Divorce of Thailand
According to statistics of the Bureau of Registration Administration (BORA) of Ministry of interior, it is found that the divorce rate of Thai people increased by almost 50% of those who registered their marriages from 2017 – 2021, with domestic violence as the main factor of divorce, especially physical abuse by the husband. Even though there is trying to mediate between the spouse but it is still unsuccessful, the second factor is adultery and drug problems.
In Thailand, there are 2 types of divorce: contested divorce and uncontested divorce. In case where the spouse is Thai and reside in Thailand, Divorce proceedings are quite easy but if one of the spouses are unwilling to divorce or being a foreigner and the marriage is registered in a foreign country, the proceedings are more complicated because there are many factors involved. Therefore, it is necessary to seek legal advice from a lawyer in order to proceed the divorce
Uncontested divorce is a case where the couple intends to end their spouse relationship and could agree to divorce on their own without any dispute. This type of divorce is required by law to make the divorce agreement in writing and signed by at least 2 witnesses. In case you registered your marriage at any district office or district in case of residing in province, you can proceed with the divorce registration to the registrar at any district office or district. The divorce will therefore be legally valid.
Below is evidence you need to present on the day of divorce registration
This type of divorce is a case where one of the spouses wants to divorce but others does not agree, the divorce proceedings must therefore be filed with the court with the grounds for divorce as follow;
In addition, The suing spouse also has some legal rights to claim from the others, such as the right to recover compensation from the affair of his or her spouse or the ground for divorce under Clause 3.2 (3), (4), (8) due to the fault of the other party, the right to claim alimony because of the fault of their spouse and such divorce makes the other party poorer because they have no income from property or work that they have done during the marriage, this right is required by law to be sued or counterfiled in the case filed as well, otherwise the right is lost. The contested divorce shall be effective from the time the court renders a final judgment even if the divorce has not been registered.
Basically, for preparing for the divorce proceedings, you shall consult with a lawyer to guide how to proceed with the divorce in the court and the important evidence relating to the grounds of divorce before filing with the court. In case you reside in a foreign country, a lawyer can file for divorce with the court instead of you. However, you still need to come to court when the court considers divorce proceedings. Your spouse will receive a court summon regarding divorce proceedings. If your spouse does not respond to the summon within the stipulated time. The court will continue to pursue divorce proceedings as a default.
In case your spouse is a foreigner, you must consider the laws of the country applied at the time of marriage registration because in some countries, such as the United States, divorce shall be allowed by the court first.