Thai Company Registration for Foreigners — Phuket Corporate Formation

Ownership Structures — Which One Fits You

The single most consequential decision is your ownership structure. Get it wrong and you either pay too much tax, cannot open a bank account, or breach the Foreign Business Act with criminal penalties.

• 51/49 Thai-Majority Ltd — Standard. Thai partners hold 51%, foreigner 49% + preferential voting shares. Cheapest, fastest, most flexible for services
• BOI-Promoted Company — 100% foreign ownership + tax holidays + land ownership. Requires activity on BOI list (tech, manufacturing, tourism)
• US Treaty of Amity Company — 100% US ownership permitted under 1966 Treaty. Excludes banking, land, agriculture, communications
• Foreign Business License (FBL) — Case-by-case Ministry approval for 100% foreign ownership in restricted sectors. 6-12 month approval
• Representative Office — No revenue, no VAT, 5 activities only (sourcing, quality control, advice, product info, reporting to HQ)

The Phuket DBD Filing — What Actually Happens on Day 8

Phuket DBD accepts walk-in filings Mon-Fri 8:30-16:30 at the Chao Fa Rd office. The company name is reserved online first (2 alternatives + intended name), then the MOA is stamped and filed, and the statutory meeting is held to adopt AOA and appoint directors. All 3 stages can be compressed into a single day if the shareholders are physically present in Phuket, or handled by POA if not.

We coordinate the notarization of foreign shareholder passports, the certified translation of foreign corporate shareholder documents, and the physical filing at DBD — no line-waiting for you.

Post-Registration Compliance — The 30-Day Sprint

Registration is only step 1. Within 30 days of DBD certificate issuance you must: (a) apply for a Tax ID (TIN) at Phuket Revenue Office, (b) register for VAT if you'll exceed THB 1.8M/year or want to reclaim input VAT, (c) register with Social Security if you have any employees, (d) open a corporate bank account (which requires the TIN), and (e) transfer capital in from abroad to certify paid-up capital for future work permits.

• Tax ID (TIN) — Free, same-day at Phuket Revenue Office
• VAT Registration — Required above THB 1.8M revenue or by choice
• SSO Registration — Within 30 days of first employee hire
• Bank Account — Kasikorn / SCB / Bangkok Bank; requires TIN + director in person
• Capital Inward Remittance — Certified by receiving bank, needed for work permits

Common Mistakes We See (and Fix)

The three failure modes we clean up most often: (1) nominee Thai shareholders without a proper shareholder agreement — a criminal offence under the FBA; (2) incorrect share class structure that gives Thai shareholders 51% economic control not just voting control — solved by preferential voting shares; (3) office lease at a residential condo that fails MOL work permit inspection — solved by a proper commercial lease at a co-working or serviced office.