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Getting married in Thailand doesn't change anyone's surname automatically. Under Thailand's Personal Name Act, spouses can agree that one takes the other's surname, or each can keep their own; a combined, double-barrelled surname isn't allowed. If you decide to change your name, start with your passport: your own country issues it, under its own rules. Once you have the new passport, Thai immigration moves your visa extension and re-entry permission onto it. Everything after that — your bank, work permit and property paperwork — follows its own rules, which we haven't found published anywhere yet.
In short
- Changing your surname after a Thai marriage is a choice, not a requirement; Thai law doesn't allow a double-barrelled surname.
- Your own country issues the new passport. Thailand only registers the marriage and later records whatever passport you bring in.
- Once you have the new passport, Thai immigration moves your visa stamps onto it; ask your embassy and the immigration office what to bring.
- A Thai spouse changes their name separately, in person at their own district office, with your consent.
- We haven't confirmed the procedures for updating bank, work-permit or property records; check with each institution before you go.
Where the name changes: Thai district office or your consulate
Thailand's Personal Name Act lets spouses choose a surname when they register the marriage at the district office, or at any point afterwards. You can take your spouse's surname, keep your own, or let your spouse keep theirs — but you can't merge the two into one double-barrelled name.
For a foreign spouse, that choice doesn't automatically change the name in their passport. Thai records for a foreigner — extensions of stay, permits — go by whatever name is on your passport. So the decision and the paperwork both sit with your own country, not with the Thai district office. Thailand registers the marriage; everything downstream follows your passport.
New passport and visa: moving the stamp
A UK passport holder needs a new passport to travel under a new name. HM Passport Office asks for the marriage certificate with the application: £102 if you apply online, £115.50 on paper.
US citizens and citizens of EU countries should ask their passport authority whether it accepts a Thai marriage certificate as evidence of a name change, what additional documents it requires, and whether it needs a translation and what certification it accepts.
An Australian passport holder needs the overseas marriage certificate apostilled or authenticated by the relevant government before the Australian Passport Office will accept it as proof of the name change.
Once your new passport is in hand, the last step is moving your visa stamps across. Thai immigration handles this: bring a certificate from your embassy, both passports — old and new — and copies of each. If the names in the passports differ, ask Immigration in advance what evidence it requires to link the passports and confirm the name change. According to the government portal, transferring the stamps is free. We haven't found a confirmed processing time, so don't count on finishing it in one visit; ask your immigration office how long to expect. If you hold an LTR visa, the BOI's own guidance says to move it to the new passport through TIESC before your current permission expires.
Bank, work permit, driving licence
We haven't found a published procedure for updating a bank account, work permit or driving licence after a name change. Before you walk in with a new passport, ask the bank or the Department of Employment what they need, especially if your passport number changed along with your name. If a work permit application or renewal is already in progress, tell the Department of Employment about the new name and passport as early as you can.
Property records and contracts
We haven't found a published Land Department procedure for updating a name on title records either. In practice, that means one thing: before you sign a new contract or register a deal, check that your passport name matches what's already on your property documents. If there's already a mismatch — your passport changed, but a lease or sale contract still shows your old name — our lawyers can check the contract and tell you what's needed to sort it out before the next transaction.
A Thai spouse: changing names in Thai records
A Thai citizen changes their name differently from a foreign spouse. The change is recorded in person, at the district office where the Thai spouse is listed in the house registration book, and only with the other spouse's consent. Municipal guidance says to apply for a new ID card within 60 days after the surname is changed in the house register; confirm the requirement with your district office. A new Thai passport follows once the new ID card is issued.
On divorce, a Thai spouse who took the other's surname reverts to their own. If a spouse dies, the surviving partner can keep the married surname until they remarry — a rule set out in the Personal Name Act. For what happens to shared property and how divorce itself works in Thailand, see divorce in Thailand: by agreement or through the courts.
Checklist in order
| Document | Where to change it | What to bring |
|---|---|---|
| Decide on a surname | Between you and your spouse | Agree who takes which surname, or keep your own |
| Marriage certificate for use back home | Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs → your destination country's embassy or consulate, if it requires legalisation | Original certificate, translation |
| Passport in your new name | Your own country's passport authority | Marriage certificate plus whatever that authority asks for |
| Thai spouse's new surname and ID card | District office where registered | House registration book, your consent |
| Thai spouse's new passport | Passport office | New ID card |
| Visa stamps | Thai immigration | Embassy certificate, both passports, copies; ask in advance if the names differ |
| Bank, work permit, driving licence, property | Bank, Department of Employment, Department of Land Transport, Land Department | Ask each office in advance |
Until the Apostille Convention takes effect for Thailand on 28 Feb 2027, the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs legalises the marriage certificate, and the destination country's own authorities decide whether they also need to legalise it. Rules differ by country at several of these steps; treat this table as a route map, not a fixed document list.
What's not confirmed yet
Several points here don't have a published answer yet. We haven't found official procedures for updating a bank account, work permit or driving licence after a name change, or for recording it on Land Department title records. We haven't confirmed official surname-change guidance specifically for same-sex spouses following the Marriage Equality Act's entry into force on 23 January 2025; ask the district office and your embassy directly.
What's next
If you've already decided who's taking which surname and aren't sure what comes first, tell us about your situation. We'll reply within 24 hours, explain the order of steps, the timeline and the cost, and fix the cost before we start any work. We prepare documents in Thai and in English. If you're still at an earlier stage — planning marriage registration support in Thailand and want to know what follows the certificate — mention that in your message, and we'll factor it into the plan.
