The Ministry of Commerce has issued a new Ministerial Regulation (No. 5) B.E. 2569, expanding the list of service businesses that foreign-owned companies may operate without obtaining a Foreign Business License (FBL) under the Foreign Business Act. The regulation was published in the Royal Gazette on 28 August 2026.
The newly announced exemptions include:
- The provision of loans for the purchase of securities;
- The sale of securities under repurchases agreements.
- Futures Business and Other Businesses Regulated under the Futures Contracts Act
- Acting as a futures trader;
- Acting as a futures contract advisor;
- The management of investments in futures contracts (acting as a futures fund manager);
- Purchasing securities subject to a repurchase agreement;
- Acting as futures trader, futures contract advisor, or futures fund manager in relation to futures contracts whose underlying goods or reference variables are not subject to the Futures Contracts Act; and
- Acting as a futures trader, futures contract advisor, or futures fund manager in relation to futures contracts that requires settlement based on an amount calculated by reference to an exchange rate or interest rate, where the trading of such futures contracts is conducted outside a futures exchange.
- Telecommunications business for which a Type 1 Telecommunications License is required, including a license for the operation of telecommunications services without a telecommunications network of its own and with a service nature that allows liberal entry into the market, pursuant to the law governing telecommunications business operations.
- Treasury Center Business under the law governing exchange control.
- Business of providing administrative, human resources, and information technology services among juristic persons prescribed in this Ministerial Regulation.
- Business of providing debt guarantee services exclusively within Thailand between juristic persons prescribed in this Ministerial Regulation.
- Business of leasing certain areas for the installation of electronic machines used for providing financial services and automatic vending machines, in order to provide services and facilitate the employees of the company.
- Petroleum drilling service business, where the contractor has entered into a direct contracting agreement with a concessionaire, a production sharing contractor, or a service contractor under the law governing petroleum.
The new measures are expected to facilitate foreign investment, reduce regulatory burdens, and provide greater flexibility for multinational groups operating in Thailand.
