Can Foreigners Now Own 75% of a Condo Building?

Conflicting property announcements have caused foreign buyers to believe Thailand has already raised its condominium ownership ceiling from 49% to 75%. Acting on that assumption can place a reservation, deposit, or planned transfer at risk. Experienced advisers therefore separate a government proposal from an enacted amendment before evaluating any purchase. As of July 2026, the practical solution remains unchanged: confirm the building’s existing foreign quota, trace the purchase funds correctly, inspect the title and juristic records, and proceed only when the Land Office can register the unit legally under the current Condominium Act.

Can Foreigners Now Own 75% of a Condo Building?

The direct answer is no, not under the law currently in force. Thailand has discussed increasing the collective foreign ownership quota to 75%, but discussion and policy approval do not create registrable ownership rights.

Foreigners may currently own condominium units on a freehold basis, provided the combined foreign-owned floor area within that registered condominium does not exceed 49% of the total unit floor area.

The proposed 75% ceiling received significant attention after the Thai government instructed relevant authorities to study an increase from 49% to 75%. The proposal was intended to support property demand, particularly in locations attracting substantial international interest.

However, the proposal must still pass the required legislative process and produce an enforceable amendment. Until that happens, the 49% statutory ceiling remains controlling at the Land Office.

A foreign buyer cannot require registration merely because a developer expects the amendment to pass. Marketing material, reservation documents, news reports, and verbal assurances cannot override the ownership limit applied on the actual transfer date.

The important distinction is that a foreigner may own 100% of one qualifying condominium unit. The 49% restriction applies collectively to foreign-owned unit floor area across the building, not to the percentage of an individual unit that one foreign buyer may hold.

The Current 49% Rule Still Controls

The existing rule protects a defined Thai ownership proportion while permitting foreigners to hold genuine freehold condominium titles. It applies to registered condominiums throughout Thailand, including projects in Phuket, Bangkok, Pattaya, Chiang Mai, and Koh Samui.

Under the current framework, foreigners and qualifying foreign-controlled entities may collectively own no more than 49% of the total floor area of all separately owned units in a condominium.

The remaining floor area must stay within the Thai quota. This does not necessarily mean that 51% of the physical apartments must be owned by Thai nationals because the calculation is based on area rather than the number of units.

For example, assume a project contains 10,000 square metres of privately owned unit space. The foreign quota can cover no more than 4,900 square metres, even if the number of foreign-owned units appears lower than 49%.

Large penthouses can consume the quota faster than small studios. A building could therefore reach its foreign ceiling even when foreigners own fewer than half of its individual apartments.

Common areas such as corridors, reception areas, shared swimming pools, gyms, lifts, and other jointly used facilities are not normally treated as individually saleable unit area in this calculation.

How the Foreign Quota Is Calculated

Buyers frequently misunderstand the quota because developers sometimes describe availability by unit count. The decisive measurement is the combined registered floor area shown in the condominium records, not a simple count of foreign owners.

Suppose a building contains 100 units but its larger residences have already been transferred to foreign purchasers. Foreign ownership might reach the legal area limit when only 40 of the 100 units have been registered under the foreign quota.

Conversely, foreigners could own more small units without reaching the same floor-area ceiling. The exact position depends on the registered size and ownership category of every transferred unit.

The condominium juristic person should maintain ownership information and issue documentation relevant to a transfer. Nevertheless, the local Land Office makes the decisive registration assessment based on the building records available at that time.

A quota confirmation obtained several months before completion is not a permanent reservation of legal capacity. Further transfers can change the remaining allowance before the buyer’s scheduled registration.

For an off-plan purchase, the contract should clearly identify whether the unit is sold as foreign freehold, Thai freehold, or leasehold. These categories are not interchangeable, and each creates materially different rights.

Why Thailand Proposed a 75% Ceiling

The proposed increase was designed to address a specific market problem: some developments in internationally popular areas can exhaust their foreign quota while units allocated to the Thai quota remain unsold.

Raising the ceiling could allow developers to transfer more completed units to overseas buyers. It could also make qualifying projects more accessible where demand from foreigners exceeds the available foreign freehold area.

Phuket is especially relevant because its property market attracts buyers from several international markets. In selected projects, foreign freehold availability can become limited well before every unit in the building is sold.

The reform has also raised concerns about control of condominium communities. If foreigners could own 75% of the unit area, policymakers would need to decide how that ownership should interact with voting power, committee decisions, budgets, and common-property management.

