Can foreigners buy property in Thailand? Freehold, leasehold and the 49 % rule

Yes, foreigners can buy property in Thailand, but only one kind outright: a condominium unit. You get freehold ownership if the building is registered as a condominium, foreigners together own no more than 49 % of its total unit area, and the money for the purchase came into Thailand in foreign currency. Land cannot be owned by a foreigner as an individual, so houses and villas are bought through a registered lease of up to 30 years.

This is the question we hear first from almost every buyer abroad, from London to Sydney: "Can I, as a foreigner, really own something here?" The honest answer is yes, with clear limits. And the limits are the same for everyone. An American, British, German or Australian passport does not change Thai property law.

We work on the Thai side of the deal in Pattaya, so we see the same thing every week: people do not lose money because the rules are complicated. They lose it because someone promised them an exception to the rules. Below is what is real.

What a foreigner can buy: the short version

Freehold: owning a condo in Thailand

Freehold means full ownership with no time limit. You can sell the unit, give it away, rent it out or leave it to your heirs. In practice it works much like owning an apartment at home, inside a building with its own rules and fees.

For a foreigner this is possible in one case only: the unit is in a building registered as a condominium under the Thai Condominium Act. The word "condo" in an advert proves nothing. If the building is not registered as a condominium, a foreigner cannot hold a unit there as freehold. What a condominium is and how to check it, we explain in Condominium in Thailand.

The 49 % foreign quota

Foreigners together may own no more than 49 % of the total floor area of all units in a building. The other 51 % belongs to Thai owners. The quota is counted by area, not by the number of units, so "49 units left for foreigners" is not how it works.

In popular buildings the foreign part sells out long before construction ends. The unit will still be sold to you, but only as leasehold. That is why we always ask for the remaining quota in writing before any deposit – more in Developer and foreign quota.

The money must come from abroad

The Condominium Act lets a foreigner own a unit if they brought foreign currency into Thailand for the purchase (or paid from a non-resident baht or foreign currency account). The Land Office checks this by a document from the Thai bank that received the money. People often call it FET.

For buyers from the US, the UK or the EU this is usually simple: a normal bank SWIFT transfer in dollars, pounds or euros. The trap is money transfer apps. Some of them deliver money inside Thailand as a local payment, and then there is nothing to prove that foreign currency came in. Details are in Transferring money.

Foreign freehold costs more

A unit in the foreign quota is often more expensive than the same unit in the Thai part of the building. Developers charge a premium for freehold. For example, at The Title Sierra in Phuket it is about 8,600 dollars. So compare prices only within the same form of ownership: a unit "10 % cheaper" next door may be leasehold.

Selling and inheriting a condo

A freehold unit can be inherited. If the heir is a foreigner and the owner bought the unit as a foreigner who brought in foreign currency, the heir keeps the same rights and does not have to sell (this is the Land Department's answer to official questions, according to the law firm Tilleke & Gibbins). If the heir does not qualify, the unit must be sold within a year.

You can sell to another foreigner only if the building has free foreign quota on the day of transfer. You can always sell to a Thai buyer.

There is also a reverse risk: if a foreign owner is deported or loses their residence permit, section 19/5 of the Condominium Act requires the unit to be sold within a year, otherwise the Land Department sells it. Breaking visa rules can cost you the condo.

Leasehold: what a 30-year lease really gives you

Leasehold is a long lease registered at the Land Office. You pay for the whole term up front, use the property as your own, can rent it out and, if the contract allows, pass the lease on.

The key point is the term. Section 540 of the Thai Civil and Commercial Code limits a lease of immovable property to 30 years. If the contract says more, the term is cut to 30 years. A lease longer than three years is valid only if registered (section 538); an unregistered one is enforceable for three years.

"30 + 30 + 30" is a promise, not a guarantee

This is the most common trap we see. Adverts say "90-year lease" or "30 years with automatic renewal". The law guarantees only the first 30 years.

In 2023 the Thai Supreme Court (decision No. 4655/2566) held that renewals promised in advance in the original contract are a way around the law, and Land Offices refuse to register leases with automatic renewal. A new term means a new contract after the old one ends, with new registration and new fees. Whether the landowner signs it in 30 years, nobody can promise you today.

So plan for 30 years. Anything beyond that is a possibility, not an asset.

Registration cost

Registering a lease costs 1 % registration fee plus 0.1 % stamp duty, both calculated on the total rent for the whole term, not on the property value. Example: 30 years at 10,000 baht a month is 3,600,000 baht of rent, so the fee is 36,000 baht and stamp duty 3,600 baht – about 39,600 baht in total. Who pays is agreed in the contract.

Can a lease be inherited?

