The Spouse Visa in Thailand is a popular choice for a foreigner wishing to stay in Thailand with their Thai spouse. It allows the foreigner to remain in the country and work if they are able to secure a work permit. It is also a common option for couples who are married to one another and want to travel outside the country.
How to Get a Spouse Visa in Thailand
A Non Immigrant Type O visa based on marriage is the most common type of Thai Spouse Visa. It allows the foreigner to stay in Thailand for up to a year if they meet all of the requirements set forth by Immigration.
You can apply for a Thai Spouse Visa in Thailand from the embassy of your home country. Each embassy has its own waiting time and may need additional documents for the process to be completed.
It is recommended to contact a lawyer before going to the embassy to prepare your application. This will ensure that your application is filed correctly and your case is expedited.
There are two main ways to obtain a Spouse Visa in Thailand, a Non-Immigrant O visa and a Marriage Visa.
Firstly, you will need to obtain a non-immigrant O visa from your home country and activate it before arriving in Thailand. You will need to make sure that you have all of the required documents with you and that you can prove that your marriage is legally substantiated through a certificate.
The non-immigrant O visa is valid for 90 days and can be extended to a 12-month visa by applying for an extension within 3 weeks of its expiration date. You can then return to Thailand to activate the extension and renew it for a further one year.
Once you have your non-immigrant O visa, you will need to visit a local Thai Immigration Office in the province where you are living and apply for your one-year Thai marriage visa. This is a more complicated process than getting a non-immigrant O visa because you will need to prove that your marriage is legally substantiated by the Thai government through a certificate.
You must make sure that you have all of the required documentation with you and that you can prove that your wedding is legally substantiated by the Thai Government through a certificate. You must also be able to provide a certified translation of your marriage certificate into English.
It is also recommended to contact a lawyer before going to a Thai embassy to prepare your application. This will be a much more complicated process than getting a non-immigrant IR visa or a K-3 Visa because you will need to prove that your marriage if legal and that your spouse is financially sound enough to support both of you.
You must be able to show that your marriage is legitimate by providing a certificate from the Thai Government or an official court. You must also be able to prove that you have sufficient funds to live in Thailand for a year or more, depending on which Thai visa you are applying for.