BOI Updates Residential Land Use Rights of Foreign Companies

On 1 November 2024, Thailand’s Board of Investment (“BOI”) issued BOI Announcement No. 16/2567 Re: Criteria for Permitting Foreign Companies Receiving Investment Promotion to Hold Ownership of Land for the Establishment of Offices and Residences for Operational-Level Workers.

The conditions for obtaining the relevant permissions are set forth in BOI Announcement No. Por. 8/2567 Re: Criteria and Conditions for Permitting Foreign Companies Receiving Investment Promotion to Hold Ownership of Land for Establishment of Offices and Residences for Operational-Level Workers to Conduct Promoted Activities. A summary of the key qualifications and conditions is as follows:

Qualifications for Foreign BOI-Promoted Companies to Hold Land Ownership:

Minimum paid-up registered capital of THB 50 million.

Conditions for Ownership of Land for Establishment of a Residence, in the form of a Building:

Foreign BOI-promoted companies are permitted to own land for worker residences, in an amount up to a total of 20 rai per juristic person. This limit applies regardless of the number of BOI certificates held by the company.
The residences must be for the exclusive use of operational-level workers involved in the promoted project, with the allocated area being appropriate and reasonable for its intended purpose.
The number of residential rooms must align with the number of operational-level workers employed to work on the promoted project.
Common facilities, such as parking areas, kitchens, and first-aid rooms, may be approved by the BOI, provided they are suitable and proportionate in terms of area.
Residences may be located either in the same area as the place of operation or in a separate area. If located separately, the distance between the residence and the place of operation must not exceed 10 kilometers.

Conditions for Ownership of land for Establishment of an Office:

Foreign BOI-promoted companies are permitted to own land for purposes of establishing an office, in an amount up to a total of 5 rai per juristic person. This limit applies regardless of the number of BOI certificates held by the company.

Disposal of Land:

The land must be sold or transferred within 1 year of termination of the promoted project.

This article is intended merely to provide a regulatory overview, and not to be comprehensive; it is not intended as legal advice. Should you have any questions on this or on other areas of law, please do not hesitate to contact the following persons:

Nuttaros Tangprasitti
Partner
Kewalin Tiyajamorn
Attorney-at-Law

Authors

Nuttaros TANGPRASITTI

Partner
Bangkok

Nuttaros Tangprasitti specialises in corporate and commercial law. She regularly assists both international and domestic corporate clients (limited liability companies and partnerships, stock corporation in several industries) on the relevant laws of Thailand, which includes foreign direct investment, legal due diligence, M&A and cross-border M&A, joint venture, compliance, banking and finance. In addition to supporting clients on the above and a multitude of different legal formalities, she also has expertise in advising on various investment promotion policies of the Board of Investment (BOI), as well as compliance with foreign business, other laws on salient points for shareholders and joint venture agreements, which includes laws on immigration and foreign work under Thai law. Nuttaros speaks at many seminars and takes an active role in educating the clients on issues relevant to their businesses and her practice areas. She also writes various articles and newsletters on cutting-edge topics in several legal areas, which are widely distributed to existing and potential clients. Nuttaros aims to ensure the lawyers on her team are constantly developing and upgrading their skills, to ensure they meet or exceed the high professional standards of Nishimura & Asahi. She is committed to ensuring that both she and our firm deliver top-quality services to our clients and strong internal support for our colleagues. She recently began drafting a manual on several aspects of Thai law, as part of an “Investment promotion scheme,” and also wrote several newsletters on corporate law, and banking and finance laws. She also recently authored an article on the impact of Tax Reduction for Land and Buildings, which received excellent feedback from our clients, particularly those who are land and building owners. Nuttaros is committed to building a strong and progressive corporate and commercial practice, which also incorporates tax law, by adapting to new ideas in the legal industry.

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