I have a Usufruct Contract. What else do I need to protect my assets if my Thai wife should die before me?

[connda]

I have a Usufruct Contract attached to the deed of my wife's land on which we now live.  What else do I need to protect my assets if my Thai wife should die before me (we're both in the 'senior' category)?  We are going to update my wife's Will next week which is why I'm addressing this subject now.
 

I find the Usufruct Contract to be rather nebulous and unspecific.  It grants me the 'use of the land' until my death.  And of course, that Usufruct Contract rider remains on the Land Deed even if my wife's beneficiary chooses to sell the land.  

 

However - that does not make me feel protected, especially considering the amount of money that I have tied up in the land and house.  And define, "Use?"  I definitely don't feel as though the Thai legal system is going to have a foreign 'widower's' best interests at heart, especially considering that a foreign 'widower' has no legal standing in the Thailand legal system.  Once my wife dies, I and other's like me, can be tossed out of the country on a whim.  We're not considered 'widowers', we are again nothing but tourists, if that at all.

So, if my wife dies, and I'm a 'widower' with no legal standing, by contract I still have the 'Use' of the land.  Wonderful.  But so does the land owner.  So for the sake of discussion let's say that my wife dies, and the probate court grants title to the land to my wife's adult son as is currently stipulated in her Will.  As long as my wife's son abides by her wishes to allow me to enjoy the use of the property and the structures on the property until I die - all would be great, especially considering that I built most of the upgrades and improvements using my money earmarked for retirement. But that is in a perfect world and we don't live in a perfect world - we live in a world governed by the greed of others, and in Thailand, destroying a foreign (farang) 'widower' of a native (dead) Thai spouse for the sake of financial gain isn't unheard of.  

So, I have a Usufruct Contract.  But I don't consider that sufficient protection.  So the big question is, how do I protect all the assets that I have purchased for my wife and myself to enjoy even after death separates us.  

• If I die first, there is no problem.  The Thai legal system will see all tangible property as hers and my step-son's as specified by my Will.  

• If she dies first, I have a big problem.  Ownership of the land goes to my step-son to do with as he will.  I already know that he has no interest in keeping the land.  If he abides by his mother's wishes, then he will let me live on the land unencumbered until my death.  But maybe one day he decides he'd be better off selling the land and having the money in his pocket.  Then the real problems begin.  What stops him or a new owner from coming in with a bulldozer and flattening all the structures?  "Enjoy your 'use' farang."

So I'm heading back to our lawyer to redraw up my wife's Last Will and Testament.  Within her Will we should be able to

• structure additional protections as in transferring all tangible, non-land assets to me except for the keepsakes she wishes to specifically designate in the Will to give to others;
• transfer titles to all vehicles to me;
• (what else am I missing that my Thai lawyer will probably not mention, but that I should be aware of?)

 

Now comes the question I'm most interested in:  Can I be the beneficiary of all non-land assets including the house, the out-buildings, man-made structures such as walls, fences, plumbing, conduits, gates, water-tanks, car-ports, and other structures built on top of the land.  I know I can't own the land, but I've heard I can own the structures built on top of the land, i.e., the house, and I assume by extension all the structures built on the land. True?  Not True?  Why?

 

Or, is it possible to draw up a lease the executes at the time of my wife's death? 

***I'd really appreciate if my question stays on topic.  Please keep it on point, factual, and devoid of sarcasm.  I'm looking for actionable information based on Thai law and from other TV member's direct experience - not opinion and conjecture.  Thanks!

 

Edited April 30, 2017 by connda

[happylarry]

You can own the land if it's willed to you but you have one year to sell it or transfer the ownership to a Thai name. So this would be the way to go. The son would have no choice but to accept this and then maybe you could strike a deal of some sort about putting it in his name during that year on proviso that.......

 

HL

[Langsuan Man]

I would see a lawyer but it appears to me that a usefruct (which is an agreement allowing you to use the land until your death) would remain in force even after the death of your spouse.  You of course would not own the land on which the house is built on but you do have the legal right to occupy it until you die

 

A contract is a contract and unless told by more competent authority the usefruct would survive the wife who granted it.  Just as if you had received a 30 year lease from a private party, that property is considered "encumbered "  and could not be sold unless all parties were in agreement and must be honored by the heirs

[BEVUP]

Interesting 

I see it like this & as mentioned prior, I'm sure the Usufrut would be terminated due to your wifes loss, & you would inheret the land to be sold within 1 yr

But then another thought kicked in & it was concerning the son being her first blood line to her but as mentioned it is willed to him but now i see you are going to change that 

But Happylarry would no doubt be right

[Khun Jean]

You will be perfectly fine. The usufruct stays valid for YOUR whole life (or 30 years depending what was agreed upon).

Whoever inherits or gets ownership of the land later is of no concern, the usufruct will still be valid.

The owner has given the usufruct, so they have no right to use the land in any way.

Again, the law is simple and straightforward.

Divorce is the only concern.