Property Lawyers in Thailand.

Condo purchases. A condo title transfer involves checking the building's 49% foreign quota with the juristic person, reviewing the sale and purchase agreement, verifying the FET certificate for the inward currency transfer, and handling the transfer at the Land Office. For deals through a developer, the lawyer also reads the project licence and reserved-area schedule.

Land and villa deals. Because foreigners cannot own land directly, structures matter. A registered 30-year lease combined with a superficies grant over the building is the most common foreign-buyer structure. Some buyers use a usufruct in addition. The lawyer drafts the lease, registers it at the Land Office, and structures the building ownership separately.

Due diligence. A proper property due diligence check pulls the title deed from the Land Office, confirms the deed type (Chanote, Nor Sor 3 Gor, etc.), checks for mortgages or encumbrances, verifies access rights and any registered easements, and checks zoning, building permits, and environmental restrictions. For condos, the lawyer also reviews the building's common-area expenses, sinking fund, and recent juristic person resolutions.

Disputes and partition. A property dispute can be a boundary disagreement, a breach of the sale contract, a building defect claim, or partition of jointly owned land. Some matters settle through mediation; others require civil litigation. Marital property splits that involve real estate often need both a property lawyer and a divorce lawyer working together.

Mortgages and financing. Most foreign buyers fund Thai property with cash from abroad, but Thai banks do lend to foreign borrowers in limited cases. A property mortgage is registered at the Land Office against the title; the lawyer reviews the loan agreement, the mortgage deed, and any guarantees.

Estate and succession. Property is the largest piece of most estates in Thailand. A property lawyer often works with an estate-planning lawyer on a Thai will that covers local assets and dovetails with a foreign will covering assets abroad. Thai law lets a superficies right pass to heirs but ends a usufruct at the holder's death; planning matters.

Condominium freehold. Foreigners can own condominium units freehold up to a building-wide 49% quota of the total saleable floor area under Section 19 of the Condominium Act B.E. 2522 (1979). The quota is calculated on floor area, not unit count. Quotas are tight in popular buildings in Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket, and Chiang Mai. A property lawyer will typically request written quota confirmation from the juristic person before signing.

Land. Direct foreign land ownership is generally prohibited under the Land Code. The structured alternatives are a registered 30-year lease, a usufruct, or a superficies grant. Foreign-owned Thai companies can hold land only when the Thai shareholding and capital structure are genuine; nominee structures are illegal and the Department of Business Development cooperates with the Land Office on enforcement.

Leases. The Civil and Commercial Code caps a registered lease at 30 years. Renewals are possible by agreement at the end of the initial term, but they are not guaranteed in advance. Thai Supreme Court rulings now being applied by lower courts treat pre-paid automatic renewal clauses designed to bypass the 30-year cap as void. A property lawyer can structure a renewal mechanism that respects the statutory limit.

Usufruct and superficies. A usufruct is a registered right to use and enjoy land for up to 30 years or the holder's lifetime, whichever is shorter; it is personal and ends at death. A superficies is a registered right to own buildings or structures separately from the land; it can run up to 30 years or for life, and it is transferable and inheritable. Combining a registered lease with a superficies is a common foreign-buyer pattern for houses and villas.

BOI and investment routes. A foreigner who invests at least 40 million THB in approved Thai assets for at least three years can apply to the Board of Investment for ministerial approval to own up to 1 rai of land for residential use under Section 96 bis of the Land Code. This route is used rarely but exists.

The Land Code recognises several land documents, ranging from full freehold to bare possession. The two that most foreign buyers should look for are Chanote and Nor Sor 3 Gor; anything weaker invites trouble.

Chanote (Nor Sor 4 Jor). Full freehold title with GPS-surveyed boundaries and concrete marker posts. Identified by the red Garuda emblem. All real rights (lease, mortgage, usufruct, superficies) can be registered without restriction. This is the gold standard.

Nor Sor 3 Gor. A confirmed possessory right with aerial-photo boundaries. Identified by the green Garuda emblem. Most real rights can be registered, and the title can usually be upgraded to Chanote. Acceptable for most foreign-buyer structures.

Nor Sor 3 and weaker documents. Nor Sor 3 (without the Gor) has no surveyed boundaries; Sor Kor 1 is an old farming-use document frozen since 1972 and carries no registrable real rights. Both carry meaningful risk for foreign buyers unless the route to a stronger deed is clearly mapped by a property lawyer.

What the lawyer actually checks. A full title check pulls the original deed from the Land Office, confirms the registered owner, lists every registered encumbrance (mortgage, usufruct, lease, servitude), verifies access rights and easements, checks zoning and any environmental protections, and reads the building permit history if there is a structure on the land. For condos, the lawyer also pulls the juristic person's quota ledger and the most recent unit-owner meeting minutes.