Hi,

1. I would like to know if it is legal to give a good friend cash to build a house on his own land. We have a gay relationship but not legally attached. I understand it is illegal for a farang to buy a house for his Thai wife because of a conflict with a husband's land inheritance rights but does this apply to just a friend also as I would have no legal rights to the land or the house?

2. When I transferred the cash over from the UK I stated it was for the purchase of a condo, would it then be illegal to give the same cash to a friend to build a house?

There's nothing illegal about giving money to a Thai (for the purpose of building a house or other), whether you're in a homo- or heterosexual relationship, period.

Whether or not your well advised to do so, i suggest you consult the gay forum.

1) You can give your money to whoever you want for whatever you want, up to you. And, it is not illegal for a foreigner (or farang as you put it) to buy a house for his Thai wife.

2) Stating the money was for a condo purchase only means you would have got a Foreign Exchange Transfer (FET) from the bank which is required to get a condo in your name, if you decided to change your mind, no problem.

Thanks for the advice guys - seems I'm Ok after all!