Thai Civil Registration & Personal Status Documents — 89 FAQs

The Civil Registration Act B.E. 2534 requires a birth to be reported within 15 days of delivery. The duty falls on the house-master of the house where the child was born, or on the parents. For hospital births the hospital issues a certificate of birth (T.R.1/1), which is then presented to the district or local registration office covering the place of birth.

Typically the hospital certificate of birth, Thai ID cards of the informant and the parents, the house register the child will be added to, and the parents' marriage certificate if any. Where the father is a foreign national, the passport plus a certified translation is requested. Requirements vary by office, so call the office you will visit before travelling.

Yes. Late birth registration is possible, but the registrar must examine witnesses and documentary evidence to confirm identity and place of birth, so it takes considerably longer and carries a statutory fine. If the child was born outside a hospital, prepare witnesses who saw the birth plus whatever medical evidence exists.

No. Registration offices issue birth certificates in Thai only; there is no official English form. For overseas use you obtain a certified copy from the registration office, have it translated into English, and submit it for translation certification at the Legalization Division of the Department of Consular Affairs before any further embassy attestation.

Request a replacement or a certified extract of the record of birth at the registration office that made the entry, or at another office once the record sits in the central civil registration database. Bring the ID card of the record holder or of an interested party; a power of attorney is needed if someone else attends for you.

Yes — registration records the fact of birth in the Kingdom, so the child receives a Thai birth certificate. That certificate is not, by itself, proof of Thai nationality: nationality follows the Nationality Act B.E. 2508, which also looks at the parents' immigration status. Discuss this before planning the child's passport.

A death must be reported within 24 hours of the time of death or of the discovery of the body, to the registration office for the locality. For hospital deaths the facility issues a certificate of death (T.R.4/1) for the family to present; the registrar then issues the death certificate and removes the name from the house register.

A death at home must be reported by the house-master or the person who found the body within 24 hours. Where the death is unnatural under the Criminal Procedure Code — accident, violence or unknown cause — an inquest by the investigating officer and a physician takes place first, and the death certificate follows the inquest findings.

It is the core document for petitioning the court to appoint an estate administrator, transferring land or condominium title by inheritance at the Land Office, closing bank accounts, life and health insurance claims, and notifying the deceased's embassy where the deceased was a foreign national.

Generally a certified copy of the Thai death certificate, an English translation certified by the Department of Consular Affairs, and in many countries a further attestation by that country's embassy or consulate in Thailand. Repatriation of remains or ashes adds embassy-specific paperwork such as a body-transport permit and a certificate of cremation.

Normally the registrar removes the deceased's name from the house register at the same time the death certificate is issued. Still, request a fresh certified copy of the house register: banks, the Land Office and the courts usually want the register showing the removal alongside the death certificate.

T.R.14 is the house register for Thai nationals and for foreigners holding permanent residence. T.R.13 — commonly called the yellow book — is the register for non-Thai nationals staying temporarily or without permanent residence. Both evidence an address, but the rights attached to each differ.

At the local registration office for the address, once you genuinely reside there and the house-master consents. Offices commonly ask for a valid passport and visa, a certified translation of the passport, a lease or title/condominium ownership document, the house-master's house register, and witnesses. Practice differs between districts, so confirm in advance.

In practice it evidences your address when opening a bank account, supports condominium purchase and title transfer at the Land Office, helps with a Thai driving licence application at the Department of Land Transport, and lets you register vehicles or utilities in your own name. It grants no right to stay and never replaces a visa or work permit.

The house-master must report a move out within 15 days of the departure and a move in within 15 days of arrival; failure to do so carries a fine. Many offices now accept destination-side notification, meaning you report the move in at the new office without returning to the previous one.

The central register holds people without a fixed address or whose names were removed from a previous house — for example someone who moved out and never reported a move in within the deadline. Names in the central register often face restrictions on certain transactions, so report a move in at your real address promptly.

Not necessarily. The house-master under civil registration is the person heading occupation of the house as owner, tenant or caretaker. Ownership is proved by the title deed or condominium ownership certificate at the Land Office. Being listed as house-master creates no ownership, and owners need not be the house-master.

