Is Pha-Ngan Island becoming a haven for foreign owned businesses?
Since the 1980s, Pha-Ngan Island has been known for full moon parties and its growth from a small beach town to a business-savvy island, but it has recently been in the spotlight due to the high number of foreign-investment companies there using Thai nominees. In total, there are 4,761 companies, of which at least 3,213 are foreign entities. The non-Thai nationalities with the most shareholders in businesses on Pha-ngan Island are Israeli (22%, 702 people), followed by French (13%, 426 people), British (11%, 359 people), Russian (10%, 306 people), and Germans (6%, 194 people).
Two Thais and one foreigner have been arrested on the island for allegedly illegally operating a business through Thai nominee structures, with one Thai person’s name appearing as a shareholder in 258 companies, while another appeared in 222.
In recent years, but especially in 2025, there has been a surge in tourists visiting Pha-Ngan Island, and some have invested in businesses there by using Thai nominees as majority shareholders. District data show a total of 546 commercial tourist accommodations in the area, but only 208 have valid business licenses.
This matter is of growing concern to Thais, as some foreign-investment businesses are operating without a license or permit. Based on Ministry of Commerce reports, foreign-investment companies on Pha-Ngan Island represent 67.5% of all businesses there.
Authorities are also investigating tourist misdemeanours in Thailand, which are causing a nuisance to locals and, in some cases, have led to the destruction of public property, which damages Thailand’s reputation. For example, on January 24th this year, police arrested four tourists for disturbing neighbours with a loud party and for illegal drug possession.
This issue has also been raised and is now trending on social media platforms. Not only are Thais paying attention to this, but international audiences are as well. On May 11th, the Ministry of Commerce and the Department of Special Investigation (DSI) officially announced a crackdown on Thai nominee majority shareholdings in foreign run businesses.
Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul visited the island on May 13th for a meeting with authorities concerned and said “We are doing this for our people and they (foreigners) shouldn’t take over our jobs. The beaches are ours,” claiming that he will fix this problem and that those who have broken the law will face the consequences.