Buying a car in Thailand

This article begins with the usual disclaimer that laws in Thailand can change on a day to day basis and like every thing else here, depends where you go, who you see and what day of the week. The information provided is based on a consensus of personal experience.

If you want to buy a car in Thailand, you need the following documents:

Copy of your passport, showing picture & visa page
You only need a tourist visa in your passport. Please note that you can not buy a car with the "30 day stamp on arrival"! "certificate of residence" you'll get from the immigration bureau when you make your (90 days) address notification within 24 hours after entering the country. (Once you have this certificate, make a few copies of it for later use, e.g. telephone, motorbike. Armed with this papers you go to the car or motorbike dealer and buy a car or motorbike.

Nonresident foreigners legally cannot own a car, though some have bought a car anyway, got it registered, etc. The only foreigners known to do this had a work permit and tax ID number. Usually, a foreigner is a shareholder in a company, and the company buys the car, or else the foreigners’ trusted Thai friend owns the car. Beware if putting in the name of a Thai spouse, because if the marriage is legally registered, then the spouse cannot own the car. This is due to a history of sham marriages to foreigners for the purpose of buying.

Every car must have two stickers on the windshield. One is for the license plate registration and is renewed annually when you pay tax. The other one is your mandatory car insurance through a private agent. The First Class Insurance policy covers the cars occupants, damaged property, your own vehicle and adequate liability. This First Class policy usually runs about 20-30 Thousand Thai Baht for the first year. If you have no claims, it is reduced by 20% the second year and again by 20% for the third. You may also need a low end mandatory Thai insurance required by the State and costing about 1,600 Baht if they do not accept your private insurance as being enough.

Make sure both insurance and registration are current, both year and date or you will receive fines! The registration is usually payable at neighborhood pay points like banks and 7-11.

When you buy a new car, the registration process is normally handled by the dealer. If you are purchasing through financing, the finance company make obligate you to choose their personal insurance dealer as they receive commissions.

However, if you are transferring a car to a new owner privately, then you do so at the Department of Land Transport, as covered in the section on registration. Registration cost is based on the engine size. If you are on low budget and you want to buy second hand, make sure they paid the taxes for it, otherwise you will be presented with the tax bill for the last 5 years or so.

If purchasing for a new or second hand dealer, the shop will usually do all the registration stuff for you and outside Bangkok it can take up to 6 month before you finally get your plate number and registration papers. You may drive your car with a temporary (red) plate number. This means you are not allowed to drive the car outside of your province, nor after dark
(6pm).

Once you own the car, it is strongly advised that you get a visible lock bar for the steering wheel and have a good security system. Car theft occurs in Thailand, especially new and valuable models. Road coverage policy in case you break down on the highway in some remote location are available for about Baht 3,000 per year or may be included in your private insurance.

If you have updated information or anything you would like to add to this article, please contact Cars4Thais.com and thanks for helping us provide the best information available on the web!