For years, nominee structures were treated as an open secret of the Thai property market. As of this week, they are a government priority with a deadline attached.

When Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul stood up at Government House on 19 October 2026, he did not announce a new law. He announced something that may matter more to foreign property owners: a commitment to enforce the existing one, on a timetable. Provincial governors and the Department of Lands have until December 2026 to conclude investigations into high-risk nominee landholdings.

The scale is significant. On the same day, the Department of Lands instructed all 462 land offices across the country to step up their checks. The Department says more than 157,000 landholders have been identified for review, with over 14,000 already through preliminary screening. In September, officials reported that more than 11,000 companies were under investigation, among them around 2,200 land-holding companies with property valued at approximately ฿85 billion.

Thailand has announced nominee crackdowns before, and many in the market have learned to wait them out. This one is different. It combines a fixed deadline, a nationwide instruction to every land office, and an enforcement mechanism (compulsory sale) that has real financial teeth.

Investigate, enforce, prevent

The government’s plan has three parts, and each closes a gap that has allowed past campaigns to fade.

The first is about follow-through. High-risk cases are to be prioritised, each assigned to a named officer, and brought to a conclusion by December. Cases that reveal wider networks will be passed to other agencies. This is a deliberate move away from open-ended reviews that never quite finish.

The second is about consequences. Where land is found to be held unlawfully, the state will require its sale. Officials have also been told to vet buyers, so that a property does not simply move from one nominee to the next. The Prime Minister suggested these sales could return tens of billions of baht to the economy, although no timetable for them has yet been set.

The third is about the future. Land offices are to tighten checks both before and after registration, look harder at company structures, take complaints from the public and publish their results. That last point matters. Regular public reporting creates pressure to show progress, which tends to keep enforcement going after the headlines move on.

Substance over paperwork

The most important line in the announcement is also the easiest to miss. Investigators have been told to look past the names on title deeds and share registers, and to establish who actually controls each property and who benefits from it.

That is a fundamental shift. Many nominee structures were built to pass a documentary check: the right number of Thai shareholders, the right percentages, the right filings. They were not built to answer a simpler question. Who paid for this land, and who really decides what happens to it?

The Department of Lands has made clear what its offices will now be examining. They will look at companies holding land and their shareholding structures, at companies where there are reasonable grounds to suspect land is held for foreigners, and at Thai nationals married to foreign spouses. For individual purchases above ฿2 million, or with an appraised value above ฿5 million, they will ask about the buyer’s source of funds and occupation.

Behind the land offices, the Ministry of Interior, the Ministry of Commerce, the Royal Thai Police and the Department of Lands are now sharing information and tracing money flows. Officials reported in September that some suspected businesses had already begun moving assets. Anyone tempted to do the same should assume that such movements are exactly what investigators are watching for.

Old law, new resolve

Nothing in this campaign changes the rules. It changes the likelihood that they will be applied.

Under the Land Code, foreigners generally may not own land in Thailand, outside narrow statutory exceptions. A company is treated as foreign for this purpose if foreigners hold more than 49% of its shares or make up more than half of its shareholders. Land acquired in breach of these rules can be ordered sold, and if the owner does not sell, the Director-General of the Department of Lands may sell it on their behalf. The Land Code also imposes criminal penalties on those who acquire land on behalf of foreigners.

The Foreign Business Act B.E. 2542 (1999) adds a second layer. Thai nationals or companies that hold shares for foreigners to evade the Act, and the foreigners who rely on them, face up to three years’ imprisonment and/or fines of ฿100,000 to ฿1,000,000.

The Prime Minister also pointed to further consequences, including revocation of land rights, deportation and, in some cases, proceedings to revoke Thai citizenship. Officials have been careful to add that deportation is not automatic and depends on the legal conditions or a court ruling. Even so, the fact that these measures are being discussed openly is itself a signal of intent.

The practical lesson is that a structure can look compliant and still fail. If the Thai shareholders did not invest their own money, have no real say in the company, or have signed undated share transfers, pledges or similar side agreements, the paperwork is unlikely to protect anyone.

Not a campaign against foreign investment

It would be easy to read this as Thailand turning its back on foreign buyers. That is not the message. The Prime Minister was explicit that legitimate foreign investment remains welcome, including investment made under the country’s investment promotion legislation. The target is circumvention, not foreign ownership as such.

The people with most reason for concern are those who control a Thai land-holding company through passive or unfunded Thai shareholders, or through layered preference-share arrangements. So are Thai individuals registered as owners of land a foreigner paid for, and Thai spouses of foreigners who cannot show the land was bought with their own money.

For everyone else, the lawful routes remain open, and they are better understood than ever. Foreigners can own condominium units freehold within the 49% foreign quota for each building, using funds brought in from abroad. Land can be held under a registered lease, typically for up to 30 years, provided renewal terms are drafted with care. Usufruct, superficies and habitation rights can be registered against a title deed. Companies promoted by the Board of Investment may be permitted to own land for their approved activities. A genuinely Thai-majority company, with real Thai investors and a real business, also remains a legitimate option.

In our experience, many owners who used a nominee structure did so on advice that was common practice at the time. The question now is not how the arrangement began, but how best to put it on a sound footing.

Our view: act before you are asked

The December deadline applies to the authorities, not to property owners. But it sets the pace. Owners who review their position now have time to choose their response. Those who wait for a letter from a land office will be answering on someone else’s timetable.

Our advice is measured. Start with an independent review of the company’s shareholding, articles of association, capital contributions and any side agreements. Gather the records that show where each Thai shareholder’s money came from and what the company actually does. Resist the urge to move or restructure assets in a hurry, since unadvised changes made now may attract more attention than they deflect. Where a structure is unlikely to stand up to scrutiny, consider an orderly transition to a registered lease, a usufruct or a sale, on your own terms. And make sure you know how to respond if an investigating officer asks for documents or an interview.

GPS Legal advises foreign individuals and businesses on Thai property ownership and corporate structures. We can review your current arrangements, assess your exposure under the Land Code and the Foreign Business Act, and help you move to a compliant position. To arrange a consultation, please contact our team.

This article is for general information only and does not constitute legal advice. The position may change as the authorities issue further guidance. Specific advice should be obtained for your circumstances.