US-Thai Treaty of Amity: a 100% US-owned company in Thailand

The Treaty gives you ownership only: no tax incentives, and the standard 20% corporate income tax (CIT) applies. Board of Investment (BOI) promotion gives 100% foreign ownership plus a CIT exemption of 3 to 13 years, but only for activities on the BOI promoted list and with real operating commitments. For a US service company with modest profits, the Treaty is simpler. For a US manufacturer or tech company in a promoted activity, BOI is usually the better choice. Some structures use both.

It depends on the authorities and on your documents. The process has two official steps: the US Embassy nationality certification (paid in US dollars), then the Department of Business Development (DBD) review, plus our preparation time. If the Thai limited company does not exist yet, it must be incorporated first.

Both. The Treaty covers US citizens and companies incorporated in the United States, including C-Corps, S-Corps, LLCs, and partnerships organized in the US. The test is where the company is incorporated and the nationality of its owners. Multi-level holding structures can work if US ownership holds at every level of the chain; we check the full chain before filing.

The Treaty adds no capital rule of its own. For a foreign-majority company, the minimum is generally THB 2 million, and THB 3 million for each activity on the Foreign Business Act (FBA) lists, because the Treaty lifts the 49% ownership cap but not the FBA capital rules. If you plan to hire foreign staff, work permits also need THB 2 million of paid-up capital per foreign employee.

No. The Treaty covers ownership of the company, but the Land Code limits land ownership to Thai nationals and Thai-majority companies, whatever the Treaty status. A US-owned company can own buildings, lease land (usually for up to 30 years), and operate on leased land, but it cannot hold the land title.

The Treaty protection ends. The company falls back under the FBA 49% foreign-ownership cap, so any restructuring must be done before the sale closes; otherwise the company breaches the FBA. In pre-closing due diligence on a sale, Plizz always tests this and restructures or moves the activity to another license before completion.

Yes. Either government may end the Treaty with one year's written notice. Certified companies would then lose their FBA exemption and have to restructure: a Thai-majority shareholding, a Foreign Business License (FBL), or BOI promotion. Termination has never happened, but it remains possible, which is why we document a fallback structure at the start of every engagement.