Thailand marriage visa: requirements, money rules and renewal
Half the capital of the retirement route, and the only family route that leads to a work permit. It also asks for house photos and a map.
The short answer: there is no visa in Thai law called a marriage visa. What everyone means by a Thailand marriage visa is a 90-day Non-Immigrant O visa followed by a 1-year extension of stay based on marriage to a Thai national. You qualify by being legally married and showing either 400,000 THB in a Thai bank, held for 2 full months before you apply, or an income of 40,000 THB a month.
- 400,000 THB bank deposit route
- 40,000 THB monthly income route
- 1,900 THB annual extension fee
- Work permit available once extended
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The extension renews every year on the same evidence, and unlike the retirement route it can lead to a work permit. This Thailand marriage visa guide covers the money rules, the application, the document list officers actually check, and what happens at renewal, at work, and if the marriage ends.
Thailand marriage visa key facts
The table below carries the figures the rest of this guide unpacks.
| Rule | Detail |
|---|---|
| Financial requirement | 400,000 THB in a Thai bank, or income of 40,000 THB a month |
| Deposit seasoning | 2 months before a first application; keep it in place 3 months before each renewal |
| Initial visa | Non-Immigrant O, 90 days per entry |
| Extension of stay | 1 year at a time, 1,900 THB fee |
| Processing | About a 30-day “under consideration” period, then a second visit for the stamp |
| Work rights | Work permit available once the extension is granted |
| Ongoing obligations | 90-day address reporting, re-entry permit before any trip abroad |
The money rules
The financial requirement decides most Thailand marriage visa applications, so get it exact. Under Immigration Bureau order 327/2557, the governing extension criteria, you need either 400,000 THB in a Thai bank account in your name, in place for the 2 months before you apply, or an average income of at least 40,000 THB a month. Your Thai spouse’s income is irrelevant. Immigration tests your funds, not theirs.
Proving income has changed. The US, UK and Australian embassies stopped issuing income letters in 2019, so for those nationalities the evidence is now Thai bank records showing the monthly transfers landing, backed by PND.1 tax filings or a work permit where you earn in Thailand. Do not assume you can combine a smaller deposit with income the way retirees can. Sources conflict on whether any combination method exists for marriage extensions, so plan to meet one test outright.
One genuine quirk survives from the order’s wording: the financial bar applies only to a foreign husband supported by his marriage to a Thai national. A foreign woman married to a Thai man faces no deposit or income requirement at all. Offices apply the criteria at officer discretion, so confirm with your local office before relying on the exemption. The order also predates Thailand’s Marriage Equality Act and is written in gendered terms; how offices apply the exemption to same-sex marriages is not yet settled.
Getting it step by step
The Thailand marriage visa route runs in a fixed order, and the timing rules matter at each step.
- Register the marriage
Thailand recognises the marriage once it is registered at an Amphoe (district office). Foreign marriage certificates need translation and legalisation first. Our guide to marriage registration in Thailand covers both paths.
- Get the 90-day Non-Immigrant O
Apply at a Thai embassy abroad, where the single-entry visa costs 2,000 THB (£60 at the Royal Thai Embassy in London), or convert inside Thailand, which requires at least 15 days of permitted stay remaining.
- Apply for the 1-year extension
File at your local immigration office within the last 30 days of the 90-day stay, with the deposit already seasoned. The fee is 1,900 THB.
- Wait out the “under consideration” period
Officers stamp a temporary stay of about 30 days (some offices 30 to 45) while the file is reviewed, then you return for the 1-year stamp.
Count backwards and the 90-day visa leaves little slack. If you still need to open a bank account and season 400,000 THB for 2 months, start the moment you arrive.
Document checklist
Offices vary slightly, but a complete Thailand marriage visa file looks like this:
- Passport and a completed TM.7 (the standard extension of stay form), with photos
- Marriage certificate, plus two copies of the Kor Ror 2 (the marriage registration record from the Amphoe), each issued within the last 6 months
- Your spouse’s Thai ID card and tabien baan (the blue house registration book)
- Bank letter issued on the day of application, plus the updated bank book or statements
- Photos of you both at your home, inside and outside, with the house number visible, plus a hand-drawn or printed map to the house
The house photos and map are the part first-time applicants never expect. Officers use them to test that the marriage is genuine, and follow-up home visits by immigration do happen. Outside Bangkok, bring two signed copies of everything; provincial offices routinely ask for a second set.
Renewing your Thailand marriage visa each year
The extension is not a one-off. Every year you present the same evidence again: fresh Kor Ror 2 copies, a same-day bank letter, the house photos, and your spouse alongside you at the office. The money rules bite hardest here. The order requires 2 months’ seasoning for a first application, but offices consistently ask to see the 400,000 THB held for the full 3 months before each renewal, so treat the deposit as untouchable.
