Wife's Name On Plane Ticket

[JimmyTheMook]

Wife is traveling to Hong Kong and she holds both a US and Thai passport and would like advice if using either is better . I suggested she travel on her US passport and it should facilitate her entry in Hong Kong but then issue arises as to which name the place tickets should be issued in as she re enters Thailand on her Thai passport.

Her American passport has her married name and her Thai passport still uses her maiden name - so the tickets would need to be issued using what surname ?

Any help/suggestions ?

[Eff1n2ret]

As she has visa-free entry into both HK and Thailand with a US passport, and presumably intends to travel to the USA afterwards, the ticket is best to correspond with her US passport. She'll only have to show her Thai passport at the Bangkok immigration control both entering and leaving.

Lots of dual nationals do it that way. My missis has different names in her UK and Thai passports. Never had a problm

[JimmyTheMook]

As she has visa-free entry into both HK and Thailand with a US passport, and presumably intends to travel to the USA afterwards, the ticket is best to correspond with her US passport. She'll only have to show her Thai passport at the Bangkok immigration control both entering and leaving.

Lots of dual nationals do it that way. My missis has different names in her UK and Thai passports. Never had a problm

No she intends to reenter Thailand on her Thai Passport to avoid any type of visa stamps in her US Passport.

[7by7]

She should use the name on whichever passport she shows to the airline when checking in.

[thaihome]

I don't understand why people don't change the name on the Thai ID and passport when they do on the other countries. Just seems to me to be asking for problems like this.

TH

[JimmyTheMook]

I don't understand why people don't change the name on the Thai ID and passport when they do on the other countries. Just seems to me to be asking for problems like this.

TH

There is a very racist law that states Thai women with foreign husbands can't own land...

[7by7]

That law was done away with sometime ago; in the early '90s I think.

[Maestro]

There is a very racist law that states Thai women with foreign husbands can't own land...

For the record, the statement quoted above is totally, absolutely, completely wrong.

--

Maestro

[Mossfinn]

That law was done away with sometime ago; in the early '90s I think.

There is a very racist law that states Thai women with foreign husbands can't own land...

For the record, the statement quoted above is totally,absolutely, co mpletely wrong.

--

Maestro

I suggest that '7 and Maestro have it on the button.

Moss

[ubonjoe]

That law was done away with sometime ago; in the early '90s I think.

There is a very racist law that states Thai women with foreign husbands can't own land...

For the record, the statement quoted above is totally,absolutely, co mpletely wrong.

--

Maestro

I suggest that '7 and Maestro have it on the button.

Moss

It was done away with in 1998 to be exact becaue it violated the 1997 constitution.

[Hawaiian]

There is a very racist law that states Thai women with foreign husbands can't own land...

For the record, the statement quoted above is totally, absolutely, completely wrong.

--

Maestro

When we bought property in 2006 we were also misinformed as with many Thai women that the law had been changed. I think many Thais do not trust their own government, including my wife, and would rather keep their passports in their maiden name. So far it has not caused us any problems. Any "competent" advice would be appreciated as to the pros and cons. Hope this

is not straying off the subject.

[thaihome]

I understand what you are saying, but my wife changed her name on ID and passport in 2001 when we married. Since then we have bought several properties in the Bangkok areas with no problem. I do admit we have never done so in a rural province where they may not know the law changed.

Nevertheless, it has certainly made getting various visas and resident permits in other countries simpler with her surname being the same as mine.

TH

[ubonjoe]

Same here my wife had no choice when we got married here. She has never had a problem.

She is even the village head person (man).

[JimmyTheMook]

Same here my wife had no choice when we got married here. She has never had a problem.

She is even the village head person (man).

We are no where near the 'village' type of lifestyle but it was a concern for my wife so she chose to leave her maiden name on her Thai documents as it may be a rehashed issue sometime in the future.

[ubonjoe]

Same here my wife had no choice when we got married here. She has never had a problem.

She is even the village head person (man).

We are no where near the 'village' type of lifestyle but it was a concern for my wife so she chose to leave her maiden name on her Thai documents as it may be a rehashed issue sometime in the future.

My wife had no choice because we got married before 2003 when they changed the law becaue it was also against the constitution.

Just the name not being changed would not help at all if things were changed unless the marriage was never registered in Thailand. There is an entry in her house book that will show she is married. The house book is required in every case involving purchase of property and many other things.

