The same national rules apply here as everywhere in Thailand β but Koh Chang has its own wrinkles: thin condo freehold stock, a housing market built on houses and villas, and the Trat Provincial Land Office handling the paperwork. Here's the honest 2025-2026 picture.
Koh Chang doesn't get special treatment under Thai property law β the same 49% condo freehold quota and the same ban on foreign land ownership apply here as anywhere else in Thailand. What's different on the ground is the island itself: registered condominium developments with real foreign-quota freehold stock are scarce, most long-stay housing is houses, bungalows and villas held on registered leasehold or through a Thai structure, and the office that handles registration is the Trat Provincial Land Office on the mainland. For the full national explanation of the 49% quota, the FET remittance requirement, and how leasehold, company structures and BOI exceptions work generally, see BAANLYY's main foreign ownership guide and the foreign ownership structures guide β this page covers what's specifically true, and specifically worth checking, on Koh Chang. General information only, not legal advice.
The same rules that govern the rest of Thailand govern Koh Chang: foreigners may own a condominium unit freehold (outright, in their own name) as long as the building's foreign quota has room, and foreigners generally cannot own land. There is no Koh Chang-specific carve-out or workaround β anyone telling you otherwise is selling something. For the full national explanation of the 49% quota, the FET remittance requirement and how leasehold really works, see BAANLYY's main foreign ownership guide; this page covers what's specifically different about doing it on Koh Chang.
Unlike Bangkok, Phuket or Pattaya, Koh Chang has very few registered condominium developments where a foreign-quota freehold unit is even on offer, and the ones that exist tend to be smaller and lower-spec than equivalent projects on other resort islands. Most of what gets marketed to foreigners here as "condos" or "apartments" is actually villa, house or land-and-structure product that cannot carry foreign freehold title at all β read the actual title deed and building registration before assuming a freehold condo purchase is even possible for a specific unit.
Because Koh Chang's long-stay housing stock is overwhelmingly houses, bungalows and villas rather than condos, most foreigners renting-to-own or investing on the island are really negotiating a leasehold interest in land they can never legally own outright, or looking at a Thai company or Thai-spouse structure. Each route carries real legal limits β this isn't a technicality to skip past.
A foreigner can hold a lease of up to 30 years on land or a house, provided the plot carries a proper Chanote (title deed) or Nor Sor Sam Kor and the landlord agrees to register the lease at the Land Office. Registration matters more than the paperwork looks like it should: a lease that is not registered at the Land Office is only enforceable for 3 years, regardless of what the private contract says. Registration fees, including stamp duty, run to roughly 1.1% of the total lease value for the full term, payable at registration.
For years, agents on Koh Chang and across Thailand sold long leases as effectively 90 years by stacking a 30-year registered term with two pre-agreed 30-year renewal options. Thailand's Supreme Court ruled in March 2025 that these pre-agreed renewal clauses are not enforceable β a landlord's promise to renew is a contractual intention, not a guaranteed right, and a future landlord (including an heir) is not bound by it. Price and structure any Koh Chang leasehold deal on the real 30-year registered term, not on an assumed 90-year total.
Foreigners sometimes hold land through a Thai limited company in which Thai shareholders hold the majority. Used properly this is a legitimate structure, but Thai authorities have sharply escalated enforcement against companies used purely as nominees to let a foreigner control land they couldn't otherwise own β audits and licence revocations (including the March 2026 "Operation Lightning Strike" enforcement action against law and accounting firms) have specifically targeted this practice in tourist provinces. A company structure only holds up if the Thai shareholders are genuine and the company has real business activity β get independent Thai legal advice before relying on one, and treat any agent who waves away nominee risk as a warning sign.
Thailand does allow limited land ownership for foreigners under specific, condition-heavy programmes β certain BOI-promoted investment projects and a small number of other statutory exceptions. These are built for large-scale investment or industrial activity, not a holiday villa or long-stay home on Koh Chang, and don't apply to an ordinary residential purchase. Nothing about holding a DTV, retirement, LTR or marriage visa grants land ownership on its own.
