Do You or Your Thai Fiancée Need a Lawyer for a Prenuptial Agreement?

Understanding Legal Advice Requirements Under Thai and Foreign Law

Introduction

Many foreign nationals marrying in Thailand are unsure whether their Thai fiancée needs independent legal advice before signing a prenuptial agreement. The short answer: under Thai law, she does not. But if you intend to use the agreement abroad or have assets in multiple jurisdictions, the answer becomes more nuanced. This guide explains when legal advice is required, why it matters, and how to protect your agreement under both Thai and foreign legal systems.

Sample Prenuptial Clause Not Valid Under Thai Law

Example clause from a prenuptial agreement:

"The spouses agree that there shall be no community of property between them, except for a limited community of household effects. All other forms of matrimonial property regimes are expressly excluded."
"คู่สมรสตกลงกันว่าจะไม่มีทรัพย์สินส่วนรวมระหว่างกัน ยกเว้นเพียงทรัพย์สินที่ใช้ร่วมกันในครัวเรือนเท่านั้น ระบอบทรัพย์สินสมรสในรูปแบบอื่น ๆ ทั้งหมดให้ถือว่าไม่อยู่ภายใต้ข้อตกลงนี้โดยชัดแจ้ง"

Inheritance Law
Last Will and Testament in Thailand

The Thai legal system of succession and inheritance is codified and can be found in the civil and commercial 'Book V Succession'. It among others governs the distribution and administration of the estate of a person after his death, how to make a valid will in Thailand (Title III 'Wills'), and determines what happens to a person's assets after death when there is no last will or testament made.

Marriage in Thailand

A legally registered marriage in Thailand creates important rights and obligations for both spouses. These include mutual support, marital property, parent-child relationships, inheritance and the legal consequences of divorce. The principal rules are contained in Book V of the Thai Civil and Commercial Code (ประมวลกฎหมายแพ่งและพาณิชย์).

Prepare Your Thailand Will Instructions

This guided questionnaire helps you organise the information needed to prepare a Thailand-specific Last Will and Testament covering assets situated in Thailand.

It is primarily intended for foreign nationals who own assets in Thailand and want to identify their beneficiaries, appoint an executor, make specific gifts and determine how the remainder of their Thailand estate should be distributed.

This questionnaire does not itself create or execute a Last Will. It produces a structured summary of your instructions that can be used when completing a Thailand Will template or when requesting a professional document review.
Privacy: you do not need to enter passport or ID numbers to use this questionnaire. Sensitive identifying details can be left blank and added later when completing the final Will. Your answers are processed in your browser and are not submitted to ThailandLawOnline by this questionnaire. Do not enter passwords, PIN codes, cryptocurrency seed phrases or private access keys.
Step 1 of 6

1. About You

Start with basic information about the person making the Will. Exact identification details can be added later.

Enter your name as you normally use it in official documents.
You do not need to provide an identification number to use this questionnaire.

2. Scope of Your Thailand Will

A Thailand-specific Will can be used for assets situated in Thailand while separate estate planning may apply to assets in another country.

Do you already have another Will dealing with assets outside Thailand?
A general description is sufficient. Exact account numbers or title details are not necessary at this stage.

3. Beneficiaries and Distribution

Add the people or organisations you want to benefit from your Thailand estate. Identification numbers are not required for this questionnaire.

Leave blank if you simply want your Thailand estate distributed between the beneficiaries listed above.
This is the residuary estate: property not otherwise specifically given under the Will.
Is any intended beneficiary under 20 years of age?
Arrangements involving inheritance by a minor may require additional drafting or review.

4. Executor

The executor is the person you nominate to administer your estate and, where required, apply to the Thai court for appointment as estate administrator.

A substitute executor can act if the primary executor dies, cannot act or does not wish to act.

5. Additional Instructions

These questions are optional. Leave them blank if they are not relevant.

6. Review Your Will Instructions

Check the information below. You can go back and change any answer before copying, printing or downloading your instructions.

Prepare the Final Thailand Will

The Thai-English Last Will Pack contains editable Will templates together with practical completion and signing instructions for assets situated in Thailand.

View the Thai-English Last Will Pack

About a Standard Written Will in Thailand

This questionnaire is designed around the ordinary written form of Will under section 1656 of the Thai Civil and Commercial Code.

A Will in this form must be made in writing and dated. The testator must sign the Will in the presence of at least two witnesses who are present at the same time, and the witnesses must sign to attest the testator's signature.

