Global Market Entry
Thailand sits at the center of ASEAN, with treaty and trade relationships that favor different home markets in different ways. Here is what matters for your expansion depending on where you're expanding from.
Choose your origin
Your home market shapes which entity route, treaty, and logistics setup makes sense. These are the patterns we see most often by region.
ASEAN Economic Community
Companies from Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines benefit from ASEAN Free Trade Area tariff reductions and simplified customs procedures. Regional supply chains already routing through Thailand make a local entity a natural extension rather than a new market bet.
Why Thailand
Central ASEAN location with logistics access to Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar within a day's drive.
BOI promotion offering up to 13 years of corporate tax exemption for eligible activities, regardless of home country.
A mature, English-capable professional services ecosystem for legal, accounting, and compliance support.
Lower operating costs than Singapore or Hong Kong, with comparable infrastructure quality in Bangkok and major industrial zones.
A large domestic consumer market of 70 million people alongside re-export access to the broader 600-million-person ASEAN market.
Questions
It depends on your home country and activity. US companies often use the Treaty of Amity for 100% ownership without BOI approval. Companies in technology, manufacturing, or BCG-aligned activities from any country typically pursue BOI promotion for tax holidays. Others use a standard Thai Limited Company, often with a Thai joint-venture partner.
ASEAN Free Trade Area (AFTA) member companies benefit from reduced tariffs on goods trade, but company registration rules for foreign ownership are the same regardless of ASEAN membership — you still need BOI promotion, Foreign Business License, or a Thai majority partner to exceed 49% foreign ownership.
Many companies use Thailand alongside or instead of Singapore for manufacturing, back-office, and regional distribution functions, due to lower operating costs and BOI tax incentives. Singapore often remains preferred for treasury and holding company functions due to its treaty network and financial infrastructure.
DBD's published service time for registering a standard Thai Limited Company is 1 hour 25 minutes once the documents are complete, or 2 working days if another agency must approve; in our experience, Settlr typically completes registration in 14–21 days, and this is our estimate, not an official figure. Adding BOI promotion adds an official BOI review of 40, 60 or 90 working days depending on investment size, counted from complete documents. For US Treaty of Amity companies, the DBD must issue the Foreign Business Certificate within 30 days of receiving the notification (Foreign Business Act section 11). Practical end-to-end timelines run longer once document preparation and company registration are included; this is not an official figure. Visa and work permit processing for relocating staff runs in parallel.
BOI prioritizes advanced technology, biotechnology, EV manufacturing, digital services, BCG (bio-circular-green) economy activities, medical devices, and value-added manufacturing — offering the longest tax exemptions and fastest visa processing for these sectors.
Settlr Global works with companies from every region covered here — entity setup, visas, payroll, accounting, and legal, run by one team so nothing falls through the cracks.
