Thailand Law Online

The legal transfer of ownership of a house in Thailand

A house or structures built upon land in Thailand can be owned and transferred separate from the land it stands on. Under Thai law the owner of the land is not necessarily the owner of building upon the land. The house could legally have a different, even foreign, owner. The right to own a house upon another man's land however always relate to the rights to use the land (land lease or a right of superficies). If you lose your rights to use the land, then you lose your right to own the house upon the land.

Foreigners cannot own the land in Thailand. The preferred method for foreigners buying a house in Thailand is by a registered land lease combined with legal ownership over the structures upon the leased land. Superficies in Thailand is the real property right to build on the surface of land belonging to someone else.

A house book or Tabien Baan is not a ownership document but an administrative document identifying the address of the house and the Thai persons living in it read more...

How to technically own a house in Thailand separate from the land

Apart from condominiums, buildings in Thailand do not have an ownership title deed document. In case of transfer of ownership of a structure separate from the land ownership has to be proven and for this reason there is a 30 announcement period to see if anyone wishes to contests ownership. Proof of ownership could generally be established by either a building permit (the person named in the building permit is assumed to be the owner) or the official Thai language sale of a structure document, issued, signed, stamped and administrated by the local land office (click on sample image on the right to enlarge).

How to transfer an existing house separate from the land

As an immovable property the transfer of ownership of a house must according to the Thailand Civil Code be in writing, and registered with the competent authority (land office) to be complete. The following steps are generally involved for the transfer of ownership of an existing house:

1. The seller and the buyer of the house must present themselves at the local land office to announce the sale. If a party can't attend the land office (e.g. the foreigner is abroad) a proxy can be appointed using the land office power of attorney form (document Tor-Dor 21).
2. Documents among others required: Tor-Dor 21 (if applicable), building permit and/or previous land office sale agreement, Ta Bian Baan, ID's of the parties (passport or ID-card).
3. The land office will issue 4 copies of a notification form for the sale of a structure (the public notice), to be put up at (1) the Or.Bor.Tor, (2) the District Office, (3) the Kamnan Office and (4) at the building itself for a 30-day public announcement of the sale (to see if anyone wishes to contest ownership).
4. After the 30 days public notice period the parties must present themselves at the land office, and, if no third party objected against the sale, sign the official Thai script land office sale agreement to effectively transfers ownership. This is separate from any private sale agreement between the parties.

This for example means that if you buy a house from a developer and the sale structure includes a sale agreement for the house, the transfer still must be effected according to the above procedure at the local Land Department's provincial or branche office.

Transfer tax and fees for the transfer of a house

Normal real estate transfer fees and taxes apply to the transfer of ownership of a house. The rates are based on the actual sale price or appraised registered value of the house. The registered value of the house depends on the floor area of the house, number of floors, materials used (e.g. wood or concrete) and location.

Other taxes: building and land tax (reducing tax liabilities by owning the house)

A newly or off the plan built house

When buying in a development instead of a sale agreement for the house a construction agreement could be offered in addition to a land lease agreement. In this case the building permit must be issued in the purchaser's name, or the building pernit should be changed before final completion to the purchaser's name. In case a house sale agreement is offered, again, this must be followed by the official land office transfer procedure as described above.

 A building permit is not an ownership document, but accepted as proof ownership (the person named on the building permit is assumed to be the owner).

If you build yourself, in combination with a land lease agreement or land lease and superficies, you will be the owner of the building if you paid for for the construction. The building permit (if any) should be issued in your name or changed to your name before completion.

Our template and custom construction contracts contain provisions for this matter. If there is no building permit required there should be clear agreement with the land owner (e.g. a clear land lease agreement) in combination with a construction agreement.

 The right to own structures upon land belonging to someone else always relate to the right to use the land (lease, superficies), therefore cannot exceed 30 years in Thailand!

Related: land lease agreement | superficies contract | usufruct contract | construction agreement | Thailand real estate laws | real estate transfer tax and fees | building tax for leasehold property | Tabien Baan | transfer tax | land and house tax |

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