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Unanswered2 years ago

Can I use my original marriage certificate for a trailing spouse visa extension in Hua Hin after February 2024?

Sarah **********
asked Apr 18, 2025
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Question for married couples from the USA who use their marriage certificate for "trailing spouse" visa/extension purposes:

Have you successfully extended the stay of the trailing spouse (after 29-Feb-2024) at Hua Hin immigration using an original marriage certificate from the USA without any authentication documents from the state/commonwealth, Department of State, and Royal Thai Embassy?

For background, we applied for our original visas using the marriage certificate that we received when we originally got married, which was a "true and correct copy" signed by the county recorder with an embossed seal but which did not have any attached authentication documents. We also used that original copy for our first trailing spouse extension. However, after reading about a possible need for authenticated documents, we decided to pay an apostille to request another copy of our marriage certificate and obtain all the authentications that were required at that time from the state and federal authorities and with an additional authentication stamp provided by the Royal Thai Embassy. We were told that the authenticated documents would be valid for 3 years, and we have used them twice for trailing spouse extensions. However, based on Immigration Order No. 0029.154/1491 dated February 24, 2024, we are wondering if we will be able to go back to using the original copy of our marriage certificate that we received when we got married, which has no attached authentication documents.

Since we have presented two different marriage certificates at Hua Hin immigration that look quite different from one another, both of which were issued by a competent authority in the state in which we were married, but only one of which is attached to authentication documents, we are wondering if using the original copy will create confusion.
Summary so far
The question seeks advice from married American expats regarding the validity of using an original marriage certificate, without additional authentication, for extending a trailing spouse visa at Hua Hin immigration. The asker previously used both an original and an authenticated version, and now wonders if they can revert to the original following new immigration orders. Comments respond with varied experiences, noting the necessity of certifications in some areas and suggesting consulting immigration officials directly.
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Ally ************
Ally ************
Where the marriage took place overseas and is not written in Thai.. Chiang Mai Immigration will require a translated and certified copy of the marriage certificate.. as well as a Kor Ror 22 from the local Amphur.. the KR22 simply confirms the registration of the marriage in your district.. but to achieve this the embassy of country where marriage was solemized must first certify the validity of the marriage by endorsing a copy of the original (eg. English version) marriage certificate.. which you then need to get translated into Thai and arrange for it to be endorsed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Thailand.. if you are already living in Thailand this would neccessitate visiting both said Embassy and the MoFA in Bangkok.. not to mention navigating the procedures and protocols to get it done in a timely manner.. probably one of the few times that an agent can really provide value imo.. since they are familiar with the process and will save you significant time and energy.. and most importantly will get it right.. but still likely to take around 3-weeks.. so you need to factor that in if you need it to apply for a non-o immigrant visa (or extension) since your existing stamp could expire in the interim.. just sharing knowledge from recent personal experience in the hope it helps other folk evaluate their own situation 😉
Jack ********
Jack ********
Go to the main immigration in HH and talk to them.
Ručman ***********
Ručman ***********
I can share you my experience with Chiang Mai and Bangkok, but not Hua Hin, it depends on immigration officer, in chiang mai for example, we didnt even get MFA stamp.
Jim *******
Jim *******
Australia, does not certify overseas marriages. It does recognize them as a deed.
John *********
John *********
Good question. Hope you get your answer.
Jim *******
Jim *******
How you have made it so complicated.

Married at Sathorn City Council, Bangkok, our marriage certificate (2008) has been accepted everywhere, in Japan too. We are not after a marriage visa but we could.

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