What should a Spousal Consent include under Thai law?

1. The Transaction
2. Limits of this Consent
3. Confirmation

• No stamp duty is payable on this consent. A spouse's consent is not an instrument listed in the Stamp Duty Schedule of the Thai Revenue Code.
• The transaction itself may carry duty or fees: for example a loan contract, a guarantee, a lease of more than three years, or the registration fee for a sale or mortgage at the Land Office. These are paid on those documents, not on this consent.
• If the consenting spouse gives someone a power of attorney to sign at the Land Office, that power of attorney carries duty of 10 THB for a single act or 30 THB for more than one act (Instrument 7).

• Under section 1476 of the Thai Civil and Commercial Code, spouses must manage marital property together, or one spouse must have the other's consent, to sell, exchange, sell with a right of redemption, let on hire-purchase, mortgage, release or transfer a mortgage over land or mortgageable property; create or end a servitude, habitation, superficies, usufruct or charge; lease immovable property for more than three years; lend money; make a gift (other than a suitable gift for charity, social or moral purposes); compromise; submit a dispute to arbitration; or give property as security to an official or a court.
• A transaction made without a required consent may later be set aside by a court at the request of the other spouse. That is why buyers, banks and Land Offices ask for this document.
• Borrowing, giving a guarantee or pledging property are not on that list. A lender may still ask for the spouse's consent, because it may help the lender claim against marital property if the loan is not repaid. Ask the lender what it will rely on before signing.
• The law applies to spouses of any gender. This document uses "spouse" throughout.

• Most Land Offices ask the consenting spouse either to come in person and sign the Land Department's own consent form in front of the officer, or to sign a consent whose signature is certified. Call the Land Office or bank before the appointment and ask which they need. This bilingual document helps the foreign spouse understand exactly what is being signed, and can be filed where the office accepts it.
• Bring the original ID card or passport of both spouses, the marriage certificate, and the house registration or other address evidence. A foreign spouse's passport may need a certified Thai translation of the name page.
• Marriage registered abroad. A Thai authority may ask for the foreign marriage certificate to be legalised and translated into Thai, or for the marriage to be recorded at a Thai district office. Check this well before the transaction.
• Signing abroad. A spouse who cannot come to Thailand can sign before a Thai embassy or consulate, or before a notary public whose signature is then legalised. Ask the Land Office or bank in advance which form of certification it will accept.

• Describe the property exactly: title deed or condominium title number, land number and location, or share certificate numbers. Adding the Thai words in brackets helps the officer match the document.
• Set a maximum amount for a mortgage, loan or guarantee. Clause 2.1 limits the consent to that amount and to the named transaction; a later increase in a mortgage or loan needs a new consent.
• If you set an expiry date, the transaction must be registered or signed by then. Leave enough time for the Land Office appointment.

• A foreign spouse generally cannot own land in Thailand. When a Thai spouse buys land, the Land Office usually asks the foreign spouse for a separate declaration that the money is the Thai spouse's personal property. That declaration is a different document from this consent.
• Which country's law governs the spouses' property can depend on their nationalities. If either spouse is not Thai and the value is significant, ask a Thai lawyer before signing.

• The consenting spouse must sign personally, in handwriting. Do not sign for your spouse, even with permission. Electronic signatures are generally not used for family-law transactions in Thailand, so sign on paper.
• Two witnesses are recommended, and are required if the consenting spouse signs with a thumbprint instead of a signature. A witness should not be the counterparty or its employee.
• Make at least two signed originals: one for the Land Office, bank or lender, and one for the consenting spouse.

Compiled from the notes that accompany the English contract templates on this site, published by Phuwara Krobtaku (ภูวรา ครอบตะคุ), Thai attorney-at-law, licence no. 477/2558. The short answer and summary at the top of this page are put together by the site from the template's clause headings and notes. Statutes are quoted only in the official Thai text: Thai is the only official language of Thai legislation, and an unofficial translation can mislead. Article registry OKC-462035. If you reuse this content, please credit the author and link to the original.