Since the letter of the Ministry of Interior (most urgent No. Mo 0710/vor 792 dated 23 March 1999), a Thai national married to a foreigner may acquire land, however; the land (and some cases condominium unit) must become a personal property of the Thai spouse and must be excluded from the couple's marriage community property regime. The foreigner is not allowed to have co-ownership in land together with his or her Thai spouse.

Regulation: The procedure for the acquisition of land by Thais having spouses being aliens, either by lawful marriage (with proper registration of marriage) or unlawful marriage (without proper registration of marriage) and children of aliens have been changed to be as follows: Any Thai having an alien spouse may purchase or accept land as a gift with no consideration and register the ownership of such land during marriage under the condition that the spouse must jointly provide a written legal confirmation stating that the entire source of funds for such purchase or gift is solely from the Personal Property (such as defined by Thai laws) of such Thai. Without written confirmation from an alien spouse, the request for such registration must be referred to the Land Department in order to obtain an approval from the Minister. Any alien's minor having Thai nationality may purchase or accept land as a gift with no consideration and register the ownership of such land if it does not appear after investigation that he/she has done so to avoid the law.

For registration of land to a Thai national married to a foreigner proof is required that the money used to purchase the land is legally the Thai spouse's.  In case of acquisition of land or in some cases condominium at the Land Department;

	1.	the Thai spouse has to show evidence that all money paid is a personal property (Sin Suan Tua) according to section 1471 and section 1472 of the Civil and Commercial Code, or;
	2.	that the Thai and his/her spouse must present themselves at the Land Office (*) to confirm in a standard Land Office letter of confirmation that all money paid for the property is personal property (Sin Suan Tua) not a common property (Sin Som Ros). Translation Regulation

* If his/her spouse does not live in Thailand it can be recorded by ambassador / consular or notary public in such country.

As the land or in some cases condominium (depending on the foreign ownership ratio within the condominium) must become a personal property of the Thai spouse the foreign spouse may protect his/ her interest in the property by registering a lifetime usufruct for life or a lease. However, under Thai law agreements between spouses concluded during marriage could be avoided by either spouses at any time during marriage or within one year from the date of dissolution of the marriage, therefore do not offer the expected straight forward protection.

Section 1469 of the Thailand Civil and Commercial Code: 'Any agreement concluded between husband and wife during marriage may be avoided by either of them at any time during marriage or within one year from the day of dissolution of marriage; provided that the right of third persons acting in good faith is not affected thereby'.

This leads to the strange situation where, if the Thai spouse has accepted the land as a gift, both the foreign spouse’s gift and the lease or usufruct in theory could be avoided by either spouses (if concluded during marriage). If avoided during marriage or in a divorce the return of the gifts/ agreements shall be governed by the Undue Enrichment Code ( sections 406 to 419 Civil and Commercial Code)

This is not typical for Thailand and in most (European) law systems there is limited freedom of contract between spouses. If not specifically restricted by law (for example employment agreements between husband and wife) agreements between spouses affecting personal property concluded during marriage are valid, however, if challenged in Court the test would be if the other spouse would have entered into such an agreement and upon such terms and conditions if he or she was not your spouse at that time. It must simply be an equal and reasonable contract or the damaged spouse may have the contract set aside on the grounds of the presumption of undue influence. Meaning (contrary actual undue influence) that the onus of proof lies on the benefiting spouse, say, to disprove undue influence on the other spouse. Generally it is not difficult for a smart lawyer to get compensation or have the lease or usufruct concluded during marriage cancelled or voided in a divorce, especially when this gives excessive advantage to the other spouse or is considered unfair as it was given for free or a token amount during a marriage. The Thai legal system recognizes the special relationship between husband and wife in section 1469 of the Civil and Commercial Code and offers both spouses the option (without grounds) to avoid any agreement concluded between them during marriage.

Note that it is possible for the foreign spouse to own the structures on the land as personal property, which could be effected by a superficies registered at the local Land Office.

Divorce: because the land is registered in the Thai spouse's name some say 'get divorced or separated and the Thai ex gets to keep it al', this may be correct in some cases but often it is more complicated. A divorce can be on mutual consent, or on the grounds for divorce by court judgment as listed under section 1516 of the Civil and Commercial Code.

A foreign spouse married to a Thai is by law a statutory heir of that Thai spouse ( section Civil and Commercial Code).

Section 93 of the Land Code Act: 'A foreigner who acquires land by inheritance as statutory heir can have an ownership in such land upon a permission of the Minister of Interior. However, the total plots of land shall not be exceeding of those specified in Section 87'.

Section 93 of the Land Code Act is subject to section 86; 'aliens may acquire land by virtue of the provisions of a treaty giving the right to own immovable properties and subject to the provisions of this Code'. The last treaty was terminated in 1970 and there is currently no treaty with any country to allow a foreigner to acquire land as a statutory heir, and there is currently no other legal ground (like a Ministerial Regulation) for the Minister of Interior to allow any foreigner as inheritor under will or as statutory heir.

Under present law any foreigner who acquires land by inheritance will have to transfer the land within a reasonable period (meaning up to 1 year) to a Thai national.

A foreigner who acquires a condominium unit by inheritance either as statutory heir or inheritor under will shall automatically have an ownership in such unit. However, this ownership may not exceed the foreign ownership limit within such a condominium. In this case it is required by law that the unit shall be disposed either by selling or giving to other Thai persons within 1 year from the date of acquisition of such condominium unit. If the foreigner fails to do so, the Director-General of Land Department shall have power to sell it on the foreigner's behalf.

Section 19 of Condominium Act (1979). Alien and juristic persons regarded by law as aliens may hold ownership of an apartment if they are the following:

Note: The Announcement of the National Executive Council No. 281 is repealed by the foreigner definition under the Foreign Business Act 1999.

Section 19 Septem of Condominium Act (1979). An alien or juristic person regarded by law as alien other than those specified in Section 19 who acquires an apartment by inheritance as statutory heir or legatee or otherwise, as such case may be, shall notify in writing the Competent Official within a period of sixty days from the date of acquisition of ownership of apartment, and shall dispose of such apartment within a period of not exceeding one year from the date of acquisition of the fourth paragraph of Section 19 quinque shall apply mutatis mutandis.

Section 19 quinque The alien or juristic person as provided in Section 19 shall dispose of apartment in the following cases:

The alien or juristic person who is compelled to dispose of the apartment under the first paragraph shall notify in writing the Competent Official within the period of sixty days from the date the cause of such disposition occurred under the first paragraph.

For the case of (1), only the apartments exceeding the designated proportion shall be disposed; for the case of (2), (3), (4) and (5), all the apartments owned shall be disposed.

The disposition of apartments under the third paragraph shall be made within a period of not exceeding one year from the date of acquisition of ownership of such apartments, or the date of revocation of permission to have residence in the Kingdom, or the invalidation of the residence certificate or the date of being ordered deported or de the date of revocation by the Board of Investment of permission to stay in the Kingdom, or the date of revocation of promotion certificate as the case may be. If the disposition is not made within the said period, the Director-General of Land Department shall have the power to dispose of such apartment, and the provisions regarding the compulsion of disposition of land under Chapter 3 of the Land Code and the Ministerial Regulations issued thereunder shall be applied to the disposition of such apartment mutatis mutandis.

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