New Thai/Farang baby questions

[itsmedave]

Hey all! My family was just blessed with the arrival of my first baby, Katherine Ann. She is half Thai/half American.

 

I have several questions. First, I want to have the girl be an American citizen and not a Thai citizen because of the travel and social advantages that Americans have. Do I need to do anything with the Thai gov't, or can I just decline Thai citizenship and go directly to the US embassy to handle it?

 

Next, if I HAVE to deal with the insipid govt, they will want my wife's house papers to register our child. This is problem number 2. My wifes family is from Issan, but I have no intention of EVER letting my little girl go up there, and neither do I want her connected with Issan in any way. I certainly don't want to have to take any trips there for an ID card. So what would be my options? Can I forge a Bangkok address? Can I use a friend's papers who lives in Bangkok?

 

What if her family had sold their house and now live in an apartment in Bkk. What would they do for registration if they had no house papers. Can I claim the same thing? Can I just tell them to go fuck themselves?

 

When the hospital staff asked me for her papers in the hospital I said no, and they asked me to give them SOMETHING in 15 days. What can I give them, or can I just ignore it?

 

Is the birth certificate separate from the registration, or do I have to be registered to get the certificate. (I have already paid the hospital for the certificate and the English translation.) Will they give me the certificate without the registration? Why do things have to be so difficult with this gov't? Why can't people move where they please without all the damn complications?

 

What are my options?

 

Thanks!

 

(And I'm sorry if I'm coming off as Anti-Thai, but I really don't want to be involved in what seems an assinine policy structure and have the Thai gov't, (or my wife's bum family) to have any claim to my daughter)

[..]

Congrats Dave & Dee. Welcome Katherine Ann.

 

I would recommend that you get both passports. She is entitled and there is no real drawback. My daughters have both. They travel outside of Thailand with the Yank blue book and stay in Thailand on the Thai red book.

 

If you do not register her with the Thai gummint, I would bet that you will need a visa, etc. to have her stay incountry. Way too many hassles to be worth it.

 

Sorry, I do not know much about the house paper thingy as wifey handles all that.

 

Chok dee na!

 

Cheers,

SD

[elef]

First congrats to the baby.

 

Second, I don't know too much of thai law, but those house papers are important. If you're not careful it may end in that your wife is illegal immigrant and both she and baby are not thai citizens. Try to find a good thai lawyer who knows how to fix all this, but it will cost money!

 

elef

[BelgianBoy]

Hi Dave,

 

Congrats to all 3 of you !!! well done

 

suadum,

 

I often wondered on the 2 passport thingie..... You enter and leave Thailand on the Thai passport, no questions, visas and stamps in the other one ? Never questions where you come from ? visas ? etc ????

 

BB

[..]

Re: dual passports - so far no and the girls have been back-n-forth to US, Japan, UK, HK, ASEAN countries, Korea, etc. Of course in the US now. US does not seem to care when the go there.

 

I do not expect any either. As long as you are legally stamped in-out of the country why should they care, especially for a Thai national? "Why, gee officer, I lived in the ROP 1st class lounge for three months because it was so darn nice!"

 

We will see when they next return to LoS. Always an adventure, ya know!

 

Regards,

SD

[llso]

Hi Dave,

 

First of all Congratulations on the birth of your daughter.

My Daughter who is now 2 and 1/2 years old is also Thai/American.

 

The child is eligible for dual citizenship until she reaches 18 then has to make a choice. Our daughter was actually registered on the Tabien Baan( House Registration ) of a friend, since we were renting. There must be a house registration produced to issue a Thai birth certificicate. This is the first legal document and everything else will follow it including the US passport. It will include you as the father and you must provide your passport details.

 

Later we changed it to my wife and daughters house registration when we built our house. The Thai birth certificicate (By Wan Gurt) will have to be translated into English and certified to apply for the US passport.

 

Hope this helps and feel free to PM me if you need any other info on the process.

 

 

LL

[Zaad]

Hi Dave,

 

Can't help you with your questions since I'm still a kid myself

 

Congratulations with your little American-Thai princess.

[limbo]

Congrats Dave!

 

My daughter will be 2 next week and is Dutch/Thai and just like the others that commented sofar, she's got 2 passports.

 

The tabian baan thing has to be sorted out, otherwise no registration possibility, maybe Ilso's (?) remark about the neighboors tabien baan is an option.

