How to transfer money to Thailand to buy a condo (the FET form, explained)
To register a condo in a foreign name, the money must arrive from abroad the right way. Get the FET paperwork right before you send a single baht.
Here's the step in a foreign condo purchase that surprises people most: how the money travels matters as much as how much you pay. To register a condo in your own name under the foreign quota, the Land Office must see proof that your purchase funds came into Thailand from abroad, in foreign currency. That proof is the FET form. Get it right and transfer day is boring (the good kind). Get it wrong and your registration stalls while you argue with a bank about paperwork.
What the FET form is
FET stands for Foreign Exchange Transaction form. When you wire foreign currency into a Thai bank and it's exchanged into baht, the receiving bank records the transaction. For amounts of USD 50,000 or more (or equivalent), the bank must prepare an FET form and report it to the Bank of Thailand. This document — showing who sent the money, who received it, how much, and why — is what the Land Office accepts as evidence under Section 19 bis of the Condominium Act, which requires foreign buyers to show their funds were brought in from overseas.
Sending less than USD 50,000?
Smaller transfers don't automatically generate an FET form, but you still need proof. Ask the receiving bank for a credit note / confirmation letter showing the same details — Thai Land Offices accept this for foreign-ownership registration. If your purchase needs several transfers, keep the evidence for every one; the total shown must cover the registered purchase price.
The five rules for a clean transfer
- Send in foreign currency, not baht. Let the Thai bank do the conversion — that's what makes the transaction qualify. (Practical bonus: exchange rates converted in Thailand are usually better too.)
- Send in your own name. The sender should match the name going on the title deed. Joint purchase? Both names in the transfer reference.
- State the purpose. Put something like "purchase of condominium unit [project, unit no.]" in the transfer reference so the paperwork ties the money to the property.
- Send a little more than the price. Fees and small exchange differences are real; the evidence must cover the full registered price.
- Keep everything. SWIFT confirmations, bank slips, the FET form or credit note — bring the folder to transfer day.
Do you need a Thai bank account?
Usually the cleanest route is your own Thai account receiving the transfer, because the FET evidence is then clearly in your name. Some buyers instead transfer directly to the developer's or seller's account with the right payment reference — this can work, but the wording on the credit advice becomes critical. It's exactly the kind of detail I walk through with you and the bank before you send anything.
Why this matters later, not just now
The FET trail isn't only for buying. When you eventually sell and want to repatriate the proceeds, the same evidence shows the money originally came from abroad — which is what lets the funds leave Thailand smoothly. Treat the FET folder like the title deed: part of the property.
Planning a purchase and want the transfer set up correctly the first time? Message me — this is a 20-minute conversation that saves weeks of untangling.