A house/ building as distinct from its land in Thailand can be owned and transferred separate from its land, however, Thai houses (apart from condominiums) do not have any form of title document. A house separate from its land is an immovable property under the Civil and Commercial Code. Transfer of ownership must be in writing and registered at the competent authority (i.e. the Land Department).
 | A Tar.Bian.Baan or Tabian Bahn is an administratative document which gives the address of the house and states the persons who live in it (it could state the name of the owner but not necessarily). There are 2 types of Tabian Bahn: 1 The blue Ta Bian Baan (Thor.Ror.14) for Thai nationals and 2 the yellow Ta Bian Baan (Thor.Ror.13) for foreigners. Non resident foreigners can usually only be registered as the owner of the house in a yellow book. |
When a foreigner buys a real estate property in Thailand, the land part is generally sold under a leasehold agreement (as foreigners can't own the land) and the house upon the land should be sold separate from the land. In this case a land lease agreement and a sale and purchase agreement for the house is drawn up specifying the terms and conditions of the lease and sale. The lease must be registered at the land department and the official transfer process for the house must be followed (at the Land Department).
When buying in a development 'off the plan' instead of a sale agreement a building or construction agreement could be offered (i.e. the building permit should in this case be issued in the foreigner's name). I any case, lease of land and house is the least benefcial structure for foreigners and legally the weakest structure. Ownership over the house must be obtained and preferably combined with a registered right of superficies specifying the foreigner's house ownership rights.
In many cases ownership of the house is obtained without registering a separate right of superficies and a right of superficies is not required as proof of ownership (this is the building permit in the foreigner's name, or the official sale agreement as administarted at the local land office), however, the superficies specifies the foreigner's rights to the land and offers additional protection.
Rights of ownership of a building upon someone else's land relates directly to the rights to use or possess someone else's land (i.e. if you loose your rights (superficies, lease, usufruct) you loose the rights to own the building upon that land).
When building upon someone else's land an additional right of superficies does offer greater protection (e.g. you could lose your rights under a land lease agreement, but your rights under the right of superficies could remain enforceable).
The transfer procedure for an existing house in Thailand:
1. The parties must present themselves at the local land office to announce the sale. This is part of the official process and separate from the private sale and purchase agreement between the parties
If a party can't attend the land office (e.g. the foreigner is abroad) a proxy can be appointed. In this case the official land office power of attorney form (document Tor-Dor 21) is required
3. Documents required: Tor-Dor 21 (if applicable), building permit or previous land office sale agreement, Ta bian Baan, ID's of the parties (passport or ID-card)
4. The land office will issue 4 copies of the notification of the sale of a structure ( public notice), to be put up at the Or Bor Tor, the District Office, the Kamnan Office and at the building itself for a 30-day announcement (to see if anyone wishes to contest ownership)
5. After the 30 days public notice period the parties must present themselves again to sign the official land office sale agreement which effectively transfers ownership.
Proof of ownership of the house can be either the official land office sale agreement, as signed at the land office, or the construction permit in the owner's name.
Transfer fees of immovable property in Thailand