At the district or local registration office where your name appears in the house register, under the Person Name Act B.E. 2505. The registrar issues a certificate of change of given name (Chor 3) or of surname (Chor 5), which is the document that links your former and current names in every later filing.

Update the whole set: ID card, house register, passport, driving licence, bank accounts, vehicle registration, insurance policies and educational records. If any foreign document or visa is in the former name, always keep the name-change certificate with a certified translation to present alongside it — otherwise the receiving authority treats you as a different person.

Yes. The law lets spouses agree to use either spouse's surname or to keep their own. To take a foreign spouse's surname, present the marriage certificate or marriage register with a certified translation at the registration office for recording, then update the ID card and passport in that order.

Present the divorce certificate or the final judgment at the registration office to revert to your former surname, then update the house register, ID card and passport. If the divorce took place abroad, the foreign judgment or divorce record must first be legalised and recorded as a change of family status in Thailand.

The Person Name Act recognises middle names and they can be recorded in civil registration, but many Thai document templates print only the given name and surname, so a middle name may not appear. If your foreign documents carry a middle name, make sure the spelling in your passport and in the registry records is consistent to avoid visa problems.

Under the ID Card Act B.E. 2526 as amended, Thai nationals must apply for an ID card on reaching seven years of age, and must file within 60 days of the duty arising. A holder whose card expires must likewise apply for a new card within 60 days of expiry, or face a fine.

In many districts a replacement for a lost or destroyed card is issued at the registration office without a police report, because officials verify identity from the fingerprint and facial-image database. Some offices still ask for supporting evidence, so bring another government-issued photo document such as a driving licence or passport.

Some Thai embassies and consulates-general issue ID cards to Thai nationals overseas, provided your name is in a Thai house register and your biometric data is already in the system. Check with the mission covering your area whether the service is offered and whether an appointment is required.

No. The 13-digit number stays with the individual for life — changing a given name, a surname or a house register does not change it. That makes it the strongest link when proving that documents in an old name and a new name belong to the same person.

Kor Ror 2 is the marriage register recording the full particulars and held by the registration office; Kor Ror 3 is the marriage certificate handed to the couple. Foreign embassies usually want a certified copy of Kor Ror 2 because it carries more detail, so for a spouse visa obtain certified copies of both with certified translations.

Thai nationals request a family-status or single-status certificate at the district or local registration office for their house register. Foreign nationals obtain a status affidavit from their own embassy or consulate in Thailand, then have it translated and certified by the Department of Consular Affairs before filing a marriage registration at the district office.

It should be. Your status in the Thai civil registration database does not update automatically. The foreign marriage record or divorce judgment must be legalised in sequence (issuing-country authority, the relevant embassy, then the Department of Consular Affairs) and then recorded as a change of family status at the registration office.

The amendments to the Civil and Commercial Code took effect on 22 January 2025, so two people of any gender may register a marriage in Thailand and receive the same registration documents. Whether a destination country recognises that marriage remains a matter of that country's own law.

Under the Civil and Commercial Code a child born to unmarried parents is always the lawful child of the mother, who exercises parental power. The father becomes the lawful father only by marrying the mother, by registering legitimation, or by court judgment.

Registration of legitimation (Kor Ror 11) requires the consent of both the child and the mother given before the registrar. Where the child is too young to consent, or the mother does not or cannot consent, the father must petition the court and then register the court order at the registration office.

Once the child is a lawful child, the child is a statutory heir of the first class of the father under Book VI of the Civil and Commercial Code, with the same rights as a child born in wedlock. It also affects maintenance duties and the use of the father's surname.

An adoption becomes complete on registration at the district or local registration office, following approval under the Child Adoption Act by the Department of Children and Youth. Where the adopter is a foreign national, a probationary care period and additional vetting apply, so the timeline is longer than for Thai adopters.

