The taxes and fees imposed and collected by the land office (land department) upon transfer of ownership of a real property (condominium apartment, land, house, land and house) in Thailand are: transfer fee, specific business tax (if applicable), stamp duty (if applicable), income withholding tax.
A sublease or sublet agreement in Thailand is the rental agreement in which the lessee rents all or part of his leased property to another person. In the sublet the lessee becomes the sub-lessor and the new tenant the sub-lessee or sub-tenant. The assignment of a lease is when all rights the lessee/ tenant (asignor) possesses are transferred to another party (assignee), subject to permission and consent of the lessor who enters into a new contract with the assignee.
The first and most important part of any real estate investment and buying a house in Thailand is the land title deed (and for a condo the unit title deed). Secondly you should look at the building permit or possible building permission. A sale and purchase agreement (SPA) for land or SPA for land and house or sale and purchase agreement (SPA) for a condominium apartment unit contains most important aspects and details of the property, the seller and buyer, the terms and conditions of the sale and in general finalizes the interests of both the seller and buyer before closing the deal. The downloadable land sale agreement contains a list of subjects that needs to be verified with the seller of the property. What follows is a list of general subjects that could be part of the due diligence process or general considerations prior to buying or leasing of real estate (due diligence is not limited to the subjects below).
Foreign ownership of a condo in Thailand is under condominium laws an individual right of the foreigner who qualified under condominium laws for ownership. Once foreign ownership is obtained it is not freely transferable between foreigners (not even by inheritance) and the land registry only allows registration of ownership to another foreigner if he is eligible for ownership pursuant to section 19 of the Condominium Act.
Read more: Succession of foreign ownership of a condominium unit
When it comes to the intent to operate a business as a foreigner in Thailand the approval requirement under the 'Alien Business Act B.E. 2542 (A.D.1999)' must be complied with. Foreigners can be granted a foreign business license for certain business categories (or may be granted an exemption based on a treaty or specific act (investment promotion)).
Tabien baan or Thai house book is the official local government issued house or apartment address and resident registration booklet. It is an administrative document issued by the local municipality. The persons having their domicile or legal residence at the house or condo unit are registered in the house book.
A limited company in Thailand must have a minimum of 3 shareholder at all times. Thai nationals operating a business under a company often use nominee shareholders to complete the number of 3 shareholders in the limited company. There is no general restriction for Thais that prohibited the use of nominee shareholders in a business. This is different for foreigners. Foreign investors are prohibited from using nominee shareholders in a Thai company under the foreign business act. Also bearer shares are prohibited
The essence of a right of usufruct (section 1417) is that it transfers the rights of possession, use, enjoyment and management of an immovable property from the owner to the usufructuary (the person granted the right of usufruct). It gives certain strong rights but also obligations that are normally associated with ownership of the property (right of management and obtaining benefits from the property). Usufruct is governed by sections 1417 to 1428 civil and commercial code.
The right of Superficies (sections 1410 to 1416 of the civil and commercial code) is a transferable and inheritable interest in land giving the superficiary (the person(s) to whom a right of superficies is granted) for a specified term the right to own or acquire buildings construction in, on or above the land owned by another. Foreign and Thai nationals can obtain a right of superficies by agreement with the owner of the land and registration with the Thailand Land Registry.
