Representative

The Regulation of the office of the Prime Minister BE 2529 (AD 1986) defines a representative office as an office of a foreign company which is located in Thailand and in the business of trading internationally.

Trading representative offices may carry out the following activities:

• Finding suppliers of goods or services in Thailand for the overseas head office

• Checking and controlling the quality and quantity of goods purchased or hired by the head office for manufacturing purposes in Thailand

• Providing advice on various aspects of goods sold by its head office to agents, distributors and/or customers in Thailand

• Providing information to interested persons in Thailand concerning goods or services of the head office; and

• Reporting to the head office on movements of business in Thailand.
The definition of a representative office excludes regional offices and other business-related trading activities. A representative office in Thailand is considered a liaison office and may not engage in any profit-seeking or profit-making enterprise. Over the five-year initial life of the permit, at least five million Baht must be remitted into Thailand for operational expenses of the representative office, with two million Baht in the first operational year, and a least one million Baht in each of the following three years. Remittances can be made only after the permit is granted.

Representative offices do not generate income and therefore pay no tax. If the representative office exceeds the scope of the above activities, it may be regarded as doing business in Thailand and become subject to taxation on all income received in Thailand.

A representative office must obtain an Alien Business Permit under Annex C, Chapter 3(1) of NEC Announcement No. 281 (the Alien Business Law) to start its activities. This Permit, valid for five years, serves as the permission/license to establish a representative office. An application for a permit to establish a representative office, together with supporting documents, as well as applications for work permits and visas, must be filed with the Commercial Registration Department of the Ministry of Commerce. Normally, work permits will be granted for up to five persons.