At the Thai embassy or consulate-general whose district covers the place of birth. Bring the legalised foreign birth certificate with a translation plus the parents' passports and marital-status documents. The mission issues a Thai birth certificate, which then supports a Thai passport application and adding the child to a Thai house register.

The Nationality Act B.E. 2508 gives Thai nationality by birth to a person born of a Thai father or a Thai mother, whether inside or outside the Kingdom. Where a Thai father was not married to the mother, evidence of legal paternity — legitimation or DNA evidence as the agency requires — may be needed.

Present the Thai birth certificate issued by the mission, or the legalised and translated foreign birth certificate, at the registration office where the parents are registered. The registrar assigns the child a 13-digit personal ID number, which is needed for schooling, healthcare and a future ID card.

Thai law does not require a child who acquired Thai nationality by birth to renounce another nationality, so dual nationality is workable in practice. Use the Thai passport to enter and leave Thailand to avoid permitted-stay and future conscription issues, and check the other country's rules, since some restrict dual nationality.

The standard sequence is: (1) obtain a certified copy from the registration office; (2) translate it into the destination language by a translator the Department of Consular Affairs accepts; (3) file for translation certification at the Legalization Division; and (4) obtain further attestation from the destination country's embassy or consulate in Thailand where still required.

Thailand has acceded to the Apostille Convention, which enters into force for Thailand on 28 February 2027. From then, a document carrying an Apostille from the competent Thai authority can be used in other contracting states without further embassy attestation. Until that date the existing legalisation route applies. Check hcch.net and consular.mfa.go.th for the current position.

The Legalization Division certifies translations by checking that the translation matches the original. Wrong formatting, name spellings that differ from the passport, or omissions get the file returned for correction. In practice it is faster to use translators who work with registry templates daily, cutting revision rounds and total turnaround.

Yes — given name and surname should match the passport letter for letter. If you have changed your name or older documents spell it differently, attach the name-change certificate with a certified translation, because the receiving authority traces identity through that document chain.

Yes. File a request with the registrar together with evidence of the correct facts — the hospital certificate of birth, educational records, or other official documents created near the time of birth. The registrar investigates before ordering a correction; where the evidence is thin a court order may be required.

It certainly is, for visa filings, Land Office transactions and opening bank accounts, because authorities treat it as inconsistent identity data. Fix it at source: correct the civil registration record first, then issue a new passport — or attach the name-change certificate with a certified translation to explain the link.

Records held in the central civil registration database of the Bureau of Registration Administration can often be extracted at another office. Older records not yet digitised may require the office that created them, so call first — particularly for documents predating computerised record-keeping.

Many civil registration tasks, such as requesting certified copies, can be handled under a power of attorney with signed copies of both parties' ID cards. Matters requiring personal declaration of intent or biometric capture — ID card issuance, marriage registration and legitimation — must be done in person.

Appoint a representative in Thailand to obtain certified copies at the registration office, arrange the translation and file for certification at the Department of Consular Affairs. A power of attorney executed abroad should be signed before a Thai embassy or consular officer, or notarised locally and then legalised before use in Thailand.

Yes, if you live in Thailand lawfully at a fixed address. Apply at the local district registration office with your passport, valid visa or extension of stay, work permit if you have one, a lease or the house owner's consent, and your TM.30 receipt. The registrar enters you in the Tor Ror 13 house book for non-Thai nationals and issues a 13-digit number starting with 6 or 8 that banks and government offices accept as your identifier.

Tor Ror 14 is the blue house book for Thai nationals and permanent residents. Tor Ror 13 is the yellow book for lawfully resident non-Thai nationals. Both prove your address in practice, but holding a yellow book does not change your immigration status: 90-day reporting and visa extensions continue exactly as before.

They remain valid, but you must attach the official change-of-name certificate that links the old name to the new one. For overseas use, have that certificate translated and the translation certified by the Department of Consular Affairs alongside the main document, otherwise the receiving authority may reject the file for a name mismatch.

No. Thai law lets her keep Nangsao or use Nang, and lets her keep her own surname, take her spouse's, or use both. If she does change, the registrar issues the certificate and updates the house book and ID card first; the passport is amended afterwards, in that order.

