Phuket Launches Province-Wide Nominee Land Investigation in 2026: What Foreign Property Owners Must Know

Phuket has launched a province-wide investigation into companies suspected of illegally holding land for foreign nationals, screening firms whose shareholding structures show foreign capital above 49% or more foreign than Thai shareholders, after a nationwide Department of Lands directive ordered every province to intensify scrutiny of nominee landholding #

What has Phuket announced? #

• What the Phuket Committee Found
• The Nationwide Department of Lands Directive
• The New Transaction Thresholds and Source-of-Funds Checks
• How the Multi-Agency Model Works
• What This Means for Existing Nominee Holders
• Impact on Foreign Property Buyers
• Better-than-Freehold™ Solution
• FAQ Section
• Related Terms
• Expert Guidance

What the Phuket Committee Found #

Phuket has launched a province-wide investigation into companies suspected of illegally holding land for foreign nationals, after screening revealed shareholding structures that might have been designed to circumvent Thai land-ownership law. The investigation began at an urgent meeting of the provincial committee responsible for examining suspected nominee landholding, held at the Phuket Provincial Land Office on Monday 15 June 2026.¹

The meeting was chaired by Naphat Em-on, an Inspector-General from the Department of Provincial Administration currently serving as Acting Phuket Provincial Clerk and acting on behalf of the Governor. Representatives from the Provincial Land Office and the Thalang branch reported that they had screened data on companies holding land in Phuket and identified several firms whose structures warranted further investigation. According to officials, some companies were found to have foreign shareholders holding more than 49% of registered capital, or a greater number of foreign shareholders than Thai shareholders, arrangements that might indicate attempts to evade constraints on foreign land ownership through Thai nominees.¹ Officials stressed that these findings are grounds for investigation only and do not in themselves confirm any wrongdoing. Phuket Province has instructed Mueang Phuket District to coordinate with village heads and local leaders to verify information, monitor suspected arrangements and support inspections.¹

The Nationwide Department of Lands Directive #

The Phuket investigation acts on a nationwide directive issued by the Department of Lands on 1 June 2026, ordering provincial authorities across Thailand to strengthen scrutiny of suspected nominee ownership of land by both individuals and companies.¹ The directive instructs every province to establish committees drawing together provincial administrations, land offices, local government organisations, provincial commerce offices and other relevant agencies, tasked with investigating suspected nominee arrangements and monitoring suspicious land transactions.¹

This is the structural point foreign owners should register: Phuket is not an isolated campaign but one province applying a template now mandated nationwide. The same committee model, the same screening criteria and the same monitoring obligations are being stood up in every province, which means the enforcement environment is uniform rather than local.

The New Transaction Thresholds and Source-of-Funds Checks #

Under the new measures, land transactions involving individuals worth ฿5 million or more, or cash payments exceeding ฿2 million, are subject to detailed investigation into the purchaser's income, occupation and source of funds where there are grounds for suspicion.¹ The Department of Lands has also tightened checks on companies with foreign shareholders or directors, particularly where land purchases exceed ฿5 million or involve cash payments above ฿2 million.¹

Officials will examine whether Thai shareholders are genuine investors or are acting as nominees for foreign interests, and will investigate the source of company funds. Companies purchasing land for more than their registered capital without financing arrangements might also face additional scrutiny.¹ This reflects a wider shift, in place since the start of 2026, towards substance-based verification: Thai shareholders in companies with foreign involvement have been required to evidence that the money used to acquire their shares was genuinely their own.²

How the Multi-Agency Model Works #

The Phuket committee operates within a coordinated, multi-agency enforcement model rather than a single office acting alone. The Department of Lands, the Department of Business Development, the Department of Special Investigation, the Anti-Money Laundering Office, Immigration and the Revenue Department increasingly share data, with corporate and land registries synchronised so that a company's registered capital can be checked against the value of the land it holds; a mismatch can trigger a forensic audit.²³

Enforcement also carries real consequences under existing law. Where a foreigner is found to hold land in breach of the Land Code, Section 94 allows authorities to order the land sold within a period of not less than 180 days and not more than one year; if the owner does not comply, the Director-General of the Department of Lands may order the sale on their behalf, at a time and price outside the owner's control.³ Quarterly data-sharing between agencies means that delay is not neutral, because each cycle is another opportunity for an arrangement to surface across the network.³

What This Means for Existing Nominee Holders #

Foreign owners holding Phuket land through nominee companies face a materially changed risk environment. The province has moved from waiting for complaints to actively screening land registries, and the criteria it is applying, foreign capital above 49% or foreign shareholders outnumbering Thai shareholders, capture a large share of the company structures historically used to hold property.¹

Conversion to a compliant structure is not simply a matter of unwinding a company. Source-of-funds and capital requirements introduced through 2026, including measures effective from January and the DBD registration controls effective from April, constrain how nominee shares can be transferred or restructured.²⁴ For an owner already inside a nominee structure, a documented conversion pathway into a substance-based holding is therefore the safer route; for an owner considering a first purchase, the same logic favours a structure built to withstand audit rather than one built to avoid it.

