Insurance Regulator Directory

Offshore Insurance Position

Thailand permits the purchase of offshore medical insurance, but with important conditions. Offshore insurers must not solicit business from within Thailand. Critically, onshore intermediaries, brokers or agents licensed in Thailand, are prohibited from advising clients to purchase offshore policies. Businesses seeking offshore options must engage an offshore intermediary. This means the offshore purchasing decision and advice must originate and remain outside Thailand.

Offshore Insurance Position

Vietnam permits offshore medical insurance purchases, but only for entities with a foreign investment element. Fully locally-owned Vietnamese companies and Vietnamese citizens without foreign affiliation cannot legally purchase offshore. Offshore insurers must meet specific financial criteria including USD 2 billion in capital and 10+ years of operation. As of 1 July 2025, VAT on offshore insurance premiums has been abolished, reducing the cost of compliant offshore plans. Onshore intermediaries in Vietnam may advise on compliant offshore products.

Offshore Insurance Position

Malaysia's regulatory position on offshore insurance is nuanced. BNM is the primary insurance regulator and generally requires insurance to be placed with licensed onshore insurers or approved offshore providers. For group medical insurance, multinational companies often place offshore plans through approved offshore entities, though this requires careful structuring. BNM has historically allowed some offshore medical cover for expatriate employees under MNC group plans. Businesses should seek legal advice specific to their structure.

Offshore Insurance Position

Singapore has a highly open and sophisticated insurance market regulated by MAS. Businesses and individuals in Singapore are generally free to purchase insurance from offshore or foreign insurers, provided the insurer is not actively soliciting business in Singapore without appropriate licensing. Singapore's framework is considered one of the most permissive in Southeast Asia for offshore insurance, reflecting its role as a regional financial hub. MAS-licensed foreign insurers and offshore IPMI plans are widely used by international businesses.

Offshore Insurance Position

Cambodia has one of the most open insurance regulatory environments in Southeast Asia. Article 110 of the Cambodian Insurance Regulatory Code explicitly permits the purchase of offshore medical insurance with no material restrictions. There are no requirements for broker advisement to be onshore, no mandatory tax treatment differences, and no entity-type restrictions. Any company or individual in Cambodia, local or foreign, may freely purchase insurance from an offshore provider.

Offshore Insurance Position

Laos permits the purchase of offshore insurance, but with important conditions on how it is sold and advised upon. The advising intermediary must be an offshore entity, onshore Lao intermediaries may not advise on offshore products. Offshore insurance premiums are not tax deductible under Lao tax law, whereas premiums paid on onshore compliant products may qualify for deduction. This creates a cost consideration for businesses when structuring their insurance programme.

Offshore Insurance Position

Myanmar permits the purchase of offshore medical insurance under Section 7(f) of the Insurance Business Law (1996), provided offshore insurers do not actively solicit business from within Myanmar. There is no formal onshore legal framework for licensed brokers inside Myanmar to advise on offshore products, businesses seeking offshore cover should engage offshore intermediaries. Myanmar's insurance market remains one of the less developed in the region, and the regulatory environment has additional uncertainty following the 2021 political transition.