Advantages / Disadvantages For Wife Changing Surname After Marriage ?

[Latindancer]

I was wondering if I could get some feedback about Thai women changing their surnames after marriage. I am Australian. Is there any advantage to her doing this ? It doesn't worry me if she does not.....her surname sounds cute. And it takes a bit of time going to government departments to change it on her I.D. and passport etc.

Edited September 20, 2011 by Latindancer

[true blue]

my wife changed hers after we married,not really sure if there was any benifit,maybe a bit easier on the paperwork in uk????

[dick turpin]

Takes all of five minutes to change her I.D. card down at the local Amphur.

Passport office at Cheng Wattana also pretty slick. Advantage if you are

travelling she will get less hassle at immigration checks, same goes for

checking in at hotels, particularly in Thailand, none of those sideway

looks you get when they think you have Miss Shorttime in tow (or so my

friends tell me)

[zzaa09]

My missus kept her family name.

Suits everyone comfortably.

....legally, the kids retain their Mother's family name. My preference and insistence.

[zzaa09]

The hyphon surnames are still fashionable, are they not?

[TigerWan]

My missus kept her family name.

Suits everyone comfortably.

....legally, the kids retain their Mother's family name. My preference and insistence.

I did not know this.

I can certainly agree that whomever carries the child for nine months and then undergoes labor, should have her name on it.

One disadvantage to changing one's last name, and please forgive the negative innuendo- is having to change it back.

I think it a trivial inconvenience such as having hotel front desk personnel bemused and is far worth it for women to go ahead and retain their natural born identities.

I've never understood why women do it in the first place. Seems so ....subservient.

[richard_smith237]

My wife changed her surname to mine. It was her choice but what a pain it took her weeks and weeks.... Passport, Thai ID, drivers license, credit cards, frequent flyer miles, bank accounts, car ownership, condo ownership, land ownership, business details, letter heads, business cards... The list seemed endless... If I had thought about or known what a hassle it is I would have advised her not to bother.

I am not sure if there are any advantages or disadvantages...

[tink2mutt]

My wife wanted to change her surname to mine - big time. I offered that she could keep her own - but she was hell bent on changing to mine.

She is not interested in anything halfway - everything is 100% together - that's what I love about her.

She didn't have any property, credit cards etc etc - so the change was pretty simple.

I do contract work in the Middle East and if she wants to come sometimes in the more austere islamic countries you both need the same surname.

[chiang mai]

The OP will need to dig deep on this one, I can't recall what but I'm pretty certain there is an impact where the Thai females family name is changed, I seem to recall it has to do with land or home ownership but may be mistaken.

[richard_smith237]

The OP will need to dig deep on this one, I can't recall what but I'm pretty certain there is an impact where the Thai females family name is changed, I seem to recall it has to do with land or home ownership but may be mistaken.

I may be mistaken, I too remember reading stories of how a Thai lady who has married a westerner looses her rights to own land. However, I also remember reading how this law was abolished. With a number of friends now in a mixed marriage (Thai / Western) I there appear to be no disadvantages. That said, I can envisage situations where a mixed couple meet have to deal with the wrong person on the wrong day, in pretty much the same way sometimes things are easier, or harder for a Westerner here, it simply depends of the prejudice of the person they are dealing with.

Internationally I see no issue whatsoever with the exception of the laws of some Muslim nations as already mentioned.

[ludditeman]

Takes all of five minutes to change her I.D. card down at the local Amphur.

Passport office at Cheng Wattana also pretty slick. Advantage if you are

travelling she will get less hassle at immigration checks, same goes for

checking in at hotels, particularly in Thailand, none of those sideway

looks you get when they think you have Miss Shorttime in tow (or so my

friends tell me)

One of the disadvantages of the lady changing her name (for many TV members)

Is at the hotel desk where they assume you have brought your mother.

[Kwasaki]

The wife changed her name on the house / land and banks etc, never a problem and as said before it helps with future UK admin.

Don't understand about the kids retaining their Mother's family name, my step son has kept his fathers surname, and other male members of the family have there fathers surname.

[hotandhumid]

A 'cute' surname?

