Was chatting with a (experienced not dumb, green, or bar stool) expat recently and the topic of usufructs and other use rights came up.

He claimed that one advantage of a superficies over a usufruct is that it can be registered, in perpetuity (lifetime) to a non Thai corporation.. I expressed disbelief, especially at the lifetime version (I could imagine it perhaps for a max 30 year) but he claimed he actually had one registered, so short of calling him a lair that was the end of that.

I find this very hard to believe, it would result in being able to give superficies rights to an LLC, which could be inherited, passed on with the corp, wrapped into a trust, etc etc. This would have infinite duration, could own the buildings on the land, it would be protected from marital assets in a split, etc etc. The fact it seems near perfect makes me convinced it cannot be correct.

I have asked 2 lawyers, the first who did not impress me or seem to know much about usufructs superficies etc said that no company can hold one, Thai or otherwise. I am sure this is wrong and that a Thai company can hold superficies so his advice was not counted very highly. The second lawyer said there was no actual law why not, superficies were specifically written with companies in mind, however many land offices 'might not want to register that' which I would accept as being more close to the truth.

Has anyone ever tried this ? What was the outcome and where ?

13 hours ago, LivinLOS said:

He claimed that one advantage of a superficies over a usufruct is that it can be registered, in perpetuity (lifetime) to a non Thai corporation..

Yes, a foreign company can hold a right of superficies (สิทธิเหนือพื้นดิน) in Thailand to legally own buildings or structures they construct on land owned by another party, separating building ownership from land ownership. This right is a registered real right, often utilized for long-term commercial projects, and is valid for a maximum of 30 years (renewable) or for the lifetime of the owner/grantor.

13 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

Yes, a foreign company can hold a right of superficies (สิทธิเหนือพื้นดิน) in Thailand to legally own buildings or structures they construct on land owned by another party, separating building ownership from land ownership. This right is a registered real right, often utilized for long-term commercial projects, and is valid for a maximum of 30 years (renewable) or for the lifetime of the owner/grantor.

You say "a maximum of 30 years (renewable) or for the lifetime of the owner/grantor". Is this an either/or situation? In other words, does it have to be specified which one of these it is or are both of these in effect at the same time?

For example, say the Thai owner dies 1 year after the registration of the superficies. Does that mean it is no longer valid? I would assume not. And if the owner is a Thai company, does this mean the superficies is limited to a maximum of 30 years even if the Thai company exists and owns the land for more than 30 years? I would assume that is the case. In fact, I'm guessing that the superficies can only remain in effect for at most 30 years with the possibility of a renewal after that in this case.

Based upon what I posted, it seems to me that the lifetime of the foreign company doesn't come into play in determining the maximum time of a superficies.

Please correct me if I misunderstand.

On 2/2/2026 at 4:36 PM, LivinLOS said:

He claimed that one advantage of a superficies over a usufruct is that it can be registered, in perpetuity (lifetime) to a non Thai corporation..

Usufruct can also be registered for lifetime

On 2/3/2026 at 8:56 AM, CallumWK said:

Usufruct can also be registered for lifetime

Registered for the lifetime of a foreign owned company?