How to work in real estate in Thailand (and what foreigners can legally do)

Thailand is easy to enter and hard to misread. There is no licence and no exam, so a Thai national can start with an agency next week. But brokerage is on the list of jobs closed to foreigners, so a foreigner cannot list, show, negotiate or take a commission on a sale, whatever the market’s habits suggest. Here is how it fits together in October 2026, and what a foreigner can legally do instead.

The short version

1. Thailand has no state broker licence and no state exam. Associations such as TREBA are voluntary (Themis Partner; Thaiger).
2. Brokerage or agency work is item 19 of List 1, the absolutely prohibited jobs, in the Ministry of Labour Notification of 1 April 2020. The only exception is brokerage in international trade or investment.
3. In practice, listing, showing, negotiating and earning a transaction commission are reserved for Thai nationals, and enforcement has tightened since 2024 (Thaiger, May 2026).
4. Foreigners can work in international sales consulting, overseas marketing, business development, investor relations, administration, or as a director or shareholder within 49%, with a Non-B visa and a work permit.
5. The employer needs 2 million baht of paid-up capital and 4 Thai employees per foreign permit, and must pay at least 50,000 baht a month to Western nationals.
6. A foreign-majority agency needs a Foreign Business Licence, which Leto calls almost impossible for brokerage.
7. Agents usually earn from a 3% to 5% commission paid by the seller (FazWaz).

If you are Thai: starting as an agent

There is nothing to register as an individual. A Thai agency is an ordinary limited company registered with the Department of Business Development, and that registration is in effect the only “licence” in the sector (Themis Partner). You can join:

• An international consultancy in Bangkok, such as CBRE, Knight Frank, Colliers, Savills, JLL or Cushman & Wakefield.
• A local agency in Bangkok, Phuket, Pattaya or Koh Samui.
• A portal with an agency arm, such as FazWaz or Lazudi.
• A developer’s sales team.

To stand out without a licence, use the voluntary credentials:

• TREBA, the Thai Real Estate Broker Association, which Thaiger describes as a credibility signal to employers.
• REBA-ES, the Real Estate Broker Association of the Eastern Seaboard, for Pattaya and Chonburi.
• CIPS, the Certified International Property Specialist designation of the US National Association of Realtors, useful with foreign buyers.
• Portal certifications, such as the DDproperty Agent Certification.

If you are a foreigner: the 2020 list

The Notification of the Ministry of Labour Prescribing Works in which an Alien is Prohibited to Engage is dated 1 April 2020, was published in the Government Gazette on 21 April 2020 and took effect 60 days later. It replaced the 1979 list of 39 jobs with 40 items in four annexes (Nagashima Ohno & Tsunematsu, May 2020). It is a ministerial Notification under the Foreign Workers Management Emergency Decree, not a Royal Decree.

List 1 holds the jobs that are closed outright. Its item 19 is brokerage or agency work, except brokerage or agency work in international trade or investment (Acclime, 2024). Khaosod English (July 2023) lists it as agent and broker services. The guides we used read it as covering the agent’s field work on property: taking listings, showing units, negotiating and earning a commission on the sale (Thaiger). Do not rely on the trade or investment exception for condo sales without written advice from a Thai lawyer.

Legal roles for foreigners

Thaiger and Themis Partner describe what foreigners actually do in Thai property firms:

• International sales consultant or director, working with overseas buyers while Thai colleagues handle viewings, negotiation and contracts.
• Overseas marketing manager and business development.
• Investor relations and consulting.
• Company director or shareholder, within the 49% foreign limit.
• Marketing and administration.

The permit must match the job. The duties written on your work permit must match what you do (Thaiger). A marketing permit does not cover weekend viewings.

One more route. Leto describes working for a foreign company, with clients and payments outside Thailand, on a Long-Term Resident “Work-from-Thailand Professional” visa. That is remote work for a business abroad, not a way to sell Thai property locally.

Visa and work permit

Thaiger set out the 2026 requirements:

Step	Detail
Non-Immigrant “B” visa	Applied for at a Thai embassy before arrival. 2,000 baht single entry, 5,000 baht multiple entry
Work permit	About 7 to 10 business days in Bangkok, 1 to 3 days for BOI companies through the Single Window
Employer capital	2 million baht paid up
Thai staff	4 Thai employees per foreign work permit
Salary	At least 50,000 baht a month for Western nationals

Social security in 2026 is capped at a monthly wage of 17,500 baht, so at most 875 baht a month from you and from your employer. Income tax is progressive from 0% to 35%, and the 17% LTR flat tax applies only to BOI-targeted industries, not real estate (Thaiger).

