Worried About My Son

[CuriousGeorge77]

certainly possible and quite common. children are often treated as bargaining tools and used for extortion by thai women against their farang husbands and are also often sent to live with their grand parents. your wife's attributes would suggest that hopefully she is different.

Rubbish, it is not quite common for Thai ladies to do this. What on earth made you think that?

It certainly isn't rubbish & off the top of my head & including myself, i can think of at least 6 cases of this happening & that's without even really thinking a great deal..

Its not rubbish for any split anywhere in the world. They have laws in the US because its common enough here. My friend would never take his son to Japan for the same reason - in Japan the laws are hugely slanted to the women and men basically have no chance to get custody.

Nothing against Thailand in particular - just human nature.

[Maizefarmer]

Who has custody?

Does your son has a Thai passport? If your son enters Thailand with a Thai passport, the US consular services won't want to get involved should any problem arises. If your child enters Thailand with his US passport, it's a different story.

A Thai passport for your child can be obtained from the Thai consular services in the US and also from within Thailand. Even if your child enters Thailand with a US passport your wife could take your child to a border crossing and walk back in Thailand using his Thai passport.

Be careful before you consent to this. Good luck.

It doesn't matter which passport the child enters Thailand on. The child has Thai nationality by way of being born to a Thai mother. As the US State deperment points out, tthey can not do anything if the mother decides to stay with the child in Thailand. You would be fighting a custody attle in a Thai court and who would win is uncertain. A US court ruling will have no meaning in Thailand.

However, as others pointed out, i wouldn't worry too much. It seems her future is in the US and not in Thailand.

Yes it does matter which passport he enters Thailand with. The child can have dual nationality but if he enters Thailand on a US passport, being a US citizen, the child is prevailed with US consular assistance and recognize as a US national when in Thailand.

Nope - correction, if I may: the law in Thailand is clear: if you're a dual USA/Thai national you are legally obliged to enter Thailand on your Thai passport. Period.

Even if you chance your luck and decide enter Thailand with your USA/UK/SWISS (or using whatever other second nationality you have ...) passport, the fact that you are a dual nat will not allow you to avail yourself to/of that 2nd citizenship, or any of the benefits that you could or may want to use pertaining to that 2nd citizenship/nationality - and just in case one does do so, the moment you try to exercise some or other claim/benefit using the 2nd citizenship, when that 2nd country finds out (and that usualyy doesn;t take long once you have contatced them to ask them to pull you take of jail,or whatever ...), chances are they will simply close the book and remind you of the above.

Likewise, if you go into most 2nd nationality countries on your Thai passport as a dual whatever/Thai national, you will be committing an offence, and will probably not be able to exercise some or other Thai cliam/benefit. You are and will still be considered a citizen of that country.

To the best of my knowledge, Thailand applies this rule with respct to all dual nationals: it doesn;t matter what your second nationality is.

It is the primary reason why I have never taken up Thai citizenship as I have always wanted to retain the benefits/rights/protections that my foreign citizenship gives me, not withstanding that I have lived here all my working life.

In short: their is little to no protection/benefit or right you can exercise in Thailand if you are a dual Thai national - you will be treated under Thai law as a Thai national (immaterial of the passport you use to enter the country on).