Foreigners can fully own a freehold condominium unit in Thailand and are permitted to purchase up to 49% of the sellable floor area in any condominium project. For resale (second-hand) properties, it is therefore advisable to check the percentage of foreign ownership quota remaining with the condominium’s juristic person first should you buy a second-hand condominium from a local owner. For newly launched condominium projects the developer will often designate a certain percentage of units as available to non-Thai buyers.

Under the Condominium Act, foreigners and foreign juristic persons (for example foreign companies) may wholly own a condominium unit if they are:

 

• Foreigners who have a residence permit under Thai Immigration Law;

• Foreigners who are permitted to enter Thailand under the Investment Promotion Law;

• Juristic persons who are registered under Thai law as provided for in Section 97 and 98 of the Land Code;

• Foreign juristic persons qualifying under Announcement of the National Executive Council No.281 dated November 24, B.E. 2515 who have obtained an investment promotion certificate under Investment Promotion Law;

• Foreigners or foreign juristic persons who have remitted sufficient foreign currency into Thailand to purchase a condominium.

In most cases, foreign nationals or foreign juristic persons who purchase a condominium unit in Thailand fall into the last category which means they must remit funds not less than the total purchase price from overseas to pay for the unit, and they must remit funds in foreign currency (FX) for the funds to be changed into Thai Baht at the local receiving bank.

 

For each payment, foreign buyers need to obtain a Foreign Exchange Transaction (FET) Form (for an amount more than USD 50,000) or a bank certificate (for an amount less than USD 50,000) from the beneficiary bank. Forms or Certificates must be presented to the Land Department in order to transfer ownership of the condominium to the foreign buyer. Without such proof, the Land Department will not register transfer of ownership to foreign buyers.

 

There are two options available for foreigners to transfer money to buy a condominium in Thailand:

1. The buyer transfers the funds into their own local bank account in Thailand. This means that the buyer will be responsible to get the FET Form and/or a bank certificate on their own.
2. The buyer transfers the funds directly to the developer’s bank account, their lawyer’s account or their real estate agent’s account. In this case, the developer, lawyer or agent will arrange to obtain the FET Form and/or a bank certificate.

For new developments sold by the developer, the developer themselves will arrange the FET Form and/or a bank certificate. For resale (second-hand) properties the FET Form and/or a bank certificate is usually arranged by the real estate agency looking after the transaction.

 

Fund remittances must comply with the following guidelines for an FET Form or a bank certificate to be obtained:

• The beneficiary name stated on the remittance advice must be the same as that appearing on the Sales and Purchase Agreement (SPA).

• The purpose of the remittance must be stated on the remittance advice. This should be “For the purpose of buying a condominium, Unit no. ____ in Tower ____ in the (Project name) project.”

 

FINANCE

 

Mortgage loans for foreigners are not widely available in Thailand, but for qualified foreign buyers we will be pleased to arrange an introduction to the local representative of United Overseas Bank (UOB) who will grant loans to foreigners under certain conditions.

 

Please let us know if you have any questions regarding finance for property purchases in Thailand. Most foreign buyers of property in Thailand remit the full payment in cash from abroad and we recommend that should you require finance in order to purchase a condominium, you make enquiries to have a loan in principle agreed first.

 

Please download our Property Buyers’ Guide for full information on property purchases in Thailand.