Can I buy a car in Thailand and register it in my name as an expat?

I bought a new Honda CRV last year from a Honda dealer. I paid cash. The car is in my name. I was here on an OA visa extension. It was all very easy.

You can buy a newer used car from a major dealer and they will take care of all the paperwork for you except your required immigration document. I bought mine from a Toyota dealer, Toyota Sure, which sells used cars for Toyota. They go through the car checking everything out, oil changes, clean up, etc., and even a short term warranty. You feel better that way instead of buying from a private party. They did not require me to have a Thai drivers license to register it in Udon Thani, although I got one shortly after purchasing the car. It does help if you have a Thai person with you when you purchase. Two years later I’m happy with my purchase and have had no issues.

Where abouts are you situated ?

Yes all comments are correct just be aware thay you can only drive on your IDP for 90 days before you have to get a Thai drivers license.

Get a Thai drivers license while your idp is valid. More use than your passport in many situations.

Make sure you have signed papers from previous owner agreeing to sale. Dealer might not own the car or understand what a fallang needs to register in own name. Might need to change plates if outside home province. For insurance Mr. Prakan is good. Get the car tested and taxed if necessary. Make sure there is no back tax to pay.

Best to meet the seller at the Land Transport office to ensure the name change can be done. That was the advice i never took but typically i dont pay much for cars to care.

Check with the dealer. An Isuzu and Toyota dealer here in the south required Thai driving licence also (new car), whereas Mitsubishi did not. They had signs on the counter in English.

The process is straightforward.

This article has some good overview and how to buy a car here.

Per the other comments, a residency certificate is required. As for your International Driving Permit, you can only drive on it here for 90 days then you need to get a Thai license.

New car , no problem. Second hand , you have to make papers with seller, have car’s matching blue book, sellers ID copy both sides and signature. When you do this , you can change to your name . Also , you have to have stamp from office every year to your car , insurance and tax. It’s not so different than anywhere else . This is what I know, can not be sure because this is Facebook. Other options can be different. Anyway, it’s nothing to do with your driving license.

No problem having a car in your own name. You’ll need to get a certificate of residence from immigration to purchase it. That’s an issue if you’re in Bangkok as they won’t issue them if you haven’t done a 90 day report.