Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police Orders Expanded Investigation into Nominee Companies and Luxury Villas on Koh Phangan — Strict Nationwide Enforcement against Illegal Foreign Nationals

Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police Orders Expanded Investigation into Nominee Companies and Luxury Villas on Koh Phangan — Strict Nationwide Enforcement against Illegal Foreign Nationals — Immediate and Decisive Action Required against Any Violations

(23 October 2025) Police Major General Jaturapat Bhiromkaew, Commander of the Foreign Affairs Division and Deputy Spokesperson of the Royal Thai Police, announced that Police General Kittharath Punpetch, Commissioner-General of the Royal Thai Police, has directed a comprehensive follow-up investigation following the enforcement operation on 21 October 2025 on Koh Phangan in Surat Thani Province.

The operation was a collaboration between the Tourist Police, Surat Thani Provincial Police, the Department of Business Development, and local administrative authorities to examine business operations and land holdings suspected of nominee structures and other legal violations. The authorities discovered a luxury villa project and a large number of suspicious companies sharing a single registered address, along with questionable hotel and vehicle rental businesses. The Commissioner-General instructed that if any illegal activity is found, legal action must be taken immediately and decisively.

The Commissioner-General emphasized that the Royal Thai Police is committed to ensuring a safe and supportive environment for law-abiding foreign tourists and business operators. At the same time, strict measures will be taken against those who exploit the country to commit crimes or damage Thailand’s tourism image and economic reputation.

On 21 October 2025, the Commissioner-General chaired a meeting to monitor the situation and formulate measures to inspect and suppress illegal business operations and criminal activities involving foreign nationals in Thailand. It has been found that certain groups have engaged in unlawful conduct in several areas. He has assigned Police General SAMRAN NUALMA, Deputy Commissioner-General and Director of Combatting Transnational Criminals and Illegal Immigrants Center, to supervise the implementation of these measures. He stressed that all violations must be strictly prosecuted without exception.

To strengthen immigration control and monitoring measures, the Commissioner-General has ordered the Immigration Bureau to enhance pre-entry screening and deny entry to prohibited persons or those with prior offenses. Authorities are to proactively investigate, arrest, and prosecute foreign nationals committing offenses through a four-pronged strategy: 1) Inspection of foreign residents’ accommodation; 2) Verification of visa extension applications; 3) Arrest of overstayers and those providing accommodation; and 4) Collection and updating of local demographic data.

These efforts will be further strengthened through heightened scrutiny of visa extension applications both before and after approval, particularly for high-risk nationalities. There will also be integrated enforcement operations with local agencies to conduct raids, inspections, and crime suppression activities, along with information exchange with INTERPOL.

The Royal Thai Police seeks the cooperation of citizens and business operators across all sectors to help ensure public safety by reporting any suspicious behavior involving foreign nationals to Immigration Office or Immigration Hotline at 1178, providing information on business or accommodation activities that may be illegal, and fully cooperating with authorities during inspections.