Only four of the over 26,000 businesses in Thailand that were inspected by the Business Development Department were found to be illegally operating through nominee arrangements, while an additional 64 were identified for accounting law violations.
Auramon Supthaweethum, director-general of the department, announced on Monday that her team recently conducted inspections of 26,019 businesses across four sectors: tourism and related services, real estate, hotels and resorts, and logistics. The aim was to identify foreign-owned companies operating under Thai nominees.
These businesses were located in six provinces: Bangkok, Surat Thani, Prachuap Khiri Khan, Chiang Mai, Phuket, and Chon Buri. Following initial screening, 498 businesses were flagged for further investigation, and 371 of these were cleared, according to Ms. Auramon.
Of the remaining 127 businesses, 64 faced allegations of accounting violations and have been referred to the Revenue Department for further examination.
Investigations into the other 63 businesses are still ongoing, with four confirmed to be operating through nominees, situated in Bangkok, Surat Thani, and Prachuap Khiri Khan.
“The department is also expanding its investigation to include other sectors in response to public and entrepreneur complaints about low-quality imported goods and foreign businesses that are not complying with Thai regulations,” she added.
Recent inspections conducted jointly by the Business Development Department and the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) in areas like Huai Khwang and Sampheng uncovered possible nominee practices among some businesses, leading to further investigations.
Operating with nominee shareholding can result in severe penalties, including imprisonment for up to three years, fines ranging from 100,000 to one million baht, or both, she warned.