Chonburi Officials Flag Nominee-Linked Foreign Investment in Pattaya

Chonburi provincial officials have publicly addressed concerns over foreign nominee arrangements in Pattaya, according to Nation Thailand. Deputy Governor Issara Charoenchasri said Indian nationals account for roughly 10% of investment in the area, much of it in service and entertainment businesses, and that the province would take strict and decisive action against investors of any nationality found to be intentionally evading the law or using nominees. He also pointed to continuing joint inspections of migrant labour and business operations.

The issue was raised alongside a warning from Chonburi MP Yodchai Puengporn, who compared the pattern to the “zero-dollar tour” model, in which money circulates among businesses owned by visitors’ own community and does not genuinely enter the Thai economy.

The concern here spans operating businesses as well as property. For anyone in Chonburi province holding a business or property through a Thai nominee, the message from the province is that such arrangements face inspection and enforcement regardless of the investor’s nationality — a reminder that nominee structures are illegal under Thai law, not a grey area.