Investor Questions
What taxes do foreigners pay on Thai property?
Direct Answer
Foreign investors face: transfer fee (2% of appraised value, often split with seller), specific business tax (3.3% on sales within 5 years) or stamp duty (0.5%), 15% withholding tax on rental income paid to non-residents, and annual house-and-land tax (typically modest for residential). Home-country tax treatment is additional.
Detailed Explanation
At purchase, the main cost is the transfer fee (2% of Land Department appraised value), usually negotiated as a 50/50 split between buyer and seller. Specific business tax (3.3%) applies if the seller has held less than 5 years; stamp duty (0.5%) applies if longer.
On rental income, Thai banks/operators distributing rental income to a non-resident foreigner withhold 15% at source. This is typically creditable against the investor's home-country tax liability under bilateral tax treaties.
Annual house-and-land tax (Land and Building Tax Act 2019) applies a low rate to residential property (0.02–0.10% of appraised value depending on use), with primary-residence exemptions that don't apply to most foreign-owned investment property.
Investor Considerations
- Budget 3–6% of purchase price for total at-acquisition costs (transfer, legal, FX, contingency).
- Plan withholding-tax credit documentation for home-country tax filing.
- Annual house-and-land tax is small but non-zero — include in net-yield underwriting.
Risks & Limitations
- Tax rules have evolved (2019 Land and Building Tax Act) and could evolve again.
- Withholding-tax credit availability depends on bilateral tax-treaty status.
- Specific business tax on sub-5-year sales can materially compress short-hold IRR.
Related Pillar
Thailand Property Investment Guide →Related Frameworks
Related Location Pages
Related Questions
Run the numbers
Model this against your own numbers
Stress-test yield, appreciation and FX in the Core Investments calculator.
Open the calculatorIllustrative scenarios using calculator default assumptions. Outcomes vary with market conditions, operator performance and investor inputs.