Registration of Marital Status in Thailand

A marriage or divorce registered in Finland or Estonia, including a change of surname, will have legal effect under Thai law only after the Thai national spouse or divorced person has registered the change of marital status in Thailand.

Documents Required for Registration of Marriage or Divorce in Thailand

1. Proof of personal status
   

   A certificate from the Population Information System in Finland or Estonia, issued by the Digital and Population Data Services Agency (Digi- ja väestötietovirasto, DVV) or a Notary Public, containing information about the Thai person and spouse or, in the case of separation, the information of the former spouse must be included. The certificate must be issued in English and must be no more than three months old at the time of submission.

2. Marriage certificate
   The marriage certificate must be in English.
   
   
3. Copy of the foreign spouse’s passport
   The copy must be certified by a Notary Public (for registration of marriage).
   
   

4. Divorce documents
   For registration of divorce, the divorce document must be provided. If the document is in Finnish, it must be translated into English by an authorised translator in Finland. A list of authorised translators is available here.

   Both the original Finnish document and the English translation must be legalised by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.
   
   

Legalisation of Documents in Finland or Estonia Before Use in Thailand

1. Legalisation by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs

All documents must first be legalised by the relevant Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

2. Legalisation by the Royal Thai Embassy in Helsinki

After the documents have been legalised by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland or Estonia, they must be submitted for legalisation at the Royal Thai Embassy in Helsinki by appointment only.

Appointments can be booked by email at [email protected].

For documents submitted by post, please complete the legalisation application form and include a return envelope as instructed here.

3. Power of Attorney

If you are unable to return to Thailand to complete the registration in person, you may make a Power of Attorney at the Royal Thai Embassy authorising a relative to act on your behalf.

Power of Attorney documents (Thai only) can be found here หนังสือมอบอำนาจ และหนังสือให้ความยินยอม - สถานเอกอัครราชทูต ณ เฮลซิงกิ

Procedures in Thailand

1. Translation and legalisation

Documents that have completed the legalisation process in Finland or Estonia must be translated into Thai.

The Thai translation and the original documents must then be submitted for legalisation at the Department of Consular Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand.

2. Registration of marital status

Submit the legalised documents to the District Office (Amphur/Khet) where you reside to register the change in marital status.

3. Applying for a new passport

After the marital status has been updated, use the amended marital-status document issued by the District Office to apply for a new passport.