The two ways a house reaches a child
The first is to give it during your lifetime, a transfer of ownership without consideration to your legitimate child. The second is to let it pass as an estate, with the heir registering the transfer at the land office after death.
The registration fee is the same on both routes at 0.5% of the appraised value, because Ministerial Regulation No. 47 B.E. 2541, clause 2(7)(d) sets that rate for registering a transfer by inheritance or by gift, but only between an ascendant and a descendant or between spouses, against the ordinary rate of 2%.
What differs is the tax, the procedure, and what happens years later when the child comes to sell.
One caution applies to both routes: the phrase is legitimate child, which does not include an adopted child. The Land Department and the Revenue Code use the term the same way.
Giving it now: no tax inside a THB 20 million band
A transfer of ownership of immovable property to one's legitimate child without consideration is not subject to personal income tax on the transferor's side, as the Land Department states in item 1.2 of its material on withholding tax.
On the recipient's side, income from that transfer is exempt up to THB 20 million per child per tax year, and the portion above THB 20 million is taxed at 5%, under the Revenue Code Amendment Act No. 40 B.E. 2558.
Specific business tax does not apply either, because a transfer of ownership without consideration to a legitimate child is an exception under Section 4(6)(d) of Royal Decree No. 342 B.E. 2541.
As for stamp duty, the Land Department states that it is charged on the registration of a transfer or creation of rights in immovable property for consideration, so a gift with no consideration does not carry it.
What is actually left on a home appraised at THB 5 million given to one child is the 0.5% registration fee, THB 25,000, plus the small application and witness charges the land office collects.
Leaving it as an inheritance: a longer procedure, tax only above THB 100 million
An inheritance transfer is registered at the land office under Section 81 of the Land Code. The heir applies with evidence of the inheritance, and once the officer has investigated and is satisfied that the applicant is an heir, a written notice is posted in a public place for 30 days.
If no heir objects within that period and the evidence supports the claim, the officer registers the transfer. If there is an objection, the officer has the power to investigate and mediate, and the dissatisfied party must file a court case within 60 days of being notified.
Inheritance tax arises only where each recipient's net inheritance exceeds THB 100 million in total. The rate is 10% of the taxable value, or 5% if the recipient is an ascendant or descendant, as the Revenue Department explains under the Inheritance Tax Act B.E. 2558.
The method is to take the total value received, deduct the liabilities that came with the inheritance, then deduct the THB 100 million that is not taxable; whatever remains is the tax base.
For an ordinary family with one house, that arithmetic means no inheritance tax at all, and the registration fee is the same 0.5% as a lifetime gift.
The difference that surfaces later, when the child sells
This is the part planners tend to miss, because it happens years afterwards.
A home the child received as a gift, sold within five years of that acquisition, attracts specific business tax at 3.3%, unless the child's name has been in that house registration for not less than one year.
A home the child received by inheritance is exempt from specific business tax on sale outright, under Section 4(6)(b) of Royal Decree No. 342, with no house registration condition to satisfy.
In both cases the withholding tax on the sale uses the same formula: deduct a flat 50% of the income, divide by the years held, apply the rate table, then multiply back by the years, which differs from a home the seller bought, where the allowance varies with the holding period. The formula and worked examples are in our article on the tax on selling a home.
So if the goal is to leave the child the cleanest possible resale, inheritance has one clear advantage. If the goal is to put the asset in the child's hands today and close off disputes between heirs, the lifetime gift wins.
Can you still live there after giving it away?
Yes, if a usufruct is registered in the giver's name. A usufruct is a real right that can be registered at the land office, and it keeps the giver's right to use the property and take its benefits even though ownership now sits with the child.
That matters for parents who transfer a home for estate-planning reasons but intend to live in it for the rest of their lives. A bare gift with no supporting document leaves the giver's position resting on family relations alone.
The other thing to settle at the outset is the mortgage. A home still mortgaged cannot simply be transferred to a child; the lender has to be involved first.
And if the endpoint is a sale so that several heirs can split the proceeds, selling in the current owner's name and dividing the money usually ends more cleanly than transferring the title into several names and negotiating afterwards. Our approach to selling a whole house is on the house selling service page.
Frequently asked questions
What does it cost to transfer a house to a child?
A registration fee of 0.5% of the appraised value, because Ministerial Regulation No. 47 B.E. 2541, clause 2(7)(d) applies that rate to a transfer by inheritance or gift between an ascendant and a descendant or between spouses.
Is there income tax on giving a house to a child?
The transferor is not subject to income tax, and the child is exempt on the value up to THB 20 million per child per tax year, with 5% on the portion above that.
Does an adopted child get the same treatment?
No. Both the income tax exemption and the specific business tax exception use the term legitimate child, which does not include an adopted child.
When does inheritance tax start to bite?
When each recipient's net inheritance exceeds THB 100 million in total. The rate is 10% of the taxable portion, or 5% where the recipient is an ascendant or descendant.
How long does an inheritance transfer take at the land office?
There is a 30-day public notice under Section 81 of the Land Code, and if an heir objects the officer investigates and mediates, with the dissatisfied party having 60 days from notification to go to court.
Does it change the tax when the child later sells?
It does. A home received by inheritance is exempt from specific business tax on sale, while a home received as a gift and sold within five years attracts 3.3% unless the child's name has been in the house registration for at least a year.
Can the parents keep living in the house after the gift?
Yes, and a usufruct should be registered in the giver's name at the land office so that the right to live there and take the benefits does not rest on family relations alone.
Can a mortgaged house be transferred to a child?
Not on its own, because the mortgage is attached to the property. The lender has to agree first, which may mean redeeming the loan or substituting the transferee as the borrower.
Summary
- A gift to a child and an inheritance both carry a registration fee of 0.5% of appraised value, against the ordinary 2%.
- A gift of property without consideration to a legitimate child carries no income tax for the transferor, no specific business tax and no stamp duty.
- The child is exempt up to THB 20 million per child per tax year, with 5% on the excess.
- Inheritance tax begins only where a recipient's net inheritance exceeds THB 100 million, at 5% for a descendant.
- An inheritance transfer includes a 30-day public notice under Section 81 of the Land Code and leaves room for heirs to object.
- Inherited property is exempt from specific business tax on resale, while gifted property depends on the five-year rule and the house registration.