Let me guess, another yank?

[chiang mai]

A 'cute' surname?

Let me guess, another yank?

A poor guess, the OP states he/she is Australian, not that it's relevant to much of anything.

[MarkBKK]

Takes all of five minutes to change her I.D. card down at the local Amphur.

Passport office at Cheng Wattana also pretty slick. Advantage if you are

travelling she will get less hassle at immigration checks, same goes for

checking in at hotels, particularly in Thailand, none of those sideway

looks you get when they think you have Miss Shorttime in tow (or so my

friends tell me)

Actually ... it depends on the surname. The rendition of my surname into Thai proves to be a second name that is ''not allowed'', as the wife found out when she tried to change her name.

Er ... it's not ''BKK'', BTW, but contains consonants that don't exist in Thai and the transliteration turns it into a common noun that while inoffensive seems to be a word that Thais are not allowed to have as a second name.

Edited September 22, 2011 by MarkBKK

[richard_smith237]

Takes all of five minutes to change her I.D. card down at the local Amphur.

Passport office at Cheng Wattana also pretty slick. Advantage if you are

travelling she will get less hassle at immigration checks, same goes for

checking in at hotels, particularly in Thailand, none of those sideway

looks you get when they think you have Miss Shorttime in tow (or so my

friends tell me)

Actually ... it depends on the surname. The rendition of my surname into Thai proves to be a second name that is ''not allowed'', as the wife found out when she tried to change her name.

Er ... it's not ''BKK'', BTW, but contains consonants that don't exist in Thai and the transliteration turns it into a common noun that while inoffensive seems to be a word that Thais are not allowed to have as a second name.

It was my understanding that Thai ID does not permit a second name. While my wife wished to adopt my surname she also wished to maintain her family identity and use her surname as a middle name. When applying to change her Thai ID she was informed that this is not permitted.

One possible negative aspect I have thought of: When dealing with bureaucracy the Western surname may draw unnecessary attention. i.e. If in the future one wishes to build a house etc and obtain permissions, building permits, utilities etc... a greedy officer may request kickbacks / additional kickbacks while under the impression that the Western surname may be an indication that there is potentially more money on offer etc... (This is a bit of a stretch although I have heard of a similar story where someone at the land dept. (or something similar) automatically doubled the fees as soon as he found out a westerner was involved in building a house)....

[Latindancer]

One possible negative aspect I have thought of: When dealing with bureaucracy the Western surname may draw unnecessary attention. i.e. If in the future one wishes to build a house etc and obtain permissions, building permits, utilities etc... a greedy officer may request kickbacks / additional kickbacks while under the impression that the Western surname may be an indication that there is potentially more money on offer etc... (This is a bit of a stretch although I have heard of a similar story where someone at the land dept. (or something similar) automatically doubled the fees as soon as he found out a westerner was involved in building a house)....

Hmmm....I hadn't thought of that one ! Thanks, Richard. And thanks to everyone else too, for your feedback.

[Mario2008]

1 inlfametory post deleted.

[trevorg]

The hyphon surnames are still fashionable, are they not?

'Double barrelled' or hyphenated surnames are not allowed in Thailand as my wife found out which cost much time and effort to resolve.

My wife wanted to take my surname but also keep her maiden name. She went to the Amphur and got a new ID card and name changed on the Tabien Ban with a double barrelled surname. Off on the bus to Bangkok to change her passport (700km round trip) to be told that she could not have a double barrelled surname. Back to the Amphur to have the ID card and Tabien Ban changed so that her old surname is now a 'middle' name with just my surname. Another 700km round trip to apply for her passport again.

TBH, I would say it probably isn't worth the hassle/ cost and no real advantages (except maybe for immigration purposes in your home country, though if your'e legally married, then you're legally married) and if you have kids, if you want them to have the same surname as you.

EDIT Sorry, just noticed that someone else has posted a similar answer.

[stardancer]

I would not worry, I am Australian and its just easier to not change it for all the trouble you would go through. Our son carries my sure name on his birth certificate, there is no problem government child support here. On our center link forms we show both of our surnames.

