Planning To Marry And Live In Thailand

[telstrareg]

My objectives:

I would like to be able to live in Thailand with my wife most of the year but will also be travelling back and forth from Hungary to visit my mother a few times each year.

About me:

I'm a 43-year-old male. A holder of both Australian and Hungarian (EU) passports. I am currently resident in Australia. I intend to marry my girlfriend in Thailand sometime in May or June this year.

As far as I can tell I meet all the requirements for extending the 'O' visa to a spouse visa except for one. My girlfriend does not have a 'Tabien Baan'. I am currently renting a house in Thailand as my girlfriend and I would like the freedom to live anywhere in Thailand.

I have some questions:

1. Does my current situation (lack of a Tabien Baan) preclude me from obtaining the spouse visa?

2. If (1) is a problem, can I resolve it by buying my girlfriend a small plot of land somewhere (i.e. will this enable her to get a Tabien Baan)?

3. Provided I can get the Tabien Baan issue resolved, does the spouse visa sound like the best option for me?

4. In theory if I obtain the spouse visa, will I be able to live in Thailand continuously throughout the year without being forced to leave the country after a certain number of months?

5. Once I have a spouse visa will I be able to travel freely in and out of Thailand without terminating my visa in some way?

6. It is my understanding that if I wish to live continuously in Thailand on a spouse visa, then I will need to apply for a new visa each year as well as do some reporting every three months. Is this correct?

7. Once I'm in Thailand, can I take care of all the bureaucratic requirements of the visa from Chiang Mai (where we intend to leave) or is there some part of the process which will require me to go to Bangkok or elsewhere?

[lopburi3]

If you GF can marry you she is listed on a home register somewhere in order to obtain an ID card. It does not have to be land she owns - most will be on parents TB.

There is no such thing as a marriage visa - you obtain one year extensions of stay on basis of 400k in bank account 2 months or 40k income in embassy letter (if from outside Thailand). You can not travel without a re-entry permit to keep that one year extension alive and you have to report address every 90 days if you do not travel. You can do everything in Chiang Mai (except perhaps embassy letter if using that).

[wolf5370]

Alternatively (from Lop - who is the defecto expert here:D) if you do not have (or do not want to transfer) the lump sum, you can get the one year non-imm 'O' based on marriage (Multi) and then do 90 day walk overs to Mae Sai (cost around 1000 baht all told each quater - including bus/mini-coach and 500baht fee in Burma - and can all be done in a single day - many do it). No requirement then for Tabien Bahn, embassy letters or proof of income (depending on consulate used to get the Visa). Every 15 months you will need a new visa and then start it again. You can get a work permit on a Non-'O' (for marriage/support of child) also if needs be.

[ludditeman]

1. Are you sure your gf is a REAL Thai citizen, not Burmese or Hilltribe without ID.

If she doesn't have Thai ID, you can forget about a marriage extension (or marriage).

I'm afraid without Tabian Ban book the chances are, no ID (or fake ID), married to someone else already, not Thai.

Every Thai must be registered in a Tabian Baan book by law, if by some error she was removed from 1 book without being put on another. Easy to fix, I paid a neighbor 1,000bht to put my wife and kids in her book, so they could get free 'local' healthcare and schooling. Her family property is in Nakon Nowhere.

Once the Tabian Baan is sorted out (if it can be) everything else is easy. But can I just stress, her not being on a Tabian Baan book could be a real warning of her deceiving you in some way.

Edited February 20, 2012 by ludditeman

[telstrareg]

1. Are you sure your gf is a REAL Thai citizen, not Burmese or Hilltribe without ID.

If she doesn't have Thai ID, you can forget about a marriage extension (or marriage).

I'm afraid without Tabian Ban book the chances are, no ID (or fake ID), married to someone else already, not Thai.

Every Thai must be registered in a Tabian Baan book by law, if by some error she was removed from 1 book without being put on another. Easy to fix, I paid a neighbor 1,000bht to put my wife and kids in her book, so they could get free 'local' healthcare and schooling. Her family property is in Nakon Nowhere.

Once the Tabian Baan is sorted out (if it can be) everything else is easy. But can I just stress, her not being on a Tabian Baan book could be a real warning of her deceiving you in some way.

LOL, Yeah she is definitely a Thai citizen. I just assumed she didn't have a Tabien Baan because she didn't have property. I just asked her and she DOES have a Tabien Baan. I've made a good mess of this topic now so I think I better start again.