Trat

Property Lawyer in Trat for Foreigners — Condominiums, 30-Year Leases, Villas, Due Diligence

Foreigners can own freehold condominiums in Thailand (subject to the 49% per-building foreign quota), can hold a 30-year registered lease on land or villas, and can hold land via a properly structured Thai company — but each route has trade-offs that need to be explained before any deposit is paid. We act for foreign buyers across the full transaction: title search, off-plan contract review, escrow and deposit safeguards, transfer at the Land Office, and the post-completion paperwork (FET, tax, foreign-quota letter).

Scope of property lawyer for foreigners work in Trat

Condominium freehold — foreign quota verification, FET (Foreign Exchange Transaction) compliance
30-year registered leases on land or houses, with renewal option drafting
Villa purchase via lease + corporate ownership — risk-mapped structuring
Title due diligence — Chanote/NS3K/NS3 verification, encumbrance check, boundary survey
Sale-and-purchase agreement review and negotiation
Off-plan project review — developer financial health, escrow protections, completion guarantees
Land Office transfer attendance and FET letter preparation

Process

1Initial consultation — confirm ownership route fits your visa, tax, and exit plans
2Title search and physical site verification (we visit, not just photos)
3Contract review and negotiation — deposit safeguards, completion conditions, penalties
4FET coordination with your bank if buying a condo (funds must arrive as foreign currency)
5Land Office attendance on transfer day — translation, signing, tax payment
6Post-transfer: foreign-quota letter, household registration, ongoing common-area fees setup

Documents to prepare

•Passport (signed pages + valid visa pages)
•Existing title deed and any prior sale-purchase contract
•Seller's ID and household registration (we collect on your behalf)
•Proof of funds and FET-eligible bank transfer slips (for condo purchases)
•Power of attorney if you can't attend the transfer in person

About our team in Trat

Trat borders Cambodia at the Hat Lek crossing and contains Ko Chang, a tourism centre with a substantial foreign operator and resident population. The caseload covers cross-border trade and debt, fisheries and migrant labour, island lease and landholding arrangements, accommodation licensing, and family cases involving a foreign spouse.

Island businesses often run on holding structures and leases inherited from previous operators and never tested in court; the weak points appear only on transfer or when a dispute starts. We review the structure so the exposure is visible first, run the file from our Khon Kaen head office and Bangkok branch, and travel to appear at the Trat Provincial Court.

Courts we appear at in Trat

•Trat Provincial Court
•Trat Juvenile and Family Court
•Region 2 Labor Court (Chonburi)

Mueang Trat, Ko Chang, Khlong Yai, Khao Saming, Laem Ngop, and the areas continuing into Chanthaburi

Related services in Trat

All Trat attorneys /criminal /civil /labor /family /business /tax

Contact our Trat attorneys

We serve clients across Thailand. Initial consultation.

Contact WhatsApp +66 92 254 2045

Frequently asked questions — property lawyer for foreigners in Trat

3 questions answered

It's a hard statutory limit, enforced at the Land Office. If the foreign quota is already full, you cannot register a foreign freehold — you'd take a long lease instead (often 30 years + renewal, structured at the same building). Always verify the foreign quota status with a current letter from the juristic person before paying any deposit. Buying without this letter is the most common foreign-buyer mistake we see.

You can own a house through a properly structured Thai company that holds the land, but the structure is scrutinised. The Land Office and Department of Business Development have, in recent years, increased checks on companies that appear to be set up primarily to hold land for foreigners. We will not set up a structure that depends on nominee Thai shareholders — that's an offence under the Foreign Business Act and the Land Code. We will set up legitimate, operating Thai companies where land ownership is incidental, and we will say no when a structure isn't lawful. Other firms may say yes; ask why.

A condominium can pass to your heirs by will, but if the heir is also foreign, they must qualify for the foreign quota or sell within a reasonable period (commonly understood as one year). A leasehold transfers only if the lease contract was specifically drafted to allow assignment on death — most aren't. We prepare or review Thai wills for foreign property owners as a standard add-on; doing this *before* the purchase saves disputes after.