Révisé par ThaiLawOnline, un cabinet d'avocats thaïlandais agréé exerçant en Thaïlande depuis 2006. Avocate thaïlandaise en charge du dossier : Wichuda Atthamethakon, LL.M., licence du barreau thaïlandais 3149/2556.
Dernière mise à jour :
Legalisation of documents (การรับรองเอกสาร, Kan raprong ekkasan, également orthographié légalisation or called authentication) is the chain of official certifications that lets a document issued in one country be accepted by authorities in another. In Thailand the chain runs through the Department of Consular Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), which certifies signatures and seals but not the contents of a document. Foreigners need it for marriage registration, visa extensions, permis de travail, property transfers by power of attorney and homologation, and Thai nationals need it for documents going abroad.
Table des matières
Les deux chaînes de légalisation expliquées
Inbound (foreign document for use in Thailand). The document is first authenticated in its country of origin (notary, then the foreign ministry or equivalent), then legalised at the Thai embassy or consulate in that country, then translated into Thai by a competent translator, and finally the document and translation are legalised at the MFA Department of Consular Affairs. An affidavit sworn at a foreign embassy in Bangkok, such as the affirmation de la liberté de se marier, skips the first two steps.
Outbound (Thai document for use abroad). A Thai government document, or a private document whose signature has been certified by a Avocat en services notariaux, is legalised at the MFA and then authenticated by the destination country’s embassy in Thailand. Legalisation certifies only the authenticity of the signature, the capacity of the signatory and the identity of the seal. An error in the document itself passes straight through.
Bureaux, frais et délais au MAE
Where to go. The main Legalization Division is on the 3rd floor of the Department of Consular Affairs, 123 Chaeng Watthana Road, Bangkok, with branch counters at MBK Center (opened March 2023), Central World (opened November 2024) and Central Phuket Festival. Appointments are booked online through the MFA’s qlegal system; counters open in the morning and again after lunch.
| Service | Frais | Temps |
|---|---|---|
| Regular legalisation | 200 baht per legalisation stamp | 2 working days after submission |
| Express service | 400 baht per legalisation stamp | Le même jour |
| Legalisation of a Thai translation | Charged per stamp at the same rates (a separate word-count rate applies to translated contracts) | With the legalisation |
What to bring. The original document, the Thai translation, a copy of the applicant’s passport or ID, and a power of attorney if someone else files. The translation is the usual point of failure: names must match the passport letter for letter, and the MFA rejects translations with errors, so a translator used to consular work saves a second trip.
Légalisation versus apostille : le changement de 2027
Un apostille is a single certificate under the 1961 Hague Convention that replaces the embassy stage between member states. Thailand deposited its instrument of accession on 30 June 2026 and the Convention enters into force for Thailand on 28 February 2027, after the six-month objection window closing on 30 December 2026. From that date the Department of Consular Affairs is the competent authority issuing Thai apostilles, and an apostilled foreign document from a non-objecting state will no longer need Thai embassy legalisation, though a Thai translation may still be required by the receiving office.
Until then, an apostille on its own is not enough in Thailand and the full chain applies. The Convention works only between Thailand and states that raise no objection, so for documents from any objecting state, and for all countries outside the Convention, the embassy route continues after 2027.
La dernière révision : 27 septembre 2026. The fees and processing times were checked against the Department of Consular Affairs procedure published on the government services portal (info.go.th), and the apostille dates against the Hague Conference status table, which shows Thailand’s accession on 30 June 2026, entry into force on 28 February 2027 and no objection recorded as of this date. Not verified in this review: the branch counter locations and opening dates.
Foire aux questions
Combien de temps prend la légalisation de documents en Thaïlande ?
Regular service at the MFA Department of Consular Affairs takes 2 working days after submission, at 200 baht per legalisation stamp, and same-day express service costs 400 baht per stamp. Fees are charged per stamp, so an original and its translation count separately. Getting an appointment slot through the qlegal system can add its own wait. The foreign steps, notarisation and Thai embassy legalisation abroad, add their own time, so a full inbound chain often takes a month.
La Thaïlande accepte-t-elle une apostille au lieu d'une légalisation ?
Pas encore. La Thaïlande a adhéré à la Convention Apostille le 30 juin 2026, mais elle n'entrera en vigueur pour la Thaïlande que le 28 février 2027, et ce uniquement avec les États qui n'émettent pas d'objection. Jusqu'à cette date, un document étranger doit être légalisé auprès de l'ambassade de Thaïlande à l'étranger et de nouveau auprès du ministère des Affaires étrangères à Bangkok.
Quelle est la différence entre la notarisation et la légalisation ?
La notarisation est la certification d'une signature ou d'une copie par un notaire (en Thaïlande, un avocat habilité aux services notariaux). La légalisation est la certification supplémentaire par le ministère des Affaires étrangères, et le cas échéant par une ambassade, que le notaire ou le fonctionnaire qui a signé était authentique et habilité. Un document notarié doit généralement encore être légalisé avant qu'une autorité étrangère ne l'accepte.
Voir aussi : apostille, notaire (avocat habilité aux services notariaux), déclaration sous serment, procuration, and our full guide to legalisation of documents in Thailand and the 2027 change.
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