Reviewed by ThaiLawOnline, a licensed Thai law firm practising in Thailand since 2006. Thai lawyer of record: Wichuda Atthamethakon, LL.M., Thai Bar Licence 3149/2556.
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Usufruct (สิทธิเก็บกิน) is a valuable property right in Thailand, but it must eventually end. Whether through death, mutual agreement, or court intervention, understanding the seven termination methods is essential. This guide explores each method, Supreme Court decisions, the Article 1469 debate, and practical strategies to protect your interests.
Written by Sébastien Brousseau and Wichuda Atthamethakon / ThaiLawOnline.com . Practicing usufruct law since 2006
About the Authors
Sébastien Brousseau and Wichuda Atthamethakon specialize in Thai property and usufruct law at ThaiLawOnline.com. Combined experience in usufruct registration, termination disputes, and Land Office procedures since 2006.
Table of Contents
Last reviewed: 29 September 2026. The limitation period in Decision 1548/2503 is now given as the general ten-year period (Section 164 when the case was decided, Section 193/30 today), and the section on spouses was rewritten to separate Section 1469, which covers agreements between the spouses, from the consent rule for marital property in Sections 1476 and 1480.
Previous review, 3 September 2026. Decisions 1516/2525, 2651/2543 and 2297/2541 were read in full in Thai. The facts given for 1516/2525 had the parties the wrong way round, and have been corrected: the parent was the one receiving the annual rice as usufructuary and the one who then tried to revoke the gift, and the parent lost. The FAQ answer stating that no Thai court has ever cancelled a registered usufruct under Section 1469 has been replaced by the search we actually ran and what it can and cannot show. The accounts of 2651/2543 and 2297/2541 were checked against the judgments and stand. What this review did not re-check, said rather than implied: the seven ways a usufruct ends, the Land Office procedure and fees, and Decision 10344/2551.
The 7 Ways Usufruct Ends
Usufruct does not exist indefinitely. The Civil and Commercial Code recognizes multiple termination pathways. Some are automatic while others require court involvement. The table below summarizes the seven primary methods:
| Termination Method | Legal Basis | Automatic? | Court Order Needed? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Death of usufructuary | Section 1418 | Yes | No |
| Expiry of fixed term | Section 1418 | Yes | No |
| Mutual agreement | General contract law | Yes (if both agree) | No |
| Merger (usufructuary becomes owner) | General principles | Yes | No |
| Property destruction | Section 1419 | Yes | No |
| Misuse (a receiver, not termination) | Section 1423 | No | Yes |
| Non-exercise (does not end it: Decision 1548/2503) | No provision | No | No |
Each method operates under distinct legal principles. Some occur automatically while others require formal action or judicial intervention. Understanding which applies to your situation is critical to avoiding costly disputes.
Death of the Usufructuary. The Automatic Rule
Section 1418. Non-Negotiable
The death of the usufructuary (ผู้ทรงสิทธิเก็บกิน) is the most straightforward termination. Under Section 1418 of the Civil and Commercial Code, usufruct automatically ceases upon death. This rule is absolute. No court order is required, no notice to the Land Office is mandatory, and no conditions apply.
When a usufructuary dies, ownership of the property reverts entirely to the landowner. The usufructuary’s heirs have no claim to continue the usufruct. They cannot inherit this right. This is fundamentally different from ownership, which does pass to heirs. Usufruct is personal to the individual granted the right and cannot be transferred by will or intestate succession.
From a practical standpoint, termination is automatic. However, it is advisable to notify the Land Office (สำนักงานที่ดิน) and request cancellation of the usufruct registration. This prevents future disputes and facilitates any subsequent transfers or mortgaging by the landowner.
What Happens to Existing Leases. Lease Survives Death
A critical nuance arises if the deceased usufructuary had leased the property before death. Does the usufruct’s termination also terminate the tenancies?
Supreme Court Decision ฎีกา 2297/2541 (1998) clarifies this. A usufructuary for life had let the land for 30 years, in writing and registered at the Land Office, and then died. The Supreme Court held that the usufructuary had power to manage the property and so to let it (Section 1417), that a written and registered lease made under that power binds the owner (Sections 538 and 540), and that the end of the usufruct on death under Section 1418 does not bring the tenant’s lease to an end. The owner’s eviction claim was dismissed.
The practical consequence is that the landowner, upon the usufructuary’s death, must honor a lease of this kind until it expires. A lease longer than three years that was not made in writing and registered is enforceable only for three years (Section 538). The landowner cannot cancel these leases because the usufructuary has died. This protects tenants from sudden displacement and ensures legal certainty in the rental market.
