Company Registration in Thailand

Company Registration in Thailand

Before a Thai business registration, you need to identify first which form of business structure is applicable for your business activities.

A Thai Limited Company is the most popular form of business structures in Thailand. Not only are the shareholders’ liabilities limited to the amount unpaid on the shares they possess, but a Limited Company also allows separation between investors and management. In setting up a Limited Company you are required to have 3 promoters. There must be at least 2 Thai partners who would own the majority shares which is 51% and the foreigner could own 49%. The minimal capital requirement to incorporate a Thai limited company is 2 million baht. This is required in order to support a work permit for foreign employee. When registering a limited company, at least 25 percent of the subscribed shares must be paid up.

Aside from the minimum of three promoters, setting up a Limited Company also requires filing of a memorandum of association, convene a statutory meeting, register the Thai Limited Company, and obtain a company income tax identity card. They must also follow accounting procedures specified in the Civil and Commercial Code, the Revenue Code and the Accounts Act. A balance sheet must be prepared once a year and filed with the Department of Revenue and Commercial Registration. In addition, companies are required to withhold income tax from the salary of all regular employees.

Registration of a Limited Company usually takes 2-3 weeks, including the registration of the company name and locating a corporate headquarters.

Process:
For the process of setting up a Thailand limited company:

  1. The Thai limited company name reservation must follow the guidelines of the Business Development Office in the Ministry of Commerce amongst other guidelines
  2. The Thai limited company must convene a statutory meeting to make all the appointments
  3. The minutes of the Statutory Meeting and the Memorandum of Association must be filed with the Ministry of Commerce
  4. The Ministry of Commerce will then issue a company certificate which officially establishes the company
  5. All companies in Thailand have to be registered for tax purposes

Documents Required:
The following documents will be required in the registration of the Thai Limited Company:

  1. client intake form
  2. a copy of the first page of the house registry book of your corporate headquarters
  3. foreign passports or Thai ID card of all shareholders and/or directors of your company

See also Setup a Business in Thailand.