Les permis de construire comme preuve de propriété pour les propriétaires étrangers en Thaïlande

Révisé par ThaiLawOnline, un cabinet d'avocats thaïlandais agréé exerçant en Thaïlande depuis 2006. Avocate thaïlandaise en charge du dossier : Wichuda Atthamethakon, LL.M., licence du barreau thaïlandais 3149/2556.

Dernière mise à jour : 6 octobre 2026

Permis de construire in Thailand are the usual evidence that a foreigner owns a house built on land he cannot own. The ownership itself comes from the Code civil et commercial, not from the permit. Section 146 provides that a building which a person with a right over another person’s land builds in the exercise of that right is not a component part of the land. Without such a right, the building becomes part of the land and belongs to the landowner, whatever name is on the permit (sections 144 and 1310); the builder in good faith is paid only the increase in the land’s value, and a builder in bad faith can be made to remove it at their own cost (section 1311). The permit is evidence of who built; the right over the land, ideally a registered lease or droit de superficie, is what makes the building his.

The legal foundation for this separation is Thailand’s distinction between land ownership and building ownership, which lets a foreigner lawfully own a house while the land stays in Thai hands. It is not a way around the land restrictions: the foreigner owns the building, never the land.

Fondements juridiques et cadre législatif

Dispositions du Code civil et commercial

The Civil and Commercial Code does not mention building permits. What it provides is the separation of building from land. Section 146 of the Civil and Commercial Code says that a building or other structure put up on another person’s land by someone with a right over that land, in the exercise of that right, is not a component part of the land. That is what lets a foreigner own a house through a lease or superficies while the landowner keeps the land.

A house has no title deed of its own, and the building permit names the person who applied to build. For the person who built the house, the permit is therefore usually the first document showing that the house is theirs. It is evidence, not title: a court weighs it together with the right over the land and the rest of the evidence (see below).

Distinction par rapport aux autres modes de propriété

A permit is evidence, not an ownership structure in itself, so it is best compared with the rights it can back. L'enregistrement des superficies offre une protection juridique renforcée through formal Land Department registration: it is a real right that is not extinguished if the building is destroyed (section 1415) and, unless the grant says otherwise, can be transferred and inherited (section 1411).

The comparison shows that a building permit on its own sits between a registered superficies, which is the strongest route because it is a registered real right that can be transferred and inherited (sections 1410 to 1416), and a nominee company structure, which is unlawful. A permit costs less to obtain, but it proves only who built the house, so it should back a registered right rather than replace one.

Processus de permis de construire et exigences en matière de documentation

Procédures de délivrance et implication des autorités

La procédure d'obtention d'un permis de construire commence par l'acquisition des droits d'utilisation du terrain par le biais de contrats de location, suivie de la préparation d'une documentation complète réalisée par des professionnels thaïlandais agréés. Les autorités locales (Or.Bor.Tor) au niveau du district sont responsables de la délivrance des permis de construire. consentement écrit du propriétaire foncier Avant de désigner des demandeurs étrangers comme propriétaires d'immeubles, le processus comprend généralement plusieurs étapes, notamment la préparation des plans, la demande de permis, sa délivrance, la supervision des travaux et la documentation d'achèvement.

Foreign investors can obtain building permits in their own names when they hold a right over the land, with the landowner’s written consent, although some local offices are unfamiliar with foreign applicants. Where a permit has been issued in a contractor’s or the landowner’s name, it can be transferred to the owner of the house under the procedure the Building Control Act leaves to ministerial regulation (section 8(12)), but it is better to have it issued in the owner’s name from the start, because the name on the permit is the evidence.

Procédures de documentation et de transfert

The transfer of a building permit is handled by the local authority that issued it, the municipality or the Subdistrict Administrative Organisation (Or.Bor.Tor). Expect to provide the land title copy, the livret d'enregistrement de domicile where one exists, identification documents and the written agreement between the parties. Timing depends on the office.

Expect to show your passport and, where relevant, your marriage certificate, together with the documents for the right over the land. A permit, transferred or not, is evidence of who built the house and is only as secure as the right over the land behind it.

Reconnaissance de l'autorité et statut juridique

Acceptation par les agences gouvernementales

How far a permit is accepted as proof of ownership depends on the office or institution you are dealing with, and there is no single rule. Utility connections and the house registration usually follow the house itself.