Can the Landowner Unilaterally Cancel Usufruct?
Short Answer. No
One of the most critical points in Thai usufruct law: a landowner cannot unilaterally cancel a registered usufruct without the usufructuary’s consent. This is a principle of property rights law. Once a usufruct is registered at the Land Office, the landowner’s ownership interest is subordinate to the usufructuary’s right to use and enjoy the property.
A related question arises when the usufruct was created as part of a gift: the giver hands the land over and keeps a usufruct for life. Can the giver later take the gift back? The answer turns on the rules for a gift with an encumbrance.
The Gift with Encumbrance Protection
When a landowner gifts property but retains usufruct as an encumbrance (a gift with a charge, การให้โดยมีค่าภาระติดพัน, Civil and Commercial Code sections 528 and 535(2)), a special legal regime applies. This occurs frequently in family property divisions. Aging parents gift land to children while retaining the right to use and enjoy the property for life.
Case Study 1. Decision 1516/2525 (1982)
Facts: A mother gave land to her daughter and registered a usufruct over it for her own life, and the daughter shared thirty thang of the paddy she grew with her each year. It was the mother, the giver and the usufructuary, who later sought to revoke the gift for ingratitude.
Court’s Holding: Because the land was given on terms that placed a burden on it for the giver’s life, it was not a gift out of pure affection but a gift carrying an encumbrance, which cannot be revoked for ingratitude. The mother’s claim failed and the dismissal was upheld. The point cuts both ways: the retained usufruct secures the giver an income, and it is also what makes the gift itself irreversible.
Case Study 2. Decision 2651/2543 (2000)
Facts: A plaintiff gifted land to a defendant and registered usufruct in the plaintiff’s name. The defendant later became estranged. The plaintiff claimed grounds for revocation based on ingratitude.
Court’s Holding: The Supreme Court affirmed that a gift with an encumbered usufruct cannot be revoked. This applies regardless of subsequent ingratitude or family discord. The registration of usufruct was determinative.
Case Study 3. Decision 10344/2551 (2008)
Facts: A mother and her late husband divided their land among their nine children, on the agreed term that the parents kept the right to the produce: the rent from the rice fields and the fruit from the orchards. The mother later sued one son for ingratitude, asking for half of his two plots to be transferred back to her.
Court’s Holding: Because the parents kept the right to the produce of the land, the gift was a gift with a charge, and under Section 535(2) the mother had no right of action to revoke it for ingratitude. The Court of Appeal had raised the point of its own motion as a question of public order, and the Supreme Court upheld the dismissal.
Legal Principle: These three decisions are consistent. Where the giver keeps a usufruct or the produce of the land, the gift carries a charge and cannot be revoked for ingratitude under Section 535(2), even if the relationship breaks down. The giver keeps the usufruct for life (Section 1418), and the child who received the land cannot cancel it either.
Section 1423. Court Intervention for Misuse
While a landowner cannot revoke usufruct, the owner retains limited protections. Section 1423 lets the owner object to any unlawful or unreasonable use of the property.
Available remedies under Section 1423 include:
- Demand for security: If the owner proves that the owner’s rights are in peril, the owner may demand security from the usufructuary. This is not available where the usufructuary is a giver who reserved the usufruct when giving the property away.
- Appointment of a receiver: If the usufructuary does not give security within the time fixed, or keeps up the unlawful or unreasonable use despite the owner’s objection, the court may appoint a receiver to manage the property in the usufructuary’s place, and may release the receiver once security is given.
- No termination: Section 1423 does not give the court power to end the usufruct. The usufructuary remains liable for loss or damage caused by fault when the usufruct ends (Section 1420).
The burden of proof is on the landowner to show the unlawful or unreasonable use and, for security, that the owner’s rights are in peril. Mere disputes over property maintenance or minor violations are insufficient. The misuse must be material and demonstrable.
Can a Spouse Cancel Usufruct. Article 1469 Debate
The Legal Question. Article 1469 and Spousal Rights
Whether a spouse can undo a usufruct depends on who received it and whose property it burdens. The Civil and Commercial Code deals with the two situations in different sections, and they are often confused.
Section 1469 covers agreements made between the spouses themselves. An agreement concerning property made between spouses during the marriage may be avoided by either of them at any time while they are married, or within one year after the marriage ends, without affecting third persons who acted in good faith. A usufruct that one spouse grants to the other during the marriage, for example a Thai wife granting her foreign husband a usufruct over her land, is such an agreement. This is the risk usually discussed under the Article 1469 heading.
