News

Obtaining Permission for Your Boat to Enter Thailand – Phuket

March 4, 2023

When you are entering Thailand’s territorial waters, based on our experience, you must comply with the instructions as follows: 

Find a parking space for your boat 

You can choose between a public (government-owned) or a private port. 

Tha Chalong is a public port in Phuket, usually free of charge. However, there are very few parking spaces available. The officer informed me that you might dock your boat outside the port by dropping an anchor, but since there are many storms, the officer does not recommend it. 

On the other hand, private ports are great alternatives. You can choose from the following list: 

1. Phuket Boat Lagoon Marina 

2. Ao Por Grand Marina 

3. Phuket Yacht Heaven Marina 

Phuket Marina registration process 

After the boat docks, you must complete the process at the Phuket Marina Building:  

1. Registration: you can pre-register via the website (https://seb.md.go.th/arrival) or at the Marine Department Office on the arrival date. 

2. Public Health Room 

3. Marine Officer Room: to submit all documents 

4. Immigration: normally, it is free of charge; however, under the following circumstances, there shall be an additional fee of 200 THB.  

    4.1 If you come to immigration outside of the working hours (9 a.m. to 3 p.m.) 

    4.2 If you dock your boat outside Tha Chalong  

    4.3 If you make an appointment with the officer 

5. Customs: 

    Arrival: free of charge on weekdays and 800 THB on weekends 

    Departure: 200 THB on weekdays and 1000 THB on weekends 

Required documents: 

  • Boat Registration: if issued in Malaysia, you must scan the QR Code and present the expiry date to the Customs officer. 
  • Passport and Immigration stamp 
  • The name in the Boat Registration and the boat’s owner must be the same. If the captain is another person, the boat’s owner must assign a power of attorney to the captain to be submitted to Customs. 
  • Your boat photos (the name of the boat must be clearly visible). 

6. Marine Officer Room: to receive the documents 

*The process takes approximately an hour to an hour and a half, depending on the situation. 

In the event that you hold an international boat license, you are eligible to drive your foreign-registered boat within Thailand’s territorial waters. However, if you wish to drive a Thai-registered boat, you must apply for a Thai boating license under Thai law. 

*Kindly be informed that there might be additional costs apart from the above list. 

If you have any questions about the above, please contact us at [email protected] 

Fabian, a founding partner of FRANK Legal & Tax, is a German-trained lawyer with expertise in corporate/commercial and real estate law, and litigation, and has been living and working in Thailand since 2005.


Share

You might also like...