Can a landlord in Thailand end the lease as soon as rent is late?
No. Where rent is payable monthly or at longer intervals, the landlord must first serve written notice demanding payment and allow at least 15 days. Only once that period passes without payment can the lease be terminated.
The rule comes from Section 560 of the Civil and Commercial Code:
If the lessee fails to pay rent, the lessor may terminate the contract. However, if the rent is payable monthly or at longer intervals, the lessor must first notify the lessee to pay within a period of not less than fifteen days.
The two halves of that sentence look contradictory, and this is where most landlords go wrong. The first half applies to leases where rent falls due more often than monthly, such as daily or weekly lets, and those can be terminated at once. Almost every residential lease in Thailand is monthly, so almost every residential lease falls under the second half.
The 15 days run from the day the tenant receives the notice, not the day you post it. Send it on the 1st and the tenant signs for it on the 5th, and the deadline is the 20th rather than the 16th. That gap of a few days is exactly what a defence lawyer looks for later.
What the notice must say, and how to send it so it counts
The notice has to be in writing. A phone call, a LINE message or a conversation at the door is not notice under Section 560, even if the tenant acknowledged it at the time.
Include all of this:
- The tenant's name and address exactly as they appear in the lease
- A description of the property that matches the lease
- The amount outstanding, broken down by period
- A payment deadline given as a calendar date, at least 15 days after the tenant receives the letter
- A statement that the lease will be treated as terminated if payment is not made in time
Registered post with return receipt is the safest method, because the signed receipt proves the date of delivery, and that date is what starts the 15 days. If you hand the letter over in person, do it in front of two witnesses and have the tenant sign for it.
If the tenant refuses delivery or avoids you, post the letter on the door and photograph it. That is weaker than a signed receipt, but far better than nothing when the matter reaches court.
What a landlord must never do, and the criminal exposure for doing it
This is where the situation flips. A landlord who runs out of patience and takes matters into their own hands usually ends up as the defendant, having started out as the injured party.
Thailand's Ministry of Justice sets out what a landlord cannot do:
| Action | Offence | Penalty |
|---|---|---|
| Entering the unit without the tenant's consent | Criminal trespass, Penal Code Section 362 | Up to 1 year in prison, a fine up to 20,000 baht, or both |
| Changing the locks or locking the tenant out | Criminal trespass, Section 362 | The same |
| Seizing or removing the tenant's belongings | Criminal trespass, Section 362 | The same |
| Cutting water or electricity to force a move-out | Wrongful act, Civil and Commercial Code Section 420 | Liability to compensate the tenant |
The last line has some nuance. Where the lease expressly permits suspension of utilities for non-payment and the landlord is the one billed for them, the position is more complicated. In practice, though, courts treat cutting utilities during a live lease as interference with the tenant's possession. One clause in a lease is a poor bet against a criminal complaint.
The point worth holding on to is that unpaid rent is a civil matter while changing the locks is a criminal one, and the two do not cancel out. A tenant who owes you six months of rent can still file a complaint against you, and landlords have ended up paying the tenant more than the rent they were chasing.
The 15 days have passed and nothing has been paid. What now?
Serve a second letter terminating the lease, by the same method as the first. State the ground for termination, the date the lease ends, and the date by which the tenant must remove their belongings and hand back the property.
If the tenant leaves, the matter is over as far as possession goes, and the arrears can be pursued as a separate debt claim. If the tenant stays, the only lawful route left is an eviction claim in court. There is no legal shortcut.
What does an eviction claim cost, and how long does it take?
The court fee is far lower than most owners expect. An eviction claim over property whose rent, or potential rent, is no more than 30,000 baht a month is a petty case under Section 189 of the Civil Procedure Code, and the filing fee is 200 baht.
The real cost sits elsewhere. Thai law firms handling this work quote lawyer's fees in the tens of thousands of baht, and estimate roughly six months to a year from filing to judgment. Those are private practice estimates rather than court statistics, and the range depends on the court's workload and whether the tenant contests the claim.
Winning does not end it either. If the tenant still will not leave, enforcement proceeds through the execution officer under Sections 351 to 354 of the Civil Procedure Code, which adds further time.
Can the security deposit be applied to unpaid rent?
