Marriage Visa
It is easy to understand why so many foreigners fall in love with Thailand as a country. It also follows that a proportion of these visitors find a Thai partner of their dreams.
If your head has been turned towards marrying a Thai national you need to understand the processes and legal requirements involved in securing a valid Thai marriage visa.
This visa can be extended for up to one year at a time.
Marriage ceremony:
Depending on where the marriage ceremony takes place determines the process for obtaining a marriage visa.
Before leaving your home country:
If you are already married you can apply and receive a non-immigrant visa from the Thai consulate in your home country. This will be valid for 90-days.
This type of visa is not issued without solid proof of your status that includes your Thai marriage certificate, you may also be asked for bank statements from a Thai account in your name. If you have children together then it will assist your case by also presenting their birth certificates.
Any documents written in Thai should be translated into English before applying. This must be a certified translation by the Thai consulate in your home country or in Thailand.
Applying while in Thailand
If you are on a tourist visa during a stay in Thailand you will need to travel to a neighbouring country and make your application at the Thai consulate in that country. Popular countries to visit for this purpose are Laos, Malaysia and Cambodia. The same paperwork as mentioned above will be required to secure a new 90-day non-immigrant visa.
Full list of documentation required:
You will apply for the marriage visa extension at a Thai Immigration office, the following documents need to be presented:
- Passports: Your passport, your husband/wife’s passport and copies of both
- ID card: The husband or wife’s ID card
- Household registration document: The husband or wife’s household registration. This is known as a Tabian Baan in Thai.
- Marriage certificate: Your legally issued marriage certificate.
- Children: Copies of birth certificates should be presented if these are available.
- Proof of finances: You will need to produce your personal Thai bank book that shows funds of at least 400,000 baht in your account. This should be accompanied by a letter from your bank confirming these funds, or a letter from your country’s Embassy confirming your monthly income is at least 40,000 baht.
- Place of residence: A drawn map showing the location of your current residence
- Proof of residence: If the home is owned by the husband or wife, the household registration documents should be presented. If renting then a copy of ID card and a copy of the homeowners house registration documents
- Photographs: 2 photos of husband and wife inside their home and 2 more of you both outside showing the address of the property.
IMPORTANT:
You must provide the Thai Immigration bureau with original documentation AND two sets of photocopies.
Next step:
Once you have collated and copied all documentation you can submit your application at any local Thai immigration office. Documents will be checked and assuming the immigration officer responsible considers everything is in order you will be granted a 1-month ‘under due consideration period’.
During this month, your documents will be sent to the Thai immigration office in Bangkok for verification. There is also a possibility that a local immigration official will visit the address you have given for further confirmation that it is your place of residence and the relationship between you and your partner is a legitimate one.
Towards the end of your ‘consideration’ month a return visit to the immigration office will ascertain whether the application has been successful or not.
If successful you will receive the official marriage visa in the form of a stamp in your passport. This will be valid for the remainder of that year.
Regular reporting required:
Having gone through a fair bit of red tape to obtain your marriage visa it would be remiss of you to let things slip by ignoring the regular reporting regulations.This takes the form of a visit to the local immigration office every 90-days, surprisingly enough it is known as 90-day reporting!
This is a general stipulation for the different types of visas issued to foreigners while staying/living or working in the Kingdom. Its purpose is to confirm that you are still resident in the country. Proof of your address will need to be provided.
Re-entry permit:
Each time you leave Thailand you must ensure that you get a re-entry permit stamped in your passport. This can be obtained at any immigration office. It takes the form of a square stamp and its purpose is to protect your marriage visa when you re-enter Thailand.
The permit is required regardless of whether your re-entry is flying into the Kingdom or crossing one of its land borders.
It is sensible to pay a visit to your local immigration office about one week before you are due to leave the country to obtain the re-entry permit. The TM8 form is the document that needs to be completed with this application.
Getting married outside of Thailand:
We have so far majored on what is required if a foreigner marries their Thai partner in Thailand, so let’s consider the requirements if the marriage ceremony takes place in another country.
Will a Thai marriage visa still be achievable?
The answer is: Yes, but there are also additional steps to be completed to achieve this. Four of the major requirements are:
- A visit to the Thai Embassy in Bangkok is required. You need to present your original marriage certificate for them to verify it is real and then to stamp it.
- Next stop should be to have the marriage certificate translated into the Thai language.
- This must then be taken to the Ministry of foreign affairs in Bangkok to allow them to verify and stamp it.
Once the above steps have been completed you then take the marriage certificate to your designated local amphur office or town hall. Their responsibility is to register it into the appropriate system which will then allow it to be referenced and used when you apply for the Thai marriage visa using the same documentation and proof of income as stated above.
Consider assistance:
As can be seen from the above, the initial application and issuing of your Thai marriage visa is quite involved.
Many foreigners applying for this visa deem it to be a sufficiently detailed and time-consuming task to seek assistance. This can be achieved by using the services of AW Biz.
Our experienced staff know the process inside-out and have helped to successfully complete many visa applications.
The cost paid for visa assistance will ensure far lower stress levels and could even be classed as the perfect wedding gift from you to yourself and your Thai partner!
