How do I get married in Thailand?

[OneMoreFarang]

47 minutes ago, RobU said:

She is not an educated woman, cannot read or write and takes the word of pundits rather than officials (my friends friend says...). She can't negotiate or investigate very well and doesn't like dealing with officials. so unfortunately the answer is no.

Thanks for being honest - and realistic.

 

I never married and by now my gf gave up asking me about that. But I keep that in mind for the future.

Darling, we should marry.

Sure Tirak, you check out the official details and then we do that.

Problem solved. ???? 

[RobU]

11 minutes ago, DaLa said:

I've just read this post from you and thought I'd comment as I'm from the UK and have 1 State pension and 4 private pensions. As you point out the state pension no longer passes to your survivor as OAP's were marrying younger non-UK nationals ( including women in their 60's marrying 19 year old African boys ). So I can see the sense in that. However you need to check with your private pensions as 3 out of 4 of mine have allowed me to nominate my Thai 'wife' even though we have not had it documented in Thailand. The 4th pension will not pass to my partner no matter what the legal position is. My 'wife's' name has been lodged with the other 3  for 7-8 years and one of the stipulations is that we are 'mutually financially reliant'.  This could mean a joint account from where you pay bills together in Thailand.  Of course your plan to rubber stamp your marriage is still the best option.

Either way as you suggest she is not overly confident with paperwork you may find it prudent to nominate a Thai solicitor or firm to execute your requirements as otherwise she will be having to communicate with your pension providers in the   (hopefully ) far distant future.

Yes I have looked into the rules of my pension They have changed 3 times over the past 50 years unfortunately because my contributions ended before a certain year I cannot nominate anyone. They must be a legal spouse however my pension is proportionately better than those who are under the later rules.

[KhaoYai]

1 hour ago, RobU said:

Many Thanks for your very clear and comprehensive response KhaoYai

No problem.

 

Subject to businesses being open due to Covid, when you exit the Consular Section on Wireless Road (assuming it hasn't moved), turn right and walk back up to Sukhumvit Road. Cross over using the skywalk (Phloen Chit BTS station) and head in the direction of Sukhumvit Soi 4 (East).  After around 100m you will come across a small precinct called Mahatun Plaza (its more or less in line with the BTS station).  There are several translation agencies in there - I've had good service from the first shop on the right.  Once translated, allow 3 days (or however long they tell you) for your documents to come back from the MFA and you're good to go - you can go to register your marriage.

 

A couple of points - registering your marriage is not 'ratifying' any previous ceremony you might have - the two things are completely separate.  Many Thai's never bother to register their marriage - following a Buddhist ceremony they simply consider themselves married, they're not legally married though.  You don't have to have any form of ceremony before going to the Amphur - they simply register you as married.  Don't expect any bells and whistles, by our standards its a very clinical affair - a few words are spoken, questions asked and then you sign.  Oh, you will need 2 witnesses and a translator with you, although most Amphurs allow one of the witnesses to also be your translator (one of the things your gf needs to check on). The witnesses are supposed to have known you for 2 years (I seem to remember) but this is Thailand - don't worry too much about that.  There was a time when Amphurs would 'provide' the witnesses for a fee but most won't now - again check.

 

Its probably very quiet at the moment but there are often touts waiting outside the Consular Section - they know you're going to find a translation agency.  Some have been lucky using these people, others have been ripped off.  Ignore them and go to one that has an office - they're not likely to float off into the sunset with your money.

 

Some of the document translations and certifications you get have a time limit on them - some 1 month, some 3. Don't think you can get that part of things out of the way on one trip to Thailand and go to register your marriage on the next trip or you could find your papers are not accepted.

[peteralex]

Op didn't ask though, but IMO, don't do it, you might regret it

[Luuk Chaai]

... and you save yourself time and energy....   bring "2" witness with you 

[riclag]

Carefully ! 

[sanuk711]

10 hours ago, bill1369 said:

An just curious: Since informimg Thai authorities seems to trigger additional paperwork (which might be as simple as translated divorce decree), why would you bother to tell Thai authorities you were previously divorced? They don't know about divorce until you tell them. (I am thinking about marriage. I was divorced in US in 1986 - no kids.)