The marriage is already valid where it was celebrated, but the Thai civil registry will not show it until you record a family status entry (Kor Ror 22) at a Thai district office. Recording it matters for inheritance rights, property transactions, dependant visas, and any future single-status certificate.

Normally the foreign marriage certificate legalized by the issuing country and the Thai embassy — or, from 28 February 2027, carrying an Apostille — plus a Thai translation certified by the Department of Consular Affairs, the Thai spouse's ID card and house book, and the foreign spouse's passport. Call the district office first, as some ask for witnesses.

The district registrar of your registered domicile issues it from the civil registry database, usually with sworn witness statements. The document itself carries no expiry, but most receiving authorities accept it only within three to six months of issue, so request it close to the date you actually need it.

Report the death to the Thai embassy or consulate-general in that country so a Thai death certificate can be issued from the local certificate and its translation. Then present the Thai certificate at the district office to remove the name from the house book. This step must be done before a court application to appoint an estate administrator.

Not automatically. The legalized and translated divorce decree or certificate must be recorded as a family status entry at a district office. Where the divorce came from a foreign court judgment, the registrar may require a Thai court order recognising it first, so have a lawyer review the file before filing.

No. District offices issue Thai-language documents only. For overseas use, obtain a registrar-certified copy, have it translated into English, and have the translation certified by the Department of Consular Affairs. Some tourist-area offices provide standard translation templates, but those still need consular certification.

You can complete the move at the destination district office alone, without returning to your former district to file a move-out notice. Bring your ID card, the house book you are joining, and the house owner's written consent with a copy of their ID. The system removes you from the previous registration automatically.

Generally no, because Thai nationality law follows descent rather than place of birth. The child receives a Thai birth certificate recording the facts of birth, while nationality follows the parents. Register the birth with your own embassy as well so the child obtains national documents and a passport.

District registrars issue documents in Thai, so a registrar-certified copy must be translated into English and the translation certified by the Department of Consular Affairs. Some offices can issue a bilingual civil registration certificate — ask your local registrar first to save a translation step.

It evidences that you are single, divorced or widowed, for marrying abroad or filing a spouse visa. Request it at the district office where your house registration is held, then have it translated and the translation certified before overseas use. Receivers usually require issuance within 3-6 months.

You can obtain a certificate of birth registration particulars from the registrar where the birth was recorded, which is accepted in place of the original in practice. Cross-province requests are often possible through the central registration system. Check that the romanised spelling in every translation matches your passport.

Register the birth at the Thai embassy or consulate-general to obtain a Thai birth certificate, then add the child to the Thai house registration. If using the foreign birth certificate instead, it must be authenticated under that country's system and the translation certified by the Department of Consular Affairs before filing with the registrar.

The house registration, national ID card and passport, plus record holders such as banks, Social Security and the Revenue Department. For overseas use, keep the name change certificate with a certified translation as the evidentiary link to documents issued in your former name.

Take the foreign court order or decree, authenticated under that country's system, have it translated and the translation certified by the Department of Consular Affairs, then file it with the district registrar to record the family status. This recording is required before remarrying in Thailand, and the registrar may request further documents case by case.

The document itself carries no expiry, but most receivers require issuance within 3-6 months because registry data can change. Request a fresh copy close to your filing date, and order several sets at once to save trips.

If listed in a Tor Ror 13 house registration, a registrar-certified copy works. Otherwise use a residence certificate from Immigration or your own embassy in Thailand, together with the TM30 accommodation notification and a lease. Accepted formats vary by receiver, so confirm before proceeding.

Yes, with evidence of the underlying fact — hospital records, educational documents, or earlier official records showing the correct data. File a request with the registrar, who has power to examine the facts; some cases need a court order. Timing depends on how complex the evidence is.

Report the death to the Thai embassy or consulate-general to obtain a Thai death certificate, or use the foreign death certificate authenticated under that country's system with a certified translation from the Department of Consular Affairs. This is needed to remove the name from the house registration and to administer the estate.

