Thai marriage

[jason]

If I get married to a Thai lady in Thailand does it become legally binding in the UK also?  ie- If it all went wrong and we divorced would she be entitled to half of everything I own in the UK?  

Cheers

[dr_Pat_Pong]

The marriage will be recognized in the UK. As to property settlement, I will let Brit's make comment. It certainly isn't likely that it'd be 50 / 50 from the outset.

[NedKelly]

Your marriage will only be recognised in the UK if you register it here both in thai govt. offices and the brittish Embassy and then you have to have translations etc done. So if you just have a normal Thai wedding (unoffical) then no problems. You can have a Thai - official - wedding but I dont know whether this has much legal bearing in Thailand. It probably has no bearing in the UK. If anyone else knows let me know.

[sbk]

Well, I'm not british, but american and I had a legal thai wedding, so my experience may give you an idea, anyway. first i had to go to the US embassy and sign an affadavit stating that i was not already married, have it then translated into thai, go to the thai govt (can't remember which office) which, after a week, gave me permisssion to get married in any amphur's office. which we then did. I did not register my marriage with the US embassy and they obviously considered it valid since my husband received a green card based on our marriage. i suggest you contact UK citizens services at the embassy to get the full details but i suspect it is very similar to the US. as for divorce, suspect if you get divorced in thailand then it follows thai laws, but again, the UK embassy may be able to help you with this.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

Ned   An unofficial wedding isn't recognized anywhere. You'd need to go to the District Offices and do the official wedding ( a bit like a registery office ) If you did the unofficial one, and wanted to take her to the UK you'll have to rely on a de facto application.

[wolf5370]

I was married in LOS (I'm a Brit and a divorcee – not from Thai wife though). Married with Thai registration.

Never had to register it with UK, although they were given copies of the marriage license (plus authorised translation) when she came to the UK the first time as we needed it for the visa.

Under UK law the marriage is valid as it was legally registered by the government of a 'trusted' nation (i.e. any country not on the blacklist). Her copy of the Wedding Certificate would prove this – copies can be got from the Amphur.

Therefore, if you get divorced in the UK, it will be under UK law. Conciliation and perhaps the courts will make a decision if you can not amicably settle. It is unlikely to be 50/50, but the courts will need to be sure that she can support herself and has a home - assuming she has indefinite leave to remain. Otherwise, they may require you to cover the costs of her repatriation and maintenance. It all depends on the circumstances of the divorce and the individuals. Young children pretty much invariably go to the woman along with Child Maintenance (poss. CSA).

If you get divorced in LOS, then it will be under Thai law. I have heard this is slanted man-wise, but not sure how true this is – or how much it is just said to stop the women divorcing their wayward spouses!

I know that it is ground for divorce if the woman sleeps around, but if a man does his wife has to prove the other women has usurped her as Mia TeeNung (เมียที่หนึ่ง).

[the scouser]

As Nedkelly said, for the marriage to be recognised in the UK it must be registered at the British embassy although there is no requirement to do so. If you do not register the marriage with the British authorities then for the purposes of British law you are not married. This would mean that she could not divorce you in the British courts and therefore could not get her mits on 50% of your wordly goods. If you wish to live in the UK there is still no obligation to register your Thai marriage with the British authorities.

[marquess]

I have been married to a Thai woman for the last two and a half years.At the time of marriage there was an option to have the marriage papers registered with the British Embassy, who would then have passed the marriage cert on to births, deaths and marriages in the UK. I declined the option as I have no intention of returning to Blighty

Providing you live here in Thailand, you need have no concerns about equal asset division, as this is your principal place of domicile.

 

[NedKelly]

Haha thanks Dr Patpong, it's amazing what we write. But it is also amazing what some people dont understand. Anyway, this has been a learned experience. I have learned some valuable info.thanks all.

[surin]

As Nedkelly said, for the marriage to be recognised in the UK it must be registered at the British embassy although there is no requirement to do so. If you do not register the marriage with the British authorities then for the purposes of British law you are not married. This would mean that she could not divorce you in the British courts and therefore could not get her mits on 50% of your wordly goods. If you wish to live in the UK there is still no obligation to register your Thai marriage with the British authorities.

You would have to register the Thai marriage with your embassy before they would give the spouse an entry visa and once that is done....You have registered your Thai marriage and would be recognised in your Home Country.

[the scouser]

Hi Surin,

I don't know about other countries but can only speak in terms of the UK having been an immigration officer there.

When you have married in Thailand you do not need to record the marriage with the British embassy even if you wish to settle in the UK with your Thai spouse. The UK immigration rules stipulate that the parties should be lawfully married. As the British authorities recognise the Thai marriage process as being lawful, there is no compulsion to record the marriage with them. When applying for the settlement visa, in order to substantiate your claim to be married a translated copy of the Thai marriage certificate is all that is required.

Regards,

Scouse.

ps. here's the British embassy website for recording a marriage in the UK

[jason]

Thanks for the feedback guys however I have another query.  I have recently had a son with my Thai girlfriend over here who may soon be my wife.  I have been told by the passport office that in order to obtain a British passport for him I must be married.  They also said that I could take him to the UK on a Thai passport/visa and acquire the British passport through the Home Office without being married.  Is there anyone out there that has gone through these channels?

I know you're saying you should be married anyway due to your circumstances but the amount of farangs I've met out here who have been taken to the cleaners by there lady is scary.  Having seen my parents marriage go up in smoke as a child wasn't very inspiring either.  I know she's losing face and her mother hasn't received her precious dowry yet but I want to look after myself also which is why I asked the original question about losing out on what I own in the UK if she wanted to divorce.

Thanks again for your time.

[jason]

Hi Scouser,

Would I have to register my marriage with the British Embassy in order to get a British passport for my son or would the translation of the Thai document do?  I have sent them emails but they tend to be rather vague.

Cheers

Jas'

[the scouser]

Hi Jason,

For your son to be classed as a de facto British citizen several factors have to be fulfilled.

1. You have to have been born in the UK prior to 1.1.83

2. You have to be lawfully married to the mother

3. You have to be named on the birth certificate as being the father.

It is not necessary to record your Thai marriage at the British embassy. Providing all of the above criteria are met you can apply for a British passport for your son at the embassy. You should provide translations of the marriage and birth certificates as well as your own original "long" British birth certificate (if you haven't got one then you can apply for a copy from the General Register Office in Southport but make sure it is the "long" copy). Additionally, the birth of your son has to be legitimate; i.e. at the time of his birth you were married. From what you have said this doesn't apply in your case. However, a marriage following the birth can legitimise it.

Failing all of the above you can take your son to the UK on a Thai passport and apply to the Home Office in Liverpool to have him registered as a British citizen. Whilst it is unlikely that your son would be refused registration it is not guaranteed and can take between 12 and 15 months to complete.

As an aside, if in years to come your son has a child outside of the UK he will not be able to pass on his British citizenship.

That should make it as clear as mud! Any further info required then get back to me.

Regards,

Scouse.

[jason]

Cheers Scouse, excellent info.  

Jas'