What to Do in Bangkok While Your Documents Are Legalized

To marry in Thailand, each of you needs an identification document and a document proving that you are single. Both must be translated into Thai and legalized before a district office will register your marriage. Legalization is the official certification that makes a document issued in one country acceptable to the authorities of another. A district office is the local government office that registers a marriage. If you bring your documents with you, the wait for the legalization falls in the middle of your trip. This article is about those waiting days in Bangkok.

If you plan to register your marriage in Thailand, our marriage registration service covers the documents, the legalization and the district office for one fixed fee.

The legalization step

Your own authorities certify your document first. The Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs then certifies it for use in Thailand. A couple who legalize a power of attorney at home and send their documents ahead have this step finished before they arrive, and they need one working day in Thailand. A power of attorney is a document that authorizes another person to act for you. For a couple who bring their documents with them, the step begins after they land.

How long the wait is

The ministry takes three to five working days. It offers no guaranteed maximum. A delay is normally caused by an edit, by extra scrutiny, or by a document hold. Those are working days, which do not include weekends or public holidays. A weekend inside the wait therefore adds days to your stay.

The embassy step

Some nationalities must appear in person at their own embassy to obtain the document that proves they are single. That appearance generally cannot be delegated to us, although Japan is the exception. Your nationality decides whether the step applies to you. We tell you which path applies once we know your two countries.

How long to stay

When you bring your documents with you, the steps taken in Thailand need six working days at the minimum, counted after the embassy step. Those steps are the legalization and the registration. Eight to ten working days is what we recommend. You may marry in Thailand with no special connection to the country, as long as you enter and stay legally. No work visa, student visa or Thai citizenship is required.

What we do while you wait

We collect your original documents soon after you arrive, together with a copy of the passport page carrying your entry stamp. You sign a power of attorney at the same time, and it authorizes us to act for you at Thai government offices. We are generally notified one day before the ministry finishes. The registration date is therefore usually confirmed only shortly in advance. Please stay reachable by telephone during those days. A district can still postpone or cancel a booking. If that happens, we can only change the date or the district.

The river and the old city

The Chao Phraya Express Boat runs scheduled boats along the river through the middle of the city. Fares run from 10 to 32 baht, depending on the boat and the distance. Wat Pho stands on the eastern bank. Its reclining Buddha is 46 meters long and 15 meters high. The temple has held a school of traditional Thai medicine and massage since 1955. Wat Arun stands across the water in Thonburi. Ferries cross between the two banks.

Chinatown, Silom and Lumphini Park

Yaowarat Road is the main street of Bangkok's Chinatown. In the evening the road fills with food stalls. Bangkok's gay nightlife centers on the Silom district. The bars and clubs of Soi 2 and Soi 4 have been there for decades. Our article on the best cities in Thailand for LGBTQ travelers and couples describes the district in more detail. Lumphini Park opens every day from 04:30 to 21:00. There is no admission charge.

What Pride Legal Thailand does with these days

Pride Legal Thailand was created to become the platform for the LGBTQ community around the world looking to marry in Thailand. Our lawyer checks your documents before you fly. We translate them before you land. Our fee is 49,000 baht (~1,480 USD) for both of you, fixed, in three stages. The last stage is charged only after your marriage is registered. We aim to book a district office within about an hour of where you are staying, although a preferred district may be fully booked on your dates. Our work is to make the marriage plannable from abroad and completable in a single trip. Once the marriage is registered, Thai law treats you as legal spouses. Our guide on using your Thai marriage certificate in another country covers whether your own countries will recognize it.

Pride Legal Thailand arranges the registration of marriages in Thailand for two people of any gender and any nationality. The fee is ฿49,000 (~1,480 USD) for both partners, fixed, with VAT and government fees included; registration outside the Bangkok region costs ฿10,000 (~300 USD) more.

To register your own marriage in Thailand, tell ELSA your nationalities and your dates on the Marriage page: she lists your documents and your timeline, and our lawyer confirms the plan. The steps in order: how two foreigners can get married in Thailand.