The short answer

Start in South Africa. Up to R2 million a calendar year can go abroad under your single discretionary allowance without SARS approval. Above that, you can send up to a further R10 million under the foreign investment allowance — but only once SARS has approved an Approval International Transfer (AIT) application, which can take several weeks.

Then send the purchase money from your own account, in foreign currency — not baht — to a Thai bank account, yours or the developer's, with a reference naming the condo and unit. The receiving Thai bank converts it to baht and issues a Foreign Exchange Transaction (FET) form for transfers of USD 50,000 or more; for smaller transfers, keep the credit advices and ask for a bank letter. You hand the FET to the Land Office on transfer day.

And compare exchange rates carefully: on a ฿5 million condo, a rate 3% below the mid-market costs about R75,800 more than the same money at mid-market — three times the buyer's share of the Thai transfer fee.

How much you can move from South Africa

The exchange control limits for South African tax residents in 2026, per calendar year.

South African Reserve Bank, 8 April 2026, as summarised by FA News (2026). Allowances are per person, per calendar year, so spouses each have their own. Your bank or FX provider handles the exchange control reporting. Check the current limits before you sign a contract.

Get SARS approval before you sign

The single biggest timing risk for a South African buyer isn't in Thailand — it's the SARS approval for money above your R2 million allowance. SARS checks your tax compliance before it issues the AIT approval, and outstanding returns, disputed assessments or profile mismatches can hold it up.

1. Check your SARS profile now: returns filed, nothing outstanding, details up to date.
2. Gather the evidence of where the money comes from — bank statements, sale of investments or property, inheritance documents.
3. Apply for AIT approval through eFiling or a tax practitioner, for the amount above your allowance.
4. Align the contract dates with the expected approval, or negotiate a deposit now and the balance later.
5. Use your allowance first — the R2 million can go immediately, for example as the deposit.

Couples buying together can each use their own allowances — but remember the Thai side: the FET names whoever sends the money, so the sender should be a buyer named on the title.

Why the money has to arrive in Thailand from abroad

Thailand's Condominium Act lets foreigners own condo units, but only on conditions. Two matter here:

• The 49% foreign quota. Foreign owners together may hold no more than 49% of the total floor area of all units in a building, measured when the condominium was registered. If the quota is full, a foreigner can't buy there, however the money arrives.
• Proof of foreign funds. Section 19 ter of the Act requires a foreign buyer to give the Land Office documentary evidence that the purchase money was brought into Thailand in foreign currency. The Supreme Court has upheld that without correct evidence, the sale can't be registered.

In practice, "evidence" means the FET form from the bank that received your money. Ask the developer or seller to confirm in writing that the unit falls within the foreign quota before you send anything.

The FET form, explained

The Foreign Exchange Transaction form — formerly called the Tor Tor 3 — is the receiving Thai bank's record that foreign currency came into Thailand and was converted into baht. It isn't a tax document or a permit; it's evidence.

What makes an FET work at the Land Office is the detail on it. Four things matter most:

1. The sender is you. The money should come from an account in the buyer's own name. If it comes from a company, a family trust, a parent, a spouse or a friend, the FET names them, not you.
2. It arrives in foreign currency. US dollars, rand or another foreign currency, converted by the Thai bank. If baht arrives, there's no FET.
3. The purpose is specific. "Purchase of condominium unit 1205, The Example Residence, Bangkok" — not "investment", "gift" or nothing at all.
4. You check it early. Get the form or bank letter while the deal is still in progress and check every detail; correcting it after the transfer is booked can be difficult.

Rand or US dollars?

The Thai rule is that the money must arrive in a foreign currency and be converted in Thailand. Rand is a foreign currency in Thailand, so in principle a rand transfer qualifies. In practice, many South African banks and FX providers send large international payments in US dollars, and Thai banks deal with dollars every day.

Either way, ask two questions before you send:

• Ask the receiving Thai bank which currencies it will accept and convert for a property purchase, and confirm it will issue the FET for that currency.
• Ask your South African bank or FX provider what currency the payment will leave in, and what rate applies at each conversion. Rand to dollars in South Africa, then dollars to baht in Thailand, means two exchange margins.

What you must avoid is a payment that converts to baht before it reaches Thailand. Whatever the route, compare the final baht amount that arrives — that's the number that buys the condo.

Ways to send the money — and which give you an FET

How common transfer methods line up with the Land Office requirement. Always confirm with the receiving bank before you send.

Based on ThaiLawOnline's FET guide (updated 28 September 2026). Banks and Land Offices differ in practice; check with both, and your lawyer, before sending.

Who to use at each end

A South African purchase needs someone to move the money and a Thai bank to receive it. These are the usual choices.

Do you need your own Thai bank account?

Not necessarily for the purchase itself. Many buyers — especially of new-build condos — send the money straight to the developer's Thai bank account, and the developer's bank issues the FET. On a resale, the money often goes to the buyer's own Thai account first, and the buyer then pays the seller with a bank cheque on transfer day.

But you will want a Thai account for owning the property: paying the common-area (juristic) fees, the sinking fund, utilities and any rental income. Owning a condo is one of the recognised routes to opening an account — Bangkok Bank, for example, accepts property owners even when they don't hold a long-stay visa, usually with the title deed or purchase contract.

For the basics of opening an account, see our guide to opening a Thai bank account as a foreigner.

