Can foreigners own land in Thailand?

All of them are written into Thai law and registered at the Land Office, and each has a limit the sales pitch usually leaves out. This page sets out the rule and its two exceptions, then the four routes, with a link to the fuller article on each.

Can a foreigner buy land in Thailand?

No. Thai law opens land ownership to a foreigner in only two situations. The first is a treaty between Thailand and the foreigner's country which gives a right to own immovable property, with the acquisition still needing the Minister's permission and capped at one rai for a family home [Land Code B.E. 2497, sections 86 and 87]. The second is the investment route described further down, which needs forty million baht placed in approved Thai investments before the Minister will consider it. Outside those two doors a foreigner who ends up holding land has acquired it unlawfully, and the Land Code deals with it by ordering a sale. The foreigner must dispose of the land within a period the Director-General sets, between one hundred and eighty days and one year, failing which the Director-General sells it. The same rule reaches land held by a Thai person or company as owner in place of a foreigner. Acquiring land as a foreigner's agent is also an offence in its own right, carrying a fine of up to twenty thousand baht or imprisonment of up to two years or both.

Can I own a house or villa if I cannot own the land?

Yes. Thai law treats the building and the land as separate things, and a foreigner may own a house standing on land someone else owns. The instrument which does this is a superficies, a registered right under which the landowner grants another person ownership of buildings on the land [Civil and Commercial Code, section 1410]. A superficies may run for a fixed period or for the life of either party, and where a period is fixed the Code limits it to thirty years, with renewal allowed for a further term of up to thirty years from the date of renewal. Unless the document says otherwise, it can be transferred and it passes on death. When it ends, the holder may remove the building, and if the landowner would rather buy it at market value the holder cannot refuse without good reason.

A villa bought on this footing therefore has two registered layers, the foreigner's name on the superficies and a lease or other right over the land beneath it. What the foreigner owns is the house. The land stays with its Thai owner throughout, which is why the words "villa for sale" on an island listing describe a bundle of registered rights rather than a freehold. Our article on holding a villa on Thai land walks through how the layers fit together.

What are the legal ways to hold land as a foreigner?

Four, and all four are registered at the Land Office. A registered lease gives the right to use the land for up to thirty years. A superficies, covered above, gives ownership of the building rather than a right over the land. The Sap-Ing-Sith is a right created by its own Act in 2019 which the holder can transfer, mortgage and leave to heirs, and which gives the holder the rights and duties of an owner for a term of up to thirty years. The fourth is the usufruct, and for a foreigner who wants to live on the land for the rest of their life it comes closest to ownership. The holder of a usufruct may possess the property, use it, take its fruits and manage it [Civil and Commercial Code, section 1417]. It may be granted for a fixed period or for the holder's life, and where the document names no period the Code presumes it runs for life. Unless the grant says otherwise, the holder may hand the exercise of the right to someone else, which is what allows a usufruct holder to let the property out. The right ends on the holder's death, so it protects the holder for life and leaves nothing to an heir.

One point of practice, which carries no section because it rests on the offices rather than the Code. Some provincial Land Offices register a usufruct in a foreigner's favour without difficulty and others refuse or restrict it, so whether the route is open for a particular plot is a question for the office where the land is registered, before the price is agreed.

The practical differences are these. The lease can be transferred or sublet only if the contract allows it, and the usufruct dies with its holder. Ownership of anything comes only with a superficies, and only of the building. The Sap-Ing-Sith was written to behave like property, and its Act states in terms that the right can be transferred, mortgaged and inherited. Our explainer on what a Sap-Ing-Sith is covers the mechanics.

Is a 30+30 or 99-year lease valid?

A thirty-year term is valid, and everything beyond it rests on a promise to renew. The Civil and Commercial Code forbids a lease of immovable property for longer than thirty years and reduces any longer term to thirty [Civil and Commercial Code, section 540]. A lease over three years must also be in writing and registered, otherwise it is enforceable for three years only. Renewal is permitted, but the Code allows it as a fresh agreement at the end of the term, for a further period of up to thirty years counted from the day of renewal.