File a request with the district office where the marriage was registered for a registrar-certified copy of the Kor Ror 4 record, using your ID card or passport. If the marriage was registered at a Thai embassy abroad, request it through the Department of Consular Affairs, then have it translated and the translation certified before further use.

The usual chain is registrar-certified copy, translation into the required language, certification of that translation by the Legalisation Division of the Department of Consular Affairs, and finally a stamp from the destination country's embassy in Thailand. Countries accepting Apostille may need fewer steps — confirm with the receiver first.

You may submit it, but officers check translations strictly. Misspellings, wrong office names or romanisation that does not match your evidence are returned for correction, costing you another trip. The lower-risk route is a translator familiar with official document formats, with every name spelling checked against the passport.

Receivers may reject the file because identity cannot be confirmed. Use the passport spelling in every translation and attach linking evidence such as a name change certificate or a civil registration particulars certificate showing the same person.

Yes, with a properly signed and certified power of attorney plus copies of both parties' ID or passport. If signed abroad, have the signature certified by the Thai embassy or consulate-general so the district registrar will accept it.

Some authorities accept verifiable e-documents, but translation certification and embassy legalisation still generally rely on registrar-certified paper copies. Obtain paper originals as well, and confirm the accepted format with the receiver before filing.

It records a marriage or divorce that occurred under foreign law into the Thai registry. File it at the district office with the authenticated foreign document and a certified translation. It is required before remarrying in Thailand, changing your title, or exercising property and inheritance rights.

Allow at least two to three weeks per set: registrar copying time, translation, the consular certification queue, and the destination embassy queue. If the receiver requires issuance within three months, count backwards from your actual filing date so nothing expires.

Registration is made at the Thai embassy or consulate-general in the country of birth, using the locally issued birth certificate certified under that country's law, the parents' passports and marriage registration. Once the Thai birth certificate is issued, the child can be added to a Thai house registration and apply for a Thai passport.

It is normally obtained from the district registrar where the applicant is domiciled, usually with two witnesses under that office's rules. It is then translated into the language the destination requires and the translation legalised at the Department of Consular Affairs. Many countries require issue within three or six months of filing, so request it close to the filing date.

Obtain the official change-of-name or family-name registration certificate from the registrar, translate it and legalise the translation so it links the old and new identity. Then notify the bodies holding your records, such as schools, banks and the immigration office.

The usual step is a family-status record filed with the district registrar, using the certified foreign judgment or divorce registration plus a certified translation. It is needed before remarrying in Thailand, changing a title, or exercising property and inheritance rights.

File with the registrar for a replacement, or request a registrar-certified civil-registration extract, which carries equivalent detail and can be used abroad once translated and the translation legalised. Bring identification and proof of your connection to the address.

Typically the adoption registration, the approval or order from the responsible authority, the birth certificate and a house registration showing the relationship, all translated with the translations legalised. Some countries add certification at their embassy in Thailand, so request the document list in writing first.

Follow the passport spelling in every translation, because receiving authorities rely on the passport to confirm identity. If older documents spell the name differently, attach a registrar-certified extract or change-of-name certificate to link the evidence.

Usually yes while the entry remains in the civil-registration database, by filing with identification and documents linking the former name. If the entry has been removed, a certificate of the removed record may be issued instead. Ask the office that held the entry first.

Many receiving bodies retain originals and do not return them, so order several certified extracts at once and have them translated and legalised together. That reduces fees and queue visits when filings to several countries fall close together.

Some items can be handled at any office under the regulations, but corrections and family-status records generally must be filed at the office that holds the original entry. Call to confirm before travelling so a wasted trip is avoided.

Allow roughly two to four weeks per set for extracts at the registrar, translation, the consular legalisation queue and the destination embassy queue. Add further time when an entry must first be recorded or corrected by the registrar.

The wording may still be accurate, but receiving bodies look at the issue date of the original and the date the translation was certified. Once past a stated window such as three or six months, a fresh extract and a fresh certified translation are usually required, so check the receiving body's rule first.