Legal Guardianship

[Pakeha]

I don't like the term stepfather... I am my daughters Dad!

However, biologically it is fair to argue I have no legal guardianship over my daughter.

Does anyone have any experience / know what steps to take to become the legal guardian of my child?

She has no contact with her (thai) father and never really has. I have supported her jointly with my partner since she was 4 (she's now ten) and she has lived with me for 3 years now.

Her Mum, my fiance wants this too.

Q - how do I register it so it is legal in LOS, NZ and all countries?

The lawyer advised me I only having to register it in NZ but I suspect things are different when it comes to Thailand!

[Mario2008]

I understand you live in New Zealand and are not yet married to the mother. If the Thai authorities will respect the decision of a NZ court I don't know. I suggest contacting a lawfirm specialised in famlily law, like forum sponser Isaanlawyers. You find their banner at the top of this page.

Was the mother legaly married to the biological father would be an important question. If the mother was not legaly married then the biological father would only have guardianship if he was not only named on the BC but also was the one registering the birth. THat would mean that the mother currently has sole costudy.

If they were legaly married or the father registered the birth at the amphur himself things woud be more complicated, as he probably would have joint costudy and that has to be taken from him first.

[Pakeha]

Thanks Mario.

We have documentation from the amphur stating that my partner has sole custody. We needed it for NZ visas / residency etc. Also, thai immigration are quite particular about farangs taking young thai children out of LOS (thankfully!). Thai immigration at the airport actually said they didn't care about the visa we had to NZ (which required a huge amount of supporting information to get) and they would only accept legal thai documentation. Fortunately we have the sole custody letter to show them when travelling through.

Because of the sole custody letter from the amphur I don't believe the father registered the birth. No legal marriage either. The father basically did the runner just before the birth. I geuss he couldn't handle the thought of the responsibility. The only time he has ever made contact was when he heard my daughter was about to leave Thailand with me... Then he wanted to see her so we allowed it but it must have been confusing for our wee girl. Then we got a couple of phone calls over the first few months she was here then nothing for the past 2 1/2 years... very selfish in my oppinion. Parenting is a long term comitment.

The purpose of me getting guardianship is so that if anything ever happened to my partner (heaven forbid) I could still raise our daughter.

Hope this simplifies things. Any idea how I could go about sole custody now you have this additional info?

Thanks.

byoung2

[Mario2008]

Your lawyer gave you the advise about New Zealand, get proper legal advise about the situation regarding Thailand from a Thai lawfirm!

Normaly other countries will respect a court decision from another country, just as they accept a marriage in another country. The fact that the mother has sole costudy is very important and simplify matters considerably.

It seems that at this moment the girl only has a legal mother, no legal father. Any judge will find it in the interest of the child to have a legal father.

You can check if the father registered the birth. Than his name should be twice on the birth certificate: as the father and as the person registering the birth.

[Pakeha]

Thanks Mario.

I appreciate your recommendation to contact a law firm however as with most questions on TV the point is to gain an insight from other people's experiences. Perhaps someone has been through this and knows a simple straightforward process to go through without incurring legal fees.

In NZ I just have to fill out forms for the family court - no need for a law firm. Maybe it's the same in LOS? If I had known this I could have avoided legal fees in NZ. I would like to do the same (avoid fees) in LOS if it's simple and not dodgy. Hence I am seeking advice.

Please don't take this the wrong way - I do appreciate your comments. I just prefer to avoid lawyers where possible and when they are unecessary.

Cheers.

byoung2

[Mario2008]

I'm not taking this wrong, just giving you the best advice I can. Regarding legal procedings it is easy to make a mistake, that's way it is best to ask advice from a lawyer. Isaanlawyers is known to answer simple questions by e-mail or PM, contact them. They can give you a better answer than I on this matter.

[bkk_mike]

If you're getting married anyway, why not just do the NZ adoption. (I believe Thailand does recognise foreign adoptions these days)

[thommo46]

I just married my partner in Nov. 2008.I take it you are going to marry your fiance. My wife has a 6 year old son , the father, not married to her bolted after 1 year and has not been heard of since. His name is on the birth certificate. My wife went to the local amphor and her got sons name changed back to her family name on birth cert. and family book. She went in on the 20th January to the Australian Embassy for a spousal visa application so she and her son could live in Australia. She took with her two letters from the district head officer stating that she has been the soul carer for her son for the last 5 years and a statement from the officer that her son is able to leave thailand with his mother. This was not good enough, She has to have a letter from the father giving his ok for the boy to leave or a letter from my wife stating that she has tried all avenues of contacting the father. In the last week she has tried to contact him without success. She goes back to the embassy on 10th feb. with this statement and hopefully all will be ok. I don't know NZ immigration laws , but has the child lived in NZ with you for 3 years or you live in Thailand?

Thommo.

[Pakeha]

Hi bkk_mike.

The adoption law is a strange one. For me to adopt my daughter her mother (my fiance) would have to give away her legal status as gaurdian. So interestingly adoption does not work. The only practical avenue is becoming a legal gaurdian... which gives the same rights as if I adopted her.

thommo46 - We have been living in New Zealand. That's interesting about the Oz visa. My partner did the same thing for our daughter with the letter from the Amphur stating she was the sole gaurdian and the father was not on the scene and NZ immigration were fine with this. I'm glad we didn't have to contact the birth father because a) we can; and I'm pretty sure he would have been difficult and not granted permission for the child to leave. Not sure if his name is on the birth cert though... still need to find that out!

Good luck with your application on the 10th. It's fantastic when you get the kids back to your own country. My daughter was speaking fluent english within about 4 months and now has a strong kiwi accent (poor girl ). She speaks much better than her Mum who has been through a lot of formal english lessons... just can't get rid of her accent. When our daughter grows up and chooses where she wants to live she should have the best of both worlds! - Thai and NZ citizenship and perfect spoken english and thai. Wish I was that lucky!