The consent rule is in Sections 1476 and 1480, not Section 1469. Section 1476 requires both spouses, or one with the other’s consent, to deal with marital property (sin somros) in listed cases, which include selling, mortgaging and creating a usufruct, superficies, habitation or servitude over immovable property. Under Section 1480, if one spouse does this alone, the other may ask the court to revoke it, unless it was ratified or the third person acted in good faith and gave value. The action must be brought within one year of learning of the ground, and in any event within ten years of the act. A usufruct over a spouse’s personal property (sin suan tua) needs no consent.
What the Case Law Shows
We searched our own database of Supreme Court decisions on 3 September 2026 and found no reported decision cancelling a registered usufruct under Section 1469: of the thirty-two decisions citing Section 1469, only 818/2546 also involves a usufruct, and there the usufruct was not in issue and what was undone was a gift of land. That database is not the complete reporter, so treat this as an absence of authority in what we hold, not as a rule that a court will refuse. The power to avoid an agreement between spouses comes from the statute itself, and so does the non-consenting spouse’s right to ask for revocation under Section 1480.
In practice the Land Office asks a married owner for the spouse’s written consent when the land is marital property, so the Section 1480 risk mostly arises where consent was not given or the owner’s marital status was misstated. The Section 1469 risk is different: consent does not remove it, because the power to avoid belongs to the spouse who granted the usufruct.
How to Protect Against This Risk
To minimize the risk of spousal challenge, consider the following protective measures:
- Register before marriage: If possible, register the usufruct before entering into marriage. Section 1469 applies only to agreements made during the marriage, so a usufruct granted before it is outside that section.
- Obtain written spousal consent: Where the land is marital property, Section 1476 requires the other spouse’s consent to create a usufruct. Give it in writing at registration and present it to the Land Office. It removes the Section 1480 ground for revocation, though not the granting spouse’s own right under Section 1469 when the usufruct is granted to the other spouse.
- Prenuptial agreement, not a postnuptial one: A prenuptial agreement made before the marriage and recorded at the marriage registration (Sections 1465 and 1466) can settle which assets remain personal property. A postnuptial agreement signed during the marriage is itself an agreement between spouses that either of them may avoid under Section 1469, so it cannot be used to waive that right.
- Land Office notification: Provide the Land Office with documentary evidence of spousal consent at the time of registration. Many Land Offices will make a notation indicating that the spouse was aware and consented.
Non-Exercise and Lapse
How Long Before It Lapses?
A common concern among property owners is whether a usufruct can lapse or expire due to non-use. If a usufructuary fails to exercise the right for many years, can the property owner reclaim unobstructed ownership?
Thai law provides an answer. Usufruct does not automatically expire merely because it is unused. However, a lengthy failure to exercise the right may trigger prescription or abandonment doctrines under limited circumstances. A property owner might seek court intervention.
Decision 1548/2503 (1960). Non-Exercise Over 7 to 8 Years
Facts: A usufructuary had registered a usufruct but had never exercised the right for 7 to 8 years. The property owner sought to reclaim full ownership.
Court’s Holding: The Supreme Court held that the usufructuary could STILL enforce the usufruct right despite prolonged non-exercise. The Court noted that the applicable limitation period was the general ten-year period (Section 164 when the case was decided; Section 193/30 since Book I was revised in 1992), NOT the 1-year period specified in Section 1428.
Significance: This decision firmly established that mere non-use does not extinguish a registered usufruct. However long it goes unused, the usufructuary keeps the right until it ends in one of the ways the Code provides: the end of its term, the usufructuary’s death (Section 1418), a court order, or cancellation by agreement.
The implication is clear. Registering a usufruct at the Land Office creates a durable property right that survives years of non-use. A property owner cannot assume that an unused usufruct has disappeared or can be ignored.
Practical Termination Strategies
For parties seeking to actually end a usufruct relationship, several practical pathways exist. The most effective strategies are outlined below.
Mutual Agreement (Safest Method)
The simplest and safest way to terminate usufruct is through mutual agreement of the property owner and usufructuary. When both parties agree to end the relationship, no court order is required. The process is straightforward.
Procedure:
- Prepare a termination agreement: Draft a simple written agreement signed by both parties. It should state that the usufruct is terminated by mutual consent effective immediately.
- Attend the Land Office together: Both the property owner and usufructuary should visit the Land Office (สำนักงานที่ดิน) in person with:
- Original Land Certificate (โฉนดที่ดิน)
- Original Usufruct Certificate (หนังสือรับรองสิทธิเก็บกิน)
- Termination agreement signed by both parties
- Personal identification documents
- Complete cancellation registration: The Land Office will process the cancellation and issue updated certificates showing that the usufruct has been terminated.
