Thailand Property Taxes in 2026: What Buyers and Sellers Pay

Short answer: on a resale condo in Thailand the buyer usually pays half of the 2% transfer fee. The seller pays withholding tax, plus either Specific Business Tax at 3.3% or stamp duty at 0.5%, and usually the agent. After the purchase, the owner pays a small annual Land and Building Tax: for a typical Pattaya condo it is a few hundred baht a year.

The price you agree is only part of the deal. Transfer fees, taxes, commission and the annual property tax all change what the buyer pays and what the seller takes home. Below is what applies in 2026, who usually pays each item, and what to check before you sign.

1. Taxes and fees at a glance

The main costs of a freehold resale, such as a condo in your own name:

These are the standard rates. Exemptions, temporary government measures and your own circumstances can change the final amount.

The 0.01% rate is not for foreigners. Thailand has cut the transfer and mortgage registration fees to 0.01% for homes up to ฿7 000 000, currently until 30 June 2027. The cut applies only to individual Thai buyers. A foreigner buying in their own name pays the standard 2% transfer fee, even on a cheaper unit.

2. How each tax is calculated

Transfer fee: 2%

The Land Office charges 2% of its own appraised value, which is usually lower than the market price. Buyer and seller often split it equally, but the contract can say otherwise.

Withholding tax

The Land Office collects it from the seller on the day of transfer.

• Individual seller: calculated by a formula based on the appraised value, the number of years owned and a standard deduction. It is not a flat percentage, so ask for an estimate before the transfer date.
• Company seller: 1% of the sale price or the appraised value, whichever is higher.

Specific Business Tax: 3.3%

SBT applies to sales the law treats as commercial. For an individual the key test is time: a property sold within five years of purchase usually attracts SBT. Property held by a company pays it regardless of the holding period. The rate is 3.3% of the sale price or the appraised value, whichever is higher.

Stamp duty: 0.5%

Stamp duty applies when SBT does not, at 0.5% of the higher of the sale price and the appraised value.

SBT and stamp duty are alternatives. A normal transfer pays one or the other, not both.

3. Leasehold: different fees

If you take a lease rather than freehold, for example land under a villa, two smaller charges apply. Both are calculated on the total rent for the whole lease term.

A lease longer than three years has to be registered at the Land Office to be fully enforceable. The ways foreigners can hold a villa are covered in our guide to foreign ownership.

4. The five-year rule and the Yellow Book

Selling within five years does not always mean paying SBT. There is an exemption for a seller’s principal residence: the seller’s name must have been in the house registration of that property for at least one year.

For a foreign owner the relevant document is the yellow house registration book (Tabien Baan). A Yellow Book alone does not guarantee the exemption. The property has to meet the residence and registration rules, so confirm it with the Land Office before you calculate the tax.

5. Annual Land and Building Tax

This is a yearly tax paid by whoever owns the property on 1 January. It is based on the official valuation and on how the property is used. Foreign and Thai individuals follow the same rules. There is no general discount for 2026.

These are starting rates. They rise in steps as the assessed value grows.

Example. A condo with an appraised value of ฿3 000 000 that you rent out or use as a holiday home pays about 0.02%, which is ฿600 a year.

Can a foreign condo owner be exempt? Possibly. If the condo is your own home, the first ฿10 000 000 of its appraised value is exempt: you own the unit, not the land under the building. Your name has to be in the house registration on 1 January. Check with the local authority; a Yellow Book does not qualify a unit automatically. A rented-out condo does not get the home exemption.

6. Who pays what

All of this is negotiable, so the sale contract should say who pays each item. In practice some deals split every tax and fee 50/50. Also confirm the agent’s commission in writing: the advertised price is not the seller’s net amount.

7. Record the real price

Transfer taxes are charged on the higher of the sale price and the appraised value, and the recorded price is also the starting point when you sell later.

When you sell, you can send home the money you originally brought in. You need the bank’s Foreign Exchange Transaction form or a letter from the bank confirming the transfer from abroad. Keep these papers safe from the day you buy. How the money comes in is covered in how foreigners pay for property in Thailand.

8. Seven things to confirm before you sign

• Appraised value used by the Land Office for the transfer.
• Seller’s status: individual or company.
• Holding period: the date the seller acquired the property.
• SBT or stamp duty: which one applies, and whether an exemption is available.
• Withholding tax: an estimate for this seller.
• Who pays what: the split of the transfer fee and other costs, in the contract.
• Commission and debts: the agent’s fee, unpaid common fees and unpaid property tax.

With these seven answers the buyer knows the full budget and the seller knows what will be left after the transfer. Running costs after you buy are in what extra costs to expect when buying a condo in Pattaya.

Buying or selling in Pattaya? Write to us and we will work out the taxes and fees for a specific property and who pays each one.

This article is general information, not legal or tax advice. Rates, exemptions and temporary measures change. Confirm the treatment of your transaction with the Land Office or a qualified Thai tax adviser before the transfer.