Photo: Markus Winkler / Pexels
Thailand has launched a nationwide crackdown on nominee land ownership. Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul announced it on 19 October 2026 at Government House in Bangkok. The Department of Lands and provincial governors are told to wrap up investigations into high-risk cases by December 2026. Land held unlawfully must be sold, and new checks aim to stop the problem coming back. Short-term visitors aren't affected, but foreigners who hold property through Thai nominees could be.
What is a nominee arrangement?
A nominee arrangement is when Thai individuals or companies hold land on behalf of foreigners. It gets around the limits on foreign land ownership. These are the structures the campaign targets.
The three measures
1. Investigations. Provincial governors and the Department of Lands prioritise high-risk cases, assign officers to individual cases, and reach conclusions by December 2026.
2. Forced sales. Land found to be held unlawfully must be sold. Officials must also vet prospective buyers, so the land doesn't pass into another nominee arrangement.
3. Prevention. This means tighter checks before and after land registration, closer scrutiny of company structures, and systems for receiving public complaints.
How investigators will work
Investigators must look past the names on title deeds and company records. They need to find who really controls the land and who receives the financial benefit. Checks cover company ownership structures, financial transactions and asset trails, to uncover wider networks.
Scale of the crackdown
All 462 land offices nationwide are told to examine suspicious corporate landholdings. In September, the government was reviewing more than 11,000 companies linked to land worth about 85 billion baht, according to earlier Thaiger reporting.
Possible consequences
Depending on the circumstances and the law, consequences include revocation of land rights, deportation, or citizenship proceedings. Cases involving wider networks go to the relevant agencies.
Government stance
Anutin said Thailand still welcomes legitimate foreign investment, including investment under investment promotion legislation. He also pledged government backing for officials who investigate influential people suspected of unlawful deals.
He said successful forced sales could return tens of billions of baht to the economy. No timetable for completing the sales was announced.
What this means for you
- Short-term visitors and hotel guests: No direct impact. The measures target land ownership structures, not travel.
- Foreigners buying or holding property: Those who own land through Thai nominees or Thai-majority companies face the most risk, including forced sale and possible deportation. If you are buying, check how the land is held and who the real owner is. Legitimate routes, such as investment-promotion rights, are explicitly still supported.
- Resort areas: Island and tourist-area land is a likely focus, given the Koh Pha Ngan company reviews.
- Market effects: Forced sales could bring more land onto the market. Buyers will also be vetted, so future transactions may be slower and more closely checked.
Related headlines
Thaiger has also reported that 112 Koh Pha Ngan firms risk losing land over foreign shareholdings, that the nominee crackdown has cut new filings by 75%, and that Bangkok police arrested 11 foreigners in nominee property raids.
Information sourced from The Thaiger.