Thailand’s property tax regime has three layers: one-time taxes paid at the Land Office on transfer day, an annual tax on ownership (the Land and Building Tax Act 2019), and income tax on rental and sale proceeds. None of the rates are unusually high by international standards, but the calculation methods are non-obvious and the customary buyer/seller splits are negotiable but not always negotiated.
This article covers all three layers as they apply to foreign buyers in 2026, with the math worked out on a sample 10M THB Phuket condo.
At purchase — taxes paid on Land Office transfer day
All transaction taxes are calculated on the higher of the appraised value (set by the Treasury Department) or the declared sale price. Appraised values are typically 30–50% below market value, so for most resale transactions the declared sale price is the basis. For developer sales, the contract price is almost always higher than the appraised value.
Transfer fee — 2% (foreign buyers; 0.01% Thai-only stimulus)
The Department of Lands collects 2% of the appraised value as a transfer fee on the change of ownership. This is the headline transaction tax.
A 2025–2026 government stimulus measure cut this to 0.01% for residential property under THB 7M — but the reduced rate is restricted to Thai nationals. Foreign buyers pay the full 2% regardless of property value or the stimulus period. Practitioners (Nishimura & Asahi, FRANK Legal & Tax) confirm this; some brokerage marketing implies foreigners may also benefit and is incorrect. Treat any reduction at the Land Office as a bonus to negotiate, not as a budgeted line item.
By customary practice, the transfer fee is split 50/50 buyer/seller, but the contract is what governs. New-build developer SPAs in Phuket commonly push the full 2% onto the buyer.
Specific Business Tax (SBT) — 3.3%
When the seller has owned the property for less than five years (or holds via any juristic person), the sale triggers SBT: 3% Specific Business Tax plus a 10% municipal surcharge on the SBT, for an effective 3.3% of the higher of appraised or sale price.
The 5-year clock has narrow exemptions: the seller can avoid SBT if their name was on the tabien baan (house registration) for more than one year and they held the property more than five years, or if the transfer is to a statutory heir.
SBT is the seller’s tax by every customary convention. A buyer who is asked to pay it should refuse or recalculate the offer.
Stamp Duty — 0.5%
When SBT does not apply (typically because the seller held the property for five-plus years), the transaction attracts stamp duty instead: 0.5% of the higher of appraised or sale price. SBT and stamp duty are mutually exclusive — you pay one, not both. Stamp duty is also customarily the seller’s tax.
Withholding Tax — variable
The Land Office collects withholding tax at transfer as a prepaid income tax on the seller’s gain.
For an individual seller, the calculation runs through a statutory table:
- Take the appraised value (not the sale price).
- Apply a “cost deduction” by ownership years per the table — 92% deduction at year 1, 84% at year 2, declining to 50% at year 8 and beyond.
- Divide the remainder by the number of ownership years — this gives a deemed annual income.
- Run through the personal income tax brackets (5% to 35%) on that annual amount.
- Multiply the resulting tax by the number of ownership years.
The result is the WHT collected at the Land Office. For most resale transactions this lands in the 1–4% range of appraised value.
For a company seller, WHT is a flat 1% of the higher of appraised or sale price.
WHT is the seller’s tax by all customary conventions.
Customary buyer/seller split
| Item | Customary payer | Negotiable? |
|---|---|---|
| Transfer fee 2% | Buyer + seller, 50/50 | Yes — often shifted entirely to buyer in developer SPAs |
| SBT 3.3% | Seller | Rarely shifted |
| Stamp duty 0.5% | Seller | Rarely shifted |
| Withholding tax | Seller | Rarely shifted |
Verify the split in your sale and purchase agreement before signing. If the contract is silent on a tax, the customary split is the default but disputes happen on transfer day.
Worked example — 10M THB resale Phuket condo, seller held 7 years
| Item | Rate | Amount | Customary payer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Transfer fee | 2% × 10M | 200,000 | 100,000 each (split) |
| SBT | n/a (seller held >5 years) | 0 | — |
| Stamp duty | 0.5% × 10M | 50,000 | Seller |
| Withholding tax (estimate) | ~2% effective | ~200,000 | Seller |
| Buyer total at Land Office | 100,000 | ||
| Seller total at Land Office | 350,000 |
For an off-plan purchase from a developer, the buyer typically absorbs the full 2% transfer fee and adds the sinking fund and first-year CAM (see “Commonly forgotten costs” below).
