Transcript of the above video:

As the title of this video suggests, we are discussing "secured leases" and sometimes these are referred to as 30 + 30 + 30 leases. We have done videos on this channel before discussing this topic but I got an email from somebody who brought to my attention this article from the Phuket News, that is thephuketnews.com, the article is titled: Phuket Law: Long-term Leases Unenforceable, Again. As noted by the person who sent me this message, these are sometimes called "secured leases" where you have a lease and you have an option on the lease to extend further. A lot of information in this article. I urge those watching this to go to the Phuket News's website. 

Quoting directly: "Under Thai Law, the maximum lease term is 30 years which may be renewed upon expiration of that term. Because 30 years is a relatively short duration, leases marketed to foreigners typically provide for an initial 30 year term plus two additional successive 30-year renewal terms or 30 + 30 + 30 leases as they are often referred to. Quoting further: "However five Phuket Trial and Appellate Judges found such leases to be legally void in 2015 as we wrote about at that time." And I think I have quoted this article before. Quoting further: "It was these judges’ opinion that such a lease is the legal equivalent of a purchase and that such a lease agreement is entered into by the parties in order to conceal another contract, a Sale and Purchase Agreement for the same immovable property." Quoting further: "Now in yet another surprising decision, the Phuket Trial Court has ruled that leases of immovable property with a term of 30 years with two successive 30 renewal options, (that is options) themselves are invalid for the same reason. In this Court's opinion, any 30-year lease with two 30 year renewals is void because it is not a lease but rather a sale." Furthermore, the Civil and Commercial Code on all of this is pretty clear. A lease of immovable property is set at 30 years so any duration further than that no matter how you concoct that, you could have problems with it. 

Now look, there are ways, there are methodologies of dealing with this but you have to be careful and you need to understand that depending on how something is structured or how documentation is drafted, you could end up in a real world of trouble.