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Your Ultimate Guide to Obtaining a Marriage Visa in Thailand

Your Ultimate Guide to Obtaining a Marriage Visa in Thailand

| Last Updated: November 2023

Congratulations on your successful (and undoubtedly joyous) wedding! Now that you’ve tied the knot, you’ll have to handle the task of obtaining one of the most essential documents in Thailand for expats marrying a local – a marriage visa!

This document is crucial if you want to live your life in Thailand as a happily married couple. You might think it’s daunting at first, but we’re here to show you how to obtain this kind of visa to make the entire process easier!

Introduction to the Non-Immigrant O Visa in Thailand

If you’re married to a Thai citizen as are a foreign national, then you’d have to obtain what is called a Marriage Visa. It’s also referred to as the Non-Immigrant O Visa which you can extend for a year based on your marriage to a local.

You’ll also need this kind of visa if your spouse will either study or work in Thailand using his or her work visa or student visa. 

You can acquire this kind of visa by applying for it at a Thai Embassy or consulate and applying for an extension for this visa based on your marriage (but more on this later!).

Aside from those married to Thai citizens, the Non-immigrant O Visa of Thailand also applies to the following:

  • If you’re a foreigner who wants to avail medical treatment in Thailand
  • If you’re a foreign national who wants to stay in Thailand for good during your retirement
  • If you doing volunteer work for a Non-Government Organisation (NGO)
  • If you’re a dependent (child under 20 years old or spouse) of a foreign national studying or working full-time in the country.

The only major difference between these other Non-immigrant O Visas versus a marriage visa is that the latter can be extended for up to one year on the basis of a foreign national’s marriage to a Thai national.

How to Obtain a Marriage Visa in Thailand

To successfully obtain a marriage visa in Thailand, you need to check if you’re eligible and make sure that your marriage is registered before anything else. 

You then need to apply for your Non-Immigrant “O” marriage visa and obtain the document once it’s approved. Lastly, you need to report to Immigration every three months in order to extend your stay.

Are you excited to get your Thai marriage visa? Then read our step-by-step guide to make your marriage visa application easier and more manageable!

Step 1: Determine your eligibility

Eligibility based on Type of Stay

Before you even consider applying for a marriage visa, check if you’re eligible for a Non-Immigrant O Visa in the first place. Those eligible for this kind of visa include:

  • Those elderly (50 years old and above) who will stay and retire in Thailand
  • Those who are going to stay with their family such as their children and spouse.
  • Those who wish to receive special medical treatment.
  • Those who are planning to work or working for social welfare organisations or the Thai government
  • Those who will be required by the Thai government to work as a sports coach
  • Those who will act as witnesses for a judicial process
  • Those who are planning to visit Thailand who previously held a Thai nationality

If you’re going for that marriage visa, then you obviously will fall under item number 2 which states that you’ll stay in Thailand with your spouse.   

Eligibility based on Thai Visa Requirements

Aside from your eligibility based on your type of stay, you also need to confirm if you’re eligible to apply for a marriage visa based on the Thai government’s requirements. These requirements include:

  • Both you and your spouse must be at least 18 years of age
  • You’re married to a Thai national with a valid residence permit. This permit should be supported by 2 types of documents– your marriage registration (Kor Ror 2) and your marriage certificate (Kor Ror 3).
  • You must also be able to show that you intend to live together in Thailand while you and your partner are married 
  • You must also meet certain financial requirements such as having a minimum monthly salary of at least 40,000 THB or you should have at least 400,000 THB as a security deposit in a Thai bank account

Once you’ve determined that you’re eligible to apply for a Thai marriage visa based on your type of stay and the Thai government’s requirements, it’s time for you to go to the next step– register your marriage.

Step 2: Make sure to register your marriage

Next, you need to make sure that you register your marriage with the local authorities. To do this, you need to visit the local District Office (Amphur) or the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration Office (Khet) together with your spouse. 

Once you drop by the said offices, you have to sign the marriage registration book and submit the documentary requirements for your marriage. Keep in mind that a religious ceremony does not mean that your marriage is legally binding in Thailand. 

Step 3: Prepare your documentary requirements

After you’ve determined that you’re eligible to apply for a Non-Immigrant O Visa, it’s time for you to prepare your documentary requirements. You have to prepare two sets of requirements– your photos and the actual documents.

Photos

Size

You have to prepare a passport-sized or 4.5 cm x 3.5 cm photo with a plain grey background which should have been taken within the last 6 months. Your photo should also be printed using high-quality photo paper without any printer dots or pixels.

