Thailand’s Marriage Equality

I’m pleased to let you know that Thailand’s Marriage Equality Act was recently published in the Royal Gazette and is now the law of the kingdom. Starting January 23rd, 2025, same sex couples can be lawfully wedded in Thailand. This act also allows same sex couples to jointly adopt children. Thailand becomes just the third country in the Asia Pacific region to enact a marriage equality law following legislation passed in Nepal and Taiwan.

Now, marrying in Thailand takes a bit of planning, so here are the five steps to lawfully establish your marriage in the kingdom. First, you’ll need to make an appointment at your embassy and have a free to marry affidavit notarized by an embassy officer. For U.S. citizens, you can book your embassy appointment online before you travel to Thailand.

Second, once your affidavit is notarized, you’ll need to have it translated into Thai by a reputable translation service. Any mistakes and you’ll hit a speed bump in step three, which is submitting your translated affidavit to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for legalization. This takes about three business days.

With your legalized affidavit in hand, you can proceed to step four, when you and your Thai partner will register your marriage at any district office or amphoe. This might be your partner’s hometown district office or an office here in Bangkok if that’s more convenient. Please remember that you’ll need two Thai nationals to act as your witnesses.

Finally, step five. Once your marriage is registered, the district office will issue a certificate of marriage that you can use in Thailand for a non O marriage visa, which will allow you to stay in Thailand for the long term. Your spouse can also use this certificate of marriage for immigrating overseas to countries recognizing same sex marriages, including the United States.

If you’d like to learn more about marriage registration or the visa application process, we’d be happy to host a free consultation, and I’ve left a link in the comments to schedule something with our Thai team. If you found this video helpful, please like and share, and thanks for watching.