Can a Foreigner Buy a House in Phuket? (2026 Rules)

So the honest phrasing for a villa is: you own the house and lease the land for 30 years. Everything a seller adds beyond that ("renewable to 90 years", "like freehold") needs to be read in the contract.

A lease of more than three years must be registered at the Land Office to be enforceable beyond three years, and an ordinary lease is capped at 30 years. Registration costs 1% of the total rent for the whole term plus 0.1% stamp duty, usually paid by the lessee.

The renewal options you will see in contracts (30+30+30) are promises between the parties, not registered rights. A 2023 Supreme Court decision (No. 4655/2566), widely reported in 2025, did not enforce a pre-agreed renewal beyond 30 years on its facts. Treat the registered 30 years as what you are buying, and anything after as a bonus you may not get.

A 99-year leasehold was floated for consultation in 2025 and reported shelved; it is not law.

The common villa structure combines a land lease with rights to the building. Either the building is transferred to you in your name, or you hold a superficies: a registered right to own a structure on someone else's land, for up to 30 years or for the lifetime of the owner or holder.

Check three things: that the building right is registered, that its term matches the lease, and what happens to it at the end of the term or if you die. A lifetime superficies ends at death; a fixed-term one generally passes to heirs for the remaining term. Inheritance is covered in inheriting property in Thailand.

A Thai company can own land, and a foreigner may hold up to 49% of its shares. The rest must belong to genuine Thai investors who put in their own money. Using Thai "nominee" shareholders who only lend their names is a criminal offence under the Foreign Business Act.

This is not theoretical. On 20 June 2026 the Department of Business Development inspected companies in Phuket: 10 were suspected nominees and 39 more were under investigation, with over 231 million THB in assets involved. Officials look at who funds, controls and benefits from the company. Foreign shareholding by itself is lawful; a structure built to hide foreign control is not. Read Thai company villa ownership before considering it.

• Title deed. Accept a Chanote (Nor Sor 4 Jor) for a villa; avoid Sor Por Kor and Sor Kor 1 land. See title deeds and due diligence.
• Lease and building rights registered at the Land Office, not only signed.
• Who the landowner is and whether the land is mortgaged.
• Building permit against what was actually built.
• An independent Thai lawyer working for you, not for the developer.

Rules change; confirm with an independent Thai lawyer before paying a deposit.