Is She American Or Thai?

[capco1]

Not really sure where to look but here's the deal, my wife (Thai) and myself have a daughter who was born in Thailand, she has a Thai birth certificate and also a birth abroad certificate from America. We now live in the States and she has an American passport as well as a social security number, we are planning on moving back to Thailand and don't know what her status is as far as citizenship? does she need to make a visa run every year with me or can she legally live in Thailand? will this be a problem when she starts school? any help would be greatly appreciated!

[britmaveric]

She is thai. Have the necessary documents and get her a thai passport.

[capco1]

Can she have both a Thai and an American passport? I don't want to give up her American passport in case she wants to ever return here for school or work when she gets older.

[Jimjim]

Are you American and your wife Thai? If yes, then your daughter can be both nationalities. Get her Thai passport ASAP.

Edited August 31, 2007 by Jimjim

[capco1]

Can this be done while were still here in the States? Thanks for the help!

[Maestro]

Can this be done while were still here in the States?

Yes. Apply at the Thai embassy. Call them to ask what documents they need and to make an appointment.

Once she has the Thai passport, she should always use her Thai passport to enter and leave Thailand, her US passport to enter and leave the USA (and other countries)

--

Maestro

[capco1]

Can this be done while were still here in the States?

Yes. Apply at the Thai embassy. Call them to ask what documents they need and to make an appointment.

Once she has the Thai passport, she should always use her Thai passport to enter and leave Thailand, her US passport to enter and leave the USA (and other countries)

--

Maestro

Excellent, thanks for the help!

[Old Man River]

Can this be done while were still here in the States?

Yes. Apply at the Thai embassy. Call them to ask what documents they need and to make an appointment.

Once she has the Thai passport, she should always use her Thai passport to enter and leave Thailand, her US passport to enter and leave the USA (and other countries)

--

Maestro

Excellent, thanks for the help!

Capco1, don't lose sight of Maestro's point that she must use her US passport when she leaves and enters the US. Since you don't show your US passport when leaving the US, don't make the mistake (as I did) of giving the airline her Thai passport to show why she doesn't need an entry visa into Thailand. Instead explain to them that she is a dual (they see it all the time). For me, I was lucky to notice that the airline was listing my child as a Thai leaving the US instead of a US citizen leaving the US and the airline was nice enough to rip up the paperwork and start over.

On Thailand, it isn't required that she use her Thai passport to enter and leave Thailand, but if she uses her US passport she will need a visa similar to other non-Thais. When traveling to other countries, which passport to use depends on what is the most convenient. While we normally use the US passports for Europe, to avoid questions as to its non use other than for Thailand, other duals have advised us that it is best to use the Thai passport sometimes. We normally do this when traveling in Asia.

[capco1]

Thanks again everybody for the great advice........We really appreciate it!

[Aussietraveller]

I got a Thai passport for our daughter the other day.

Needed to produce Thai Birth Certificate, and she had to have her name in a house book in Thailand.

We did not need to produce the house book, they just looked it up online.

Cost 1000 Baht, and takes 3 days to process.

We went to do this about a month ago, and could not get the passport as her name was not in the house book.

A quick call to your nearest Thai embassy should sort this out.

Good Luck