The measurements of this passport-sized photo should also meet certain requirements if you want it to pass Thai Immigration. For example, the distance from the top of the photo to the top of your hair should be around 3 mm.

On the other hand, the overall measurement of your face within the photo should measure 34.5 mm from the top of your hair to the bottom of the chin. Keep all these in mind as you don’t want your application turned down just because of an improper photo!

Clarity and Clothing

The photos you need to submit also need to be free from pixels and distortion, and should also have clear colours that realistically show your skin colour. Make sure that you also maintain a neutral expression– this means no smiling or frowning, please!

In terms of clothing and accessories, you shouldn’t be wearing any head coverings or hats unless these headwear serve a religious purpose. You shouldn’t have any glasses on as well (unless prescribed by a doctor) and you should wear typical daily clothes.

Documents

Once you have your photo, you then have to prepare the following documents as indicated below:

  • Filled out Non-Immigrant O Visa application form
  • A Thai police clearance if you’ve lived in Thailand for at least 3 months or a police clearance from your home country
  • Proof of your financial standing such as your Thai bank book showing the required deposits or a letter from your embassy indicating your monthly income
  • Your marriage certificate in the original language and with its Thai translation certified by the Foreign Affairs of Thailand
  • A passport valid for at least 6 months
  • Your foreign spouse’s passport together with the passport entry stamp, current Thai visa, and the photo/ID page of the passport

Step 4: Acquire a Non-Immigrant O Visa

Before you can even apply for a Thailand marriage visa, you first need to acquire your Non-Immigrant O Visa. You start by applying for the said visa through your country’s Thai consulate or embassy which will allow you to stay in Thailand for 90 days.

However, if you’re already in the country with a tourist visa (Thailand tourist visas) or on a visa exemption stamp, you can directly apply for a Thai marriage visa. You just need to ensure that you are eligible for both the Non-Immigrant and marriage visas.

To get that one-year marriage visa, you need to apply through the local immigration office of the province where you and your Thai national spouse are residents. 

Step 5: Apply for a Thailand Marriage Visa

On the other hand, if you’ve only just entered Thailand with your Non-Immigrant O visa,  then you can simply apply for a Thailand marriage visa once you’re here. You can apply via the local immigration office and submit the required documents and application form.

An immigration office should then assist you during the application process and review your documents as well. He or she might ask you a few questions or ask you to submit a few more documents pertaining to your marriage.

Step 6: Obtain your Marriage Visa

Your application for your marriage visa might take around one month and once approved, you just need to receive it. Congratulations as you can now stay in Thailand together with your wife or husband for a year!

Before your one-year validity is up, you can also renew this visa as long as you are eligible and as long as you have the documentary requirements for it.

Step 7: Report to Thai Immigration Every 3 Months or 90 days

You also need to show up to the Thai immigration office in your area every 3 months or 90 days (Thailand 90-day reporting) to confirm that you are still eligible for the visa and to update your address (if needed). 

If you fail to comply with this requirement, you may be slapped with fines, or worse your visa might get revoked. 

Tips to Successfully Obtain a Marriage Visa in Thailand

Applying for a marriage visa in Thailand can be challenging but you can do certain things to increase your chances of getting approved. Below are just some of them: 

  • Plan in advance: Give yourself enough time to accomplish the different steps we detailed in this guide. Some of these steps such as obtaining a Non-Immigrant O visa and getting a marriage visa can take some time.
  • Coordination is the key: Keep your line of communication with your local immigration office open as you apply or reapply for your marriage visa. Staying in the loop will keep you informed about the status of your visa application.

Coordinating closely with the immigration office can help you get updates in case there are changes in the requirements or if there are new laws enacted that may affect your visa application.

  • Get help from a visa agent: You might still be uncertain of how to go about applying for a marriage visa in Thailand and if that’s the case, you can always seek help from an immigration lawyer or reputable visa agent.

A visa agent can help you with the preparation and the steps of how to apply for your marriage visa. On the other hand, an immigration lawyer can aid you if you have any legal technicalities you need to sort out first.

  • Prepare your requirements ahead of time: If you want to avoid delays or issues during the course of your application, we highly recommend that you prepare your requirements ahead of time. 

Make sure that your photo complies with the specifications set forth by the Thai government. Also, retrieve and prepare all the documents you need to submit to avoid delays and to prevent yourself from getting overly stressed!

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