Two side obligations run alongside. You must report your address to immigration every 90 days of continuous stay. And the extension alone does not survive foreign travel: leaving without a re-entry permit (1,000 THB single, 3,800 THB multiple) voids it, along with the seasoned deposit behind it. Miss the renewal itself and you are overstaying at 500 THB a day, capped at 20,000 THB, with re-entry bans beyond 90 days of overstay, per the Immigration Bureau’s overstay warning.
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Working on a marriage visa
This is the Thailand marriage visa’s real advantage. Holders of an extension of stay based on marriage can obtain a work permit; your employer files the application, and no change of visa category is needed. The retirement route offers no work rights at all, so for anyone who intends to earn in Thailand, at any age, the marriage extension is the stronger platform. Our work permit guide covers the employer’s side of the paperwork.
Marriage visa vs spouse visa
Marriage visa, spouse visa, Thailand marriage visa, Non-O based on marriage: these are different names for the same thing, the Non-Immigrant O route described above. The O category is broader than marriage alone. It also covers dependants, such as a parent staying with a Thai child or a family member following a visa holder, on the same annual extension pattern with different evidence.
The comparison that actually matters is with the retirement route, for married applicants over 50 who qualify for both. Marriage wins on money (400,000 THB against 800,000 THB) and on work rights. Retirement wins on paperwork, with no marriage evidence, no house photos and no home visits, and both carry the same 1,900 THB annual extension fee.
Divorce, death and your visa
The extension exists because of the marriage, so when the marriage ends, by divorce or the death of your spouse, its legal basis ends with it. There is no published grace period; how long you can stay to arrange your affairs is at the discretion of your immigration office. The practical advice is to act before the current extension lapses: move to another basis of stay you qualify for, or plan an orderly departure, rather than waiting for renewal to fail.
Divorce in Thailand has its own procedure and property consequences, which our guide to divorce in Thailand explains. If you are heading that way, deal with the visa timing and the legal side together.
What to do next
If you are already married and in Thailand, open the bank account and start the 2-month seasoning clock today, then convert to a Non-O while you still have 15 days of stay left. If you are marrying soon, register the marriage first; nothing else can start without the Kor Ror 2. Keep the deposit untouched all year, report every 90 days, and buy a re-entry permit before every trip.
Frequently asked questions
How much money do I need for a Thailand marriage visa?
Either 400,000 THB in a Thai bank account in your name, held for 2 months before a first application and 3 months before each renewal, or an income of 40,000 THB a month. The extension fee is 1,900 THB a year.
Can I work on a marriage visa in Thailand?
Yes. Once your extension of stay based on marriage is granted you can obtain a work permit, with your employer filing the application. This is the biggest advantage over the retirement route, which does not permit work.
Should I choose a marriage visa or a retirement visa if I qualify for both?
The Thailand marriage visa needs 400,000 THB against retirement's 800,000 THB, and only marriage allows a work permit. Retirement asks for simpler evidence, with no relationship documents or home visits. If you will never work and prefer lighter paperwork, retirement; otherwise marriage usually wins.
What documents prove a genuine marriage?
Beyond the marriage certificate and Kor Ror 2, officers ask for photos of you and your spouse at your home, inside and outside with the house number visible, plus a map to the house. Immigration can also make a home visit before or after granting the extension.
What happens to my visa if we divorce?
The extension's legal basis ends with the marriage, and there is no published grace period. Act before the current extension lapses: switch to another basis of stay you qualify for or plan your departure. Waiting until renewal fails leaves you overstaying at 500 THB a day.
We married abroad. Does Thailand recognise our marriage?
Yes, once the foreign certificate is translated, legalised through consular affairs and the marriage is registered at an Amphoe, which produces the Kor Ror 2 immigration wants. Until that registration exists, immigration will not grant the extension.
Can my Thai spouse sponsor me if they do not work?
Your spouse's income does not matter. Immigration tests your own funds: your 400,000 THB deposit or your 40,000 THB monthly income. A non-working Thai spouse is no obstacle at all.
Do embassy income letters still exist?
Not for Americans, Britons or Australians; those embassies stopped issuing them in 2019. Prove income instead with Thai bank records showing regular monthly transfers, supported by tax or work permit evidence if you earn in Thailand.
How long does the extension take?
Expect two visits. The first files the application and gets a temporary stamp of about 30 days (some offices 30 to 45) while the file is "under consideration"; the second collects the 1-year stamp.