Representative Office - Thailand

By Panwa Group of Companies, Bangkok and Phuket

Representative Office ( Rep Office) Thailand - Setting up and Registration

Setting up a Representative Office (Rep Office) in Thailand is a good way for foreign businesses to explore business opportunitis in Thailand or the region.

Application documents:

1. A copy of a affidavit or evidence of juristic person status containing particulars of the name, capital, objects, place of business, list of directors and authorized signatories of the juristic person.
2. A letter of appointment of a representative issued by the authorized signatory of the juristic person applicant as appointer of the agent in charge of the operations in Thailand on behalf of the juristic person.
3. A copy of the appointed representative’s passport for foreigners (first page and page with the latest immigration stamp of arrival in Thailand) or copy of Thai ID card for Thai nationality.
4. A map indicating the approximate location of the place of business operation in Thailand.
5. Copy of house registration of the address in Thailand.
6. A power of attorney in the case where another person has been authorized to act on the applicants behalf.
7. A declaration of details of the type of business for which a license application is made.

Procedure and estimated Time: Submit the documents to MOC 1 day and the license will be ready within 7 days.

Fees Rates:

• Service fee is Baht 50,000
• Non-government fee

Scope of business of a representative office

• Procurement of supply sources for goods and services in Thailand for the head office.
• Inspection and control of the quality and volume of goods purchased by the head office or hired by the head office for production in Thailand.
• Consultation on various aspects pertaining to the goods distributing by the head office to the district agent or consumer of goods.
• Dissemination of various information pertaining to new goods or services offered by the head office.
• Reporting business movements in Thailand to the head office.

General Criteria:

1. The office must be a juristic person established under the laws of a foreign country.
2. The office must not derive any revenue from its offices.
3. The office cannot accept purchase orders, make sales offers or engage in business negotiations with any person.
4. The office must receive subsidies for office expenses from the head office only.
5. The office must prepare financial statements from the Accounting Act.

Conditions:

1. Loans from banks or other financial institutions which are incidental to a licensee’s business operations, where the representative office registered in Thailand can be made to an amount not exceeding the proportion of one part capital to seven parts loan.
2. The appointed of representative office in Thailand can be the foreigner(s) or Thai nationality and individual only.

Warning:

• The applicant must completely fill in the application form in print, which must also be signed by the applicant or by an appointee in the case where another person was authorized by a power of attorney to act on his/her behalf.
• In the case where a power of attorney was executed in a foreign country, such power of attorney must be notarized by an official or by a person who has been prescribed with the powers of notarization by the laws of such country, or by an authorized official of the Royal Thai Embassy or Royal Thai Consulate stationed in such country at a time not exceeding six months prior to the date of submission of application.
• In the case where the power of attorney was executed in Thailand and the appointer does not have residence in Thailand, a copy or photocopy of the passport or certificate of temporary residence, or other evidence showing that at the time of the power of attorney such person had truly entered into Thailand, must be submitted.
• If the evidence or documents submitted in support of the application are in a foreign language, their translations in Thai must be provided. The applicant and the translator must affix their signatures to certify the correctness of the translations.
• The applicant must certify the correctness of copies or photocopies of evidence or documents submitted

Place of application for a license:

• The application need to submit at the Department of Business Development, Ministry of Commerce only.

REMARK: After the registration of representative office, the information will be or linked to the Revenue Department (RD) system. Thus, it is required to check with the Revenue Department in your office area and may your representative office also need to apply for tax id card to such Department

Tax Guidance for Representative Office in Thailand click here.

Q & A

1. Q3: One of the main question I have is this: as a Rep office, can it hold licence or Certifications ?
   Panwa; Rep Office is unable to get licenses or certification for TISI standard and do not allow to carry on business in Thailand except below scope.
2. Procurement of supply sources for goods and services in Thailand for the head office.
3. Inspection and control of the quality and volume of goods purchased by the head office or hired by the head office for production in Thailand.
4. Consultation on various aspects pertaining to the goods distributing by the head office to the district agent or consumer of goods.
5. Dissemination of various information pertaining to new goods or services offered by the head office.
6. Reporting business movements in Thailand to the head office.

•  Application fee: 2,000 baht
• When obtain the license, five baht for every thousand baht of the registered capital subject to a minimum fee of 20,000 baht and a maximum fee of 250,000 baht; the amount in excess of one thousand baht shall be deemed as equivalent to one thousand baht.

Q6: I am interested in opening a Representative Office in the Phuket area. My company is located in the Canada for international HR consulting firm. We will not be engaged in any sales or profit activity in Thailand, our customers are in USA, Europe, Cambodia, Lao PDR and Myanmar. The purpose of the office is for staying here in Thailand and for my personal communication and coordination.

For more information, please feel free to contact us:
Phone Nos.: +66 2 933 9000
Fax: +66 2 933 6120
Email: bkk@panwa.co.th