Owning or running an agency as a foreigner

The Foreign Business Act B.E. 2542 (1999) puts brokerage or agency businesses in List 3, item 11, restricted for foreign-majority companies. The exceptions in the text (securities, intra-group procurement, international trade distribution with 100 million baht of foreign capital, and others set by Ministerial Regulation) do not include real estate brokerage (Siam Legal). So:

• A foreign-majority agency needs a Foreign Business Licence. Leto calls it almost impossible to obtain in practice.
• BOI promotion or an FBL can allow up to 100% foreign ownership, and BOI may need up to 50 million baht of capital (Themis Partner).
• The usual set-up is up to 49% foreign, with 51% held by genuine Thai shareholders (Leto).

Even as an owner, a foreigner still cannot do the agent’s field work.

Nominees are a serious risk in 2026. On 19 October 2026 the Prime Minister launched a nationwide crackdown on nominee land ownership, covering 13,088 suspected parties including 1,550 companies, with priority investigations due by the end of December 2026 (Thai Examiner). Leto also reports Department of Business Development source-of-capital declarations from 1 April 2026. Paper Thai shareholders put the company, its permits and its clients at risk.

Enforcement is real

Leto, an agency, published these figures in 2026. We could not verify them independently:

• The worker: a fine of up to 100,000 baht, deportation and an entry ban of 1 to 5 years.
• The employer: up to 400,000 baht per illegal foreign worker.
• Raids: 14 on agencies in Chonburi in 2025, with 27 illegal foreign workers identified, against 19 in Phuket and 11 on Koh Samui.

Leto also says many Russian-speaking agents work on tourist visas. That is illegal, however common it looks.

How agents are paid

FazWaz puts the usual sales commission at 3% to 5%, paid by the seller and built into the asking price, with buyers usually paying no agent fee. Leto gives 3% to 5% on developer sales and 2% to 3% on resales. Most agencies pay commission only. Some large Bangkok chains pay a base of 15,000 to 25,000 baht a month plus commission, and agents keep 30% to 40% of the agency’s fee as newcomers, 50% to 60% with experience and 70% to 80% as top producers (Leto, indicative). Foreign staff, because of the salary floor, are normally on salary plus bonus. See Real estate agent commission in Thailand.

Where the work is, and languages

REIC counted 14,899 condo units transferred to foreigners in 2025, worth 60.92 billion baht, with Bangkok (7,029 units), Chonburi for Pattaya (4,164) and Phuket (1,190) leading (Khaosod English, March 2026). On Koh Samui, foreign buyers account for 85% to 90% of villa deals (Samui Property Group, May 2026).

• Chinese buyers lead, focused on Bangkok and Chonburi.
• Russian buying rose 75.9% by value in the first half of 2026, focused on Phuket and Chonburi (The Nation, August 2026).
• Myanmar buyers were second by units in 2025, mostly in Bangkok.

So Thai is essential for the transaction side, English is the common language with international buyers, and Chinese, Russian or Burmese are a real advantage.

How to choose an agency

• Ask for the registered company name, its directors and whether it is Thai-majority.
• If you are foreign, ask whether it has 2 million baht of capital and 4 Thai staff per permit, and will pay at least 50,000 baht a month.
• Get your role in writing: which tasks are yours and which belong to Thai colleagues.
• Get your pay in writing: base, share, payment date and deals that close after you leave.
• Ask whether it is a member of TREBA or REBA-ES.
• Ask how it runs client identification and source-of-funds checks.

Red flags

• A foreigner asked to show units, take listings or negotiate.
• A start on a tourist visa “until the permit comes”.
• A work permit whose job description does not match the job.
• A “Thai partner” who holds shares on paper only.
• Pay that is commission only for a foreign hire, below the salary floor.
• Fees paid in cash or into a personal account.
• Marketing that promises 99-year leases or a 75% quota, neither of which became law.

Thailand has no broker licence, and brokerage is closed to foreigners under the 2020 Ministry of Labour list. This guide was checked on the date shown above. It is general information, not legal, tax or immigration advice. CloserPass is not affiliated with the Ministry of Labour, the Department of Business Development, TREBA, REBA-ES or any government body in Thailand.

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