Business Information
Starting a Business in Thailand
Listed below is a summary of the bureaucratic and legal hurdles an
entrepreneur must overcome in order to incorporate and register a
new firm, along with their associated time and set-up costs. It
examines the procedures involved in launching a commercial or
industrial firm with up to 50 employees and start-up capital of 10
times the economy's per-capita gross national income (GNI).
The information appearing on this page was collected as part of
the Doing Business Project, which measures and compares
regulations relevant to the life cycle of a small- to medium-sized
domestic business in 183 economies. It is recommended that you
use this as a guide only and contact the Thailands Department of
Business Development located at (www.thairegistration.com or
www.dbd.go.th)
1. Apply for permission to use company name
Individuals can search and reserve a company name on the
Thailands Department of Business Development located at
(www.thairegistration.com or www.dbd.go.th) Otherwise, they can
apply for a name reservation in person at the Department’s
Registrar.
2. Deposit paid-in capital in a bank
Once the company gets approval for the memorandum and the
articles of association, it must hold a statutory meeting, and
shareholders must pay in at least 25% of the registered capital.
3. Obtain a corporate seal
According to Thai law, a company is not required to have a
corporate seal except for affixation on company share certificates.
In practice, however, a Thai company usually affixes its corporate
seal to other documents.
4. Get approval for memorandum of association and apply to
register the company as a legal entity (final registration) at the
Private Limited Companies Registrar.
The application for registration of the memorandum of association
must contain (a) the company names in Thai and in a foreign
language (for certificate of company name, see Procedure 1); (b)
nature of business; (c) capital to be registered; (d) number and par
value of shares; (e) address of the headquarters; (f) names, ages,
and addresses of Individuals; (g) number of shares subscribed by
each promoter; and (h) signatures of all Individuals.
- The Individuals prepare the application for registration of the
memorandum of association containing the details specified in
procedure.
- The first statutory meeting shall still be convened, provided that
the notice to summon the first statutory meeting is not required;
- The shareholders must pay at least 25% of the registered capital;
- The Individuals and authorized signatory director must sign the
applications for registration of memorandum of association and for
registration of incorporation, respectively, before Private Limited
Companies Registrar, attorney at law, or auditor registered with the
Registrar.
However, if the company has adopted complicated articles of
association, the Registrar may take a few days to review the
company's articles of association. In such case, the registration of
company incorporation may be prolonged for a few days or more.
5. Register with the Revenue Department for tax
Within 60 days of incorporation, the company must register with
the Revenue Department to obtain a taxpayer identification card.
The same tax number appears on the VAT certificate and on the
taxpayer identification card, which are normally obtained on the
same date of application filing. However, the VAT certificate will be
mailed separately to the company’s registered address.
Businesses earning more than THB 1,800,000 per year must
register for VAT within 30 days from the date the income was
earned. The company must also file VAT returns within the 15th
day of each month. This is required even if no income was derived
in the preceding month. VAT registration must be filed in person at
the same office as for income tax registration. The procedure takes
1–3 days.
6. Register for social security and Workmen’s Compensation
Fund at the Social Security Office, Ministry of Labor
Employers (with one or more employees) must register their
employees for social security and workers’ compensation
insurance by in person at the Social Security Office, Ministry of
Labor.
7. Submit company work regulations to the Office of Labor
Protection and Welfare of the Ministry of Labor at the district
where the head office of the company is located
The company work regulations are reviewed by the Office of Labor
Protection and Welfare, and the company is advised on the
required revisions. An employer with 10 or more regular employees
must establish written rules and regulations (in Thai) that comply
with the amendments of the Labor Protection Act B.E. 2541 on
work performance. The regulations must be displayed at the work
premises within 15 days of hiring 10 or more employees. This
procedure takes 2–4 weeks.