This information is for reference only and is not legal advice. Consult a licensed lawyer before any transaction.
Law
Law & article library
Laws
Land 7
- Law · official textBuilding Control ActGoverns building permits, design, alterations and demolition: officials can order fixes or demolition and impose fines and jail.
- Law · official textExpropriation of Immovable Property ActThe state can compulsorily take land for public use by royal decree, guaranteeing fair compensation, negotiation and the right to appeal.
- Law · official textLand Allocation (Housing Estate) ActRegulates sales of 10+ plots: developers must get a license, build shared infrastructure and hand common areas to residents, protecting buyers.
- Law · official textLand CodeThailand's core land law: foreigners cannot own land, save narrow exceptions like the 40-million-baht route for 1 rai of residential land.
- Law · official textLand Development ActSoil-conservation law: the state classifies land, declares conservation and erosion-risk zones, and imposes conservation duties on landholders.
- Law · official textNational Park ActProtects conservation land: occupying, clearing or building in parks is a crime, the cause of defective, frozen or revoked titles on Samui and Phuket.
- Law · official textTown and Country Planning ActColour-coded zoning with density and building limits: verify a plot's zone and restrictions before buying or developing.
Articles
- Article · plain wordsBuilding Permit for a House in Thailand: Law, Procedure and RisksHow to obtain a building permit for a house in Thailand: which law governs the process, who issues the permit, what documents are required, and why the name on the permit is critical for a foreign national.
- Article · plain wordsLegal Due Diligence and Land Zoning in Thailand: What Every Buyer Needs to KnowHow to conduct due diligence on a land plot in Thailand before purchase: title deed categories (Chanote, Nor Sor 3 Gor), zoning under the Town and City Planning Act, and restrictions on building height and density.
- Article · plain wordsCan a Foreigner Own Real Estate in ThailandA breakdown of what a foreigner in Thailand may register as personal property, why land ownership is prohibited, and which legal alternatives - condominium, lease, usufruct - actually work in practice.
- Article · plain wordsThailand Real Estate Law: What a Foreign Buyer Needs to KnowAn overview of real estate law in Thailand: the prohibition on land ownership for foreigners, the 49% quota in condominiums, leasehold, usufruct, superficies, and the FET foreign-currency transfer form.
- Article · plain wordsOwning a House Separately from the Land in Thailand: How It WorksHow a foreigner can own a house in Thailand without owning the land: lease arrangements, superficies rights, building permits, and registration of the transaction at the Land Department.
- Article · plain wordsLand Documents in Thailand: Chanote and Other Title TypesA breakdown of Thailand's land title categories, from full ownership under chanote to conditional possession certificates. What you can buy, what you cannot, and what is available to a foreign national.