# Starting a business in Thailand - advice needed



## timdownunder (5 d ago)

Hi there

I am an Australian with a business background interested in starting up a business in Thailand (possibly in the rapidly growing Cannabis industry) and am keen to connect with expats who have moved to Thailand and set up businesses. 

I have done some initial research into the Thai business structure options available and it seems that a Thai majority model may be the simplest and best approach. This requires a Thai business partner who owns 51% of the share capital meaning technically that I would be a minority shareholder in my company which could be a problem depending upon the ethics and trustworthiness of the Thai business partner. A similar option exists for starting a business or buying property in Indonesia and there are plenty of horror stories of expats being ripped off in that country.

To set up a Thai majority company requires start-up capital of 2 million Bhat (about $87,000 in aussie dollars). This is reduced to 1 million Bhat if you are married to a Thai national. This could be an attractive option as I am single and definitely attracted to Thai ladies (heh heh). Although, being married to your business partner brings a whole level of risks and complications.

To enter the country with the intent of starting a business requires a non-immigrant B (Business) Visa with 3 month or 12 month options, so I gather you would need to keep reapplying for this Visa which is annoying but not too expensive (2,000 Bhat for 3 months or 5,000 Bhat for 12 months).

One thing that concerns me is the paperwork involved - I hear that the paperwork required by Thai authorities in setting up and running a business is pretty onerous and it is literally mainly paper-based and all in Thai (I have very limited Thai language ability).

Seems like a daunting prospect for an expat to start a business in Thai but many are doing it and there are some great business opportunities in Thailand - especially now that Cannabis has been decriminalised. 

Anyway, would love to hear experiences from Expats on this forum. Let me know your thoughts.

Cheers, Tim


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## JR Rosenberger (3 mo ago)

Hey Tim - John here.

Just a note. As I understand it - I looked into this as well - a good local lawyer that deals in this aspect would be a good way to go. They will get you two Thai nationals to "sign on" as co owners. This splits their ownership of the 51% until you can become a national in two years. This way you would still have a controlling interest in the company and they are prohibited to combine. Plus they can greatly help with all the proper paperwork - at a fee of course. But considering the time and effort it could save... probably be worth it.
That is if I remember how this works.
Unfortunately, I don't have any recommendations to any good lawyers at the moment, but I might find some as I have a couple of connections in country. 
Currently I'm still in the States until next month then I'm immigrating permanently to Chiang Mai.
Good luck to you, brother


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## Moulard (Feb 3, 2017)

Tim,

The issue you mention about having limited Thai ability is easily rectified and if this is something you are serious about, now is the perfect time to pick up your Thai where you left it off as the academic year is soon to commence here in Australia.

Once upon a time there were 5 or 6 universities teaching Thai, but these days I think there are only a small handful. I know ANU offers it online.., UQLD looks like is teaching it too.. there may be others.. no doubt you can search for them as well as I can.

If academic level Thai is not your speed (or budget) then there are also a number of small community language schools out there. Mostly geared to the Thai expat community to ensure their children understand Thai.. most offer Adult classes too. Bound to be at least one school in each of the capital cities..


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## timdownunder (5 d ago)

Hi Moulard



Moulard said:


> Tim,
> 
> The issue you mention about having limited Thai ability is easily rectified and if this is something you are serious about, now is the perfect time to pick up your Thai where you left it off as the academic year is soon to commence here in Australia.
> 
> ...


Hi Moulard,

Thanks for the response. Yes, learning Thai is essential to building a successful and enriching life in Thailand, especially if you want to build networks and friendships outside the expat community. I'm based in a small regional city in NSW so university course options are limited but there are some great language learning resources and I have a couple of Thai friends here that I can practice with. I have a 2-3 year plan to relocate to Thailand so plenty of time to master the language. Must admit, learning a language, especially such a tonal language like Thai, becomes challenging as you get older but not impossible if you commit yourself


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## Moulard (Feb 3, 2017)

We all forget that English is a tonal language too, but tones are used to impart different information... consider for a moment the quintessential rising terminal used to indicate a question.. but I get your point.

Its expensive, but you could consider the ANU.. its offered through OLA remote learning

I looked into it when I decided to refresh my Thai but decided that both the price point and the amount of time I would need to dedicate for a universtity paced course was more than I could afford at the time.

But outside of that there are tons of resources out there that you can use .. much more than when I first learned Thai.


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