A foreigner can legally buy property in Phuket — it’s only a question of the ownership form, which depends on the property type. An apartment in a condominium can be registered in full ownership (freehold) in your name — or you enter via leasehold, which is often better as an entry point and usually converts to freehold later. A villa with land is taken via long-term lease or a company. By 2026 the schemes are settled, but the cost of a mistake is high: the wrong structure or a lost currency-inflow certificate can block title registration at the deal stage.
This guide is a practical breakdown of all working ownership methods, current for 2026: from the 49% foreign quota to transferring money and typical pitfalls.
Contents
- The main answer: what a foreigner can really do in 2026
- Condo apartment: the 49% freehold foreign quota
- Leasehold: a flexible entry with the right to convert to freehold
- Villas and land: lease vs a Thai company
- Money and FET: how to transfer payment correctly
- Foreign-buyer pitfalls
- Case: how a buyer nearly lost freehold
- Comparing ownership forms
1. The main answer: what a foreigner can really do in 2026
Thai law directly allows foreigners to own condominium apartments in full ownership. Land is a separate story: it can’t be registered directly, so villas are bought via land lease or a company. Three working formats:
- Freehold (full ownership) — for apartments within the 49% foreign quota.
- Leasehold (long-term lease) — a flexible entry for apartments (cheaper, fewer formalities, converts to freehold later) and the form for land under villas.
- Thai company — owns the land, the foreigner controls the company.
For the vast majority of investors in projects like Layan Verde and Layan Green Park, the first two options are relevant.
2. Condo apartment: the 49% freehold foreign quota
A foreigner’s main tool is the Condominium Act. It allows foreigners to own up to 49% of a building’s total saleable area in full ownership. You get a chanote (ownership certificate) in your name, with no term and no restrictions on sale and inheritance.
Why the quota matters early. The best units in the freehold quota are taken first. The earlier the entry at the sales stage, the higher the chance of getting freehold rather than leasehold. So at reservation the first question to the developer is the remaining foreign quota in the specific building.
🔗 More on the difference: Freehold vs leasehold in Thailand →
3. Leasehold: a flexible entry with the right to convert to freehold
Leasehold isn’t a “backup option” but often a more favourable entry point. Standard is 30 years with renewal (a 30+30+30 structure); the lease right is registered at the Land Department, can be assigned (sold) and inherited. Why it appeals to a foreigner:
- A lower entry price and higher yield on invested capital.
- More payment options: no mandatory currency inflow with FET — payment can be made via a wider set of methods.
- Fewer formalities and more private (on the Thai side): without FET no source-of-funds proof is needed for registration. (Home-country reporting remains with the buyer.)
- Conversion to freehold anytime while quota lasts: developers usually grant a conversion right, so the full-ownership option stays in your pocket.
- Resale flexibility: the unit can be sold both as leasehold and re-registered to freehold.
What to check in the contract — the right to convert to freehold and the renewal clause (number of renewals, mechanism and cost).
🔗 Detailed breakdown: Freehold vs leasehold in Thailand →
4. Villas and land: lease vs a Thai company
A foreigner doesn’t register land in ownership. For a villa there are two routes:
- Land leasehold — long-term plot lease (30+30), with the building (house) itself registrable in the foreigner’s ownership separately from the land. The most transparent option.
- Thai company — the land is owned by a company in which the foreigner has a controlled share and management. Permissible, but the company must have real economic substance; nominee Thai shareholders “to bypass the law” are a direct risk.
| Property | Working form | Land |
|---|---|---|
| Condo apartment | Freehold (in quota) / Leasehold | — |
| Villa | Land leasehold / Thai company | Not registered to a foreigner directly |
5. Money and FET: how to transfer payment correctly
This is the technical point where DIY buyers stumble. To register freehold, money must enter Thailand in foreign currency, and a Thai bank issues an FET — Foreign Exchange Transaction (formerly Tor Tor 3). Without an FET the Land Department won’t register a foreigner’s ownership.
Practical 2026 rules:
- Transfer a sum exceeding the unit price in currency (USD/EUR), with the payment purpose “property purchase”.
- Request the FET from the bank right after the funds land.
- For leasehold an FET isn’t required at all — so payment is more flexible with fewer formalities (on the Thai side).
6. Foreign-buyer pitfalls
- Not fixing the conversion right. You take leasehold without a written freehold conversion — you lose the chance to register full ownership later.
- Transfer in baht. Money arrived already in Thai baht — no FET is issued, freehold registration is at risk.
- A nominee company. A villa registered to a Thai company with no real activity — a challenge risk.
- No renewal clause. Leasehold without a clearly written renewal is a time bomb.
- An unverified developer. The project land is mortgaged or has a disputed title.
7. Case: how a buyer nearly lost freehold
Consider a typical 2026 scenario. A buyer from the CIS chose a two-room unit and sent the developer a deposit — but sent it in Thai baht from a previously opened Bangkok account, “to save on conversion”. The unit was in the freehold quota.
The problem surfaced at registration: the bank couldn’t issue an FET because the money didn’t enter the country in foreign currency. The Land Department doesn’t register freehold without an FET. They had to unwind the scheme: return the funds, re-send by currency transfer from abroad, obtain the FET — two weeks of downtime and the risk that the freehold unit would go to another buyer meanwhile.
Takeaway: the sequence “currency → FET → registration” is as important as choosing the unit itself. With support this step is closed in advance.
8. Comparing ownership forms
| Parameter | Freehold | Leasehold | Thai company |
|---|---|---|---|
| What suits | Apartments (49% quota) | Apartments — flexible entry | Villas with land |
| Term | Perpetual | 30 years + renewals | While the company exists |
| Entry price | Base | Usually lower | — |
| Payment and formalities | Currency + FET | More flexible, no FET | Complex |
| Conversion to freehold | — | Yes, while quota lasts | — |
| Resale | Freely | As leasehold or to freehold | Sale of shares/asset |
| Inheritance | Yes | Yes, by contract | Yes, via shares |
| Main risk | Quota exhaustion | No conversion/renewal right | Nominee shareholders |
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This material is informational and not legal advice; the final structure and current requirements are confirmed with a lawyer at the time of the deal.