100% correct bill1369.... I didn't want to put that in-- because sometimes you walk a line here (on Thai-V) where what you are suppose to do--and what you should just do--don't always meet up.

I went through this about 20 years ago--so small things may have changed, so I wont give advice. You sign a State deck at the Embassy which they charge you for (used to be 1,00bt) That charge is for witnessing the signing of whatever you say --there is no checking. I couldn't (and most of my friends were of the same mind) be bothered to obtain all the extra paper work etc.

[WingFat]

Congrats on finding a mature woman in LOS to marry you. Unlike so many other oldsters who marry Thai women in their 20's and 30's; when they ask how to get married in LOS, I tell them to go to a back-alley surgeon who performs lobotomies...

[Aforek]

13 hours ago, DaLa said:

 

Either way as you suggest she is not overly confident with paperwork you may find it prudent to nominate a Thai solicitor or firm to execute your requirements as otherwise she will be having to communicate with your pension providers in the   (hopefully ) far distant future.

There are sollicitors or firms ou can do the job ? How to find them ? 

thanks 

[CrunchWrapSupreme]

16 hours ago, rumak said:

those that come from the simplest background.

Good heart,  honest,  appreciates you (every day !) ,  respects you (every day !) ,  and is not lazy

I can definitely attest to this, out here in the Issan moo ban. ❤

[DaLa]

3 hours ago, Aforek said:

There are sollicitors or firms ou can do the job ? How to find them ? 

thanks 

If you are from the UK then my strategy is to use a large firm of solicitors with a contingent of English partners in Thailand. The alternative to use a UK legal firm leaves your Thai partner at a severe disadvantage no matter how good her English. The former ensures they will be able to communicate proficiently with the banks and authorities in the UK. I have had 3 small Solicitors in the UK run into financial problems and thus although firms with multiple partners may be more expensive you should be at a lesser risk of them transferring your funds into their bank and then that not finding its way to your surviving partner.

 

I’ve researched the following:

 

https://www.siam-legal.com/thai-lawyers/thailand-law-firm-loc-bkk.php?

https://juslaws.com/about-us.php

https://franklegaltax.com/contact/

 

The problem is getting a price for the work as I'm not paying up front and there is no way for the Legal firm to know how much work will be involved in future.

[RobU]

4 hours ago, BritManToo said:

Farcical religious ceremonies mean nothing to anyone.

All that counts as marriage is the contract signed at the Amphur office. 

It's the same in England it's just that ministers of religion of specified faiths are automatically given registrar status under civil law as part of their ordination and the church is recognised as a register office under civil law.

[KhaoYai]

7 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

One should check with the embassy before going to get the affirmation. NZ embassy did not require proof of any sort that I wasn't married.

That may be the case with NZ but the UK require sight of a decree absolute - that information is on the UK government's website.

[BritManToo]

34 minutes ago, KhaoYai said:

That may be the case with NZ but the UK require sight of a decree absolute - that information is on the UK government's website.

Only if you tell them you were previously married!

[KhaoYai]

8 hours ago, thaibeachlovers said:

When I got married I brought NO witnesses or a translator. Wasn't required and no charge for the staff doing it either.

When did you get married?  I didn't provide the information for a laugh or to appear more knowledgeable - there have been changes in recent years.  The rules regarding witnesses and translators have always been there, they just weren't enforced previously.

 

Around 4 years ago some fake documents were discovered which lead to the manager of the Amphur that accepted them being fired and instructions being sent out to all Amphurs to tighten up the procedure for marriage registrations involving foreigners.  For a while after that, some Amphurs even refused to register such marriages as the managers were worried that they might unknowingly accept fake documents. 

 

The situation has eased now - I haven't heard of an Amphur refusing to register a foreign marriage for at least 2 years but they have tightened up the procedures.  For example, the rules state that the manager must carry out the registration of marriages involving foreigners - Bangrak Amphur was the most popular Bangkok Amphur with foreigners as they were very familiar with the requirements.  They often registered tens of foreign/Thai marriages per day and quite often these were carried out by more junior staff who simply took the final documents to the manager for signing.  Now, only the manager registers foreign marriages, that's by appointment only and limited to 5 per day. They are often booked up well in advance. They also insist on a translator and witnesses being present.