Impact on Foreign Property Buyers #

For foreign buyers, the Phuket investigation is the clearest signal yet that the screening of who genuinely owns and controls land has become routine rather than exceptional. As provinces apply uniform criteria and synchronised registries, the durability of any holding depends on whether it withstands examination, not on how well control is concealed. Structures built on genuine substance and registered rights are far better positioned than those relying on nominees.

Better-than-Freehold™ Solution #

Better-than-Freehold™ addresses the underlying ownership challenge through a securitised registered 30-year lease with an option to renew, supported by a first-charge mortgage, a 100% share pledge, and independent oversight from Clear Blue Security Agents (CBSA). The structure is registered at the Land Office, transparent to Thai authorities, and consistent with the screening and verification now being applied in Phuket and nationwide.

Taken in order, the structure leads with compliance, then security, then benefits. Genuine Thai ownership rests with Thailand Investor Network (TIN), a 100% Thai-owned, high-capital asset-management company that holds legal title and acts as Lessor, with the institutional substance designed to satisfy the financial-substance checks now in force. The foreign investor's beneficial interest is held through SPH Trustees, a Labuan-regulated trust company acting as Lessee, and is protected through four interlocking registered instruments: a 30-year registered lease, an option agreement, a first-charge mortgage and a 100% share pledge. From that compliant, secured base flow the benefits sought through freehold, long-term security, automatic succession to heirs and financeability, without depending on renewal promises that cannot be recorded on title.

The criteria Phuket is screening for, foreign capital above the 49% limit, Thai shareholders who cannot evidence their own funds, registered capital that does not match land value, do not arise under Better-than-Freehold™. TIN is not a nominee; it is a genuinely Thai, professionally capitalised entity whose obligations to the investor are independently enforced by CBSA, and whose ownership is transparent to every agency now conducting enforcement.

FAQ Section #

Related Terms #

• Land Department Nominee Landholding Crackdown 2026 - The nationwide enforcement campaign of which the Phuket investigation forms part
• Nominee Company Risks Thailand - Criminal and civil exposure for nominee shareholders and foreign principals
• Foreign Business Act Constraints - The framework prohibiting nominee arrangements that disguise foreign control
• Better-than-Freehold™ Structure Explained - How the securitised lease provides compliant, enforceable foreign investor rights

Expert Guidance #

The Phuket investigation represents a qualitative change in enforcement posture, not merely a quantitative one. A provincial committee actively screening land registries, applying explicit numerical criteria, and operating under a nationwide directive collectively signal that scrutiny of company landholding is now systematic and continuous rather than complaint-driven.

Immediate Action Required #

The practical priority for any foreign owner is a structured review of the existing holding: the source of funds on record, the shareholding structure of any company involved, whether registered capital matches the value of the land held, and whether the Thai shareholders can evidence genuine investment. That review should inform a decision on whether and how to convert to a compliant structure before scrutiny reaches the property in question. Because quarterly data-sharing and province-by-province committee formation are already under way, the interval between an arrangement existing and that arrangement being examined is narrowing with each cycle. Contact the Better-than-Freehold™ advisory team for a confidential assessment of your current ownership structure and available conversion pathways.

Long-term Security Strategy #

The government's framing is consistent: compliant foreign investment is welcome, while non-compliant foreign control of Thai land is not. Phuket's stated aim is to protect the province's economic interests and national security, not to deter lawful investment. Better-than-Freehold™ is designed to ensure a foreign investor's presence in Thai property is unambiguously in the welcome category. Compliance is not an add-on to the structure; it is the foundation from which security and investor benefits are built.

Conclusion #

Phuket's province-wide investigation marks a clear escalation in Thailand's enforcement against nominee landholding. A provincial committee is now actively screening land-holding companies against explicit criteria, acting on a nationwide Department of Lands directive that requires every province to do the same, supported by new transaction thresholds, source-of-funds checks and synchronised registries that surface mismatches automatically.

For foreign property owners and buyers, the direction of travel is unambiguous. The question is not whether systematic screening reaches a given holding, but when, and whether that holding can withstand examination when it does. The choice of ownership structure has rarely carried higher stakes, and structures built on genuine substance and registered security are the ones built to last.

References #

This article is provided for general information only and does not constitute legal, tax, or investment advice. Laws and enforcement practices change; obtain advice tailored to your situation before acting.