The costs on transfer day

The standard government costs when a condo changes hands at the Land Office. Who pays which is negotiable and should be in your contract.

Standard rates as summarised by Aster of Asia (2026) and widely published elsewhere. The 1 July 2026 – 30 June 2027 reduced transfer fee applies only to Thai individuals buying property valued at ฿7 million or less; foreign buyers pay the standard 2%. Transfer fee shown on the full price for simplicity — it's charged on the assessed value. Confirm the split with your lawyer and the Land Office.

Getting a good exchange rate on a large sum

On a ฿5 million condo — about R2.45 million — every 1% on the exchange rate is worth roughly R24,500. And the rand moved almost 10% against the baht in the year to October 2026, from about ฿1.89 in January to ฿2.07 in September. On this purchase, that swing alone was worth over R230,000.

A few things help:

• Compare the baht that will arrive, not the headline fee, from your bank and an FX specialist, on the same day for the same amount.
• Ask about both conversions if the money goes rand to dollars to baht.
• Consider fixing the rate once you have a firm completion date and your SARS approval is on its way. A forward contract removes the risk of the rand weakening before you pay.
• Move money in stages for off-plan purchases, matched to the payment schedule and your allowances, rather than all at once.

Whatever you choose, the essentials don't change: send from your own account, in foreign currency, with a clear purpose — and keep every document. Our guide to ZAR to THB exchange rates explains where the margins hide.

Financing a purchase: why most foreigners pay cash

Most foreign buyers in Thailand pay for their condo outright. Thai banks lend to foreigners only rarely — usually to people with a work permit, a Thai income and a long history with the bank — and the terms tend to be tighter than for Thai borrowers. If you don't live and work here, assume a Thai mortgage isn't available.

That leaves a few common routes, each with its own banking implications:

Whichever route you take, the money should leave an account in your own name and arrive in Thailand in foreign currency. A loan paid directly from a lender to a Thai account, or money routed through a relative or a family trust, can produce paperwork that doesn't match the buyer.

Letting the condo out

If you plan to let the condo, set up the banking for it from the start. Rent paid by Thai tenants will arrive in your Thai account, in baht. That rental income is Thai-source income and taxable in Thailand whether or not you live here — and if you're still a South African tax resident, it's part of your worldwide income for SARS too, with credit generally available for the Thai tax paid under the South Africa–Thailand tax agreement.

• Use one account for the condo: rent in, fees and bills out. It makes both tax returns simple.
• Check the building's rules on short-term letting before you buy; many condos restrict it.
• Keep receipts for fees, repairs and furnishings.
• Insure for letting — a standard contents policy may not cover a tenanted property.
• Declare the condo to SARS as a foreign asset where required, and keep the purchase records for capital gains tax when you sell.

The mistakes that hold up a sale

1. Signing before SARS approval. A short completion date with an AIT application still pending can leave you in breach of contract.
2. Sending baht. A transfer that converts before Thailand and delivers baht means no FET. Fixing it can mean sending the money out and back again.
3. The wrong sender. Money sent by a partner, parent, company or trust produces an FET in their name, not the buyer's.
4. A vague reference. "Investment" or a blank purpose field may not link the money to the purchase in the Land Office's eyes.
5. Splitting to stay under the threshold. Many small transfers mean many documents to reconcile, and look odd. Send the amount you need.
6. Checking the FET too late. Errors spotted on transfer day are hard to fix. Check the form as soon as it's issued.
7. Ignoring the foreign quota. If the building's 49% is used up, the money is in Thailand but the unit can't be registered to you.
8. No rand buffer. If the rand weakens between contract and payment, the same baht price costs more rand. Budget a margin or fix the rate.

Running costs once you own it

After transfer day, the bank account becomes the place your condo's running costs come from: common-area (juristic) fees, usually billed annually or quarterly; electricity and water; internet; and building insurance for your unit and contents. If you rent the condo out, rental income arrives here too.

Building insurance arranged by the juristic person usually covers the structure and common areas, not your contents, fixtures or liability. A separate home and contents policy is worth having, especially if you let the property or leave it empty for months between visits from South Africa.

If you're moving here rather than buying to let, the rest of the move follows: schools, healthcare and settling in with a family or pets. If children are coming too, ask about school-fee planning, or compare schools in our international schools directory.

When you sell: getting the money back out

The FET isn't only for buying. When you sell a condo you bought with foreign funds, the original FET and purchase documents help show that the money came in from abroad, which supports sending the sale proceeds back out. Banks will ask for the sale documents and the purpose of the transfer, and the seller's taxes are deducted at the Land Office on the day of sale.

When the money arrives back in South Africa, your bank will ask you to declare it before crediting it, and SARS will expect the gain to be declared if you're still a South African tax resident. Keep a file with the original FET or bank letters, the AIT approval, the purchase contract, the title deed (chanote), and every transfer record for as long as you own the property. It's the paper trail you'll need when the money comes home.

How we researched this guide

We based this guide on ThaiLawOnline's guide to the FET form (published August 2026, updated September 2026), which cites the Condominium Act and Supreme Court Decision 7500/2552; a 2026 summary of Thai property transfer costs and the July 2026 fee reduction; published bank information on foreign currency accounts; and FA News's 2026 summary of the South African single discretionary and foreign investment allowances and the SARS AIT process. Bank, Land Office and SARS practice varies. Checked 22 October 2026. This guide is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice — use an independent Thai lawyer for any property purchase.