Commerce Ministry Raids Hua Hin Over Fake Thai Nominee Scheme
Commerce Ministry raids in Hua Hin uncovered a scheme using Thai nominees to illegally transfer real estate companies to foreigners, resulting in dozens of arrests and summons across cases valued over 300 million baht.
Commerce Ministry director Poonpong Naiyanaphakorn revealed that on August 10, 2025, he authorized Deputy Director Maliwan Thongluang to lead an anti-nominee task force into Hua Hin district in coordination with police, immigration, and internal security agencies. The operation conducted searches at 15 locations and uncovered a scheme where Thai nationals were listed as shareholders and directors of real estate holding and rental companies, which were later secretly restructured to bring in foreign nationals within six months. Investigators found that Thai and foreign shareholders had no prior acquaintance, violating business conduct standards. The operation resulted in 45 arrest warrants for foreigners, 39 summons for Thai nationals, and 13 arrests across 33 cases valued at over 300 million baht. Officials noted that since August 1, 2025, when the Commerce Ministry tightened registration procedures, nominee-based applications have dropped significantly to just five cases. The ministry vowed to continue monitoring and preventing foreigners from illegally acquiring Thai real estate through nominee schemes.
