Land Lease Agreement with Right to Build and Instructions (Thailand, Bilingual EN-TH)
A foreigner cannot own land in Thailand, but may lease it for up to 30 years and own the house built on it. That lease protects the tenant for its whole term only if it is registered at the Land Office (unregistered, it can be enforced for three years only, section 538 of the Civil and Commercial Code), and only if the contract deals with the points that the short official form leaves out: who owns the house, what happens to it at the end, what happens if the tenant dies, and what a renewal promise is really worth after Supreme Court decision 4655/2566. This pack gives you two documents: the agreement itself, and plain instructions to complete it, sign it and register it.
1. The Land Lease Agreement with Right to Build
Word file to fill in on your computer and PDF to fill in by hand, 18 pages, English and Thai clause by clause, with initials boxes on every page, a signature page for the parties, the owner’s spouse and two witnesses, and five annexes including a receipt for the rent and the owner’s consent for the building permit.
- The land, the part leased and the access to a public road
- Term of up to 30 years from registration, with a co-lessee option
- Rent as one lump sum for the whole term, or yearly rent with a review formula, with no cap on prepaid rent
- Registration at the Land Office, who pays the fees, and a full refund if the lease is not registered
- Right to build, alter and rebuild, and the owner’s duty to sign the building permit consent
- Ownership of the house by the tenant, with a registered superficies as a tick box
- The house at the end of the lease: removal, purchase at market value, or transfer to the owner
- Assignment and sublease, with tick boxes
- Death of the tenant: succession clause and fallback
- New lease after the term: special consideration recorded, the owner’s promise at the market rent fixed at that time, nothing prepaid, compensation if refused, and a clear statement that it is not a guarantee
- Termination by the owner only for a serious breach after 90 days’ notice, and pro rata refund of unearned rent
- Sale or mortgage by the owner, expropriation, right of first refusal, notices, Thai law
2. The Instructions
PDF, 16 pages, complete English text then complete Thai text, so that both parties read the same thing.
- What the Agreement does, and when not to use it
- Lease, usufruct, superficies and Sap Ing Sith compared in one table
- Thai law in plain words: sections 538, 540, 544, 569 and 146 of the Civil and Commercial Code
- Who owns the house, and why we recommend a superficies with the lease
- Renewal after 30 years: decision 4655/2566, the reciprocal contract doctrine and its limits
- What happens if the tenant dies, and the co-lessee method
- The choices to make, clause by clause, and how to fill in and sign
- The Land Office step by step, what to bring, and the official power of attorney forms
- Fees and taxes: 1 percent registration fee, 0.1 percent stamp duty, income tax on the rent
- Risks stated honestly, including a mortgage registered before the lease
- A checklist
Who it is for
A land owner and a tenant, often a foreigner, who have agreed a long lease of a plot with a Chanote or a Nor Sor 3 Gor, on which the tenant will build a home. For a house or a condominium unit that already exists, use the Thirty-Year Registered Lease pack. To own the building by a registered right, add the superficies pack.
A template, not legal advice
We are a Thai law firm and we do not advise on foreign law. This pack is a template with general instructions, and downloading it does not guarantee that a Land Office will register the lease. If you need advice or a personalised lease, our lawyers can prepare it and attend the registration: ask us for a quote at info@thailawonline.com. A consultation is 2,000 THB per hour.
Related guides: Lease agreements in Thailand, Automatic renewal of a lease, Usufruct, lease and superficies compared, Superficies in Thailand.
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