Married in California, uncontested divorce wife in thailand

[confused888]

Hi, 

 

I was married to my Thai wife who came to USA about 11 years ago. After 8 years she wanted to go back to thaland for good because we were not getting along and she was not happy here. She had a 10-year green card but has abandoned it by leaving the US for so long (3 yrs ago). The marriage was not registered in Thailand. Fast forward to present date, she wants a divorce that is uncontested and does not want anything just the divorce. So I thought this was going to be very simple. But it turns out it's going to be very complicated for reasons I will explain. I was about to file the papers in the California court but when it came to serving papers to her in Thailand I found this was going to be very difficult. You have to follow the Hague Convention - a treaty between Thailand and the US. This is very complex and very difficult and would probably take a year if not longer. This is the only way to legal papers according to attorneys I talk to. She cannot come back to the US because she abandoned her green card. Another complicated issue is we had a child who is about 12 years old now. At age two I found out I am not the biological father and I have proof of that. So talking with a friend he said the best way to go about this is to use an address out here in the US and say she lives there. As for the child do not even mention him at all because he is not mine. So I submit court papers just like that. But these are all lies. Even though proof of service would have to be lies too I would have to make up someone who served the papers. And after 90 days I would win. But there are so many lies on these forms. So I was advised by somebody else that I should withdraw the petition and start over. Only this time she will be the petitioner and I will be the recipient so I will not have to serve papers internationally. All that is required is one of us lives in the US which is me. And according to California law the child must be reported because he was born after the marriage which makes me the legal father. One thing I did not agree with when I originally filed the petition was that automatically there was a calculated  amount of alimony and child support to pay regardless of my situation. But she wants an uncontested divorce. So would a document called divorce settlement agreement which states no property no assets no alimony no child support be enough to get me out of owing money. I am willing to give her a lump sum after we settle in the divorce. We both have to still disclose all of our assets and property and anything we had during the marriage to the court. But I don't understand why we have to disclose all this when it's going to be uncontested. 

 

Has anybody gone through the situation which is supposed to be simple but it's turning out to be very complicated. My original petition has been dismissed and I am looking at starting over very soon.

 

 

Edited April 21 by confused888
Forgot to mention important fact

[AndyAndyAndy]

lol 🤣😅

[Sheryl]

Moved to the appropriate forum.

 

 

[KhunLA]

Stay married, keep the 'married deduction' for taxes, and since she's not coming back & the kid isn't yours, count your blessings.

 

Being married means you can't marry again, and will pay huge dividends in the future, as you can't make the same mistake again.

 

Not seeing a negative here ... 

[freeworld]

Why so complicated?

 

https://www.divorcenet.com/resources/divorce/marital-property-division/how-file-divorce-while-living-abroad#five

 

Service Through Waiver

The easiest way to accomplish service is to have your spouse waive personal service. This means that your spouse agrees to sign an affidavit stating that they have received all the paperwork. You then file the affidavit with the court, and your divorce can move into the next phase.

[James26]

If you and your wife agree on all settlement terms, fly to Thailand and do an uncontested divorce at the Amphur. Bring all your documents, get everything translated, and complete a Marital Settlement Agreement (pay an attorney to do it). You want an MSA because Amphur will use that instead of their standard documents, which take forever. Then, both can go to Ampur, register into the system, and proceed with the administrative divorce. To complete everything (because you don't have a Thai marriage) could take a week or two, but it is still far cheaper than hiring an attorney and processing a divorce in CA. If you choose to go the CA route, you can use her last residence for service, or if you can't find her (you must prove diligence to the court), you can serve by publishing in the local paper. I still think that administrative uncontested divorce in Thailand is less expensive and will be recognized in most states in the US. 

[ryxyz]

As a poster above commented, your attorney is clueless because all they need to do is send her the documentation to sign through a courier service, which she then returns to the attorney by mail. This whole process should take about a month, and cost you around $2,000 including costs and fees, depending on your attorney's fees.

 

Alternatively, I suggest you visit and speak with someone at your local courthouse, specifically a supervisor, and inquire if you could complete the whole process on your own.