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Thailand is often a favorite destination for tourists from around the world, so getting married in the land of Siam may be a dream come true for many couples. As always, however, you need some planning and a little knowledge of the particularities of marriage law in Thailand in order to make that dream a reality. An overview of how to get married there is a good place to start. We’ll finish this section with a brief description of a traditional Thai Wedding. Finally, we’ll go through the basics of sponsoring your spouse to come to Canada.

Remember, this is for people who are marrying a Thai national and sponsoring them to come to Canada, so while some of the information may be useful for a couple where both are foreign, our purpose is to help people sponsor their spouse to Canada.

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GETTING MARRIED IN THAILAND

Eligibility requirements

Here’s where you begin the process by making sure you and your to-be spouse are eligible. The requirements are:

• You must be at least 17 years of age.
• You must be judged competent mentally in order to consent to the marriage contract.
• You cannot have the same adoptive parents or be related by blood.
• You must prove you aren’t married.
• Divorced or widowed women must wait 310 days from the date of death or divorce of their former spouse before they can marry again, unless:
  • A child has been born.
  • They are remarrying their former spouse.
  • A qualified doctor issues a certificate stating they are not pregnant.
  • A court grants permission to marry.

Documents and Marriage Registration

In Thailand a civil wedding involves going to a local district office (Amphur or Khet) and declaring your intentions to marry in front of the district officer (registrar), being granted consent, and then signing the register. To do so, you and your spouse will usually need the following documents:

 If you are a Thai national:

• Your ID card
• Your Tabian Baan (“Blue House Book”) / House Registration Book
• A divorce or death certificate if divorced or widowed
• 2 witnesses – 1 from each partner

If you are a foreign national:

• A copy of your passport along with your tourist card (arrival card)
• An Affirmation of Freedom to Marry from your embassy or consulate
• A translated copy of your Affirmation of Freedom to Marry done by an official translator from Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• PLEASE NOTE: If you are a Canadian with dual citizenship who holds another passport, your Affirmation of Freedom to Marry – whether it’s a Statement in Lieu of a Certificate of Non-impediment to Marriage or an Affidavit of Single Status – must be issued by the embassy or consulate from the country whose passport you entered Thailand on.
  • In other words, use your Canadian passport, if possible, to travel to Thailand in order to get your Statement in lieu of.
  • If you have to use your other passport, make sure you get your document (affidavit or certificate of single status) from that country or else Thai authorities may not accept it when you try to register your marriage.
  • As the Canadian government states: “Please note that some countries will only accept statements in lieu issued by the local Canadian mission.”
• To apply for a Statement in Lieu of, you need:
  • If born in Canada:
    • A notarized declaration stating: your full name; your present marital status; and your permanent address in Canada
    • A certified copy of your passport or birth certificate
    • A certified copy of your divorce certificate if divorced
    • A certifed copy of your former spouse’s death certificate if widowed
  • If born abroad and a Canadian citizen:
    • A notarized declaration stating: your full name; your present marital status; and your permanent address in Canada
    • A certified copy of your Canadian citizenship certificate or a certified copy of your passport
    • A certified copy of your divorce certificate if divorced
    • A certified copy of your former spouse’s death certificate if widowed
• ALSO PLEASE NOTE: Thailand is NOT a signatory to the Hague Convention so instead of an apostille, your documents will have to be legalized.
• Remember to first check with the local district office, or Amphur, in Thailand where you plan to marry to see what documents they require. There may be additional requirements or they may not necessarily need all the documents we’ve listed above. So please check with your Amphur (sometimes called a Khet) beforehand.

Registering your Marriage in Thailand

The process can generally be done within a day, although it may occasionally take more than one day. Once you’ve gathered all your documents and have translated them with a certified (official) translator into Thai, you should:

• Appear with your 2 witnesses at your local District Office or Amphur.
• A government official will take your documents, review them, and then complete the marriage registration process.
• If you have a prenuptial agreement (see our section on marriage property below) you must declare this and bring your prenup so the officer can review the agreement and it can be signed there during your marriage registration at the district office. If this step is skipped, your prenuptial agreement may not be valid.
• If your marriage registration is approved, you will normally receive your marriage certificate the same day (there occasionally may be delays of an additional day depending on your situation).
• As you will be sponsoring your Thai spouse to come to Canada, your next step should be to translate your marriage certificate into English (or French) for when you submit your sponsorship application.
• Although Thai officials suggest registering your marriage at your diplomatic mission in Thailand, this is usually not necessary for a Canadian getting married abroad. Marriages legally performed abroad are usually considered valid in Canada.

Marriage Property in Thailand

A dowry in English tradition is an archaic custom where the bride’s family used to donate property and or money to the couple’s household.

However, in Thailand, a dowry works in the opposite way. A dowry, or sin-sot, is money or gold given by the groom to the bride’s parents in appreciation for their having raised her. It is not a legal obligation, but it is apparently still a well-established custom in the country. It is normally done before or during the wedding, so it is advisable to at least have a conversation with your Thai spouse to-be about this issue before you marry.

