Civil partnership in Thailand

[Guderian]

Sorry if this is the wrong place to post this, but I couldn't see anywhere more obvious. I'm interested in knowing how to go about setting up and registering a civil partnership with my Thai GF. We've been drifting along for many years, I have no interest in getting married but the virus outbreak brings home my sense of mortality. I have a decent index-linked occupational pension in the UK and if I die before my partner she would continue to get 60% of it, which is more than enough to live happily on in Thailand. The pension fund accepts civil partnerships for this purpose. When I check on Google all I get is a mass of news about the effect of new Thai rules on civil partnerships for gay people, nothing about how to register such a thing in the first place for a straight couple. Am I missing a thread or sub-forum on here, or can anybody point me in the direction of an information source telling me what to do and what to expect?

 

Thanks for any help.

[Swiss1960]

As of right now, Thailand does NOT know civil partnerships, no matter the sex of the persons, only marriages.

[DPKANKAN]

I am not sure why you need that here or anywhere. I am a trustee of our own privately run scheme. 

My understanding is that when they changed the law a few years ago allowing you to 'bequeath' (or whatever technical term) your remaining fund, you could do so by nomination. 

Certainly that is what I have done. Do not need to be married or anything. As far as I am aware it can be to anyone including children etc.????????????????

[BritManToo]

1 hour ago, Guderian said:

or can anybody point me in the direction of an information source telling me what to do and what to expect?

It's marriage in Thailand, civil partnership if you can get her to the UK ....... or just forget about her after you're dead.

[chingmai331]

IMO, better to buy something physical (gold, land, house) and give that to her.  Depending on any govt agency to sort a pension plan for some foreign national far away seems very risky. And you won't be here to help her read the fine print.

[scorecard]

17 hours ago, BritManToo said:

It's marriage in Thailand, civil partnership if you can get her to the UK ....... or just forget about her after you're dead.

Our BritMantoo, always good direct focused advice.  

[JimHuaHin]

As you have a British pension, then British law prevails with respect to who receives your pension.

 

I am in the same position, but from Australia, and I have notifed my Australian pension fund that I am in a civil partnership with a Thai woman, and she is to get my part pension upon my demise.

 

As noted in an earlier post, civil partnerships are not legally recognised in Thailand.

[Guderian]

6 hours ago, chingmai331 said:

IMO, better to buy something physical (gold, land, house) and give that to her.  Depending on any govt agency to sort a pension plan for some foreign national far away seems very risky. And you won't be here to help her read the fine print.

The physical assets can easily be sorted out via a will. She's only 37 years old at the moment and the total value of my annual index-linked pension, even if she only gets 60% of it, will be very large if she survives for several decades after me. It's a private occupational pension from one of the largest multinationals in the world, so they're well-used to dealing with people living overseas and married to other nationalities.

[Surelynot]

Having divorced my Serbian wife some 20 years ago..........I would say we are only now entering into a civil partnership.

[Guderian]

3 hours ago, JimHuaHin said:

As you have a British pension, then British law prevails with respect to who receives your pension.

 

I am in the same position, but from Australia, and I have notifed my Australian pension fund that I am in a civil partnership with a Thai woman, and she is to get my part pension upon my demise.

 

As noted in an earlier post, civil partnerships are not legally recognised in Thailand.

And the pension fund didn't ask for any proof of the civil partnership? I'm pretty sure you have to send them a copy of your marriage certificate if you choose that route, so I'd be surprised if they didn't want some piece of paper saying that you're officially in a civil partnership.

[Guderian]

Looking back at what Google brings up, the civil partnership bill was big news last year but doesn't look like it's got anywhere since. It seems to have been given the nod in its present form, but many gay people are unhappy with it. Does anyone know if or when the bill is likely to be law? I'm not in a huge hurry and if that were to happen this year then I can wait. Of course, C19 will probably have stopped any progress on routine legislation, as it has elsewhere in the world.

[Guderian]

22 hours ago, DPKANKAN said:

I am not sure why you need that here or anywhere. I am a trustee of our own privately run scheme. 

My understanding is that when they changed the law a few years ago allowing you to 'bequeath' (or whatever technical term) your remaining fund, you could do so by nomination. 

Certainly that is what I have done. Do not need to be married or anything. As far as I am aware it can be to anyone including children etc.????????????????

I've seen a copy of the form for nominating a beneficiary and it only includes marriage and civil partnerships, nothing else. This sort of detail, as far as I'm aware, is entirely up to the fund.

[Scott Tracy]

With regards to survivors pension, my UK company was not insistent on proof of marriage or civil partnership. I completed and submitted a nomination form.

