Child Adoption

Child Adoption

The process of adoption in Thailand effectively enables the legal transfer of responsibility for a child from its biological parents to the adoptive parents. This is finalized when an adoption order has been issued that severs all of the rights and responsibilities of the biological parents and places them with the adoptive parents. Assuming the adoptive parent has legal domicile outside of Thailand, a Thai adoption application must be submitted through the relevant governmental authorities of their country of residence and also through the relevant Thai agencies authorized with the authority to deal with the Child Adoption Center of the Department of Social Development and Welfare (DSDW) of the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security of Thailand. Allow us to guide you through.

Adoption availability in Thailand
Basically, Child Adoption in Thai law is the act of legally handing over an adopted child with the adoptive parent(s) from the biological parents or guardians of the child. An adoption order has the effect of severing parental responsibilities and rights of the natural parents and transferring those rights and responsibilities to the adoptive parents.

There are 2 types of available Adoption in Thailand under the Civil and Commercial Code which mainly are;

• Domestic Adoption – as the name suggests, this type of adoption concerns adoptive parents (Thai or foreign) whose domicile is in Thailand.
• Inter-country Adoption – is the type of adoption intended only for foreigners who wish to adopt a Thai child and raise it in a country other than Thailand.Moreover, if the Adoption has already been granted, stipulations are given under the Civil and Commercial Code whereas;
  • An adopted child has the right to carry the use of the family name of the adopter
  • The adopter does not have the right to inherit from the adopted child
  • An adopted child has the right to inherit from the adopter

Applicant qualifications (Thai & Foreigner)
Child adoption in Thailand is pretty much very straightforward giving the rights to anyone who wishes to apply for Child Adoption, provided that the adoptive parents must first qualify as an applicant for the child adoption process in Thailand.

The criteria to be a qualified applicant as an adopter are as follows:

• Must be over 25 years of age and at least 15 years older than the child to be adopted
• Foreign applicants must prove the legitimacy of their marriage and must be qualified to legally adopt a child in the country of their domicile.
• Foreign applicants must hold a 1-year visa in Thailand with at least 6 months remaining.