Even if the license is not granted under any specific limitation in time, under Section 14 of the F/Act 1948 a permit shall be valid until the last day of the fifth calendar year as from the year of commencement of the engagement in the business. The permit shall be deemed to expire on the date of issuance of a new permit or of dissolution of the factory business.
According to Section 15 F/Act 1948, in renewing a permit, a recipient of a permit shall file an application before the expiration of a permit. The renewal fee amounts THB 100,000. Upon such application, the applicant shall be deemed to be the recipient of a permit until a final order refusing a renewal of a permit is given. Also, the renewal requirements are easier to fulfill than a new application. There is a certain level of preservation of the status quo and right of continuance (grandfathering).
Under the factory license, the permission is often granted „to operate a business by starting up operating factory business within 360 days henceforth“. This time-frame might be rather short. The renewal provisions as mentioned below are primarily applicable to the renewal after five years. This is not directly applicable to the case that the 360-days-condition is not fulfilled. Therefore, it would be a valid legal argument that the grandfathering benefits under Section 15 F/Act 1948 are not applicable to the 360-day extension. The law firm is regularly involved in the construction of commercial buildings and the application of construction and factory licenses.
