Reviewed by ThaiLawOnline, a licensed Thai law firm practising in Thailand since 2006. Thai lawyer of record: Wichuda Atthamethakon, LL.M., Thai Bar Licence 3149/2556.
Last updated on September 5, 2026
A prenuptial agreement (สัญญาก่อนสมรส, sanya kon somrot, also written ante-nuptial agreement or simply prenup) is a contract between two people about to marry that fixes how their property will be classified and managed during the marriage, governed by Sections 1465 to 1467 of the Thai Civil and Commercial Code. It is the only instrument Thai law offers to depart from the default rules on sin somros and sin suan tua. Its distinctive feature is procedural: it must be entered in the marriage register on the wedding day, or it is void.
Table of Contents
What the Civil and Commercial Code requires
Section 1466 sets the formal conditions. The agreement must be in writing, signed by both future spouses and at least two witnesses, and registered with the marriage at the district office (amphur), where it is noted on the marriage register (Kor Ror 2). An agreement signed weeks earlier but not presented at the marriage registration is void. A Thai text is filed; couples usually prepare a bilingual version in advance rather than rely on a translation done at the counter.
Section 1465 limits the content. The agreement deals with property only. Clauses about fidelity, household duties or behaviour have no place in it, and a clause submitting the spouses’ property relations to a foreign law is void, although only the offending clause is severed. Once registered, Section 1467 prevents any alteration except with court authorisation. Agreements signed after the wedding are a different creature: under Section 1469 either spouse can cancel them at will during the marriage or within one year of its end, which is why a postnuptial agreement offers far weaker protection.
Practical points for a foreigner marrying in Thailand
The agreement is signed before the wedding date and brought to the amphur together with the passports, the embassy affirmation of freedom to marry and its certified translation. Some district offices want to see the text a few days ahead so the registrar can check it. A realistic timeline from first instructions to registration is two to three weeks, compressible to about a week in urgent cases.
The usual mistakes are signing without two witnesses, arriving at the amphur without the Thai text, adding a choice-of-law clause copied from a foreign template, and trying to amend the terms after marriage by private agreement. Couples with assets abroad often need a second, coordinated instrument under the law of the home country, because Thai registration does not by itself guarantee enforcement in England, Australia or the United States; see the guide on whether a Thai prenuptial agreement holds up abroad.
What the agreement changes at divorce
Without an agreement, property acquired during the marriage is sin somros and is split equally under Section 1533 at divorce, while assets owned before the marriage, and inheritances and gifts received during it, remain sin suan tua under Section 1471. A prenuptial agreement lets the spouses redraw those lines: salaries, a business or a specific condominium can be kept as personal property, or one spouse can be given sole management of certain assets.
It cannot decide child custody, child support or spousal maintenance, which the court assesses at the time of the divorce, and it does not bind third parties who deal with the couple in good faith without knowing its terms. Where the Thai spouse will hold land, a registered prenuptial agreement is often paired with a usufruct or other registered right.
Frequently asked questions
Can a foreigner sign a prenuptial agreement in Thailand?
Yes. Any two people registering a marriage in Thailand, whether both foreign or one Thai and one foreign, can register a prenuptial agreement with the marriage. The text filed at the amphur must be in Thai, so foreigners normally sign a bilingual version and bring a translator or an interpreter on the day.
Is a prenuptial agreement valid in Thailand if it was not registered with the marriage?
No. Section 1466 of the Civil and Commercial Code makes an unregistered prenuptial agreement void. An agreement signed after the wedding is treated as an agreement between spouses under Section 1469 and can be cancelled by either spouse at any time during the marriage or within one year after it ends.
Can a Thai prenuptial agreement choose a foreign law?
No. Section 1465 provides that a clause making the spouses’ property relations subject to the law of another country is void. The rest of the agreement survives, but a couple with assets abroad usually needs a separate agreement drafted under the law of the country where those assets sit.
See also: sin somros, sin suan tua, postnuptial agreement, marriage certificate (Kor Ror 3), and the full guides to prenuptial agreements in Thailand and what not to include in a Thai prenuptial agreement.
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