Where the 30+30 structure breaks is on a change of owner. The Code carries the lease itself to a buyer of the land, who takes over the landlord's rights and duties under it. It says nothing about carrying a promise to grant a future lease. A 99-year lease is therefore a thirty-year lease with unregistered promises of renewal attached, and the buyer's position on those promises depends on who owns the land when the first term ends. Our article on whether a thirty-year lease renewal is enforceable deals with the case law and the drafting which helps.

Can I buy land through a Thai company?

Only if the company is Thai in substance, and the Land Code decides what counts. A limited company is treated as a foreigner for land purposes when foreigners hold more than forty-nine percent of its registered capital or make up more than half of its shareholders [Land Code B.E. 2497, section 97]. A company owned by such a company is treated the same way. A company which passes those tests on paper because Thai shareholders hold their shares on the foreigner's behalf falls under a different provision. Land acquired by anyone as owner in place of a foreigner can be sold off by the Director-General under the same forced-disposal rule described above, and the Thai person who acquired it as the foreigner's agent commits an offence.

The Foreign Business Act reaches the same arrangement from the company side. A Thai national who holds shares in a company as a foreigner's nominee, so the foreigner can carry on a business the Act reserves for Thais, and a foreigner who allows it, each face imprisonment of up to three years or a fine of one hundred thousand to one million baht or both, and the court must order the shareholding to end. Land Office officials have the power to question the parties to any registration, and where there is reason to believe a purchase is being made on behalf of a foreigner the matter goes to the Minister, whose decision is final. Thai courts have also held a purchase contract made on this basis void. What the law says on holding through a company is set out in our article on nominee shareholding.

Can a foreigner own a condo in Thailand?

Yes, freehold, subject to two conditions. Foreigners as a group may own up to forty-nine percent of the total unit space in any one condominium building [Condominium Act B.E. 2522, section 19 bis]. Within that quota a foreigner may take a unit in their own name and hold it outright. The second condition is the money. A foreign buyer who qualifies by bringing funds into Thailand must show the Land Office evidence of foreign currency brought into the Kingdom, or withdrawn from a non-resident baht account or a foreign currency account, in an amount of at least the price of the unit. The Land Office registers the transfer once that evidence is produced and the quota is confirmed.

A unit acquired by inheritance beyond the quota, or by a foreigner who ceases to qualify, must be disposed of within a year. Leaving aside the two land exceptions, a condominium unit is the one piece of Thai property a foreigner can own freehold, and it is the property the Immigration Bureau's 3-million-baht stay route accepts by purchase, with houses qualifying only by rental.

Can I put the land in my Thai spouse's name?

Yes, the Thai spouse can own it, and the foreign spouse owns none of it. Under Thai marriage law, property acquired during the marriage is marital property unless it falls within the personal property of one spouse [Civil and Commercial Code, section 1474]. Land bought during the marriage would ordinarily be marital property, and a foreign spouse cannot hold a share in Thai land. The Land Office resolves this at registration. Officials have the statutory power to question the parties and, if there is reason to believe the purchase is for a foreigner's benefit, to refer it to the Minister. In practice the Thai spouse and the foreign spouse are asked to confirm in writing, before the transfer is registered, that the purchase money is the Thai spouse's personal property and the foreigner has no interest in the land. The land is then registered as the Thai spouse's personal property. Because the foreign spouse has signed that confirmation, their protection lies in a separately registered right over the land or the house, such as a usufruct or a superficies, rather than in the marriage.

Does it make a difference if I am American, British or Australian?

