashier's cheque or cash at the Land Department on registration day
Notes:
0.5% of the higher of sale price or appraised value. Applies only when specific business tax is not charged (i.e., when the seller has held the unit five years or more). Statutory basis: Revenue Code. Customary payer: seller.
Withholding tax เธฟ0
Payment:
Cashier's cheque or cash at the Land Department on registration day
Notes:
Progressive personal income tax computed on a notional gain figure published by the Revenue Department for individual sellers; or 1% of the higher of sale price or appraised value for corporate sellers. The Land Office calculates the exact figure at registration. Customary payer: seller.
Land Office service fees เธฟ500
Payment:
Cash at the Land Department
Notes:
Nominal service charge per the Department of Lands schedule, typically under เธฟ500.
Foreign Exchange Transaction form issuance เธฟ0
Payment:
No separate fee โ€” issued by the receiving Thai bank on settlement of the inward remittance
Notes:
The bank does not charge a discrete fee for the Foreign Exchange Transaction form itself; standard inward-remittance fees apply (typically เธฟ200โ€“เธฟ500 per transaction plus the bank's foreign-exchange spread). Below-threshold remittances (under USD 50,000 equivalent) generate a credit note or bank letter of guarantee on request without separate fee.
Lease registration fee เธฟ0
Payment:
Cashier's cheque or cash at the Land Department on lease-registration day
Notes:
1% of the total rental value over the full lease term. Statutory basis: Department of Lands schedule. Customary payer: lessee or split per contract.
Lease stamp duty เธฟ0
Payment:
Cashier's cheque or cash at the Land Department on lease-registration day
Notes:
0.1% of the total rental value over the full lease term. Statutory basis: Revenue Code. Customary payer: lessee or split per contract.
Condominium sinking fund เธฟ0
Payment:
Bank transfer or cashier's cheque to the condominium juristic person at registration
Notes:
One-time contribution at first registration, typically เธฟ400โ€“เธฟ800 per square metre of unit area. Set by the condominium juristic person's by-laws; varies by building.
Condominium common-area fees เธฟ0
Payment:
Monthly to the condominium juristic person
Notes:
Typically เธฟ30โ€“เธฟ80 per square metre per month; varies by building amenity profile. Ongoing recurring cost, not a closing cost.
Total: เธฟ500

After This Process

  • โ†’ Hold the Foreign Exchange Transaction form (เนเธšเธš เธ˜.เธ•.3) with the new title deed โ€” both are required if the unit is later sold and proceeds are repatriated in foreign currency
  • โ†’ Pay the first sinking-fund contribution and monthly common-area fees to the condominium juristic person on the schedule set by the building by-laws
  • โ†’ Set up automatic municipal payment for any annual property-related taxes that the Land Office or municipality bills after registration
  • โ†’ Photograph or scan the updated title deed and the Department of Lands tax receipt immediately on registration day โ€” store originals safely
  • โ†’ For a registered lease: retain the registered lease document and the back-of-title-deed annotation as evidence binding on successors-in-title of the lessor

Sources

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