A client paid a deposit on a leased office and is now watching the landlord's company quietly wind down

 

A client paid a deposit on a leased office and is now watching the landlord's company quietly wind down. Another has been collecting customer deposits for years without once asking how the Revenue Department views that money.

Deposits touch almost every business in Thailand, and the rules change depending on which side of the transaction you are sitting on.

Since 4 September 2025, anyone renting out three or more residential units counts as a business operator under the Consumer Protection Act. That threshold used to be five. Deposits are capped, returns run on a seven working day clock, and getting it wrong is a criminal matter rather than an unpaid debt. From 30 December 2025 the same approach applies to car and motorcycle rental operators.

There is also no law in Thailand requiring you to hold deposit money separately from your operating account. That is why so many disputes end with a landlord who spent it and cannot give it back.

Lone has written up the legal position, the tax treatment that catches people out, and the five things a deposit clause should cover. [First of three articles on deposits in Thailand.]