Buying or selling property in Thailand means paying four separate government charges on transfer day, and almost nobody quotes them accurately up front. Use the calculator below to work out what a transfer will actually cost, and — just as importantly — how that cost is likely to be split between buyer and seller.
Enter the agreed price, adjust the appraised value, and the figures update as you type.
Thailand transfer fee & closing cost calculator
Rates current to August 2026| Cost | Amount | Who pays |
|---|---|---|
| Transfer fee2% of appraised value | ฿0 | |
| Specific Business Tax3.3% of the higher of sale price or appraised value | ฿0 | |
| Withholding taxProgressive, based on appraised value and years owned | ฿0 | |
| Mortgage registration1% of the loan, capped at ฿200,000 | ฿0 | |
| Land Office administrative feesApplication, witness and document charges — a fixed handful of baht, not percentage-based | ฿0 | |
| Total government cost | ฿0 |
Estimate only. The Land Office calculates the binding figure on transfer day using its own appraised value. Withholding tax in particular depends on how the office counts years of ownership. Who pays what is negotiable and not fixed by law — the splits above are the common starting points, not rules. Reduced 0.01% fees run to 30 June 2027 and are limited to individual Thai national buyers on properties where both the price and appraised value are ฿7m or under.
The figures here are estimates. The Land Office calculates the binding amount on the day of transfer, using its own appraised value and its own record of how long the property has been held. Small changes to either will move the result — and how long you have owned a property is counted in calendar years touched, not elapsed time, so a part year counts as a whole one. Who pays which cost is negotiable and not fixed by law.
Do not commit money, sign, or agree a price on the strength of these numbers alone. Have them confirmed by your lawyer, accountant or the Land Office first. Perfect Homes accepts no liability for decisions made on the basis of this tool.
Spotted something that looks wrong? Tell us — we check every report.
The four costs on a Thai property transfer
Every transfer at the Land Office attracts up to four charges. Which ones apply depends on who is buying, who is selling, and how long the property has been owned.
Transfer fee — 2%. Charged on the government appraised value, not the sale price. This is the one most buyers have heard of, and the one most often quoted incorrectly.
Specific Business Tax — 3.3%. Charged on the higher of the sale price or the appraised value. It applies when a seller disposes of a property held for less than five years, or when the seller is a company.
Stamp duty — 0.5%. Applies instead of Specific Business Tax when the seller is exempt from it. The difference between 3.3% and 0.5% is substantial, which is why the five-year mark and the house registration book matter so much.
Withholding tax — progressive. Calculated on the appraised value using a sliding scale that takes account of how many years the seller has owned the property. Longer ownership means a larger deduction before tax is applied. Where the seller is a company, it is a flat 1% instead.
A fifth charge, the mortgage registration fee, applies at 1% of the loan where the purchase is financed. It is capped at ฿200,000.
Who actually pays the transfer fee in Thailand?
There is no law that assigns these costs to one side. In practice, the convention across most of Thailand is that the transfer fee is split evenly between buyer and seller, while the taxes fall to the seller — but this is a starting position for negotiation, not a rule.
In a soft market, sellers frequently absorb the whole transfer fee to close a deal. In a competitive one, buyers sometimes take the lot. Off-plan purchases from developers often have the split written into the contract, so check before you assume.
This is why the calculator lets you move each line independently between buyer, seller and a 50/50 split. Change the allocation and the two totals at the bottom update, showing what each side pays in baht and as a percentage of the purchase price. It is a useful thing to have open during a negotiation.
Why the appraised value matters more than the sale price
The government appraised value is the figure the Treasury Department assigns to a property. It is not the market price, and it is usually a good deal lower — the gap runs to 30–40% in many parts of Thailand.
That gap works in your favour, because the transfer fee and the seller’s withholding tax are both calculated on the appraised value rather than what you actually paid. Assume the two are the same and you will overestimate your costs significantly.
You can look up the appraised value for a specific plot or condominium unit free of charge through the Treasury Department’s D-Value service, or the TRD Property Valuation app. If you don’t have it to hand, leave the calculator on estimate mode — it defaults to 65% of the sale price, which is a reasonable working assumption for most Chiang Mai property.
The 0.01% reduced fee — and why it probably doesn’t apply to you
The Thai government has repeatedly extended a stimulus measure cutting the transfer fee from 2% to 0.01%. The current extension runs to 30 June 2027.
The catch is that it is restricted to individual Thai national buyers, on residential property where both the sale price and the appraised value are ฿7 million or below. Foreign buyers are excluded and pay the standard 2%. Purchases through a Thai company are excluded too.
For a Thai buyer purchasing at ฿5 million, the measure is worth roughly ฿65,000 on the transfer fee alone. For a foreign buyer of the same unit, it is worth nothing — which is a difference worth understanding before you budget.
A change coming in January 2027
Appraised values are revised on a four-year cycle, and the next round takes effect on 1 January 2027. The Treasury Department has said openly that it intends to narrow the gap between appraised and market values.
If those values rise, so do the transfer fee, the withholding tax and the annual land and building tax — even for owners with no intention of selling. Anyone whose transfer is likely to complete in 2027 should model a higher appraised value than the calculator’s default, and anyone weighing up timing should factor it in.
What the calculator doesn’t cover
It handles the government charges only. A complete purchase budget also needs to account for legal fees, due diligence, the Foreign Exchange Transaction form for overseas transfers, sinking fund and common area fees on a condominium, and agency commission where that falls to you.
We’re happy to put together a full cost breakdown for any specific property — including the ones that aren’t ours. Get in touch.
