Living in Thailand
The practical basics for your first months in Thailand: renting, the address notices immigration expects, drinking water, paying by phone, a Thai SIM and utility bills. Legal points come from official sources; service details come from each provider and can change. This is not legal advice.
Renting a room or condo
Since 4 September 2025, a landlord who lets 3 or more units (rooms or homes, in one or several buildings, including through online listings) to people renting them to live in must follow the Consumer Protection Board’s residential lease rules. Dormitories and hotels fall under their own laws instead.
- The contract is in Thai and made in two copies; you get one when you sign.
- For a monthly rent, advance rent and deposit together may not be more than 3 months’ rent.
- Electricity and water may not be charged above the rate the utility charges the landlord.
- A lease may not let the landlord keep the deposit or advance rent when you are not at fault.
- With an owner who lets fewer than 3 units, this notification does not apply: the lease and general contract law govern the deposit, notice period and utility charges, so read the lease before you pay.
- On moving-in day, take dated photos of the room and appliances.
Official wording
โดยมีสถานที่ให้เช่าตั้งแต่สามหน่วยขึ้นไป ไม่ว่าจะอยู่ในอาคารเดียวกันหรือหลายอาคารรวมกัน
ข้อสัญญาที่กำหนดให้ผู้ประกอบธุรกิจมีสิทธิเรียกเก็บค่าเช่าล่วงหน้าและเงินประกัน เมื่อรวมกันแล้วมีจำนวนเกินกว่าสามเดือนของอัตราค่าเช่าที่คิดเป็นรายเดือน
Address notices: TM30 and 90 days
Two notices tell immigration where you live. The first is your host’s duty: under section 38 of the Immigration Act, the house owner, landlord or hotel manager must notify immigration within 24 hours of a foreigner coming to stay (form TM.30). The second is yours if you stay in Thailand for more than 90 days.
- TM30: ask your landlord whether it was filed, and keep a copy of the receipt.
- 90 days: notify within 15 days before to 7 days after the due date, in person, through someone you authorize, by registered mail, or online (TM.47).
- A late or missed 90-day notice is fined 2,000 baht.
- Leaving Thailand and coming back restarts the count from the day you re-enter.
- Online notice is not accepted once the notification window has closed or after a passport change; go to an immigration office instead.
- The 90-day notice does not extend your permission to stay. How long you may stay depends on your visa or entry, which this page does not cover.
Official wording
House owners, heads of household, landlords or managers of hotels who accommodate foreign nationals on a temporary basis
The notification must be made within 15 days before or within 7 days after 90 days notification due date
Drinking water
The Metropolitan Waterworks Authority, which supplies Bangkok, Nonthaburi and Samut Prakan, says it monitors water quality so that the tap water it delivers is clean, safe and drinkable to WHO standards. It also asks residents to keep the taps, pipes and storage tanks in their homes in good condition.
- Bottled water from convenience stores is easy to find but heavy to carry home every week.
- Bottle delivery: Sprinkle delivers 18.9-litre bottles weekly, every other week or monthly. Its FAQ lists a deposit of 200 baht per bottle (at least 3 bottles) and coupons for 12 bottles at 898.80 baht or 24 at 1,720.56 baht, VAT included; its home page lists subscriptions from 775 baht excluding 7% VAT. Delivery depends on the area.
- Sign up on Sprinkle’s website or app; its call centre (02-712-7272) and LINE (@sprinklewater) answer questions.
- Some buildings have a filter or a refill machine; ask when its filter was last changed.
Paying by phone
Thai QR payments run on PromptPay, which links a Thai bank account to a phone number or ID number, so you need a Thai bank account to register (Bank of Thailand). Without one, an e-wallet such as TrueMoney lets you pay by phone once it approves your sign-up with a passport and a phone number.
- TrueMoney sign-up in the app: choose “Non-Thai citizen”, scan your passport (or pink Thai ID card), take a selfie with it, and add your visa type. Approval comes by SMS in 1–3 business days.
- With passport-only verification the wallet holds up to 30,000 baht and cannot send money to a bank account; with an extra supporting document the limit is 50,000 baht.
- You can top up with cash at 7-Eleven, FamilyMart and other counters, or from a bank.
- Bank accounts: the documents a bank asks for depend on the bank, the branch and your visa. Ask the branch before you go.
A Thai SIM card
True’s tourist SIM terms say the SIM must be registered with a valid passport under the telecom regulator’s (NBTC) rules, with at most 3 SIMs per person per brand. For other plans, ask the shop which documents it needs. Mobile networks include AIS and True (which also runs dtac).
- True and dtac tourist SIMs are valid for up to 60 days; to keep using one after it expires, you re-identify with your passport at a True or dtac shop.
- For a longer stay, a regular prepaid or monthly plan keeps one number, which banks and apps use to send you codes.
Electricity and water bills
In Bangkok, Nonthaburi and Samut Prakan, electricity comes from the Metropolitan Electricity Authority (MEA) and water from the Metropolitan Waterworks Authority (MWA). In the other 74 provinces electricity comes from the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA), and water from other providers such as the Provincial Waterworks Authority (PWA).
- In a condo or apartment the bill may come from the building or the landlord instead of the utility. Ask which, and note the meter readings when you move in.
- A landlord who lets 3 or more units may not charge more than the utility charges the landlord.
Turn this into a to-do list: First month in Thailand checklist