Bangkok · Thailand

Legal consultants for investors and companies in Thailand

We start with what you want to do, then build the legal route to get there. From there we draft the documents and see it through with you.

ProvisoExample
Roadmap

A villa on leased land

ScopeTaking a villa on land you lease, with the house in your name.

  1. Title deed checkedRegistered rights and encumbrances confirmed at the Land Office
  2. Lease drafted in Thai and EnglishUp to thirty years, with renewal and exit terms written in
  3. Lease and superficies registeredBoth recorded at the Land Office, with the house in your name
  4. Taxes and fees estimatedEach cost listed, with who pays it
Roadmap

A US Treaty of Amity company

ScopeA Thai company that Americans can own outright under the Treaty of Amity.

  1. Thai company registeredIncorporated at the DBD with an American majority shareholding
  2. Treaty certification letterIssued by the US Commercial Service at the US Embassy
  3. Foreign Business CertificateFiled with the DBD under section 11 of the Foreign Business Act
  4. Ready to tradeUp to 100% American-owned, in the businesses the treaty covers
Roadmap

A hotel licence application

ScopeLetting villas or a resort to guests under a hotel licence.

  1. Rights over every buildingTitle, lease or owner consent for each one
  2. Building approved for hotel useUse permit, or an engineer’s certificate outside control areas
  3. Environmental file readyThe report or measures set by rooms and floor area
  4. Licence issuedLodged with the local registrar, valid for five years
Practice Areas

What we do

These are the matters we handle most as legal consultants in Thailand. Each has its own page setting out what it covers and what it produces.

01

Hotel Licensing

Villas and resorts licensed under the Hotel Act. We prepare the application with the consents and permits behind it and lodge it with the registrar.

What this covers →
02

US Treaty of Amity Companies

A Thai company that Americans can own outright. We set it up and take it through the US Embassy certification to the DBD certificate.

What this covers →
03

Real Estate & Property

The lease, the Sap-Ing-Sith or the superficies is drafted and registered at the Land Office, along with purchase agreements and construction contracts.

What this covers →
04

Corporate & Commercial

Whether the route is BOI promotion, a Foreign Business Licence, the US Treaty of Amity or a Thai-majority structure, we document what it needs, including share transfers and director changes.

What this covers →
05

Contracts & Documentation

Every agreement is written for the specific arrangement rather than pulled from a template, whether shareholders, directorship, partnership, employment or service.

What this covers →
06

Due Diligence & Risk

We check what you are buying before you pay for it, whether land or a company, and report what the registers show, what they do not, and what is still open.

What this covers →
Thai pavilion, Bangkok
The firm

Who you deal with

Proviso's legal consultants advise investors and companies in Thailand on corporate structure, commercial agreements and property transactions. The person who takes your instructions is the one who does the work.

What that looks like in practice

A sample of recent engagements. Client details stay confidential.

Why Proviso

Thai law is hard to read from the outside

In most countries you look the law up. The statute is online, in your language, in an official version. In Thailand the primary law is in Thai, the English translations are unofficial, and most of what fills the gap online is wrong. People arrive with three answers from three sources and no way to tell which one is the law.

Proviso was started by people who had spent years in Thai law firms working with foreign investors, so we know this from the inside. What clients kept asking for was to be told plainly what the law says and what the work would cost, to have their options laid out, and then to have it done quickly.

So that is what we do. We read the Thai text and tell you what it says and which routes are open to you. The fee is agreed in writing before anything starts. And we work fast, with the one exception named before you sign: where a government office sets the timetable, we say so.

Insights

Thai law, with the section it comes from

All insights →
Thai coastline from the air
Foreign ownership

Foreign land ownership in Thailand: what the Land Code allows and what it forbids

What the Land Code lets a foreigner own, and the four lawful ways to hold land or a house instead.

Read → Land Code B.E. 2497 · Condominium Act B.E. 2522
A property and its boundaries seen from above
Buying property

Land due diligence in Thailand: what to check before you pay

Title classes, legal access, encumbrances, and what the house book does not prove.

Read → Land Code · title deed classes
A villa and pool in Thailand
Licensing

Renting out a Thai villa on Airbnb: when a hotel licence is required

Where the monthly-letting line comes from, and what it does not cover.

Read → Hotel Act B.E. 2547 · ministerial regulation
01

Article library

Plain answers to the questions foreign owners actually ask, each citing the statute behind it.

Browse →
02

How we work

Fixed fees, agreed before anything starts. We check every legal statement against the legislation itself.

Our standards →
03

Talk to us

Tell us what you are working through and we will tell you what the documents do.

Book a consultation →
Client reviews

What clients say

Read our reviews on Google
Lease, land and house★★★★★
Everything was laid out the entire process was explained step by step, the timeline was well-defined, and communication was always smooth and responsive.
E.C., PhuketGoogle review
Condominium due diligence★★★★★
They were fast and reliable, and their communication was clear and quick. Fees were disclosed up front with no hidden amounts.
J.S.Google review
Property transaction★★★★★
I reached out to Proviso in the middle of a transaction that another firm were mismanaging ... Can highly recommend them
B.S.Google review
General practice★★★★★
Great and quick service from the team! They made the process very easy to understand!
D.S.Google review
Business and investment★★★★★
We continue to use their services, and over time we have steadily expanded both the scope of our work together and the areas in which they support us.
G.C., Koh Phangan and Koh SamuiGoogle review
Business in Thailand★★★★★
Very professional. ... Really a solid firm to grow your business in Thailand.
S.K.Google review
General practice★★★★★
An exceptional experience from the get-go.
T.D.Google review
General practice★★★★★
Made me feel secure. Highly professional and patient
D.A.Google review
Contact

Book a consultation

A short introductory call. Tell us what you are buying, building or running, what stage it has reached, and what you are unsure about.

Anything you tell us stays confidential, and you are under no obligation to instruct us afterwards.