- Cost: Where nothing is paid for the cancellation, it is registered as a transaction without capital value, at 50 baht per plot (Ministerial Regulation No. 47 (B.E. 2541), clause 2(7)), plus small charges for the application and copies.
Mutual agreement is preferred because it avoids litigation. It preserves the relationship between the parties. It ensures a clean title for the property owner.
Fixed-Term Expiry. Automatic, No Action Needed
If the usufruct was created with a fixed term (e.g., “usufruct for 10 years from the date of registration”), the right automatically expires when the term elapses. No court action or formal notice is required.
Best practice: Even though termination is automatic, notify the Land Office and request cancellation of the registration. This clears the property title and avoids confusion in future transactions.
Court Order Under Section 1423. For Misuse Cases
If the usufructuary misuses the property, Section 1423 lets the property owner object, demand security, and ask the court to appoint a receiver. The property owner must prove:
- Specific acts of unlawful or unreasonable use of the property
- For security, that the owner’s rights are in peril
- For a receiver, that security was not given in time or that the misuse continued after the owner objected
The section does not provide for terminating the usufruct for misuse. A receiver takes over the management of the property, and the usufruct itself continues until it ends in one of the other ways described on this page.
Property Destruction. Usufruct Ends if Property Destroyed
Under Section 1419, if the property is destroyed and compensation is paid, the owner or the usufructuary must restore it as far as the compensation allows; if restoration is impossible, the usufruct ends and the compensation is divided between them in proportion to their losses. If no compensation is paid, the owner is not bound to restore the property.
Whenever the property is restored, the usufruct revives to the extent of the restoration. The same rules apply to expropriation and to partial destruction.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a landowner cancel usufruct without the usufructuary’s consent?
No. A landowner cannot unilaterally cancel a registered usufruct. If the land was given away with a usufruct reserved for the giver, the giver cannot revoke the gift for ingratitude under Section 535(2), and the child who received the land takes it subject to the usufruct. For misuse, Section 1423 lets the owner demand security and ask the court to appoint a receiver; it does not end the usufruct.
What happens to usufruct if the usufructuary dies?
Usufruct automatically terminates upon the death of the usufructuary under Section 1418. However, a lease the usufructuary made in writing and registered at the Land Office binds the owner and survives the death (ฎีกา 2297/2541).
Can usufruct be revoked if the property was gifted?
Not for ingratitude. Where the giver kept a usufruct or the produce of the land, the gift carries a charge and Section 535(2) bars revoking it for ingratitude: Decisions 1516/2525, 2651/2543 and 10344/2551. The usufruct itself continues for the life of the giver.
Does Article 1469 allow a spouse to cancel usufruct?
Section 1469 allows a spouse to avoid a contract about property made between the spouses during the marriage. We searched our own database of Supreme Court decisions on 3 September 2026 and found no reported decision cancelling a registered usufruct on that ground: of the thirty-two decisions citing Section 1469, only 818/2546 also involves a usufruct, and there the usufruct was not in issue and what was undone was a gift of land. That database is not the complete reporter, so treat this as an absence of authority rather than a guarantee. Register the usufruct before the marriage, obtain spousal consent, or use a prenuptial agreement.
How long can usufruct go unused before it lapses?
Usufruct does not automatically lapse after non-exercise. Decision 1548/2503 (1960) held that a usufructuary who had not exercised the right for 7 to 8 years could still enforce it. The applicable limitation period is the general ten years (Section 193/30 today; Section 164 when the case was decided), NOT the 1-year period under Section 1428.
What is the cost of cancelling usufruct at the Land Office?
Where nothing is paid for it, a mutual cancellation is registered as a transaction without capital value, at 50 baht per plot under Ministerial Regulation No. 47 (B.E. 2541), plus small charges for the application and copies.
Related Guides
- Usufruct Agreement in Thailand . Comprehensive overview of usufruct creation, terms, and enforcement mechanisms.
- How to Register Usufruct in Thailand . Step-by-step guide to registration, from initial agreement through termination.
- Usufruct and Married Couples in Thailand . Analysis of spousal rights, Article 1469, and protections for usufruct in family contexts.
- Usufruct Upon Death and Inheritance in Thailand . Guide to what happens when a usufructuary dies and how heirs are affected.
- 64 Supreme Court Decisions on Usufruct . Full database of all landmark Thai Supreme Court cases involving usufruct.
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