Koh Chang falls administratively under Trat province, and lease and property registration for the island runs through the Trat Provincial Land Office in Trat town (519 Noen Ta Maw Road, Wang Krachae Subdistrict, Mueang District, Trat 23000; tel. 0-3951-1147 / 0-3953-0493). Trat province also operates branch land offices for specific districts β always confirm with the office directly, or through your lawyer or the developer/landlord's conveyancer, which office and branch has jurisdiction over a specific Koh Chang plot before assuming which one to use.
Not all land on Koh Chang carries a full Chanote (the strongest, most secure Thai title). Weaker title types β Nor Sor Sam Kor, Nor Sor Sam and others β carry more restrictions and more risk, and a lease can only be registered against land that qualifies. A large share of Koh Chang's interior also sits inside Mu Ko Chang National Park, which further limits what can be legally titled or built on near the treeline. A Thai lawyer pulling the actual title at the Land Office β not a sales brochure β is the only reliable way to know what you're really being offered.
Confirm the title deed type and that it's genuinely registrable; get written confirmation of a condo building's remaining foreign quota if freehold is on the table; have a Thai property lawyer (independent of the seller or agent) review any lease or company structure before you sign; register any lease at the Trat Land Office yourself rather than trusting an unregistered private contract; and if funds are coming from abroad for a freehold condo purchase, arrange the FET form with your Thai bank before, not after, the transfer.
Lease registration (stamp duty) runs to roughly 1.1% of the total lease value for the registered term. Beyond that, budget for independent legal review (a fixed fee, not a percentage, is the norm for a lease or contract review), and factor that Koh Chang's limited freehold condo stock generally commands a premium over comparable villa or leasehold product precisely because it's scarce.
Yes, in principle β the national 49% foreign freehold quota applies on Koh Chang the same as anywhere in Thailand. In practice, genuine registered condominium developments are scarce on the island, and most long-stay housing is houses, bungalows and villas that cannot carry freehold title at all. Confirm a specific building's registration status and remaining quota before assuming a unit qualifies.
No, not outright. Thai law reserves land ownership for Thai nationals and Thai-majority entities. Foreigners living in a house or villa on Koh Chang are typically holding a registered leasehold (up to 30 years), a Thai company structure, or ownership through a Thai spouse β each with real legal limits.
The initial 30-year registered term is valid if properly registered at the Land Office. The pre-agreed 30-year renewal options that used to be sold alongside it are not enforceable following a March 2025 Thai Supreme Court ruling β a renewal is a landlord's promise, not a guaranteed right, and isn't binding on a future owner or heir. Price and negotiate on the real 30-year term.
Through the Trat Provincial Land Office in Trat town, which has jurisdiction over Koh Chang. Trat province also runs district branch offices, so confirm with the office, your lawyer or the seller's conveyancer which specific office handles a given plot before assuming.
It's legal if the Thai shareholders are genuine and the company carries out real business, but Thai authorities have significantly escalated enforcement against companies used purely as nominees to let a foreigner control land β including licence-revocation actions against law and accounting firms in 2025-2026. Get independent Thai legal advice before setting one up, and be wary of anyone who presents it as a simple workaround.
Primary Thai government sources are cited above alongside specialist property-law and local buyer's-guide sources for Koh Chang-specific detail not published by a single official register. Land title status, leasehold enforceability and nominee-company enforcement in Thailand change and are applied differently case by case β always confirm current requirements and title specifics with the Trat Provincial Land Office and an independent Thai property lawyer before relying on them. BAANLYY never takes paid placement in editorial content.
Koh Chang city hub Β· Koh Chang rental market guide Β· National foreign ownership guide Β· Foreign ownership structures Β· 49% quota calculator
Talk to an independent Thai lawyer, then find a place to live on Koh Chang.
Hero photo by Oleg Prachuk on Pexels. General information only, not legal advice. Thai property law, title requirements, lease enforceability and enforcement practices around company and nominee structures change and are applied differently case by case β confirm current requirements with the Department of Lands, the Trat Provincial Land Office and an independent Thai property lawyer before relying on them.