No. The Land Code's only nationality-based door is a treaty giving a right to own immovable property, and the treaty most often cited, the 1966 Treaty of Amity between Thailand and the United States, gives Americans national treatment for leasing property needed for their residence or business, while reserving Thailand's right to restrict foreigners in the exploitation of land [Treaty of Amity and Economic Relations, Articles IV and V]. Ownership of land is outside it. An American, a Briton, an Australian, a Canadian and an Indian citizen all stand in the same position. The general prohibition, the four holding routes, the condominium quota and the investment route apply to each of them alike. Where nationality does matter is on the money coming in, because the condominium rule and the investment route both turn on evidence of funds brought into Thailand from abroad, and on tax at home, which is a separate question.

What about the 40 million baht investment route?

It exists, and it buys permission to hold one rai for a home, not land in general. The Land Code disapplies the treaty requirement for a foreigner who brings in capital for investment of not less than forty million baht as set out in ministerial regulation, allows that foreigner to acquire land for residential use of not more than one rai, and requires the Minister's permission [Land Code B.E. 2497, section 96 bis]. The regulation lists what counts. Thai government, Bank of Thailand or state enterprise bonds, or bonds the Finance Ministry guarantees, units in property or financial-institution rescue funds, shares in a company promoted by the Board of Investment, or investment in an activity eligible for that promotion, held for not less than five years. The land must sit in Bangkok, Pattaya, a municipal area or a residential zone under the town plan, and outside any military safety area. The foreigner must use it as a home for themselves and family, must report the start of use within sixty days, and must report any withdrawal of the investment. Break the conditions and the disposal clock starts, between one hundred and eighty days and a year. Leave the land unused as a residence for two years and the Minister may sell it. One rai is 1,600 square metres. For a reader asking whether forty million baht buys Thai land outright, the answer is a permit for a single house plot in an approved area, on conditions which continue after registration.

What should I check before I pay for land or a villa?

The title document first, then the seller, then the money trail, and last the cost of registering what you buy. Only a chanote, the document the Land Code calls a title deed, shows ownership of land. A Nor Sor 3 or Nor Sor 3 Kor is a certificate that the land has been put to use, so a villa sold on anything below a chanote is a villa on land whose ownership the state has not yet confirmed. The glossary explains each document. Then confirm who the seller is. If the land is held by a company, ask who its shareholders are and where their money came from, because a company holding land for a foreigner takes its buyer into the forced-disposal rule with it. If the seller is an individual with a foreign spouse, expect the Land Office to ask the questions described above. Then follow the money. Every lawful route for a foreigner leaves a paper trail, the lease or superficies on the back of the chanote, the foreign exchange form for a condominium, the investment evidence for the forty-million-baht route. Any structure which asks you to pay without leaving one of those trails is asking you to rely on trust where the law offers registration. Our land due diligence checklist lists the documents to pull, and our article on property transfer taxes and Land Office fees sets out what the registration will cost.

Which of these routes is open depends on the title deed in front of you and on who is buying. If you are weighing a purchase in Thailand, we can go through it with you.

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Sources Show all 35 sourcesHide sources

Every statement in this article rests on one of the 35 sources below, each named precisely enough to be checked against the legislation or the judgments themselves.

