Every condominium project in Thailand has a ceiling on foreign ownership: no more than 49% of the total area of all units may be held by foreigners. It is the single most important number in a foreign purchase, because it decides whether a unit can legally transfer into your name at all.
How is the 49% foreign quota measured?
By floor area, not by the number of units. Section 19 bis of the Condominium Act B.E. 2522 (1979) fixes the ceiling at 49% of the total area of all units in the condominium, so if a project has 40,000 square metres of unit area, foreign owners may collectively hold up to 19,600 of them. A large penthouse consumes more quota than a studio, which is why a project can be 'quota full' while most of its units are Thai-owned.
The position is tracked by the condominium juristic person — the building's management entity — which records every transfer. The Land Department will not register a transfer to a foreigner without a letter from the juristic person confirming that the transfer stays within the 49% limit.
How do I check how much foreign quota a project has left?
Ask the developer if it is a new development, and the condominium juristic person if it is a resale. Developers in areas popular with international buyers manage quota allocations deliberately, and some price foreign-quota units differently from Thai-quota stock, so the answer should come with the specific unit attached to it.
For a resale, the juristic person office can confirm the current position. The definitive document is the foreign quota letter issued for your transfer — but you should not wait until transfer day to learn the answer. Ask early, and make your reservation agreement conditional on quota being available at transfer, with your deposit refundable if it is not.
What are my options when the foreign quota is full?
Three honest ones: buy a unit that is already foreign-owned (a foreign-to-foreign resale does not change the project's quota position), take a long-term registered leasehold instead of freehold, or choose another project. Quota does fill in buildings popular with international owners — near BTS stations, in Sukhumvit, Sathorn or the riverside districts — and it is better to learn that before you fall for a unit than after.
What you should not do is accept an informal arrangement designed to get around the limit. Nominee shareholding and similar structures are unlawful, and a purchase that cannot be registered properly is not ownership in any meaningful sense.
Can the quota run out between reservation and transfer?
Yes — quota positions move. Between your reservation and your transfer date, other foreign transfers in the same building can absorb the remaining allocation, and it is the position on transfer day that §19 bis measures. This is rarely a problem in buildings with generous headroom, but in tight buildings it is worth having the position rechecked shortly before transfer, and keeping your contractual protection in place until the letter is issued.
This guide is general information for foreign buyers, not legal advice. Rules, rates and procedures change and individual situations differ. Legal review available through Suwanvara Law Firm under a separate engagement.