Thai Marraige Visa and Costs

Once you have found your Thai lady, and decided that you want to take things to the next stage, how do you proceed?

Presuming you have gone out initially for 2-3 weeks, it is possible for you to marry in Thailand during this period, and if you are both dead set on this course of action, then we can guide you on how to do this. However we do not recommend this course of action. Firstly, you are very unlikely to get a visa for your bride at this stage, and secondly we feel that you should come back to the UK and make sure that you still feel the same after a month or two at home!

So whether or not you get married, you will be back in the UK alone. It is very important that you keep in regular touch with your Thai lady, not just for the sake of your relationship, but also to keep a record of this communication for your visa application. When you apply for your lady’s visa, the embassy will want to see evidence of an ongoing relationship. So keep phone records, keep letters and if you correspond by e.mail (recommended), print out and file copies of your e.mails. If you send money from the UK to her, keep records of this also.

We recommend communicating by e.mail as it is much quicker than the mail, and does not tend to create the communication difficulties that can occur on the phone. (have you ever tried to hold a telephone conversation in a foreign language? I have – it’s a nightmare!) However your Thai lady will almost certainly have to go to an Internet café (fortunately there are now internet cafes throughout Thailand) and may even have to get a translator. This will cost her between £1 and £3 each time. So you will need to make sure that you leave your lady sufficient funds to keep doing this!

Once you have returned home, and are sure that you want to take the next step and marry, then there are two possibilities. You may decide to marry in Thailand or to bring your bride home and marry here.

Either way let us assume that you have met your lady, and returned home for say 2 months, kept in touch and now you are returning to Thailand. This time you should take everything you are going to need to apply for her visa to accompany you to the UK. You will need to establish your relationship (see above) with details of how you kept in touch. You will need to show that you have a home for her to return to i.e. proof of home ownership (mortgage details etc) or rental details. Proof that you can afford to keep her, i.e. details of income and savings – bank accounts, wage slips etc. You may need to prove that you are free to marry – divorce documents if applicable. Take photos of you together on your visit too. In fact take more than you think you may need – you can have too little in the way of documentation but never too much! There are visa agents in Thailand who “guarantee” visas, however if you follow our advice, you should have no problems with your visa and do not need to add the extra expense of an agent. (anyway no one can guarantee a visa!) We will of course go over your visa requirements with you nearer the time.

Your lady will also need a passport – fairly straightforward for her to obtain in Thailand. We suggest that she does this after your first visit. If she has been married previously then she will need her divorce papers together with a certified translation.

If you have any uncertainty about how well your lady will settle in the UK, you can simply apply for a visitor’s visa (normally granted initially for 2 months). This will allow you to be together over here prior to marriage – however you may NOT marry her while she is here on a visitor’s visa! She would have to return to Thailand and come back here on a fiancés visa!

If you wish to marry here, then we suggest that you go for the fiancé visa. This gives your Thai lady six months over here to arrange your wedding.

A Thai wedding normally consists of 2 parts. Firstly there is the traditional ceremony in the bride’s village, at the home of her parents. For many Thai girls and their families, this is still a very important ceremony. There is the traditional blessing from the monks and at this time it is normal for you to pay your bride’s family a dowry. This is considered compensation to the parents for the loss of their daughter. The amount of the dowry can vary (see below). This ceremony though important for the family and their status in the village, has no legal authority. The marriage then needs to be registered at the local Amphur (registrars) office. (Indeed in some circumstances the village ceremony may be dispensed with – e.g. if you bride is an orphan) You will then need a certified translation of this document to apply for your wife’s settlement visa. (There are several offices near the UK embassy in Bangkok that offer this service)

Even if you would prefer to marry here, you should consider also going through the Thai traditional wedding prior to leaving for the UK. Your lady and her family would no doubt be very grateful for this (and of course your status with them would be greatly enhanced!)

Further details on visas and settlement can be found on the following web sites:

www.britishembassy.gov.uk/thailand
www.fco.gov.uk
www.ind.homeoffice.gov.uk

Costs: (Thai costs are given in baht. Currently £1 = approx 70 baht)

Your return flights from UK normally cost about £450 - £550. However I have heard of someone getting a flight for £350, and if you choose to travel at peak time (Xmas/ New Year) you can pay double this or more!

Internal flights in Thailand normally cost 2-3000 baht (one way)

Hotels in Thailand can vary considerably with the top ones costing as much as here. However when we are over we stay in perfectly comfortable and adequate hotels for 550 – 1500 baht /day.

Car hire:

Depends on the type of car, but roughly 1500 baht /day with a discount for 7 days or longer (if you are going to Khon Kaen, we can help as Namoi’s uncle has a car hire business there!)

Don’t be daunted about driving in Thailand (outside Bangkok which is a nightmare!) They drive on the left like us, and the main roads in general have good tarmac surfaces. And the main road signs are in both Thai and English. Although the standard of driving leaves a bit to be desired, you should have no problems driving in Thailand.

The wedding;

If you are getting married here, you will be aware of the cost – it depends on how fancy you want it to be!

In Thailand costs are much lower, though it will be up to you to negotiate with the family on just how big a wedding you are going to have! My wife reckons that 50,000 baht should be more than enough.

The matter of the dowry is one for negotiation with the family. The amount of the dowry varies according to circumstances. For example you would be expected to pay more for a young virgin, than a previously married lady with children. The dowry (together with any gifts of gold for your bride and her mother) is on public display in cash, and the amount is a matter of great interest. The size of the dowry reflects your generosity and status, and shows just how much you value your bride! I have heard of very large dowries being displayed (which reflects very well on your and the families status) and after the wedding some of it being returned to the husband!

As a rough guide 100,000 – 300,000 baht would be considered normal for a dowry.

For some older mature ladies who have not lived with their families for some time, no dowry would be expected.

Visas.

Please see websites for up to date info on visa costs. (but as an example, Namoi’s fiancé visa was 19,500 baht)

Club Thai:

For our services we charge a flat fee of £899. For this you get as many introductions as you wish, and all our support services, including of course help and advice after you are married both for you and your wife. We regard you as a member for life (however if for any reason your marriage ends, and you wish to return for a second round of introductions, then a further fee would be payable).
We also hope to introduce a bulletin board on our website at some time in the future, so that members can exchange views comments experiences and advice.

As a rough guide, we estimate that all in, you should budget for around £5,000. Remember that this will be spread over probably 2 visits, and would not all be payable at once!