 

Don't worry too much about the family, there are a few things that you will have to do tho (Tabien baan registration) but they make live easier on you and the girl, like having been registered in Thailand as a Thai citizen, she doesn't need a visa in order to stay here.

 

I would highly recommend to contact the US Embassy and ask about registration procedures with them.

 

I registered my daughter in Holland as well, just in case that something may ever happen to me, so she has a foot in the door there and no hassles.

 

Good luck.

[Nervous_Dog]

Hi Dave,

 

Jing-Joe has both passprts, very easy to do (Aussiie one, I have friends with the USA one)

 

Like it or not she is already a Thai citizen!

 

Sorry, being born her to a thai mum, auutomatic!

 

Now what you have to do and the hospital will have most likely done without you even knowing is registered the birth and who the parents are.

 

Go check.

 

If you want too decline the Thai nationality, your nuts, sorry dude, love ya and all that, but nuts.

 

Having a Thai passport will be very valuable to her, as it is to Jing joe, re Health Care if I am old and cant afford it, schooling (Have you checked to see how expensive schools are in Bangkok) etc.

 

Why would you want to deny her access to her culture.

 

I had Jing-Joe live first year in Issaan, was great for her, immunised her against all sorts of crap,

 

Got her little lungs out of Bangkok air (Which is almost criminal in its poloutuion)

 

And exposed her family to the kid, who like it or not, are part of her family,.

 

Maybe the family are deadbeats, good to stay if they are and I understand, BUT most in Issaan aren't.

 

YOU choose to live here, why deny her the same right's?

 

DOOG

[..]

As Limbo suggested, here is the info from the US Embassy's web site. I have found them pretty easy to deal with regarding matters such as this.

 

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Documentation of United States Citizens Born Abroad Who Acquire Citizenship At Birth

 

The birth of a child abroad to U.S. citizen parent(s) should be reported as soon as possible to the nearest American consular office for the purpose of establishing an official record of the child?s claim to U.S. citizenship at birth. The official record is in the form of a Consular Report of Birth Abroad of a Citizen of the United States of America. This document, referred to as the Consular Report of Birth or FS-240, is considered a basic United States citizenship document. An original FS-240 is furnished to the parent(s) at the time the registration is approved.

 

REPORTING THE BIRTH

 

A Consular Report of Birth can be prepared only at an American consular office overseas while the child is under the age of 18. Usually, in order to establish the child?s citizenship under the appropriate provisions of U.S. law, the following documents must be submitted:

 

(1) an official record of the child?s foreign birth;

(2) evidence of the parent(s)? U.S. citizenship (e.g., a certified birth certificate, current U.S. passport, or Certificate of Naturalization or Citizenship);

(3) evidence of the parents? marriage, if applicable; and

(4) affidavits of parent(s)? residence and physical presence in the United States.

 

In certain cases, it may be necessary to submit additional documents, including affidavits of paternity and support, divorce decrees from prior marriages, or medical reports of blood compatibility. All evidentiary documents should be certified as true copies of the originals by the registrar of the office wherein each document was issued. A service fee of $65 is prescribed under the provisions of Title 22 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Section 22.1, item 9, for a Consular Report of Birth.

 

NOTE: Consular Reports of Birth are not available for persons born in Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Panama Canal Zone before October 1, 1979, the Philippines before July 4, 1946, American Samoa, Guam, Swains Island, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or the former U.S. Trust Territories of the Pacific Islands. Birth certificates for those areas, except the Panama Canal Zone, must be obtained from their respective offices of vital statistics. Panama Canal Zone birth certificates should be requested through the Vital Records Section of Passport Services (see address below.) The fees are the same as those for DS-1350.

 

CERTIFICATE OF CITIZENSHIP ISSUED BY THE IMMIGRATION AND NATURALIZATION SERVICE

 

A person, who acquired United States citizenship through birth abroad to a U.S. citizen parent(s) or who acquired U.S. citizenship by derivative naturalization, may apply for a Certificate of Citizenship under the provisions of Section 341 of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Application for this document may be made in the United States to the nearest office of the Bureau of Citizenship and Immigration Services in the Department of Homeland Security. Upon approval, a Certificate of Citizenship will be issued in the name of the subject, but only if that person is in the United States. Obtaining this certificate involves presentation of basically the same documentation required to obtain a Consular Report of Birth. Under law, the Consular Report of Birth and the Certificate of Citizenship are equally acceptable as proof of citizenship.

 

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Cheers,

SD