Since this year, an attempt at marriage in Thailand has become a much more difficult task than before and even more difficult for the Dutch. First of all, the NL embassy has decided in all its wisdom (surprise!) that the Thai must submit a translated and legalized declaration of unmarried status, even though this has nothing to do with what the Thai government wants from the embassy.
The communication and forms about this contradict each other. They point to a confusing website with two lists that make no distinction between NL/NL NL/EU NL/TH relationship. They also conceal that this is a recent new requirement and you are treated condescendingly. The form to be filled in at the embassy does not even mention this requirement. No other embassy requires this and the translator looks at you strange because they have never had to provide a translation for this to other embassies in such a case…
The Thai legalization department also throws a spanner in the works by requiring two days for legalization. No express option. Then follows the new 3-day legalization rule of the Thai legalization department for foreign unmarried declarations. That makes a min. 2+3=5 days stay in Bangkok, not counting the translation circus and the translation errors found, according to the employee on duty after x days.
The tricky thing is that you can only get your NL unmarried certificate after you have had to go through all that legalization circus for the Thai unmarried certificate (which she can only collect at her official place of residence, which often deviates from practical living address and the translation / legalization can then only be done in Bangkok).
Also the question why the English embassy can deliver the unmarried status certificate in an hour so that you can actually translate/submit for legalization the same day. Although the new 3-day rule slowed things down considerably there too.
Regards,
Patrick
Moderator: Just a response to the question please.
You can still get a certificate of unmarried status. Is separate from other matters and is possible if you have deregistered in the Netherlands
The unmarried declaration can simply be obtained from the registered municipality in the Netherlands without any further questions. Then it can simply participate in the entire translation / legalization game in Bangkok. Perhaps this problem only applies to Dutch people who are no longer registered in Thailand, but even then I think that the embassy is acting incorrectly in this regard.
I think it is certainly worth taking this up with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It is not the first time that the rules have been misinterpreted at the embassy in Bangkok.
If you are at Consular Chaeng Wattana before 10 am and you request express service, you can collect your legalized document from 14 pm.
Costs 400 Bt. per page instead of 200 Bt.
@henry: no, they haven't done express for a few months now (express still exists, but not in this case). Neither for the Thai nor for the foreigner. Why? No idea. Eliminate wedding tourism? Why? No idea. But at about the same time, the Dutch embassy decides to demand that Thai language and legalized unmarried document…
It's not clear to me what this is about.
If you get married in Thailand, then you only have to register it in NL (The Hague?) afterwards, don't you?
What does the NL embassy have to do with this?
I married my Thai girlfriend during my holiday in May 2017.
We have prepared the following papers in advance:
My girlfriend in Thailand:
- Birth certificate, translated into English and legalized by the Ministry,
-Proof of divorce; translated into english and legalized by ministry,
-Proof of being single; translated into english and legalized by ministry,
Translation and legalization through an agency in chiang rai.
Myself:
Birth certificate, Certificate of divorce and extract from the municipality.
Declaration of intention to marry and statement of 2 references in the Netherlands.
Copy of our passports.
Made an appointment at the embassy in bangkok and went there together.
Handed in the papers at the embassy; in my opinion they don't even need all of these, but I didn't want to take that risk.
After half an hour of waiting I received the document of no objection to marriage.
Really smooth and smooth.
I had asked for advice for an agency to have this paper and references translated into Thai (including the legalization). That's where we went (express translation).
The man said what it cost and said it would take about 3 days.
He would send it to chiang rai where we would go.
Unfortunately it took 10 days in the end because there was an error in the translation. They don't tell you when you contact them in between; only that it would take longer (quite frustrating).
But finally received papers and got married a day later without any problems at the ampur in chiang rai. Marriage costs 180 baht; translations and legalization cost about 275 euros.
The marriage certificate has now also been translated and legalized (+ the attachments) for 175 euros.
Now my marital status can be changed in the Netherlands.
I don't understand this at all either. I live here, got married here. Received a statement from the municipality where I got married in the Netherlands that I am divorced. I went to the embassy. Document has been stamped, income statement has been issued there, bill paid and then (same day) I got married under Thai law. Have everything arranged by a Thai agency. Finished.
'The Thai legalization department'? What is that? Where is that? Does this mean the Civil Registry?
