Can a foreigner own land in Thailand?
Question: I am a foreigner who has retired in Thailand and I have recently married a Thai woman. We are currently considering the purchase of 1 rai of land in Phuket where we build our marital home. I will actually be paying for the full purchase price of the land with my own personal funds, […]
Thai Family Law: How to Parent with Child Custody
After a divorce in Thailand where there is mutual consent, the terms of divorce may be attached to the divorce certificate and has legal force according to Sections 1566(4) and 1520 paragraph 1 of the Civil and Commercial Code. If the couple have children, then the most important term that is agreed to by the […]
Foreign Business Act: Consignment Sales in Thailand
The Foreign Business Act of 1999 is the fundamental law in Thailand that serves to restrict foreign investment and foreign business activity within the country. The Act designates specific industries or types of business activities in which foreigners are either strictly prohibited from engaging in or may only engage in after applying for permission. It […]
Thai Criminal Procedure: Hearsay
As is the case in the criminal procedure laws of other jurisdictions, Thailand prohibits the use of hearsay evidence in criminal trials (Section 226/3 of the Criminal Procedure Code). Hearsay is generally defined as testimonial evidence of a statement not made before the Court which is meant to prove the assertion made in the statement […]
International Trade Without Distribution in Thailand
Aside from being a place to do business, foreign companies are also choosing Thailand as a jurisdiction to locate their businesses perhaps without actually doing business there. The reasons why a foreign company may want to locate themselves in Thailand while engaging in business somewhere else are varied and complex; it may have to to […]
Contracts for Buying and Selling a Thai Business
In order to buy and sell a business in Thailand, the buyer and seller will have to sign an agreement regarding the transaction. Furthermore, the particularities of the contract will vary depending on how the business is registered and what the assets of the business include. In this article, we will review some necessary elements […]
Thai Labor Law: Legality of Non-Competition Contracts
A common feature in employment contracts, typically those of top-level executives, is the non-competition agreement. Such agreement normally requires that should the employment contract terminate, the employee is prohibited from engaging in a competing business for a fixed period of time. Specifically, a typical clause will define a certain period of time following the termination […]
Introduction to the Technology Transfer Plan
Foreign investors in Thailand, who will be investing a majority of the capital in a business venture, have the option of applying for a Foreign Business License if the intended business is restricted under the Foreign Business Act of 1999. However, in order for the application to be approved, an important requirement is that the […]
Thai-U.S. Treaty of Amity Frequently Asked Questions
The purpose of this article is to address a few questions that are frequently raised by clients regarding the Thai-U.S. Treaty of Amity, which allows U.S. citizens and companies to be exempted from most of the restrictions of the Foreign Business Act of 1999. Although the meaning of the Treaty of Amity itself is rather […]
Developing a Luxury Hotel for Rent in Thailand
Thai law does not require condominium projects to be registered under the Condominium Act of 1979 and accordingly a popular type of development that is found in the tourist resort areas of Thailand is the unregistered condominium, which is usually marketed as luxury hotels. Typically, the investors who purchase units in such projects do not […]