Also it will never be changed unless they changed the constitution and took out the discrimination clause.

[NanLaew]

And for the OP's further edification, your wife can get her Thai passport endorsed with her married name change WITHOUT having to get a whole new passport issued. I reckon she should do that if there's time before she travels and then she can travel on either passport on the same ticket.

But, for the immediate travel to HKG and back, I would reckon if she shows BOTH passports at check-in, that should satisfy the airlines scrutiny, regardless of what passport she eventually choses to use or the name in the ticket.

I understand that Thai's departing on a Thai passport have to complete a TM departure card on departure, half of which is retained in their passport while out of the country and surrendered upon their re-entry to Thailand (the opposite of the procedure for non-residents where we retain the card while in Thailand and surrender it on departure). In this instance, if she departs on the Thai passport but uses the US one to enter/exit HKG, the Immigration chap here on arrival may be looking for a HKG or other foreign stamp in her Thai passport. I don't think its illegal for Thai's to travel on two separate travel documents on the same trip but she may strike upon a Immigration chap who has had a bad day or may just chose to be a pain in the arse because he can.

Edited February 28, 2009 by NanLaew

[NanLaew]

My final tuppence worth; since there's no benefit in entering or exiting HKG on her US passport over doing the same on her Thai one, just use the Thai one and get the ticket issued in that name.

[NanLaew]

That law was done away with sometime ago; in the early '90s I think.

There is a very racist law that states Thai women with foreign husbands can't own land...

For the record, the statement quoted above is totally,absolutely, co mpletely wrong.

--

Maestro

I suggest that '7 and Maestro have it on the button.

Moss

It was done away with in 1998 to be exact because it violated the 1997 constitution.

.... and replaced by the constitutionally sanctioned little white lie of signing an affidavit at the land office to the effect that the money that the wife is proffering in payment for any land is all hers and not from her farang husband. Which it is, isn't it? Of course it is! Need you ask?

[ubonjoe]

.... and replaced by the constitutionally sanctioned little white lie of signing an affidavit at the land office to the effect that the money that the wife is proffering in payment for any land is all hers and not from her farang husband. Which it is, isn't it? Of course it is! Need you ask?

Not if you give it to her and tell her she can do whatever she wants with it.

But if you were to get divorced it would still be part of the assets that have to divided up. You can't own it but you can force the sale of it to get your share.

[mnbcm]

2 weeks ago my wife flew from the U.S. to Thailand. She used her U.S. passport to leave the country with our married name which also matched the tickets. She also had to show proof of a visa or citizenship at the ticket counter since we didn't have a return ticket. Her Thai passport was her old name. They had no problem with it. The U.S. says you must enter and leave the U.S. on your U.S. passport. I think she should definitely leave on the Thai passport because because Thais need the card they staple in your passport when she returns. (Although my wife had hers removed at some point during naturalization in the U.S. and that caused a few extra minutes delay at the Thai border). Thais get a 30 day visa in Hong Kong so if her trip is under that amount of time, I'd just stick with the Thai name and visa. http://www.immd.gov.hk/ehtml/hkvisas_4.htm

Not sure if that helps you decide, but FYI.

As of July 2007, 16 immigration attorney's in Thailand say don't worry about having two passports or changing your name unless laws change. We've been debating whether or not to change my wife's name in case laws change in the future, but we decided to go ahead and do it; more for the symbolism of a name change at marriage than laws.

Edited March 1, 2009 by mnbcm

[steve187]

My final tuppence worth; since there's no benefit in entering or exiting HKG on her US passport over doing the same on her Thai one, just use the Thai one and get the ticket issued in that name.

I think that would be the wisest course of action

[Arkady]

I don't understand why people don't change the name on the Thai ID and passport when they do on the other countries. Just seems to me to be asking for problems like this.

TH

There is a very racist law that states Thai women with foreign husbands can't own land...

That law was ditched in the 1999 Land Code. Now any Thai with a foreign spouse can buy land as long as the foreign spouse makes a declaration to the Land Dept that the money used to purchase the land was the Thai spouse's own money and that the land will not form part of the conjugal property. Therefore it can't be divided in case of divorce. In fact they don't care where the money came from. They only care that the foreign spouse has no claim on the land whatsoever. The law is worded to include foreign and Thai couples cohabiting as well as married couples. So you have to make the declaration whether your wife changes her name or not and even if you haven't registered the marriage. Otherwise you are both guilty of a criminal offence.