Right, only for a marriage in NL that document should be required for the Thai. But for several months now, the NL embassy in Bangkok has required a translated and legalized marriage status document from the Thai (which therefore takes days to obtain and requires several trips), even if you only come for a single document for yourself. The NL embassy has nothing to say about the Thai and only has to validate me, the Thai government does check this for the Thai. But you can reason all you want at the embassy, you are curtly and haughtily sent away and the coaxed man there is irritated that I dare to ask such questions. They pretend it was always like this and simply ignore comments they don't know the answer to.
I don't understand the point of this article either. As far as I know, or have I missed something somewhere, proof of being unmarried (or also called impediment to marriage) must and should always be provided by BOTH persons who legally want to marry each other. That this statement must be in an intelligible and legible language for the country where the marriage will take place, is not more than normal, isn't it? What is actually the problem?
@lung: no, no other embassy in Thailand requires proof of the partner's unmarried status. That is not their job, and was not mentioned as a requirement on the old website (nor even on the current form that is still available at the embassy itself). Their job is to declare that their own national is free to marry. The Thai then declares at amphur using a Thai form that she is also free to marry. Tada…
That was always how it went (answer from embassy staff themselves later via via) until a few months ago. The translator was also surprised that this was requested by the embassy. He had never had to do this for an embassy itself (only for getting married IN the Netherlands, of course).
This also means an extra translation / legalization battle at MFA, which is not exactly efficient, especially because express is no longer offered for this type of document (or 3 days will pass before 1 and other is handled).
You can forget about getting married in a few days. The only bright spot is that nowadays you can wait for the document at the embassy. (no longer picking up after two in the afternoon, although it is still stated that way here and there).
I don't understand it, but it seems reasonable to me. Of course NL has nothing to say about a marriage in TH. That won't be the problem. It depends on what comes after. The legalization of Thai marriage in NL. In NL you have to arrange your affairs with a town hall weeks in advance, so what is the rush in TH? The only alternative, it seems to me, is that if both parties do not meet the NL requirement, the marriage can never be legalized in NL. The embassy will also know how easy it is to obtain certain papers in TH and that this can also differ per person and per municipality. A statement that you can never legalize the marriage in NL might be an option to speed things up.
Another addition:
Just went to the municipality to change my marital status.
It now appears that the bureau (express translations) in bangkok has not obtained the stamp at the embassy. So no marital status can be changed.
That's the second time at that desk. We now have to go to the Dutch embassy in Bangkok for a stamp.
You really can't trust anything; pay attention and try to arrange everything yourself.
It has yet to happen. I am about to get married and the ex-husband of my Thai bride-to-be left for the USA more than 2 years ago without getting a divorce. My ashe received a divorce decree in his absence last January, but officially she has to wait almost 1 year (more than 320 days) before she can marry again, so she has not had a chance to be married again.
I left the Netherlands and deregistered as of October 6, 2016 and I was listed as divorced on the statement. My passport shows that I have left Thailand 3 times, but for less than an hour each time, so I have not had a chance to get married outside Thailand until now. Evidence is so-called 'watertight'. My ashes talked to the mayor and she was advised to get a medical certificate that she is not pregnant. (She can no longer become that) This means she can still get married within the period that she would actually have to wait. They say I only have to present my passport.
When I went to the Nong Han amphur with my ex in 1991 to ask what was needed to get married, they asked for my passport and to return a week later. Then I was presented with a large book with an impressive page surrounded by flowers that I had to sign. It turned out I was married! Then there was a problem because I went to the embassy and they did not accept the marriage (without obtaining a marriage application form). My then wife got my family name in her new Thai passport, but I could not take it with me to the Netherlands. I had a guarantor so she could last 3 months and the day after arrival I went to the municipality to announce my marriage. I pointed out to them that I was already married in Thailand and my wife already had my name. I asked the question whether it was always the case when one married in one country and went to live in another country that one had to marry again. They consulted a judge who said that if the marriage documents had been drawn up in a language understandable to the official in question, the marriage would also be valid retroactively in the Netherlands and my wife and I had to be registered as married in the Netherlands.
What is often required is often also controversial and can be challenged with the right arguments, but one must go to a lawyer and court. Fortunately, this is usually preventable. I have never needed a lawyer until now. Rien