There are 2 types of marital property in Thailand as considered by the courts in the event of a divorce:

• Sin Suan Tua – separate property in a marriage usually consisting of:
  • Property belonging to either spouse before the marriage
  • Property for personal use, like clothes or jewelry
  • Property acquired by either spouse during the marriage through inheritance or as a gift
  • Property acquired by dowry (Khongman)
• Sin Somros – common or marital property usually consisting of:
  • Property acquired during the marriage
  • Property acquired by either spouse during the marriage through inheritance or as a gift
  • Any rents or other benefits accruing from Sin Suan Tua (separate) property
  • PLEASE NOTE: If there is any doubt in the court’s mind, a marital property may be considered sin somros, or shared common property.
• Finally, this is a general overview of marital property and is not intended as legal advice. Please consult with a lawyer in Thailand, especially if you are drawing up a prenuptial agreement.

Marriage Visa in Thailand

As is the case in other countries (like Colombia) there is a marriage visa available in Thailand but it is intended for those foreign spouses who wish to settle in Thailand. It is valid for 1 year and gives you certain rights and benefits and is the first step in a pathway to Thai permanent residency. You apply for it after you have registered your marriage. It is NOT needed in order to marry in Thailand.

Traditional Thai Wedding Ceremony

A traditional wedding ceremony combines an engagement ceremony and a wedding ceremony all in one day. The morning ceremony is typically for immediate family and the couple, while the evening ceremony is for all the invited guests. The rituals of traditional weddings, which are Buddhist in Thailand, are as follows:

• The couple invites 9 Buddhist monks to their home for blessings, invitations of food, and anointing of the couple’s foreheads to ensure a prosperous marriage and symbolize a new stage in their lives as a couple.
• A Khan Maak parade to the bride’s house with singing and music follows. In a traditional wedding this is where (at the bride’s house) the dowry is presented to the bride’s family, along with foods and sweets.
• The dowry is often negotiated by the groom’s best friend who deals with the bride’s parents. The money of a dowry is generally for the parents while the gold is typically for the bride.
• An engagement ceremony usually involves exchanging rings and seeking the blessings and forgiveness of their elders. It may also involve exchanging valuable gifts and a tying of holy threads on the couple’s wrists.
• In the Rod Nam Sang, or Conch Blessing, an elder pours water from a conch shell over the couple’s hands to strengthen their commitment to each other.
• After the wedding reception festivities, the couple accompanied by their parents are led to the bedchamber with a bridal bed adorned with symbols of prosperity and happiness. The parents from both the groom and bride’s side provide blessings and advice for a fruitful and enduring marriage.

Sponsoring your Spouse to Canada

The spousal sponsorship process in Canada is now done online, not on paper, unless you qualify for special treatment, including disabilities, that prevent you from applying online. So, you will have to register with and use IRCC’s Online Portal for permanent residence applications (of which spousal sponsorship is one of the main types along with economic applications such as Express Entry).

There are several key takeaways to the spousal sponsorship process in Canada:

• You have to apply to IRCC to qualify as a sponsor. That means giving information on your job, income, and savings (as well as other information) to ensure that you can successfully support your spouse and any accompanying dependents when they come to live in Canada. If you are deemed ineligible to be a sponsor, the application is often cancelled, although you can appeal.
• Your spouse has to apply for permanent residence in Canada, which means they have to satisfy all the eligibility requirements that IRCC has in place for permanent residents.
  • The forms your spouse fills out are region-specific or even country-specific. In this case, they will have to download and fill out and submit those forms appropriate to a permanent resident application from Thailand.
• You have to decide whether you want to do:
  • an overseas sponsorship where your spouse remains in Thailand until your application is successful and they have their PR visa, or
  • an inland sponsorship where they get a visitor visa to visit Canada and you apply from inside Canada. You can also apply in Canada if your spouse is on a work or study permit.
  • There is always the option of bringing your to-be spouse to Canada to get married, and then they return to Thailand and begin an overseas application.
  • In this case you’re balancing the difficulty of getting a tourist visa for your spouse (you’ll have to convince IRCC officials they won’t be staying in Canada and you will instead do an overseas sponsorship) against the details of getting married in Thailand.
• As a sponsor, you should also know what your “undertaking” (a contractual obligation to support your spouse) involves and for how long you will be responsible for your sponsored spouse and any dependents.

I have this problem …

In a multitrack process like marriage abroad combined with spousal sponsorship there will almost always be problems with documentation and status, among other things. Here are some typical issues that can slow down your application or even result in a rejection:

• Not enough evidence of a relationship: one of the key alarm signals for IRCC officials is the suspicion that a spousal sponsorship is for immigration purposes only. Not only that, but either party to the marriage may be suspected of using the sponsorship for the wrong reasons. So, it’s essential you convince IRCC your relationship is genuine.
• Sponsor’s eligibility: you may feel you will be a responsible and caring sponsor, but there are financial metrics you have to meet. It depends in large part on whether your spouse has dependent children.
• Misrepresentation: it is never a good idea to stretch the facts in any application whatsoever when dealing with IRCC. You might get away with it but it is much more likely that a misrepresentation will land you in trouble with IRCC. Cleaning up a misrepresentation is not easy and may sometimes require a waiting period of years.
• Criminality: this is perhaps the toughest one. It will depend on whether a misdemeanor or a felony is involved and means a complex process of appeals to various agencies or departments of the Canadian government.

The key is to prepare as much as possible – including for possible interviews – when putting together your application. That also goes for planning and doing your wedding in Thailand, because even a magical ceremony like a Thai traditional wedding needs a little planning. Additionally, while the process for registering your marriage in Thailand is reasonably straightforward, you should always get sound legal advice on matters of marital property as we touched on briefly above. Be focused, patient, and prepared and make sure your documentation is in order and, if necessary, legalized as Thailand does not have apostilles. In the end, your sponsorship will be that much easier.