An ordinary written Will under section 1656 does not have to be made or registered at the Amphur. Thai law provides separate formalities for other forms of Will, including a public-document Will and a secret-document Will.

For further legal information see Last Will and Testament in Thailand.

Official source: Department of Provincial Administration (กรมการปกครอง), official guidance on forms of wills and the ordinary written Will under section 1656 of the Civil and Commercial Code.

Power of Attorney in Thailand
(Forms, Legal Use & Requirements)

signing a power of attorney in Thailand

A power of attorney allows you to appoint someone you trust, such as a lawyer, family member, or friend, to manage important matters on your behalf. In Thailand, a power of attorney is widely used by both foreigners and Thai nationals to legally delegate authority to another person. The “principal” empowers another individual (the “attorney-in-fact” or agent) to act on their behalf, subject to the scope of authority granted in the power of attorney.

Visa Immigration Law
Thailand immigration act

Thailand issues the following types of visas through Thai Embassies and Royal Thai Consulates-General: Transit Visa, Tourist Visa, Non-Immigrant Visa (e.g. category O, B and OA), Diplomatic Visa, Official Visa, Courtesy Visa. For more Thailand visa information visit the website of the Thai embassy or Thai consulate in the country where you apply for your visa, or the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand - here -, Thai Immigration Bureau - here -, or for more practical visa info visit the Thai Visa forum - here -, information about work permits can also be found - here -.

passport visa stamps

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Inheritance law
administration and distribution of an estate

To carry out the terms of a will a person or institution must be appointed by the court. An 'administrator' or executor of a will is responsible for the payment of any debts and to distribute the remaining assets according to the testators wishes when a valid last will and testament has been made, or according to inheritance and succession laws when there is no last will or testament.

TITLE IV

CHAPTER I

ADMINISTRATOR OF AN ESTATE

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Section 1711. The administrators of an estate shall included the persons appointed by will (last will or testament)  by order of the Court.

Thai civil law on succession
inheritance, heirs and wills in Thailand

Thailand inheritance law is mainly governed by Book VI of the Thai Civil and Commercial Code, covering succession, statutory heirs, wills, legatees, disinheritance, and the legal forms required for making a valid Thai last will. This page provides an unofficial English translation of the main Thai succession and inheritance law provisions. It is intended as a practical reference for foreigners, Thai families, heirs, spouses, beneficiaries, estate administrators, and anyone dealing with assets located in Thailand.

Last reviewed: March 2026

BOOK VI

SUCCESSION

TITLE I

GENERAL PROVISIONS

CHAPTER I

DEVOLUTION OF AN ESTATE

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Section 1599. When a person dies, his estate devolves on the heirs.

Maintenance (also referred to as alimony or financial support) can be legally claimed in Thailand between husband and wife or between parent and child. This includes both spousal support after divorce and child support obligations. Under Thai family law, the right to maintenance is protected by Sections 1598/38 to 1598/41 of the Civil and Commercial Code. These rules govern who can claim support, how much may be awarded, and under what conditions the court may increase, reduce, or modify support obligations.

TITLE III

MAINTENANCE

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Section 1598/38. Maintenance may be claimed between husband and wife or parent and child when the party entitled to maintenance has not been furnished with the maintenance or has been furnished with the maintenance insufficient to his condition in life. How much and to what extend the maintenance would be granted or not will be decided by the Court, by taking account of the ability of the person bound to furnish the maintenance, the condition in life of the receiver and the circumstances of the case.

Adoption in Thailand under Thai civil law involves the creation of the parent-child relationship between individuals who are not naturally so related. Below the civil code Titel II Chapter IV and Thai civil law on adoption and the rights, privileges, and duties of a child adoption in Thailand.

Chapter V

ADOPTION

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Section 1598/19. A person who is not less than twenty five years old may adopt another, provided he is at least fifteen years older than the adopted person.

Guardianship under Thai family law: a guardian is the person (usually a non-parent) who has been appointed by a judge/ Court to take care of a minor child (called a ward) and manage that child's affairs (parental power). Custody is when a biological parent of a minor has been given the power to make decisions regarding the minor’s welfare. This is governed by the section 'parent and child' of the civil code.

PART III

GUARDIANSHIP

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Section 1585. A person who is not sui juris and has no parents, or whose parents are deprived of their parental power, may be provided with a guardian during minority.

Thai family law, laws governing the state or relationship of being a parent in Thailand. The legal relationship between a father or mother and his or her child is given special legal consideration in the civil code of Thailand. Below the sections 'parent and child', legal 'child custody', 'Child Support in Thailand'.