One version of the policy discussion contemplated allowing greater ownership while keeping foreign voting influence below a separate threshold. That concept shows why ownership percentage and management control are distinct legal issues.

None of these proposed conditions should be treated as final. Eligibility, geographic restrictions, voting limitations, transitional rules, and the buildings covered could change before any amendment becomes effective.

What Must Happen Before Any Change

A government instruction to study reform is only an early stage. A lawful increase requires formal drafting, legal examination, legislative approval, publication, and an effective date applicable to Land Office registrations.

The final text would also need to explain whether the new quota applied nationwide, only in designated areas, or only to buildings meeting specified conditions.

Transitional rules would be equally important. Authorities would need to establish how existing buildings calculate the new capacity and whether previously executed leasehold arrangements could be converted into foreign freehold titles.

The amendment might also impose safeguards concerning voting rights, project eligibility, minimum unit values, buyer qualifications, or the number of units held by one person. These possibilities remain policy questions until final legislation confirms them.

Buyers should therefore look for an effective legal amendment, not merely an announcement that the change has been approved in principle. The Land Office must have authority to register the transfer under the amended rule.

Until that point, a sale falling outside the available 49% quota cannot become valid foreign freehold simply because both parties expect a future increase.

Verify the Quota Before Paying a Deposit

Quota verification should happen before a buyer signs an unconditional agreement or transfers a substantial deposit. A sales representative’s assurance is useful context, but it is not sufficient legal confirmation.

Request a current foreign-quota statement from the developer or condominium juristic office. The document should identify whether sufficient foreign freehold floor area remains for the selected unit.

The buyer’s lawyer should compare that statement with the condominium registration, unit title, seller’s identity, registered burdens, and intended ownership category. Any inconsistency should be resolved before payment obligations become difficult to reverse.

The contract should state what happens if the Land Office cannot register the unit under the foreign quota. A carefully drafted clause can address deposit treatment, completion extensions, alternative structures, and termination rights.

Avoid contracts that automatically convert a promised foreign freehold purchase into leasehold merely because the quota is unavailable. Freehold and leasehold provide different legal positions, so conversion should require informed written agreement.

After acquisition, a capable property management company in phuket can assist with operational matters such as unit inspections, maintenance coordination, reporting, tenant communication, and juristic-office contact. It cannot change the statutory ownership category or create unused foreign quota.

Prepare Funds and Transfer Documents

Foreign-quota availability is only one part of a valid transfer. The purchaser must also satisfy the financial and documentary requirements used to establish eligibility for foreign freehold ownership.

Purchase funds are generally remitted into Thailand from abroad in foreign currency. The transfer information should clearly state that the funds are being sent for the purchase of the identified condominium unit.

The receiving bank provides the appropriate foreign-exchange evidence, commonly associated with a Foreign Exchange Transaction form or bank certification, depending on the amount and transaction structure.

Incorrect payment wording, domestic funding without an applicable legal exception, or missing bank evidence can delay Land Office registration. Buyers should obtain transfer instructions before moving funds rather than attempting to reconstruct the evidence later.

The transfer file commonly includes the buyer’s passport, condominium unit title, sale documents, foreign-quota certification, debt-free certification, banking evidence, and any properly prepared power of attorney.

The exact documents can vary according to the buyer, seller, marital status, transaction structure, and Land Office requirements. A document review should therefore occur well before the scheduled completion date.

Avoid Buying on a Future-Law Promise

The greatest practical risk is paying today for ownership that may become available only if legislation changes tomorrow. A proposed reform has no guaranteed enactment date and may be revised, restricted, or abandoned.

A developer may offer a leasehold unit with the possibility of later conversion to foreign freehold. Such language must explain whether conversion is mandatory or discretionary, who bears the transfer expenses, and what happens if the quota never changes.

The agreement should not describe a speculative conversion as an existing entitlement. If the current foreign quota is full, the buyer must understand the ownership arrangement that can legally be delivered now.

Using a Thai nominee to bypass the quota is not a reliable alternative. A shareholding or ownership arrangement created only to conceal the true foreign controller may violate Thai law and expose the property structure to investigation.

A buyer should also reject informal claims that the quota can be reserved without supporting documentation. Legal ownership arises through registration, not through a sales spreadsheet or private allocation maintained by a developer.

