Introduction: A Representative Office allows a foreign company to establish a physical place of operations in Thailand. The company is then allowed to use the Office to engage in limited non-trading activities inside of the country. These activities are limited to operations that non-revenue-earning activities in Thailand that are listed below. To be eligible for a Representative Office a company needs to have specific operational purposes in Thailand and must complete the necessary filing process. Once these two requirements have been met and the government has approved the application the company will be subject to a few legal requirements to maintain the Representative Office, but will receive numerous benefits and the ability to operate inside of Thailand.

Purpose requirements: To create a Representative Office in Thailand a foreign company’s purpose must be one of the following:

· To search for a source of products or services in Thailand that will be used or sold by the company overseas,

· To ensure the quality or quantity of the products made in Thailand,

· To provide the company with advice concerning which goods or services should be acquired,

· To provide information to individuals in Thailand concerning the company’s products or services, or

· To inform the company about Thai economic activities.

Notes: The Representative Office must complete at least one of the listed purposes to be operational. However, the Office may not perform activities outside of those listed purposes.

Filing Requirements: If a foreign company is setting up a Representative Office for one of the above purposes application process may begin. First, the company must have an Alien Business Permit in order to establish a Representative Office. Second, once an Alien Business Permit has been acquired the following is a list of documents that must be submitted to the Commercial Registrar along with the necessary application:

· Proof of an Alien Business Permit,

· An affidavit from the manager or corporate officer that states the company’s name, its registration number, its date of registration, its address, and what jurisdiction the company is registered under,

· A list of the company’s directors with their names, addresses, nationalities, ages, races, number of shares held, and information on which directors have the power to bind the company,

· A copy of the company’s Articles of Incorporation or Memorandum of Association,

· A copy of the company’s Articles of Association,

· An account of the company’s capital, the number of shares along with the par value of each, and the amount of capital stock that has been paid up (the amount of capital assigned to the Representative Office must be 5 million baht over a period of five years with 2 million baht allocated for the first year),

· A list of the company’s shareholders, their nationalities and number of shares held by each,

· Any documents proving that the Representative Office’s manager will have sufficient power of attorney to run the company (if the manager is a foreign citizen then a copy of the manager’s passport must also be provided and if the manager is Thai then a copy of his or her national ID and household registration must be provided.)

The following is a list of documents that might be needed for the application to be fully processed:

· An accurate description of the company’s purpose in Thailand

· An account of why the Office is necessary

· A projection of the impact the Office will have on the Thai economy and society

· A Thai translation of the company’s financial report for the last three years

· A list of employees who will work at the Office including their names and salaries

· A prediction for the Office’s expenses over the next three years

· An account of the machinery and office equipment to be used at the Office.

Notes: All documents must be notarized at the Notary Public before being submitted to the Commercial Registrar.

Benefits and Legal Requirements after Creation: Having a Representative Office in Thailand comes with numerous benefits, the leading among which is that company will be able to directly interact with the products, services and information in Thailand. Additionally, Representative Offices normally are exempt from paying income taxes. Also, two work permits are automatically available to foreign citizens if the office either advises its company about the Thai economy, advices its company on products or services or provides information inside of Thailand. Five work permits are automatically available to foreign citizens if the office searches for sources of products and services or ensures the quality and quantity of the products and services.

However, the Representative office must submit an annual report to the Ministry of Commerce about its activities. Additionally, the Representative Office will have to pay a minimum government fee of 20,000 baht and a maximum government fee of 250,000 baht. These fees are based on the amount capital held by the foreign company with 5 baht charged for every 1,000 baht of capital held.