Annually — Land and Building Tax Act 2019
The Land and Building Tax Act of 2019 replaced the old House and Land Tax. It is an annual tax on the appraised value of owned property, collected by local administrative organizations (municipal or tambon level). Rates are banded by use and value:
| Property use | First-baht treatment | Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Primary residence — owns land + building, name on tabien baan | First THB 50M exempt | 0.03–0.10% above |
| Primary residence — owns building only (e.g. on leased land) | First THB 10M exempt | 0.03–0.10% above |
| Second home / additional residence (most foreign-owned condos used as holiday or rental) | No exemption | 0.02% from THB 1, up to 0.10% above THB 100M |
| Agricultural | Various | Capped at 0.15% |
| Commercial / industrial | Various | Capped at 1.2% |
| Vacant or unused | Various | 0.3%, rising 0.3% every 3 years to a 3% ceiling |
Most foreign-owned condos in Phuket fall in the second-home band: 0.02% of appraised value annually for values up to THB 50M. On a THB 10M condo, that is roughly THB 2,000 per year. Notices arrive from the local tessaban in the first quarter of the year, payable by April. Failure to pay attracts surcharges and a lien on the property.
2026 is the first full-rate year — earlier years had Cabinet decrees granting partial reductions; no such relief has been granted for 2026 as of the early-year filing window. Verify locally before final figures.
Detailed rate brackets and exemption mechanics: Annual property tax in Thailand — the Land and Building Tax Act 2019.
On rental income
Thai-source rental income is taxable for both Thai tax residents (180+ days per year in Thailand) and non-residents. The mechanics:
Standard deduction. A foreign owner can claim a standard 30% deduction off gross rent without documentation, or claim actual documented expenses. The 30% standard is the simpler choice for most owners.
Progressive PIT. After deductions and personal allowances, the net is taxed at Thailand’s progressive personal income tax rates (0% to 35%). The first THB 150,000 of net assessable income is exempt; the brackets rise from there.
Two filings. Mid-year filing (PND.94) is due by 30 September covering January–June rental income. Annual filing (PND.90) is due by 31 March of the following year covering the full prior year. The mid-year tax paid is credited against the annual.
Tenant withholding. A Thai company tenant must withhold 5% of rent paid to an individual landlord and remit to the Revenue Department. The owner credits this withholding against their PND.90 final tax. Individual tenants do not withhold.
Non-resident landlords with no Thai filing. A flat 15% withholding tax applies to Thai-source rental income paid to a non-resident with no Thai tax filing. This is high — non-resident landlords almost always benefit from getting a Tax ID and filing a normal return.
VAT. Pure residential rental is exempt from VAT. If you provide services (daily rental, cleaning, breakfast, hotel-style operation), VAT registration is mandatory once gross revenue exceeds THB 1.8M per year. The 7% VAT then applies to all rental revenue.
Old House and Land Tax — abolished. The pre-2019 regime taxed rental property at 12.5% of annual rental value. This was replaced by the Land and Building Tax in 2019 — do not double-count.
Detail and worked examples: Rental income tax for foreign property owners in Thailand.
On sale — capital gains
For an individual seller, Thailand has no separate capital gains tax. The withholding tax collected at the Land Office on transfer is the de facto final tax on the gain. An individual may elect to aggregate the sale into their annual PND.90 if it would lower their tax — but for most foreign sellers the Land Office WHT exceeds what aggregation would yield, so most don’t aggregate.
For a company seller, the gain is ordinary corporate income taxed at 20% corporate income tax. The 1% Land Office WHT is creditable against the final CIT.
A primary-residence exemption exists for individuals who reinvest sale proceeds into a new primary residence within one year — but the conditions (continuous tabien baan registration, qualifying replacement property) rarely fit foreign buyers’ situations.
Commonly forgotten costs in Phuket
Five items routinely missed in budget spreadsheets:
| Cost | Typical range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Common Area Maintenance (CAM) | 50–80 THB/sqm/month standard, 80–150 luxury/branded | Billed annually upfront; non-payment leads to liens |
| Sinking fund | 500–800 THB/sqm one-off | Collected at purchase or first transfer; non-refundable |
| Utility transfer (water + electric meters) | 2,000–10,000 THB combined | Some buildings add a key/access card fee |
| Debt-free certificate from juristic | 500–2,000 THB | Required for resale; small but mandatory |
| FET bank fees | ~0.25% of inbound transfer | Charged by the receiving Thai bank; needed for condo registration |
On a THB 10M Phuket condo of 80 sqm, the first-year ancillaries alone come to roughly THB 90,000–130,000 (sinking fund + CAM + utility setup), separate from transaction taxes. Budget 1–1.5% for these on top of the transaction tax estimate.
Summary — total cost of buying as a foreigner
For a typical 10M THB resale Phuket condo, with the customary split honored:
| Bucket | Amount |
|---|---|
| Transfer fee buyer share | 100,000 |
| Sinking fund | 50,000–80,000 |
| First-year CAM | 50,000–80,000 |
| Utility setup | 5,000–10,000 |
| Lawyer fees | 50,000–150,000 |
| FET bank fees | ~25,000 |
| Total above sale price | 280,000–445,000 (2.8–4.5%) |
For new-build developer purchases where the buyer absorbs the full 2% transfer fee, add another 100,000–200,000.
Budget 5–7% of the purchase price for total transaction costs as a foreign buyer in Phuket. Then add annual Land and Building Tax (~0.02% of appraised value), CAM, and any rental income tax going forward.