Land Code B.E. 2497, section 86. A foreigner may acquire land only under a treaty giving a right to own immovable property, for listed purposes, on conditions in ministerial regulation and with the Minister's permission.
Land Code B.E. 2497, section 87. Maximum areas per purpose under section 86, including one rai per family for residence.
Land Code B.E. 2497, section 94. Land a foreigner acquired unlawfully or without permission must be disposed of within a period set by the Director-General of not less than 180 days and not more than one year, failing which the Director-General may dispose of it.
Land Code B.E. 2497, section 96. Land acquired by any person as owner in place of a foreigner or a foreign-treated juristic person may be disposed of by the Director-General under the section 94 procedure.
Land Code B.E. 2497, section 96 bis. The investment route: not less than forty million baht invested as prescribed by ministerial regulation, residential land of not more than one rai, Minister's permission required.
Land Code B.E. 2497, section 96 ter. Breach of the section 96 bis conditions triggers disposal within 180 days to one year. Land unused for residence within two years may be disposed of by the Minister.
Ministerial Regulation prescribing rules, procedures and conditions for the acquisition of land for residential use by aliens B.E. 2545, clauses 1, 2, 6, 7 and 9. Qualifying investments, five-year holding, permitted locations, residential use, sixty-day reporting.
Land Code B.E. 2497, section 97. Companies with foreign holding above forty-nine percent of registered capital, or more than half of shareholders foreign, have the same land rights as foreigners.
Land Code B.E. 2497, section 98. A juristic person held by a section 97 juristic person is deemed a foreigner.
Land Code B.E. 2497, section 74. Land officials may question the parties and summon evidence on any registration. Where the purchase is believed to be on behalf of a foreigner the Minister decides, and the decision is final.
Land Code B.E. 2497, section 111. A foreigner who breaches section 86 is liable to a fine of up to 20,000 baht or imprisonment of up to two years or both.
Land Code B.E. 2497, section 113. A person who acquires land as agent of a foreigner or a section 97 or 98 juristic person is liable to a fine of up to 20,000 baht or imprisonment of up to two years or both.
Land Code B.E. 2497, section 1. Definitions: a title deed (chanote) is the document showing ownership of land. A certificate of utilisation certifies that the land has been put to use.
Civil and Commercial Code, section 538. A lease of immovable property over three years must be in writing and registered, or it is enforceable for three years only.
Civil and Commercial Code, section 540. A lease of immovable property may not exceed thirty years. Longer terms are reduced to thirty. Renewal permitted for up to thirty years from the date of renewal.
Civil and Commercial Code, section 544. The lessee may not sublet or transfer the lease unless the lease agreement allows it.
Civil and Commercial Code, section 569. A lease of immovable property is not extinguished by transfer of the property. The transferee takes the transferor's rights and duties toward the lessee.
Civil and Commercial Code, section 1410. A landowner may create a superficies giving another person ownership of buildings, structures or plantations on or under the land.
Civil and Commercial Code, section 1411. Unless the creating instrument provides otherwise, a superficies is transferable and inheritable.
Civil and Commercial Code, section 1412, applying section 1403 paragraph 3. A superficies may be for a period or for life. A fixed period is capped at thirty years, renewable for up to thirty years from renewal.
Civil and Commercial Code, section 1416. On termination the superficiary may remove the building. If the landowner offers to buy at market price the superficiary may not refuse without reasonable cause.
Civil and Commercial Code, section 1417. A usufruct gives the right to possess, use and enjoy the property, and the holder has power to manage it.
Civil and Commercial Code, section 1418. A usufruct may be for a period or for the holder's life. Where no period is stated it is presumed to run for life. It always ends on the holder's death.
Civil and Commercial Code, section 1422. Unless the creating instrument provides otherwise, the holder may transfer the exercise of the right to a third person, against whom the owner may sue directly.
Civil and Commercial Code, section 1474 (Book 5 as amended by Amendment Act No. 24 B.E. 2567). Marital property includes property acquired during the marriage.
Sap-Ing-Sith Act B.E. 2562, section 4. Created by the owner on application with the title deed or condominium title. Maximum term thirty years.
Sap-Ing-Sith Act B.E. 2562, section 11. The holder has the rights, duties and liabilities of an owner, subject to stated exceptions.
Sap-Ing-Sith Act B.E. 2562, section 12. The right can be transferred, mortgaged and inherited. Every transaction must be in writing and registered.
Condominium Act B.E. 2522, section 19. The categories of foreigner and foreign juristic person who may own a unit, including those bringing foreign currency into the Kingdom.
Condominium Act B.E. 2522, section 19 bis. Foreign ownership in a condominium is limited to forty-nine percent of the total space of all units.
Condominium Act B.E. 2522, section 19 ter. A foreign buyer under section 19 (5) must produce evidence of foreign currency brought into the Kingdom, or withdrawn from a non-resident baht account or a foreign currency account, of not less than the unit price.
Condominium Act B.E. 2522, sections 19 quinque and 19 septem. A unit acquired by inheritance beyond the quota, or by a foreigner outside section 19, must be disposed of within one year.
Foreign Business Act B.E. 2542, section 36. A Thai national or Thai juristic person who holds shares as a foreigner's nominee to enable a restricted business, and a foreigner who allows it, face imprisonment of up to three years or a fine of 100,000 to 1,000,000 baht or both, and a court order ending the shareholding.
Treaty of Amity and Economic Relations between Thailand and the United States (1966), Article IV paragraph 2 and Article V paragraph 1(a). Thailand reserves the right to limit aliens in the exploitation of land. Nationals of each party receive national treatment for leasing immovable property needed for residence or business.
Supreme Court judgments on Land Code nominee landholding, applying Civil and Commercial Code section 150. A sale of land to a Thai company holding it for a foreigner has been held void as contrary to public order.