Does she want to change her surname?

[allane]

A related question, directed to those who have both been here a long time (10 yrs. or more ?) and have been married to a Thai for at least 10 yrs.

I am recalling a newspaper story I from about 10 -12 yrs. ago. The gist of the story was that Thai marriage law was to have the sexist aspect removed, pertaining to inheritance of land. (At the time of writing, Thai women with a foreign surname could not inherit land, for fear that the land might eventually pass to her child who was a non- Thai citizen.) The article stated that the vast majority of women married to foreigners, who thought they had even a remote chance of inheriting a piece of land, would not change their name to a foreign one. (Legally speaking, they were not married, as at that time married Thai women were not permitted to keep their maiden name.)

My question is one that was not discussed in the article, nor have I ever seen it discussed subsequently:

Was this reform only for "new" marriages following the amendment date, or did it also apply to subsisting marriages ? (The few that might have been registered prior to the amendment date).

[sbk]

Its been abolished for everyone, all Thai nationals can inherit or purchase property regardless of who they are married to.

I changed my name to my husbands because mine is unpronounceable for Thais and his is easy for westerners. Funny, I doubt anyone would ever label me subservient for doing it tho....

As for your wife, if she purchases land you will need to sign a document stating that the money to purchase it is not yours (ie you make no claim on the land)-- if she has a western last name they will be more likely to enforce this one than if she goes in alone and with a Thai last name.

[cardholder]

Its been abolished for everyone, all Thai nationals can inherit or purchase property regardless of who they are married to.

I changed my name to my husbands because mine is unpronounceable for Thais and his is easy for westerners. Funny, I doubt anyone would ever label me subservient for doing it tho....

As for your wife, if she purchases land you will need to sign a document stating that the money to purchase it is not yours (ie you make no claim on the land)-- if she has a western last name they will be more likely to enforce this one than if she goes in alone and with a Thai last name.

I will stand corrected but doesn't such a statement (when married) conflict with the principle of post-marriage assets being treated 50/50 ?

One other negative cited to me was that in some places i.e, amphurs - staff often look 'down' on a Thai who has married a Falang.

[richard_smith237]

Its been abolished for everyone, all Thai nationals can inherit or purchase property regardless of who they are married to.

I changed my name to my husbands because mine is unpronounceable for Thais and his is easy for westerners. Funny, I doubt anyone would ever label me subservient for doing it tho....

As for your wife, if she purchases land you will need to sign a document stating that the money to purchase it is not yours (ie you make no claim on the land)-- if she has a western last name they will be more likely to enforce this one than if she goes in alone and with a Thai last name.

I

I will stand corrected but doesn't such a statement (when married) conflict with the principle of post-marriage assets being treated 50/50 ?

One other negative cited to me was that in some places i.e, amphurs - staff often look 'down' on a Thai who has married a Falang.

I think this is a possibility - Staff in the Amphur offices can either be extremely helpful or downright shits. I think it often depends on the individual you will be dealing with and their perception of the couple.

My Wife and I have experienced very poor treatment from an officer of local amphur office who seriously underestimated our resolve and after complaint and subsequent apologetic phone calls from the director of the amphur office (I can't remember the exact position) this lady in question was nearly fired for her inappropriate comments.

Unfortunately this was simply another example of how sometimes the person we deal with can either be extremely helpful or downright insolent. Fortunately 99% of the time my wife and I are dealt with extremely favorably and sometimes gushingly and embarrassingly so. The general impression we give off as a relatively young mixed couple perhaps has something to do with this. However, on the rare occasion we hit a brick wall and find ourselves dealing with the one person who decides they don’t like the look of us life can become momentarily very frustrating.

It is also not uncommon to find someone who can take an irrational disliking to us anywhere in the world and choose not to be as helpful as they could be.

I think the common ‘above average treatment’ by far outweighs the rare negative experiences.

Perhaps it is possible that these negative experiences may occur as a result of the shared name on a document, but if that is the case we may be looking a little too hard for the weakest signs of mistreatment. It’s far easier just to get on with our lives while remaining intolerant of any mistreatment if it ever arises.