Opinions differ. As a general rule of Thai law, a lease is a personal right that ends when the tenant dies. In 2016 the Supreme Court (decision No. 11058/2559) allowed a lease to pass to an heir where the term was not tied to the tenant's life. How far this goes, lawyers still debate. Put the heir clause in the contract and have a lawyer check it.

Freehold or leasehold: how to choose

If you buy to live in or to sell one day, choose freehold. If a leasehold unit is much cheaper and you honestly count only 30 years – for example, to rent out monthly and never resell – it can work. The one bad choice is paying a freehold price for a leasehold unit because nobody checked the quota.

Buying a house or villa in Thailand as a foreigner

A foreigner cannot register land in their own name. A house, townhouse or villa stands on land, so it cannot be owned with its plot either. The Land Code has one exception for large investors (section 96 bis): up to one rai (1,600 m²) of land for a home with an investment of 40 million baht and ministerial approval. Lawyers call it almost unusable.

A foreigner cannot own land, but Thai law offers several registered rights to use it. None of them equals ownership, and each has its own term and its own rules on selling and inheritance.

Usufruct, superficies and other rights over land

All of these rights come from a contract with the landowner. They must be in writing and registered at the Land Office – only then do they bind third parties, including a future owner of the land. An unregistered right is only a private agreement.

According to the Land Department as quoted by the Thai press, registering a usufruct for payment costs 1 % of the contract amount plus 0.5 % stamp duty, and a free one 50 baht per plot. The fees for Sap-Ing-Sitthi are set by a regulation that is not publicly accessible, so confirm them before signing.

How villas are actually bought

A land lease plus superficies on the house. You lease the land for up to 30 years and register a superficies right, so the house is yours separately from the land, and that right can be inherited. The risks: the lease is limited to 30 years with no guaranteed renewal, and when the rights end, the house is removed or the landowner buys it back at market value. According to one source, Land Offices may refuse to register superficies over a house that is already built, so this is set up before construction.

A usufruct from a Thai spouse or partner. The land is in the Thai partner's name, and the foreigner holds a registered usufruct. It protects against the land being sold "clean", but it ends with the holder's death, is not inherited, and after a divorce the land stays with the Thai spouse. If the foreigner in fact paid for the land, the arrangement can be treated as a nominee structure.

Sap-Ing-Sitthi. On paper the strongest right – it can be sold, inherited and mortgaged – but there is little practice with foreign buyers yet. One option of the 3 million baht condo visa relies on this right.

A servitude is essential for any villa without its own road access: a registered right of way stops a neighbour from blocking the drive.

A Thai company. Foreigners may own no more than 49 % of it, and the Thai shareholders must be real and invest their own money.

The scheme for a particular villa should be put together by a lawyer for that specific plot.

Nominee structures: a real risk in 2026

"We will buy the villa through a company, the Thai director is just a formality" is an offer to break the law. Under the Foreign Business Act (section 36), nominee shareholding can mean up to three years in prison or a fine of 100,000 to 1,000,000 baht, and the foreigner who agreed to it is liable too.

This is not theory. According to Thailand's Ministry of Commerce, 11,746 companies with a foreign share below 50 % were flagged as "at risk" in 2025, and 17,556 companies were passed to the Land Department to check their property holdings. In May 2026, checks on nominee companies on Koh Phangan led to 22 foreigners being detained and more than 40 rai of land seized. In Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi, 89 plots were checked on suspicion of nominee ownership. Many villa buyers on Phuket and Samui put their plans on hold.

Marriage to a Thai citizen does not give a foreigner rights to land either: the land is registered to the Thai spouse as their own property.

What about the US Treaty of Amity?

American buyers often ask about it. The 1966 Treaty of Amity between the US and Thailand helps American businesses, but not home buyers. Article IV allows each country to restrict foreigners in the "exploitation of land", and article V gives Americans equal treatment with Thais only in leasing property to live in. So an American passport, or an American-owned company, does not unlock land ownership.

Before looking at a villa, look at the land title. The best is a chanote (Nor Sor 4 Jor): the plot is surveyed and has clear boundaries. Sor Kor 1 and Por Bor Tor 5 are only rights of possession – we do not recommend buying them. More on titles in Registration.

How to check the form of ownership before paying

• The building is registered as a condominium – ask the developer or the juristic person of the building.
• A written letter on the remaining foreign quota on the date of reservation.
• The reservation and the contract say the unit is sold freehold within the foreign quota.
• Every payment comes from abroad in foreign currency, with a bank confirmation for each.
• For a villa: the land title, the owner, any mortgage and a registered lease.
• Renewal promises are treated as a contract term only, not as part of the price.
• An independent lawyer reads the contract before the first payment.

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