Section numbers are given so you can check every statement in this article against the legislation itself. Where a provision exists only in Thai, the section number and the name of the Act are stated so the Thai text can be located. Statements about Land Office practice are labelled as practice and carry no section number, because there is none.

Common questions

Can foreigners buy land in Thailand?

No. A foreigner may own land only under a treaty which grants that right, with the Minister's permission, or under the forty-million-baht investment route for a single residential plot of one rai. Everyone else holds land through a registered lease, a usufruct, a superficies or a Sap-Ing-Sith.

Can a foreigner own a house in Thailand?

Yes. A house can be owned separately from the land it stands on, through a registered superficies granted by the landowner. The foreigner owns the building and holds a lease or similar right over the land for a term of up to thirty years.

Can foreigners own freehold property in Thailand?

Yes. Apart from the two narrow land exceptions, a condominium unit is the form a foreigner can own freehold, provided foreign ownership in the building stays within forty-nine percent of the total unit space and the purchase money is shown to have come into Thailand from abroad.

Can foreigners lease land in Thailand?

Yes. A lease of land to a foreigner is valid for up to thirty years and must be registered at the Land Office where it runs for more than three years. A renewal is a new agreement for a further term of up to thirty years, made when the first term ends.

Is a 99-year land lease in Thailand legal?

No. The Civil and Commercial Code caps a lease of immovable property at thirty years and cuts any longer term down to thirty. A 99-year lease is a thirty-year lease with promises of renewal attached, and whether a later owner of the land must honour those promises is a separate question, covered in our article on lease renewals.

What is a chanote title, and can a foreigner hold one?

A chanote is the title deed under the Land Code, the only document showing ownership of land. A foreigner's name appears on a chanote as the holder of a registered right over the land, such as a lease or superficies, and as owner only in the two exceptional cases the Land Code allows.

How do I buy property in Thailand as a US citizen, or from the UK, Australia, Canada or India?

The same way as any other foreigner. The Treaty of Amity gives Americans national treatment for leasing property and stops short of land ownership, which leaves Americans where every other nationality stands. The condominium quota, the thirty-year lease, the superficies and the investment route are open to all of them on identical terms.

Can I own Thai land outright by investing 40 million baht?

Only in a limited sense. The Land Code lets a foreigner who invests at least forty million baht in approved Thai investments, kept for at least five years, apply to the Minister for permission to own up to one rai in an approved residential area, for use as a home. The permission carries conditions, and breaking them triggers a forced sale.

This article is general information about Thai law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create a lawyer-client relationship. It reflects the legislation as reviewed on 17 September 2026. Thai law and administrative practice change, and practice varies between offices and provinces. For advice on a particular situation, get in touch. See our editorial standards and disclaimer.

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