Will your condo fit inside the 49% foreign quota?

Why the quota is measured in floor area, not units

The Condominium Act B.E. 2522 (1979) ties the foreign-ownership cap to the building’s total saleable floor area, excluding common areas such as lobbies, corridors, parking and pools. A single large penthouse can therefore consume a much bigger share of the 49% cap than several small studios combined -- which is why the practical, correct way to check eligibility is by square metres, not by asking “how many units are left in the foreign quota.” Developers and juristic persons track this figure continuously as units sell and resell.

Always verify the real, current figure before you commit

This calculator is a planning estimate built from figures you enter -- it has no way to see any specific building’s actual, live foreign-quota usage. Before making an offer, ask the building’s juristic person (management office) for written confirmation of the remaining foreign quota, and have your lawyer verify it again immediately before transfer, since the figure can move as other foreign buyers and sellers transact. The Land Office will simply refuse to register a foreign-quota transfer once a building’s 49% cap is full, regardless of what a private calculator estimated.

Funding the purchase: what the Land Office actually needs

To register foreign freehold ownership, the purchase funds generally need to arrive from overseas in foreign currency and be received by a Thai commercial bank. The requirement is set by the Act, not by a form: section 19 ter (มาตรา ๑๙ ตรี) of the Condominium Act B.E. 2522 requires a foreign buyer registering under section 19(5) to show evidence of bringing foreign currency into the Kingdom -- or of withdrawing from a qualifying non-resident or foreign-currency account -- in an amount not less than the price of the unit. Make sure the transfer reference clearly states it is for a condominium purchase; a vague purpose such as “personal investment” causes problems at the counter.

The document is still widely called the FET or Foreign Exchange Transaction form, and the figure repeated all over the relocation internet -- that transfers of USD 50,000 or more get a formal FET form while smaller ones get a credit advice -- is not a current Bank of Thailand rule. BOT says in its own words that it abolished the FX Form, whatever the amount, and that banks issue a credit or debit advice carrying the transaction details instead; BOT’s consolidated exchange-control notification names no such form and sets no USD 50,000 threshold of this kind. We could not find any Bank of Thailand instrument currently in force that splits the paperwork at USD 50,000, so we do not print one. In practice, ask your bank for a credit advice or confirmation letter naming you as the recipient, and ask the Land Office branch registering the unit which document it accepts -- that varies by office.

If the quota is full: leasehold, resale, or a company structure

When a building’s foreign quota is exhausted, buyers typically choose between a long-term leasehold (commonly structured up to 30 years, with renewal generally a matter of agreement between the parties rather than a right guaranteed by law), waiting for a foreign-quota resale to come onto the market, or purchasing through a majority-Thai-owned Thai limited company. That last route has come under considerably tighter scrutiny since the Department of Business Development’s drive against nominee shareholders. The Ministry of Commerce counts five orders and two announcements from its registration office aimed at nominee shell companies, and reports a 51.05% fall in at-risk registrations between the comparable 2568 and 2569 periods (moc.go.th, 4 July 2026). DBD Order 2/2568 is the one we can name: on the Ministry of Commerce summary, a foreign investor holding under 50% files three months of bank statements showing money arriving to match the capital contributed. We could not match a 2569 order number, or either effective date, to an official text, so they are not stated here. Get independent legal advice before using a company structure -- it should reflect a genuine Thai business arrangement, never a disguised foreign nominee purchase.

Is the 49% cap about to change?

Not as things stand. The 49% ceiling has been the text of the Act since 1979, and the consolidated version the Department of Lands publishes still sets the combined foreign holding at no more than 49% in section 19 bis -- the Thai reads ไม่เกินอัตราร้อยละสี่สิบเก้า -- read 2026-10-04. Reform numbers do circulate. You will see a cut to the low thirties in some reports and a rise to 75% in others, often alongside a longer lease term. We went looking for the instrument behind them and came back empty: no Royal Gazette amendment, no cabinet resolution we could open, nothing from the Ministry of Interior or the Department of Lands. So this page prints no replacement figure and no date for one. Plan on 49%, and have your lawyer confirm it on the day you transfer.

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