 

As is often the case in Thailand, I suspect that the rules might be 'eased' again over time but certainly last year Bangrak was still fully enforcing the rules.

[KhaoYai]

1 minute ago, BritManToo said:

Only if you tell them you were previously married!

That is true, I very much doubt they carry out any checks but bear in mind, you are swearing an affidavit.  I believe the British Embassy is considered sovereign to the UK - in which case making a false statement would be covered by British law under the Perjury Act 1911 which carries a jail sentence.

[poskat]

On 7/8/2021 at 5:20 PM, RobU said:

. She can't negotiate or investigate very well

considering that she got you to build a house for her before getting married, i wouldn't describe her as not good at negotiating...

[KhaoYai]

6 minutes ago, poskat said:

considering that she got you to build a house for her before getting married, i wouldn't describe her as not good at negotiating...

And how do you know that she 'got him to build a house for her'?  Moving to Thailand may well have been his plan for a long time.  So much negativity here regarding marrying a Thai woman simply because a few foreigners get ripped off.  Going purelly on the people I know, there are far more successful Thai/Foreign marriages than there are failures/gold digging expeditions.  Nobody posts about their successful marriage hence the stereotyping.

[RobU]

6 hours ago, KhaoYai said:

And how do you know that she 'got him to build a house for her'?  Moving to Thailand may well have been his plan for a long time.  So much negativity here regarding marrying a Thai woman simply because a few foreigners get ripped off.  Going purelly on the people I know, there are far more successful Thai/Foreign marriages than there are failures/gold digging expeditions.  Nobody posts about their successful marriage hence the stereotyping.

 

Thanks KhaoYai

[RobU]

On 7/9/2021 at 12:23 PM, poskat said:

considering that she got you to build a house for her before getting married, i wouldn't describe her as not good at negotiating...

She didn't negotiate. I told her she was getting a house in her home village because its far cheaper than renting or leasing a condo, or living in an Hotel in the tourist trap areas. Brand new quality build for less than £12,000 easily covers 4 years holiday and beyond a good investment for me

[RobU]

It seems that now this discussion is deteriorating into a personal trolling attack on me from a few people. I would appreciate it if you stop. My reasons for building a house or getting married are not the topic nor is my decision making 

[lopburi3]

13 minutes ago, RobU said:

It seems that now this discussion is deteriorating into a personal trolling attack on me from a few people. I would appreciate it if you stop. My reasons for building a house or getting married are not the topic nor is my decision making 

Indeed and had to give up reading a bit back - hope you got everything you need - I am not UK but believe following is gist of procedure - you can go to another District if have issues at place you live to record the marriage.

1.  A letter from Embassy is required - for that believe UK requires proof of divorce - all information should be on Embassy web site.  You passport will also be required.

2.  Translation of Embassy document will be required - easily done in Bangkok but should be able to do in Nong Khai city or Udon.

3.  Translation then has to be recorded by MFA as legal document - translation service should be able to do.

4.  Registration of marriage is done at a District Office (every District has such an office) - almost no cost but will require 2 witness and perhaps a translator for you as you must sign Thai documents.  The District Office reports to central records center in Bangkok so not something you have to worry about.  

5.  Believe Embassy has a method to record but no required - marriage is legal but recording might decrease paperwork later if proof required.

[RobU]

5 minutes ago, lopburi3 said:

Indeed and had to give up reading a bit back - hope you got everything you need - I am not UK but believe following is gist of procedure - you can go to another District if have issues at place you live to record the marriage.

1.  A letter from Embassy is required - for that believe UK requires proof of divorce - all information should be on Embassy web site.  You passport will also be required.

2.  Translation of Embassy document will be required - easily done in Bangkok but should be able to do in Nong Khai city or Udon.