TITLE II

PARENT AND CHILD

CHAPTER I

PARENTAGE

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Section 1536. A child born of a woman during wedlock or within three hudred and ten days after the termination of the marriage is presumed to be the legitimate child of the husband or the man who used to be the husband, as the case may be.

Family law in Thailand is the area of the law that deals with family-related issues and encompasses marriage, adoption, divorce, custody, death, and inheritance. Below the section of Thai family law governing divorce and termination of marriage.

This is an unofficial English translation of the Thai Civil and Commercial Code sections dealing with divorce and termination of marriage. It is provided for informational purposes only. If you are seeking legal advice or assistance with a divorce in Thailand, please contact a legal professional.

Translation note: Since January 2025, Thai marriage law uses gender-neutral terms (e.g., “spouse/persons”). Some pages on this website still show older translations with “husband/wife.” We’re updating the wording progressively (legal content remains accurate).

CHAPTER VI

TERMINATION OF MARRIAGE (DIVORCE)

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Section 1501. Marriage (Thai marriage) in Thailand is terminated by death, divorce or being cancelled by the Court.

When a marriage is unlawful or invalid under the laws of Thailand it means that the marriage was void and invalid from its beginning. Sections void of marriage under Thai family and marriage laws.

CHAPTER V

VOID OF MARRIAGE

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Section 1494. The marriage in Thailand will be void only as provided in this Chapter.

Section 1495. The marriage which is made against Section 1449, Section 1450, Section 1452 and Section 1458 shall be void.

Family and matrimonial laws in Thailand governing assets of husband and wife, marital property, and the making of an pre-marriage contract (or prenup prenuptial agreement between a man and a woman in contemplation of marriage). Marriage and contracts concerning property of husband and wife is governed by the sections 1465 to 1469 of the Thailand Civil and Commercial Code.

Legal Update (2025): Following the Marriage Equality Act B.E. 2567, Thailand’s Civil and Commercial Code applies equally to same-sex and opposite-sex spouses. The marriage law provisions beginning at Section 1448 and following are unchanged in substance; the statutory wording has been updated to gender-neutral terms only.
อัปเดตกฎหมาย (พ.ศ. 2567): ภายใต้ พระราชบัญญัติสมรสเท่าเทียม (ฉบับที่ 24 พ.ศ. 2567) ประมวลกฎหมายแพ่งและพาณิชย์ของไทยใช้บังคับกับคู่สมรสเพศเดียวกันและต่างเพศอย่างเท่าเทียมกัน บทบัญญัติมาตรา 1448 เป็นต้นไป ไม่ได้เปลี่ยนแปลงเนื้อหา มีเพียงการปรับถ้อยคำให้เป็นกลางทางเพศเท่านั้น

CHAPTER IV

PROPERTY OF HUSBAND AND WIFE

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Section 1465. Where the husband and wife a married couple have not, previous to their marriage, concluded a special agreement (prenuptial) concerning their properties, the relations between them as regards to their properties shall be governed by the provisions of this Chapter.

Relationship of husband and wife pursuant to family law in Thailand. Marriage is a specific legal relationship that gives the man and woman who are legally married specific rights and duties to one another resulting from that marriage.

Legal Update (2025): Following the Marriage Equality Act B.E. 2567, Thailand’s Civil and Commercial Code applies equally to same-sex and opposite-sex spouses. The marriage law provisions beginning at Section 1448 and following are unchanged in substance; the statutory wording has been updated to gender-neutral terms only.
อัปเดตกฎหมาย (พ.ศ. 2567): ภายใต้ พระราชบัญญัติสมรสเท่าเทียม (ฉบับที่ 24 พ.ศ. 2567) ประมวลกฎหมายแพ่งและพาณิชย์ของไทยใช้บังคับกับคู่สมรสเพศเดียวกันและต่างเพศอย่างเท่าเทียมกัน บทบัญญัติมาตรา 1448 เป็นต้นไป ไม่ได้เปลี่ยนแปลงเนื้อหา มีเพียงการปรับถ้อยคำให้เป็นกลางทางเพศเท่านั้น

CHAPTER III

RELATIONSHIP OF HUSBAND AND WIFE

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Section 1461. Husband and wife A married couple shall cohabit as husband and wife a married couple.

Husband and wife Spouses shall maintain and support each other according to his or her their ability and condition in life.

More Articles …

  1. Civil law sections Conditions of Marriage
  2. Civil law sections Marriage and Engagement
  3. Thailand Child Protection Act
  4. Family and Marriage Law in Thailand for Foreigners
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