Own 100% of your Thai company — legally, with no nominees

Yes. If your activity is not on the Foreign Business Act lists, you need no licence under that Act — only the minimum capital of 2 million THB. Banking, insurance and telecoms are governed by their own sector laws. For List Three activities you need an FBL, BOI promotion or, for Americans, the US Treaty of Amity. List One is fully closed to foreigners.

Usually not: according to the DBD, manufacturing (other than activities on the lists) and export need no permission. Most services, and retail and wholesale below the capital thresholds, do. We check your activity before you register.

By law, the DBD Director-General decides within 60 days of the application, and the licence is issued within 15 days of approval. A BOI or treaty certificate takes no more than 30 days. That is why we only file a complete, checked package.

The Act sets maximum rates: 2,000 THB for a licence application, and 5 THB per 1,000 THB of capital (0.5%) for a List Three licence for a company, with a minimum of 20,000 THB and a maximum of 250,000 THB. A BOI or treaty certificate costs 2,000 THB for the application and 20,000 THB for the certificate; for the treaty, the US Embassy quotes the same amounts. Our fee is shown separately.

For categories A1+ to A4, a corporate income tax exemption of 3 to 13 years (for A2 to A4, capped at the investment amount excluding land and working capital). For all categories, including B, import duty exemptions on machinery and raw materials, plus non-tax incentives. The BOI approves positions for foreign executives and experts, and their visas and work permits are issued for those positions.

First you register a Thai company in which Americans hold the majority of shares. The U.S. Commercial Service at the US Embassy then issues a letter confirming the ownership; this is a paid embassy service. With the letter, the DBD issues the certificate: fees are 2,000 and 20,000 THB, and the embassy says it is issued within 2 weeks. The minimum capital must be brought in from abroad in foreign currency by 29 August 2029.

On 12 May 2026 the Cabinet approved two drafts under the Foreign Business Act in principle: a Royal Decree and a Ministerial Regulation. The regulation adds eight service activities that would no longer need a licence, including telecommunications, administrative, HR and IT services and treasury centres. As of 22 June 2026 the drafts were still awaiting review by the Council of State and publication, so they were not in force. We check the status on the day you file.

Under BOI Announcement No. 8/2026, companies without a Full Operation License report project progress every quarter via the e-Monitoring system: by 30 April, 30 July, 30 October and 30 January. Without the report, the BOI may suspend incentives, and after two missed reports in a row it may revoke the promotion. We can take the reports off your hands.

Yes, if the Thai shareholders are real and paid for their shares themselves. Nominee shareholders break the law: up to 3 years in prison and a fine of up to 1,000,000 THB. We check the structure first, then offer a legal transition — to an FBL, BOI or real partners.

The applicant and the company's foreign directors must be 20 or older and live in Thailand or be lawfully in the country. They cannot be bankrupt, penalised under the Foreign Business Act or have had a licence revoked in the last 5 years. The licence may set conditions, such as how many foreign directors must live in Thailand.