3.  Translation then has to be recorded by MFA as legal document - translation service should be able to do.

4.  Registration of marriage is done at a District Office (every District has such an office) - almost no cost but will require 2 witness and perhaps a translator for you as you must sign Thai documents.  The District Office reports to central records center in Bangkok so not something you have to worry about.  

5.  Believe Embassy has a method to record but no required - marriage is legal but recording might decrease paperwork later if proof required.

Many Thanks lopburi3 good advice

[rair]

4 minutes ago, RobU said:

Many Thanks lopburi3 good advice

Hello RobU!

 

Today I went to the Bang arak amphur office as I was recommend it as the friendliest to farang. Though, I was told that they are not currently doing marriage registrations due to covid! 

I was wondering if anyone in here had any luck of registering theirs recently? If so which office did you use?

 

Thanks!

[ubonjoe]

I just cleaned out a lot of topic inflammatory posts, replies to them and etc.

Time to end the bickering, baiting and other nonsense.

[RobU]

4 hours ago, rair said:

Hello RobU!

 

Today I went to the Bang arak amphur office as I was recommend it as the friendliest to farang. Though, I was told that they are not currently doing marriage registrations due to covid! 

I was wondering if anyone in here had any luck of registering theirs recently? If so which office did you use?

 

Thanks!

Good point, One of the reasons why I posted is to hear observations like yours. It could be that Covid is being used as an excuse when really they just don't want to do it anyway. We are getting this kind of thing in the UK eg "sorry for the delay it's because of Covid" especially popular with local government, NHS and national government agencies. Covid has been around for a year and a half now they should have adapted. it is being used as an excuse to cut services in the UK and I suppose the same thing is happening in Thailand

[driver52]

20 hours ago, RobU said:

Brand new quality build for less than £12,000

Good job! Any chance of another thread with some pics please? I'm currently selling up in Frogland and that sounds interesting

FYI, dunno if you're already into 'pension drawdown' and I'm not an expert BUT a SIPP is very interesting in terms of passing on the benefits

quote 'All proceeds from a SIPP are paid tax free to a nominated beneficiary on the death of a member if they were under the age of 75 when they died'

PS Good luck!

[KhaoYai]

On 7/8/2021 at 3:48 AM, bill1369 said:

An just curious: Since informimg Thai authorities seems to trigger additional paperwork (which might be as simple as translated divorce decree), why would you bother to tell Thai authorities you were previously divorced? They don't know about divorce until you tell them. (I am thinking about marriage. I was divorced in US in 1986 - no kids.)

Just noticed this post - after I and a few other posters have given the OP the correct info on what he needs to do to register his marriage but the above post is not only factually incorrect, its confusing who requires what.

 

So let's clarify:  The Thai authorities have no access to the marriage records of other countries so in an attempt to stop inter-country bigamy, they require some form of proof that you are free to marry.  That document in English is called an Affirmation of Freedom to Marry and its provided by your embassy.  The Thai authorities don't want proof that any previous marriage has been legally ended, your embassy does in order to provide you with the Affirmation.

 

You're not telling the Thai authorities that you were previously married and you don't have to provide translations of your divorce papers to them - if you were previously married you provide those papers to your embassy when you swear and affidavit that you are free to marry.  Only the Affirmation and your passport are translated. The Thai MFA has an agreed format for the Affirmation with foreign embassies and only that format is acceptable. They are therefore, supposed to know what they are looking at when they receive both your home country's version of the document and its translation.  Once checked they certify the translation is genuine and legal.

 

Its a pain but its not really that difficult - there's certainly nothing onerous about.  I've never checked but I'd take a guess that most countries want similar proof if your a foriegn citizen wanting to get married.  Quite why they want your passport translating and certifying when its in an internationally agreed format and good enough to get you into the country is anyone's guess but its not a major thing.

[Peterw42]

26 minutes ago, KhaoYai said:

Quite why they want your passport translating and certifying when its in an internationally agreed format and good enough to get you into the country is anyone's guess but its not a major thing.

I presume its to get the correct translation, your name on marriage certificate is in Thai

[KhaoYai]

9 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

I presume its to get the correct translation, your name on marriage certificate is in Thai

It could well be.