[BritManToo]

Just now, Scott Tracy said:

With regards to survivors pension, my UK company was not insistent on proof of marriage or civil partnership. I completed and submitted a nomination form.

Mine insisted on an original marriage certificate.

(earlier this year)

[Scott Tracy]

The other question to be asked is: if you were to be married or to register a civil partnership in Thailand, (not currently possible) would the pension recognise it? Would it not be more beneficial (and probably less hassle) to register the civil partnership under UK rules?

[OffshoreMig]

Easiest Option is to get married.  You may be able to register the civil partnership in your home country.

[Saltire]

I have 2 private UK pensions.

 

One company is insisting on original birth and marriage certificates for my wife, translated to English.

 

The other one is willing to 'consider' anyone I nominate as a beneficiary. We weren't married when I completed the beneficiary form and they seemed to be happy with that. I need to update them on my wedding from last year to be sure. Pretty sure they will ask for the same documents.

 

One thing to note is everyone will want an original, especially your death certificate, so make sure the gf asks for several originals from the doctor/hospital. An old post on here about wills recommended 10 originals!

 

As others say I don't think what Thailands laws on this are relevant, as long as the UK company is happy.

 

 

 

[Krataiboy]

Yeah, I can remember a civil partnership, but it didn't last long. It was called a honeymoon.

[OffshoreMig]

4 hours ago, JimHuaHin said:

As you have a British pension, then British law prevails with respect to who receives your pension.

 

I am in the same position, but from Australia, and I have notifed my Australian pension fund that I am in a civil partnership with a Thai woman, and she is to get my part pension upon my demise.

 

As noted in an earlier post, civil partnerships are not legally recognised in Thailand.

You can register you partnership in Australia

[Guderian]

On 4/28/2020 at 1:54 PM, Scott Tracy said:

The other question to be asked is: if you were to be married or to register a civil partnership in Thailand, (not currently possible) would the pension recognise it? Would it not be more beneficial (and probably less hassle) to register the civil partnership under UK rules?

The answer to your first question is yes, it's a major multinational pension fund with employees from over 100 different countries, well used to dealing with different local procedures.

 

To your second question - is that possible without the GF actually being there in the UK?

[Guderian]

On 4/28/2020 at 2:08 PM, OffshoreMig said:

Easiest Option is to get married.  You may be able to register the civil partnership in your home country.

It maybe the easiest but it's not my preferred option. I don't much like her family, a bunch of wasters in my opinion, and I don't intend throwing a big party for them or paying any sin sod. There are other disadvantages of marriage which I'm sure people will be well aware of. About the only real advantage if marriage is that it would allow us to adopt a Thai kid, but that's not exactly high on my list of priorities, and probably never will be, lol.

[Guderian]

On 4/28/2020 at 2:09 PM, Saltire said:

I have 2 private UK pensions.

 

One company is insisting on original birth and marriage certificates for my wife, translated to English.

 

The other one is willing to 'consider' anyone I nominate as a beneficiary. We weren't married when I completed the beneficiary form and they seemed to be happy with that. I need to update them on my wedding from last year to be sure. Pretty sure they will ask for the same documents.

 

One thing to note is everyone will want an original, especially your death certificate, so make sure the gf asks for several originals from the doctor/hospital. An old post on here about wills recommended 10 originals!

 

As others say I don't think what Thailands laws on this are relevant, as long as the UK company is happy.

 

 

 

Yes, that's how I understand it, the trustees of the pension fund make the rules beyond what's required by law. I have a beneficiary nomination form from the pension fund somewhere, but must have left it back in the UK as it's not in my pensions file here. I can't recall if it specified what paperwork was needed or not.

[BritManToo]

26 minutes ago, Guderian said:

and I don't intend throwing a big party for them or paying any sin sod.

There's no requirement to tell anyone you're been married at the Amphur office.

Apart from 'affidavit of freedom to marry' very easy do do a few years back.

Everything is more difficult for foreigners now.

[Dan123]

" Easiest Option is to get married.  You may be able to register the civil partnership in your home country." 

 

if getting married you are worth more to them dead

this breaks expat rule#1 in Thailand

 

Edited April 30, 2020 by Dan123
add quote

[BritManToo]

On 4/28/2020 at 2:09 PM, Saltire said:

One thing to note is everyone will want an original, especially your death certificate, so make sure the gf asks for several originals from the doctor/hospital. An old post on here about wills recommended 10 originals!

Not sure why ...... my pension company should be happy to only pay half to my surviving partner.

But if they insist on still paying the full amount to me after I'm dead, I'm OK with that.