Buyers researching Thai property routinely hear about “BOI” as a way around foreign ownership restrictions. Most of what they hear is wrong, outdated, or applies only to commercial-scale projects. For a residential villa, BOI promotion is not a workable path to land ownership in 2026. The legitimate BOI-property intersections are narrower than the marketing implies.
What BOI is
The Board of Investment (BOI), under the Investment Promotion Act B.E. 2520 (1977, amended multiple times), grants incentives to companies undertaking activities the Thai government wants to encourage — manufacturing, technology, certain services, agriculture, infrastructure. Incentives include corporate income tax holidays (3-8 years), tariff exemptions on imported machinery, work-permit facilitation, and — relevant here — the right under Section 27 for a majority-foreign-owned promoted company to own land for the promoted activity.
What BOI is not: a residential investment scheme. There is no “buy a villa worth THB X and BOI gives you ownership” pathway in current law.
The Section 27 land ownership right
When a foreign-majority Thai company holds BOI promotion under an approved activity:
- Section 27 of the Investment Promotion Act permits the company to own land used for the promoted activity
- Approval is project-specific — the land area is approved at promotion grant
- Land must be used for the promoted purpose; conversion to personal residential use triggers revocation
- On revocation or activity wind-down, the land typically must be sold within one year (Section 27 paragraph 2)
In practice this means BOI land ownership is for factories, hotels operated commercially, large serviced-apartment buildings, R&D campuses, and similar — not private homes.
The discontinued THB 40M scheme
Older articles still cite Section 96 bis of the Land Code, which once allowed foreigners to own up to 1 rai of residential land if they invested THB 40M in approved Thai assets for at least five years. This was added in 2002 (Ministerial Regulation No. 47) and was theoretically revived in 2022 under a draft regulation that drew significant public opposition and was withdrawn before taking effect. As of 2026, no operational version of this scheme is in force. Buyers should not rely on it.
LTR visa — residency, not ownership
The Long-Term Resident (LTR) visa, launched September 2022 and administered by BOI, is the BOI program most buyers actually encounter. It is a visa, not a land-ownership grant.
LTR offers:
- 10-year renewable visa across four categories (Wealthy Global Citizen, Wealthy Pensioner, Work-from-Thailand Professional, Highly-Skilled Professional)
- Multi-entry, no re-entry permit needed
- Streamlined 90-day reporting (annual instead)
- Foreign-income tax exemption (Wealthy Global Citizen and Wealthy Pensioner categories — significant given the 2024 remittance changes covered in Thai tax residency — the 183-day rule and the 2024 remittance change)
- Work permit included at no separate cost
- Spouse and up to four dependents covered
LTR does not grant land ownership. LTR holders buy condos under the same 49% foreign quota as any other foreigner (The 49% foreign quota in Thai condos — how it actually works) and lease land under the same leasehold rules (Freehold vs leasehold property in Thailand — what's the difference and which to choose).
When BOI is actually the right tool
BOI promotion makes sense for property if:
- You are building a hotel of 100+ rooms (BOI activity 7.4)
- You are developing serviced apartments at meaningful scale (some sub-activities qualify under the service sector)
- You are operating a healthcare, retirement, or wellness facility (eligible under activity 7.32)
- You have an industrial or commercial project where the property is incidental to the promoted activity
For these, BOI’s tax holidays and land-ownership right meaningfully change the economics. For a residential purchase, every shortcut BOI seems to offer either does not exist or is the wrong instrument — a regular Thai-company structure (Thai company structures for property ownership — what changed in 2024–2025) costs less and carries less ongoing reporting burden, though it has its own significant risks.
Setup and ongoing costs
For a project that does qualify:
- BOI application: THB 50,000-100,000 in government fees plus THB 200,000-400,000 in advisor fees for a non-trivial application
- Company formation and structuring: THB 50,000-150,000
- Annual BOI compliance reports, audited accounts, and activity progress filings
- Penalty exposure: privilege revocation, retroactive tax liability for unfulfilled commitments
These numbers are reasonable for a THB 50M+ commercial project. They are not reasonable for a THB 20M villa purchase.
Who this is right for
- Developers building hotels or serviced apartments at scale
- Operators of healthcare or wellness facilities
- Industrial or technology projects where the land is functional to the business
Who this is not right for
- Individual buyers seeking a private villa with land
- Buyers told that “BOI gives you freehold land for THB 40M” — that scheme is not operational
- Anyone hoping LTR visa solves freehold land ownership — it does not