Reconnaissance des établissements bancaires et financiers

A bank lending against a house on land the borrower does not own will look for a registered lease or superficies behind the permit, because the permit alone is not a security it can register.

Building permit holders seeking construction loans will generally be asked to show that the applicant for the permit holds the land title or a registered right over the land. That alignment between the right over the land and the building is what gives a lender a security it can register.

Reconnaissance du Département foncier et des tribunaux

The Land Department registers rights over land, so it records a building owner’s position through a registered lease or superficies rather than through the permit, which it does not register. Courts decide ownership of a building on section 146 and the evidence as a whole: a permit in the claimant’s name is strong evidence, but it is not conclusive on its own.

The courts have also narrowed the alternatives. In decision 4655/2566 the Cour suprême held a lease renewal agreed at the outset to carry a lease beyond 30 years void as an evasion of section 540, so a long lease cannot be pre-arranged. That makes a registered superficies over the building, backed by the permit, more important rather than less.

Défis pratiques et problèmes de mise en œuvre

Résistance administrative et barrières bureaucratiques

Foreign investors sometimes meet resistance at the local office when seeking a building permit in their own name, with local officials sometimes unfamiliar with legal requirements for foreign building ownership. Some Bureaux fonciers résister à l'enregistrement de la propriété immobilière par des étrangers malgré l'autorité légale de le faire, ce qui exige de la persévérance et une représentation juridique expérimentée. Retards de traitement Les délais de traitement dans divers bureaux gouvernementaux peuvent s'allonger et les coûts augmenter au-delà des estimations initiales.

The Building Control Act leaves much of the procedure to ministerial regulations and to the local authority, so practice differs between offices. A permit issued in the owner’s own name, covering everything that is built, avoids most of the later arguments.

Évolutions du marché et de la réglementation

High-profile cases, including the Ashton Asoke condominium, whose construction permit was revoked by the administrative courts after the building was finished, show that a permit issued in breach of the rules can be withdrawn. A permit is only as good as the application behind it.

Atténuation des risques et meilleures pratiques

Les investisseurs étrangers peuvent minimiser les risques liés à la propriété des permis de construire grâce à une vérification préalable approfondie et à une représentation juridique professionnelle. Vérification de l'authenticité du permis de construire Le respect de toutes les exigences de construction permet d'éviter d'éventuels problèmes réglementaires ultérieurs. Collaborer avec des avocats qualifiés et expérimentés en matière d'obtention de permis de construire facilite la compréhension des préférences administratives locales et des exigences procédurales.

Maintien en bon état de la documentation makes later transactions easier, and couverture d'assurance protects against loss. Check that the permit covers everything actually built: a part built without a permit is not covered by it, as evidence or otherwise.

Conclusion

Building permits give foreign property owners in Thailand practical, recognised evidence of who owns a house built on land they cannot own. The ownership itself rests on section 146 and on the right over the land, so a permit works best alongside a registered superficies or lease rather than instead of one.

Toutefois, l'obtention d'un permis de construire exige une gestion rigoureuse des difficultés administratives, une documentation complète et une conformité permanente à l'évolution de la réglementation. Les investisseurs étrangers doivent savoir que la reconnaissance des permis de construire varie selon les institutions thaïlandaises, certaines exigeant des pièces justificatives supplémentaires. L'évolution récente du marché et des affaires juridiques retentissantes soulignent l'importance d'un accompagnement juridique professionnel et d'une vérification préalable approfondie tout au long du processus d'acquisition et de détention.

Used on its own, a permit is weak. Used to back a registered superficies or lease, it is the ordinary way a foreigner shows that the house is his.

La dernière révision : 27 septembre 2026. Civil and Commercial Code sections 144, 146, 540, 1310, 1311, 1410 to 1412, 1415 and 1416, Building Control Act B.E. 2522 section 8(12) and Supreme Court decision 4655/2566 were read in Thai. Re-checked on 6 October 2026: sections 146, 1310, 1311 and 1415 re-read in Thai; the opening paragraph now states the section 1310 compensation and the section 1311 removal option; the Ashton Asoke account and the office practice described were not re-verified.