Yes, provided the lease says the deposit may be applied to sums owed, and provided you give the tenant a written breakdown of what was deducted. Quietly keeping the deposit and not accounting for the balance simply opens a second dispute.
In practice a one month deposit covers about one month of arrears, which means that by the third missed payment the deposit has stopped mattering. That is the argument for starting the formal notice at the first missed payment rather than reaching for stronger measures in month six.
Letting three units or more puts you under a different set of rules
The Contract Committee Notification on residential building rental as a contract-controlled business, B.E. 2568, was signed on 30 May 2025, published in the Government Gazette volume 142, special part 211 Ngor, on 6 June 2025, and took effect on 4 September 2025.
It lowered the threshold for being treated as a business operator from five units to three. An owner letting three or four condominium units is now a business operator and must use contract terms that comply with the notification.
Section 560 remains the general law that applies to every lease. The notification sits on top of it and dictates what a business operator's contract must and must not say, including the conditions for terminating. If you fall within it, compare your current lease against the notification before you start serving notices, because a clause that conflicts with it is unenforceable, and a compliant clause may set out a more detailed procedure than Section 560 requires.
The deposit rules, utility charging limits and tenant rights under that notification are covered in the 2568 rental contract control law.
When suing is not worth it
Run the numbers. Rent of 15,000 baht a month, two months unpaid, is 30,000 baht. Apply a one month deposit and 15,000 baht is left owing. The 200 baht court fee is nothing, but tens of thousands in legal fees plus six months to a year during which the unit cannot be re-let costs more than the debt.
In that situation the valuable thing is not a judgment. It is getting the tenant to leave without going to court at all, and a correctly served Section 560 notice does more of that work than ten verbal reminders, because it tells the tenant that the other side knows the procedure and has started following it.
The claims worth filing are the ones where the arrears are large enough to justify the cost, or where the tenant is staying on without paying and without leaving, so every month that passes is another month of lost income.
Frequently asked questions
Can I terminate the lease if the tenant is only one month behind?
Not immediately. You must first serve written notice giving at least 15 days to pay, under Section 560 of the Civil and Commercial Code. The procedure is the same whether the tenant is one month or six months behind.
Can a landlord cut the water or electricity of a tenant in arrears?
No. While the lease is still in force, cutting utilities interferes with the tenant's possession and is a wrongful act under Section 420 of the Civil and Commercial Code, leaving the landlord liable to compensate the tenant.
What happens if I change the locks on a tenant who owes rent?
It is criminal trespass under Section 362 of the Penal Code, carrying up to one year in prison, a fine of up to 20,000 baht, or both. Owning the property makes no difference, because the right of possession sits with the tenant for the term of the lease.
Can I hold the tenant's belongings until they pay?
No. Thai law gives a landlord no lien over a tenant's property. Removing or withholding their belongings falls under Section 362 in the same way as changing the locks.
Is a notice sent over LINE valid?
It is not safe to rely on. Section 560 requires notice whose date of receipt can be proved, because the 15 days run from receipt. Registered post with return receipt gives you that date. Use LINE alongside a letter, never instead of one.
How much is the court fee for an eviction claim?
Where the property's rent, or potential rent, is no more than 30,000 baht a month, the claim is a petty case and the filing fee is 200 baht. The significant costs are the lawyer and the time, not the court fee.
Does the 15 day rule apply to daily rentals?
No. Section 560 requires the 15 day notice only where rent is payable monthly or at longer intervals. A letting where rent falls due more frequently can be terminated without that waiting period.
Key takeaways
- For monthly rent, written notice giving at least 15 days to pay is required under Section 560 before the lease can be terminated.
- The 15 days run from the date the tenant receives the notice, not the date it was sent, and a registered post receipt proves that date.
- Changing the locks, locking a tenant out or seizing their belongings is criminal trespass under Section 362, carrying up to a year in prison or a 20,000 baht fine.
- Cutting utilities during a live lease is a wrongful act under Section 420 and makes the landlord liable for the tenant's losses.
- An eviction claim on rent of 30,000 baht a month or less is a petty case with a 200 baht filing fee, but the lawyer and the months of vacancy are the real cost.
- Owners letting three units or more fall under the B.E. 2568 notification and should check their lease against it before serving anything.