Land and house ownership in Thailand,without mixing the legal scopes.
Land ownership, a house or building, leasehold, a Thai-spouse title and a BOI company route are not interchangeable. ExpatGuideAI keeps them separate and shows the source behind each rule.
Source status
Verified land-and-house facts are available
These values come from the structured verified-fact path used by chat, with Department of Lands taking priority for the current Section 96 bis investment period.
Minimum investment
40,000,000 THB
Minimum holding period
5 years
Residential land limit
1 rai
Ordinary lease term
30 years
Land ownership — individual
The default is restriction; Section 96 bis is a narrow residential exception.
The verified government sources do not support the shortcut “foreigners can never own land,” but they also do not support ordinary unrestricted foreign land purchases.
The current verified Section 96 bis route requires at least 40,000,000 THB, maintained for at least 5 years, residential land of no more than 1 rai, and Minister of Interior permission.
House / building
Owning the structure does not automatically mean owning the land.
Verified BOI OSOS guidance states that foreigners may own buildings on leased land. The land underneath remains a separate asset subject to Thailand's land-ownership rules.
Leasehold
Leasehold is a use right, not foreign freehold land ownership.
The verified ordinary lease route states a maximum term of 30 years. Renewal requires the lessor's consent, so a future renewal is not presented as an already guaranteed second or third term.
Thai spouse
A Thai spouse's title remains the Thai spouse's ownership.
The reviewed government guidance treats property acquired in a Thai spouse's name as belonging to the Thai national. ExpatGuideAI does not describe that as the foreign spouse owning land indirectly.
BOI-promoted company
A corporate investment-promotion route exists, but it is not an individual homebuyer route.
BOI OSOS guidance states that a promoted company with 50% or more foreign shareholding may apply for land ownership through BOI. BOI approval is part of that route before the land-authority step.
Keep condo separate
The 49% condominium quota does not apply to land ownership.
Foreign condominium ownership has its own verified framework. This page deliberately does not transfer the condo quota, funding evidence or juristic-person letter rules into land and house ownership.
Now verified
Title deed & property due diligence →
Ownership eligibility and title due diligence are different tasks. The dedicated verified guide now covers title/right document type, registered owner, mortgages and servitudes, boundary/area checks, land-allotment projects and condo transfer documents.
Official sources
Sources tracked by ExpatGuideAI
Ask about the property setup you actually have.
Ask about land, a house on leased land, the 40-million-baht route, a Thai spouse or a BOI company. ExpatGuideAI will keep the applicable scope separate.
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