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Bank of Thailand Relaxes Foreign Exchange Controls to Support Private Sector Transactions

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Bank of Thailand Relaxes Foreign Exchange Controls to Support Private Sector Transactions

On September 1, 2025, the Bank of Thailand (“BOT”) announced a regulatory update, with the issuance of the Notification of Competent Officer under the Exchange Control Law Re: Rules and Practices regarding Currency Exchange (No. 34), which became effective on December 1, 2025. This Notification is designed to ease foreign exchange control requirements in Thailand, thereby making cross-border transactions more flexible and accessible for businesses and individuals.

Key Highlights of the Notification:

1. Relaxation of Restrictions on Outward Remittances

The Notification introduces two major changes to outward remittance rules:

Increased Remittance Limit
The annual limit for gratuitous transfers has been increased from USD 50,000 to USD 200,000, providing greater flexibility for cross-border financial transfers.
Updated Negative List
On an introductory basis, Thai juristic entities can make transfer of funds from Thailand to oversea destinations for any purpose, unless the transaction falls within the categories on the BOT’s negative list. The changes to the negative list are as follows:

Previous Negative List	Updated Negative List
1.Buying or selling FX/THB or making payments related to FX/THB derivative transactions with foreign counterparties.	1.Unchanged.
2.Making payments related to digital assets, except for digital tokens issued and offered by companies in Thailand that are licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand (“SEC”).	2.Relaxation granted exclusively to mutual funds and private funds, allowing them to pay for digital assets abroad (for digital tokens issued and offered by companies in Thailand that have obtained approval from the SEC; the existing criteria remain unchanged).
3.Making payments for non-imported gold.	3.Unchanged.
4.Lending in THB to non-residents (“NR”), except where funds are provided to NR in Vietnam or countries sharing a border with Thailand for purposes of trade or investment in Thailand or the relevant countries.	4.Relaxation of THB lending to NR that are affiliated companies and are not financial institutions located outside Thailand. (Lending to NRs in Vietnam and countries bordering Thailand for purposes of trade or investment in Thailand or those countries remains unchanged.)

2. Revision of Regulations Concerning THB Accounts for NR

These revisions are intended to support the liberalization of THB lending to NR and the issuance of Baht-denominated bonds by NR. In particular, the criteria governing deposits to and withdrawals from Non-resident Baht Accounts (NRBA), Non-resident Baht Accounts for Securities (NRBS), and Special Non-resident Baht Accounts (SNRBA) have been relaxed. In addition, the framework now allows NR to maintain THB accounts for the specific purpose of borrowing or raising funds in THB currency through Special Purpose Non-resident Baht Accounts (SNAs). These accounts also may be used to facilitate the issuance of Baht-denominated bonds by non-residents.

These regulatory changes are designed to support cross-border transactions and make financial operations smoother for the private sector. For more details or specific legal guidance, please reach out to our team of experts, using the contact information below.

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

Nuttaros Tangprasitti
Partner

Kewalin Tiyajamorn
Associate

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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