How to Legally Marry a Thai

As marriage to a Thai is a possibility for anyone considering bringing a Thai to Australia I have included this page. The page detalis how to legally marry a Thai person in Thailand. These steps are necessary if you want your marriage to be recognised in Australia. If you do not register you marriage as set out here you are not married according to Thai or Australian law.

The details on this page are based on my experience of going through the process and from information gathered from the Australian embassy in Bangkok and on their website: Registering marriages in Thailand. While all care have been taken in the preparation of this information I am not responsible for any inaccuracies.

Below is the list of steps you need to work through to become legally married.

Statutory declaration

You must complete a pro-forma statutory declaration stating that you are free to marry. It can only be witnessed at the Australian embassy in Bangkok. The fee is listed as A$20 (590 Baht, February 2010) to be paid in Thai Baht in cash or by credit card. There are no ATMs inside the embassy. See the pro-forma statutory declaration that you will be required to complete at the embassy. Blank pro-forma statutory declarations are available at the embassy.

Previous marriage certificates

If you have been previously married you will need the original divorce or death certificates for the embassy to supply certified copies.

Translations

You will need to have the statutory declaration and any previous marriage certificates translated to Thai. The embassy does not provide this service and must be done by an independent business. The statutory declaration will cost about 400 to 500 Baht to have translated.

Certification by the Thai Department of Consular Affairs

The translated documents must be certified by the Thai Department of Consular Affairs. Each document costs 200 Baht to certify and will take two days to complete. You may ask for express processing and receive the certified documents in two to three hours. The cost of the express service is twice the normal service. If you only have the statutory declaration certified you will need to pay for two documents as they certify the signature on the English version and the full Thai document.

The office is approximately 20km north of central Bangkok and the address is:

Department of Consular Affairs
123 Moo 3, Changwattana Road,
Kwang Toong Son Hong,
Khet Laksi, Bangkok
Ph 02 5751061, 02 5751057
Hours: 08:30 – 15:30

The Marriage

Once you have completed the above you are able to attend the Amphoe (town hall) and become legally married. You may need to make a booking. This part is best organised by your partner.

If you are well organised and use the express processing at the Thai Department of Consular Affairs you could complete everything in a single day. However, it is probably best to get the documents together one day and go to the Amphoe the following day.

Documents related to this page:

Registering a marriage in Thailand page 1 (as supplied by the Australian embassy in Bangkok)

Registering a marriage in Thailand page 2

Registering a marriage in Thailand (Thai)

Pro-forma statutory declaration (as supplied by the Australian embassy in Bangkok)