Can My X-thai Wife Change Our Sons Name?

[dickie58]

I have a funny feeling my x-Thai wife is trying to change the/my family name of our 9 year old Son, without my authority, can she do this?

The lawyer who handled my divorce said it needed my authority?

I am his father, & that is registered on his Thai & British birth certificates.

As he is my son, there is no way I'm going to give her the authority to do this, although she hasn't asked.

[MikeyIdea]

Depends on if you are the father according to law or not. Forget the Thai birth certificate and the British one is of course even less worth - in Thailand that is.

You can check yourself at the Amphur if you have shared custody or not, go to the amphur with the birth certificate of your child and your passport and ask if you have por kor 11 (that's a form that states shared custody). Did you register the marriage with the mother? If you did then you got shared custody, and unless you gave it away when you registered the divorce at the Amphur, you still do. No need to check at the amphur in that case.

But then maybe not...

If you don't have shared custody, then the mother can change name of course. I am not sure if the mother has the right to change name also if you have shared custody, parental powers like where a child should reside is generally shared between parents with custody in Thailand (unless other is stated) and the mother can indeed change residence of a child and the only thing the father can do is change back again or sue... I don't know about the surname

I don't think it's a funny feeling, it could just as well be the feeling of someone who wants money

[Phil Conners]

AFAIK all she has to do is tell the Amphur that you've abandoned them, then they will let her change the name.

[MikeyIdea]

Yes, if the mother lies at the amphur, then they will surely allow her to change your childs surname

It always amazes me how westerners don't keep one single Thai paper of their children, but they cherish the foreign birth certificate – not worth more than toilet paper in Thailand unless they get a lawyer and get him to help

Dickie, always keep copies of the childs Thai birth certificate and tabien baan, preferably get the original BC and if you are paying for more than half the childs living and education, don’t give it back to the mother unless you have another original. If you do have shared custody, go and get a por kor 11 so that you have proof of that

I can recommend that you do what I did: If you do have shared custody, go to the amphur where the child was born and get an additional Original Thai Birth Certificate, so that you have one original and the mother one. That ensures that if you have shared custody and the mother change residence etc, then you can do the same and change back again, take the child out of the country etc.

How to get an Original Thai Birth certificate issued totally legally without a police report:

You need to have shared custody and evidence proving that. Go to the Immigration web site and print out the Thai version of the papers needed to apply for Thai Residency in the category of Supporting Thai citizen or being supported by Thai citizen (husband-wife, father-mother, or children who is under 20 years of age and single). That paper clearly states in Thai that Immigration require Original Birth Certificate as evidence. Go to the amphur where the child was born and tell them what you need, show them the paper from immigration and evidence that you have shared custody. There is another form that they want to give you, the Rapp lang khon goet (T.R 1/G – taa raa nung tapp gaa), don’t accept that one, show the paper from immigration and say Original Birth Certificate only

[Mario2008]

He said he divorced his wife, so the child is his and he will in all likely hood have shared custody, with the child staying with the mother.

[MikeyIdea]

Agree Mario2008, just want to point out the enormous difference between having been legally married or not, from the childs perspective

[dickie58]

Yes, if the mother lies at the amphur, then they will surely allow her to change your childs surname

It always amazes me how westerners don't keep one single Thai paper of their children, but they cherish the foreign birth certificate – not worth more than toilet paper in Thailand unless they get a lawyer and get him to help

Dickie, always keep copies of the childs Thai birth certificate and tabien baan, preferably get the original BC and if you are paying for more than half the childs living and education, don't give it back to the mother unless you have another original. If you do have shared custody, go and get a por kor 11 so that you have proof of that

I can recommend that you do what I did: If you do have shared custody, go to the amphur where the child was born and get an additional Original Thai Birth Certificate, so that you have one original and the mother one. That ensures that if you have shared custody and the mother change residence etc, then you can do the same and change back again, take the child out of the country etc.

How to get an Original Thai Birth certificate issued totally legally without a police report:

You need to have shared custody and evidence proving that. Go to the Immigration web site and print out the Thai version of the papers needed to apply for Thai Residency in the category of Supporting Thai citizen or being supported by Thai citizen (husband-wife, father-mother, or children who is under 20 years of age and single). That paper clearly states in Thai that Immigration require Original Birth Certificate as evidence. Go to the amphur where the child was born and tell them what you need, show them the paper from immigration and evidence that you have shared custody. There is another form that they want to give you, the Rapp lang khon goet (T.R 1/G – taa raa nung tapp gaa), don't accept that one, show the paper from immigration and say Original Birth Certificate only

Thanks for your advice, I am my sons real father, & me my wife were legally married at the local Amphur before my son was born, & were divorced at the same Amphur office, my sons birth was regeisterd at the same office as well, & they also issued the Thai birth certificate, & the divorce certificate.

Our Marriage was also registered at the British Embassy in BKK.

My wife has his orignal Thai birth certificate now, & that states i am my sons father, but i have a copy, I have his UK birth certificate & UK passport

It would be hard for her to say i have abandond her as i transfer her monthly maintance into her bank account every month, & i have copies of all those transfers. I also see my son 3 times a week, & i have numerous people who could verify that.

The divorce contract what we both signed, states that we both have joint custody, but my son lives with her.

Edited March 3, 2010 by dickie58

[MikeyIdea]

You have protected yourself, good