Family & Succession

Marriage & Divorce

Prenuptial agreements, divorce by consent or by court, and the division of property — handled so the settlement still holds years after the emotion has passed.

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Tell us the situation and we will tell you what we think you should do — and what it will cost.

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Couples marrying where one or both are foreign nationals
Spouses separating and wanting it settled without a courtroom
Spouses facing a contested divorce or an uncooperative partner
People married abroad who need the position recognised in Thailand

Prenuptial agreements — drafted and registered at the time of marriage

Divorce by mutual consent at the district office, with the agreement drafted

Contested divorce proceedings in the Family Court

Division of marital property, debts and the family home

Spousal and child arrangements recorded so they can be enforced

Recognition and recording of foreign marriages and divorces

Understand the marriage, the assets and what each side needs
Establish which property is marital and which is personal
Advise on the route — consent or court — and the likely outcome
Negotiate and draft the settlement, including arrangements for children
Register the divorce, or file and run the court case
Complete the transfers and updates the settlement requires

Documents to prepare

Marriage certificate, and its Thai recording if married abroad
ID cards, passports and house registration
A list of assets and debts, with when and how each was acquired
Title deeds, bank and company documents for major assets
Children’s birth certificates, if there are children

By consent, both spouses attend the district office and register the divorce with a written agreement covering property, children and support — fast, private and final. By court, one spouse petitions on statutory grounds and must prove them. Consent is almost always better where it is achievable; most of our work is making it achievable.

Thai law separates personal property — owned before the marriage or received by gift or inheritance — from marital property acquired during it, which is divided between the spouses. Which category an asset falls into is where most disputes actually live, and documents from the time of acquisition decide it more reliably than recollection.

Yes, but only if it is made and registered together with the marriage registration — a prenuptial signed afterwards, or signed but never registered, generally fails. It is one of the few documents in law with a deadline that cannot be repaired later, so it has to be drafted before the wedding date, not during the week of it.

Court. A petition on statutory grounds does not need the other side’s cooperation, only proof — and the prospect of proceedings often produces the agreement that months of asking did not. We assess the grounds and the evidence before filing, so the petition is not the thing that hardens the position.

It depends on residence, nationality, where the assets are and whether the foreign marriage was recorded in Thailand. Divorcing in the wrong forum can leave you divorced in one country and married in another — which affects remarriage, inheritance and immigration status. Our Jurisdiction & Recognition page covers that analysis in detail.

Lawyers for this matter

Generation 1