Renting out your property, legally
You are allowed to let your property — but the length of the stay, the building rules and your tax residency each change what applies.
On this page
Letting your Thai property is a legitimate way to make the investment work — and for most owners it is straightforward. The complications come from three directions: the Hotel Act if you let short-term, your building's own rules, and the tax treatment of the income. This article covers all three.
What you are allowed to do
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The basic right to let
Letting is fine — until it becomes a business.
As the owner of a Thai property you have the right to let it, provided the activity is not classed as a business. Occasional letting stays outside the scope of the Foreign Business Act and the Foreign Employment Act. If it becomes regular and turns into your main activity, those laws start to apply.
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Short-term stays (under 30 days)
Under 30 days puts you in Hotel Act territory.
Letting for periods shorter than 30 days brings you under the Hotel Act B.E. 2547. Where short-term accommodation is provided on a regular basis, registration as a hotel with the Department of Provincial Administration is required — which brings stricter safety and service obligations.
There is a practical exemption: a property with no more than 4 rooms accommodating no more than 20 people can generally be let without hotel registration. Above that — from 5 rooms up — hotel registration is required, which in turn means forming a company.
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Your building's own rules
The Hotel Act is not the only thing that can stop you.
Many condominium buildings place no restriction on letting, long or short. Others — particularly newer developments — have internal regulations that specifically prohibit short stays of the Airbnb kind.
If your building has no such restriction you are free to let. If it does, the rules can only be changed at the general meeting of owners, since only unit owners can amend them. Check the regulations before you buy if letting is part of your plan.
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Long-term leases
Over three years, the lease must be registered to be enforceable.
A lease running longer than three years must be registered at the Land Office. Without registration it may not be enforceable against third parties — which matters most in exactly the situation you would need it.
How rental income is taxed
Two things drive your liability: whether you are a Thai tax resident, and whether you hold the property personally or through a company.
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Withholding tax at source
5% or 15% — and it depends on residency, not on your tax ID.
Where the tenant is a Thai juristic person (a company), they must withhold tax from the rent and remit it to the Revenue Department. Individual tenants generally do not withhold.
The rate is 5% where the owner is a Thai tax resident, and 15% where the owner is a non-resident — meaning fewer than 180 days in Thailand in the tax year. The amount withheld is generally creditable against your final liability when you file.
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Personal income tax
Rental income is personal income, and a 30% standard deduction applies.
Rental income counts as assessable personal income and must be declared on an annual Thai tax return. Foreign owners need a Tax Identification Number (TIN) in order to file.
A standard deduction of 30% of gross rental income is available before the progressive bands are applied — so tax is calculated on the remainder, not on the full rent received.
Personal income tax bands
Progressive, applied to net assessable income after deductions and allowances. Each band applies only to the portion of income falling within it.
| Net income | Rate |
|---|---|
| 0 – 150,000 THB | Exempt |
| 150,001 – 300,000 THB | 5% |
| 300,001 – 500,000 THB | 10% |
| 500,001 – 750,000 THB | 15% |
| 750,001 – 1,000,000 THB | 20% |
| 1,000,001 – 2,000,000 THB | 25% |
| 2,000,001 – 5,000,000 THB | 30% |
| Over 5,000,000 THB | 35% |
Because the bands are marginal, a headline rate never applies to your whole income. Reaching the 30% band does not mean paying 30% on everything — only on the part above 2,000,000 THB.
If the property is held by a company
A Thai company can own land, which a foreign individual cannot — but it brings formation costs, annual accounts and a mandatory audit.
| Net profit | Rate |
|---|---|
| 0 – 300,000 THB | Exempt |
| 300,001 – 3,000,000 THB | 15% |
| Over 3,000,000 THB | 20% |
These reduced bands apply only to companies qualifying as SMEs — paid-up capital of no more than 5 million THB and annual revenue no more than 30 million THB. Companies outside those limits pay the standard corporate rate of 20% on all net profit. See also starting a company in Thailand.
The practical answer
Get the paperwork right once, then let someone else run it.
A written lease agreement is the foundation — without one, enforceability is a problem before anything else is. Beyond that, the workload is real: finding reliable tenants, maintaining the property, keeping rent records and invoices, handling check-in and check-out, and meeting the Immigration reporting duty on every foreign guest.
That is exactly the part our rental management takes over. The legal framework above does not change — but you stop being the one who has to remember it.
Thinking about letting your property?
Tell us the property and how you want to use it, and we will tell you which of the rules above actually apply to you.