UPDATE: Phuket nominee landholders face forced sales as crackdown expands

Authorities in Phuket have found 317 companies holding land through suspected nominee structures across 480 plots, and those companies will be forced to sell the land because they have no right to own it, Deputy Interior Minister Vorasit Liangprasit said after visiting the province.

Vorasit said the 317 companies would also be referred to the Department of Special Investigation for further investigation because they showed similar patterns of conduct, were at high risk of holding land on behalf of others, and involved suspected damage valued at nearly 6 billion baht.

He said the government expected clearer consolidated data within two weeks as checks continued, adding that the issue was complex and required careful verification. He said the crackdown on nominee landholding would be expanded to other areas where foreigners have settled.

The latest comments mark a significant expansion of a wider crackdown in the Andaman region that the government had previously said covered Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi.

Earlier, authorities in Phuket inspected 56 land plots worth about 231 million baht as part of that operation, according to the government. Deputy government spokesperson Ploythale Laksameesangchan said the campaign formed part of an urgent policy under Prime Minister and Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul to dismantle nominee structures, in which Thai nationals are allegedly used to hold shares on behalf of foreigners. The campaign is also linked to a broader government plan to tackle transnational crime.

According to the government, the operation, called “Dismantling Foreign Nominee Networks Phase 3”, deployed more than 500 officers from the Royal Thai Police and related agencies across Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi. In the three provinces, authorities inspected 89 land plots covering 49 rai, 1 ngan and 6.4 square wah, with land and buildings valued at about 1.053 billion baht.

In Phuket, officials found 10 companies suspected of acting as nominees, linked to four land plots covering 2 rai, 1 ngan and 50.5 square wah, worth about 116 million baht. The court approved arrest warrants for 12 foreign nationals, totaling 13 warrants.

Officials also identified 39 companies that had bought and occupied land while having foreign shareholders accounting for more than half of ownership. Those companies were linked to 52 land plots covering about 12 rai, 2 ngan and 62.5 square wah, worth around 115 million baht. The court approved 29 search warrants.

Combined, the two Phuket groups involved 56 land plots covering about 15 rai and 13 square wah, with a total value of roughly 231 million baht.

Across Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga, authorities said they found 29 companies suspected of acting as nominees and 48 landholding companies in which foreign shareholders outnumbered Thai shareholders. In total, courts approved 59 arrest warrants and 60 search warrants.

Ploythale said the prime minister had ordered authorities to expand the crackdown nationwide and continue strict enforcement. The public has been urged to report suspected illegal foreign investment activity to local police stations or the Royal Thai Police hotline 1599, which operates around the clock.

The government said Thailand remains open to lawful foreign investment, but is moving more aggressively against nominee arrangements allegedly used to bypass landholding and business ownership rules.

Separately, Vorasit said authorities were also following public land encroachment cases in Phuket, including at Bang Tao, Freedom and Nui beaches. He said expected demolition of structures at Freedom Beach could take place in August after time for affected parties to file complaints, while demolition at Nui Beach could begin in mid-July. He said the Bang Tao case was already in the police process.