Renewing My Thai Passport/keeping My Us Passport

[siam99]

OK I have been searching on the net for weeks now and always come across extremely conflicting information.

Here is my situation: I was born in the US to Thai parents who immigrated here in the 70s. I went back to study in Thailand after 1995 but returned by 2000. During the time I was in Thailand I had a valid Thai passport. During the early 2000s my Thai passport expired. This year my US passport will be expiring moreover.

My question has a couple of different parts to it. First of all, since I may be looking to return to Thailand, how easy would it be for me to renew my Thai passport? What sorts of documentation will I need? I do not have house registration document (my mother had her own house but she remarried and after I left, she passed away and with the house very likely having gone to the farang, I am not sure what the status of it is at all) and do not have a valid Thai ID card.

Second if I get to renew my Thai passport, does that automatically mean I have Thai citizenship. I intend to renew my US passport a bit later this year. I am thinking that by having both Thai and US passports I am, for all intents and purposes, holding dual citizenship.

ANY clarifications, questions, comments are welcome. I really want to sort through this and make this whole process as simple as possible for myself. However I am aware that dealing with Thai authorities may result in drawn out waiting periods. Thanks in advance to anyone who answers!

[siam99]

I actually realized I could clarify regarding the house registration. Although I believe that my mother's house may have been lost (ie., it may have been sold off without my knowledge) I have been made aware that my name most likely is on my grandmother's house. It is also possible that my name can be added on to a house on my father's side of the family. However it is very difficult to achieve cooperation within my family and so I also don't know how long registrations take or what procedures I need to go through myself to figure out where my name is. Unfortunately the two sides mostly stopped talking with each other when my parents divorced. Any suggestions or advice welcome...

[bellste]

There is only one way to deal with this. You must contact the Thai embassy in America. This is a complicated issue, but I'm sure they can give sound advice.

[Maestro]

siam99, because one of your parents was Thai you acquired Thai citizenship at birth and the fact that your Thai passport expired does not mean that you lost your Thai citizenship. It is not unusual for a Thai citizen living abroad, perhaps even born abroad, not to have a Thai house registration and not to have a Thai ID card. I suggest that you call the consular section of the Thai embassy in Washington DC and ask where you should apply for your new Thai passport and what documents you need to submit. Normally, the old passport should be all that is needed. The place where you will have to apply depends on where you live in the USA.

--

Maestro

[samran]

As others have said, you are a Thai citizen. Period. Just because you don't have a valid Thai passport doesn't make you any less of a citizen.

You should easily be able to get a new passport on the strength of your old thai passport and birth certificate. Given you were born outside of Thailand (and applying outside of Thailand), they usually won't require you have house registration documentation papers as those who are born overseas aren't expected to, and actually can't be added to thee house registration unless they go back and live full time in Thailand.

When you return to Thailand, take both your old and new passports with you. Immigration may perfer to have you stamped back in on your old passport, and then you use your new passports for any subsequent trips (has happend to me when I applied for a new Thai PP outside of the country).

Then when back in Thailand, you can chase up your house registration, get your ID renewed etc. Maybe even chase up your mothers land as well, given that it is impossible for foreigners to own it!

[siam99]

Thanks to everyone so far with your informative and encouraging replies!

I am heartened to know that I am considered a Thai citizen regardless of where I was born. BOTH my parents are Thai for that matter so it's not even a question of one parent being non-Thai, etc. I do not have a Thai birth certificate on me but at least I know that I am by birth a Thai citizen in the eyes of the law (notwithstanding the fact that my lineage ought to prove that 110% to begin with!).

I am glad to know that I do not have to worry about house registration matters either, right off the bat. That definitely eases the process for me, it sounds like. Regarding my mother's house however, I am aware that it is very difficult for a farang to own her house. However in my research I came across Thai inheritance laws stating that the person who was legally married to her would be considered a "descendant". So other than me, he would be it and be first in line to the house as well. Unfortunately I was not living there at the time she passed away, she did not leave me a copy of her will, and my relations with her farang husband were atrocious to say the least so that is why I have always been concerned that he may have SOMEHOW obtained control of her property, and perhaps sold it off or maybe even remarried another Thai woman and passed it on to her! Who knows?! I have not had much contact with mother's side of the family and don't know if they were able to get anything and keep it for me. Whenever I might be able to go back I might finally be able to figure out what happened to it, I suppose.

Anyway at least it's good to know that renewing my Thai passport should not be a problem at all. I would like to keep that and my US passport current and be able to have free travel between the two countries.

[samran]

Thanks to everyone so far with your informative and encouraging replies!

I am heartened to know that I am considered a Thai citizen regardless of where I was born. BOTH my parents are Thai for that matter so it's not even a question of one parent being non-Thai, etc. I do not have a Thai birth certificate on me but at least I know that I am by birth a Thai citizen in the eyes of the law (notwithstanding the fact that my lineage ought to prove that 110% to begin with!).

I am glad to know that I do not have to worry about house registration matters either, right off the bat. That definitely eases the process for me, it sounds like. Regarding my mother's house however, I am aware that it is very difficult for a farang to own her house. However in my research I came across Thai inheritance laws stating that the person who was legally married to her would be considered a "descendant". So other than me, he would be it and be first in line to the house as well. Unfortunately I was not living there at the time she passed away, she did not leave me a copy of her will, and my relations with her farang husband were atrocious to say the least so that is why I have always been concerned that he may have SOMEHOW obtained control of her property, and perhaps sold it off or maybe even remarried another Thai woman and passed it on to her! Who knows?! I have not had much contact with mother's side of the family and don't know if they were able to get anything and keep it for me. Whenever I might be able to go back I might finally be able to figure out what happened to it, I suppose.

Anyway at least it's good to know that renewing my Thai passport should not be a problem at all. I would like to keep that and my US passport current and be able to have free travel between the two countries.

I suggest if you can get your hands on the Thai BC, you should. It would have been issued by the Thai embassy in the US. It is a very important document (the most important!) as it is the first in the 'document chain' that proves you are Thai. If you go back to Thailand to re-register for an ID card and house registration, the officals at the municipality will require that you have it on you.

[siam99]

Just dredging up this topic concerning renewing my Thai passport. I have been able to locate a copy of my Thai BC after all; although it is a photocopy only that I have on me. Is that all right or would it be more advisable to somehow obtain the original which I believe is somewhere in one of my relative's houses in Thailand?

[Mario2008]

The fact that you have a copy means that your birth is registered with the Thai government, that is the most important thing. You should always be able to get a official copy of that. I doubt a photocopy will be enough in the cases where you need to show one. Getting the original is the best, you will need it sometimes.

[siam99]

The fact that you have a copy means that your birth is registered with the Thai government, that is the most important thing. You should always be able to get a official copy of that. I doubt a photocopy will be enough in the cases where you need to show one. Getting the original is the best, you will need it sometimes.

Yes that does make sense that in some cases the original will be required. Guess I may have to take a trip to get that back in my own hands!