The safest approach is to evaluate the transaction under current law. Any later reform should be treated as a possible future advantage, not as the foundation of the purchase decision.

How 75% Could Affect Condo Management

If enacted, a 75% ceiling could influence more than sales availability. It could alter owner demographics, meeting participation, language requirements, maintenance expectations, and the administration of shared facilities.

Condominium decisions are made through the framework governing co-owners, general meetings, committees, juristic management, voting rights, common fees, and resolutions. A larger foreign ownership share would not automatically determine every management decision.

Any final reform could restrict foreign voting power even where the ownership ceiling increased. Buyers must therefore avoid assuming that owning more unit area collectively would give foreign co-owners unrestricted control of the building.

Management quality would remain dependent on financial records, common-area budgets, reserve planning, fee collection, committee oversight, building rules, and the performance of the juristic manager.

A higher foreign quota could increase the need for multilingual notices, transparent reporting, remote meeting support, and structured maintenance communication. These are operational consequences, not substitutes for legal compliance.

Owners comparing condominium operations with luxury villa management Phuket should keep the ownership structures separate. A condominium involves collective building governance, while villa management usually concerns an individual residence and does not create foreign freehold ownership of the underlying land.

What Phuket Buyers Should Do Now

Phuket buyers should assume that the 49% foreign quota remains applicable unless a completed legal amendment and its effective date can be independently confirmed at the time of transfer.

First, identify whether the advertised unit is foreign freehold, Thai freehold, or leasehold. Do not rely on the word “ownership” without confirming the exact registrable category.

Second, obtain written quota confirmation and have the unit title, seller, building registration, common-fee position, and transfer conditions independently reviewed.

Third, route purchase funds in the required manner and retain the complete banking trail. The purpose of payment should be stated correctly from the first transfer.

Fourth, make the contract address quota failure. It should establish a clear outcome if foreign freehold registration is unavailable on completion day.

Finally, separate acquisition due diligence from post-purchase management. Legal review establishes whether the ownership can be registered; property management protects the unit and supports its operation after acquisition.

This process allows a foreign buyer to act confidently without depending on headlines. The possible 75% reform deserves attention, but current registrability must control every immediate decision.

Frequently Asked Questions

The following questions address practical issues commonly raised by international buyers after they understand the quota itself. They focus on visa status, inheritance, residency, remote completion, and later resale rather than repeating the ownership rules above.

Does Buying a Thai Condo Provide a Long-Term Visa?

No. Condominium ownership and immigration status are separate matters. Purchasing a unit does not automatically provide residency, permanent residence, or a long-term visa.

A buyer must qualify independently for an appropriate immigration category. The available route depends on age, employment, family circumstances, investment profile, and other eligibility requirements.

Can a Foreign Owner Leave a Condo to an Heir?

A condominium can form part of a deceased owner’s estate, but the heir’s ability to retain and register it must satisfy Thai succession and condominium requirements.

A Thai will can help make the intended transfer clearer. Cross-border owners should coordinate Thai estate planning with arrangements in their home jurisdiction to reduce conflicting instructions.

Must a Foreign Buyer Live in Thailand to Purchase?

A foreign purchaser generally does not need to reside permanently in Thailand merely to acquire a qualifying condominium unit.

However, identity, banking, currency-remittance, signing, and registration requirements must still be completed correctly. Immigration permission to enter or stay in Thailand remains a separate issue.

Can a Condo Purchase Be Completed Remotely?

A transfer may be completed through a properly authorised representative when the required power of attorney and supporting documents satisfy the Land Office.

Remote buyers should arrange document preparation early because notarisation, legalisation, translation, courier delivery, and banking evidence can require additional time.

Does Selling a Unit Restore Foreign Quota Space?

When a foreign-owned unit is validly transferred out of the foreign ownership category, its registered floor area may affect the building’s available foreign quota.

The result depends on the new owner and registration category. Buyers waiting for quota capacity should obtain a fresh official confirmation rather than relying on an expected resale.

Conclusion

Foreigners cannot presently own 75% of a condominium building in Thailand. As of July 2026, the enforceable ceiling remains 49% of the building’s total privately owned unit floor area.

The 75% figure represents a proposed reform, not an automatic ownership right. Foreign buyers should verify the project-specific quota, secure contractual protection, prepare compliant banking evidence, and confirm that the Land Office can register the selected unit before completing the purchase.