Legal service for foreign clients
Inheritance, Wills & Probate Lawyer in Thailand
Petition administrator, draft wills, litigate inheritance shares.
Quick answer
On death, assets form an 'estate' — a court-appointed administrator is needed before transferring assets. File at the Juvenile & Family Court. Inheritance claims prescribe 1 year from knowledge / 10 years from death. Court fee THB 200; attorney fee from 25,000. We also draft wills (THB 5–15k) and litigate contested shares.
From THB 25,000 — Administrator 25k / will 5–15k / partition 45k+ · Administrator: 60–90 days
Who this is for
- Heirs needing to appoint an administrator
- Individuals writing a will
- Heirs disputing shares
- Foreigners holding assets in Thailand
What you receive
- Petition for estate administrator
- Inventory of estate assets
- Draft simple / holograph / secret wills
- Litigate share disputes / will contests
- Transfer land, vehicles, bank accounts to heirs
Documents to prepare
- Death certificate
- House reg + marriage cert + heirs' birth certs
- Will (if any)
- Title deeds, bank books, vehicle registrations
How it works
5-step process
- 1
Map heirs + assets
Verify statutory heirs (§1629).
- 2
Notice + petition
File petition with heirs' consent letters.
- 3
Hearing + order
Court hears within 45–90 days, then issues order.
- 4
Transfer assets
Use order at Land Office, banks, DLT.
- 5
Distribute to heirs
Distribute by will or intestate rules.
In depth
Inheritance, Wills & Probate Lawyer: what foreign clients need to know
Estate work does not begin in court; it begins with a complete inventory of what the deceased owned and owed. A petition to appoint an estate administrator filed without knowing how many bank accounts, land parcels or unpaid debts exist is usually sent back for amendment several times, costing more than the preparation would have. We therefore split the work into a survey phase and an execution phase covering both the petition and the actual transfers.
Statutory heirs, wills, and the ranking people misread most often
Thai law ranks statutory heirs in classes, and the presence of a nearer class cuts out the next in many situations. The most common misconception is that a surviving spouse takes everything, or that an adopted child takes nothing; both are wrong. The outcome depends on who was alive on the date of death, not on the date the petition is filed.
Where a will exists, the first question is form, not content. A will that fails the statutory form is void in its entirety and the estate reverts to statutory distribution immediately. We therefore examine form, witnesses, date and the testator's capacity at the time before anyone argues about shares.
A petition the court can grant on the first hearing
What makes a petition move quickly is consistency across three document sets: the death record proving the death, the papers establishing heirship, and an asset schedule citing real title-deed or account numbers. Where a name is spelled differently between documents, the discrepancy is corrected at source before filing rather than explained at the hearing, which only produces an adjournment.
Consents from the other heirs shorten the case considerably, because the court sees no contest. We therefore contact every heir at the outset, including those abroad who must sign before a consulate or a notary public and return the papers in time for the hearing.
After the order, the real work is transfers and estate debts
The appointment order is only a key to the door. What follows is transferring land at the Land Office, closing or moving bank accounts, transferring shares and vehicle registration, and dealing with life policies. Each institution asks for a different bundle with a different acceptable age, so we run a control schedule showing the administrator exactly what is pending and where.
Estate debts are settled before distribution, and an administrator who distributes first and meets a creditor afterwards faces personal exposure. We therefore hunt the invisible liabilities: card balances, unpaid land tax, loans secured over the land, and guarantees the deceased once signed.
Cost structure: government fees vs professional fees
| Item | Official fee | Professional fee | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uncontested petition to appoint an estate administrator | Court filing and publication fees at the rates of the filing court | THB 25,000–60,000 | The lower end applies where the estate holds few assets and every heir consents |
| Contested estate case or a dispute over the will | Filing fees calculated on the value in dispute | THB 80,000–250,000 per court level | Depends on witness volume and whether testamentary capacity must be proved |
| Post-order asset transfers | Land Office transfer fees and duties according to asset type | THB 8,000–20,000 per asset | Includes attending on your behalf and checking the bundle before queueing |
Three land parcels, heirs in three countries
Situation: Three children in Thailand, Australia and Germany agreed on everything but could not return at the same time
What we did: We prepared consent papers for signature before officials in each country with certified translations, and had the Thailand-based child petition
Outcome: The order issued at the first hearing and all three parcels transferred within the following two months
A home-made will short of witnesses
Situation: The family held a document the deceased had typed, without the witnesses the form requires
What we did: We stated the risk plainly and pivoted to a statutory distribution negotiated to honour the document's intent as far as possible
Outcome: It closed on an agreement every heir signed, with no contested litigation
When to act, and when waiting is fine
The bank refuses to release or close the deceased's account
File now — every institution will require the court order before doing anything
There is land or a building that must be sold to split the proceeds
Complete the appointment before agreeing a price with a buyer; contracts signed earlier usually cannot transfer on time
Some heirs cannot yet be contacted
You can still file, but tell the court the truth and keep evidence of your search; never leave an heir off the petition
You are unsure whether the estate owes more than it holds
Finish the liability survey before accepting the role; distributing in the wrong order creates personal exposure
Documents in detail
| Document | Issued by | Certification / translation | Validity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Death certificate of the deceased | The district registrar where the death was reported | A death abroad must clear embassy legalisation and the Consular Department before a Thai court accepts it | Never expires, though courts often want a freshly certified copy when filing years after the death |
| House registration of the deceased with the name struck off | The local registration office | Ask the registrar for a certified extract; a self-made photocopy is usually sent back for correction | Best re-issued within three months of lodging the petition |
| Estate inventory with proof of ownership for each asset | Land Department, banks, securities firms, and the transport office depending on the asset | Title deeds need the reverse-side registration extract; bank accounts need a balance confirmation letter as at the date of death | The figures and status as at the date of death are what govern |
| The original will, where one exists | The testator, or the district office for a will made in public-document form | The original goes to the court, never a copy, and the will's witnesses should be available to testify | The most recently executed version prevails |
| Consent letters from heirs of the same class | Signed personally by each heir | Heirs overseas should sign before a Thai embassy officer or a notary in that country | Tied to that petition; a re-filing needs fresh signatures |
Timeline and who does what
| Stage | Owner | Duration | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| Map the family tree and the order of entitlement | Handled by our team | 3–5 working days | We work through the statutory order of heirs, including children a father has formally acknowledged, since overlooking one heir invites a later challenge to the petition. |
| Gather documents and value the estate | You provide | 2–4 weeks | Some banks take over two weeks to issue a balance letter, so it pays to lodge requests with every institution at the same time. |
| Petition the court to appoint an estate administrator | Handled by our team | Lodged within 5–7 days once the file is complete | Filed with the court for the district where the deceased was domiciled at death, with notice published to heirs as court rules require. |
| Inquiry hearing and the court order | Depends on the agency | Typically 45–90 days from filing | With no objector the court usually hears the petitioner in a single sitting, then issues an order that takes about two more weeks to obtain in certified form. |
| Transfer the assets and close the estate | Handled by our team | 1–3 months depending on the asset mix | We work through the land office, the banks, and the share registrar, then prepare a distribution account for the heirs to sign off as the closing record. |
Common pitfalls
An heir withdraws money from the deceased's account after the death but before an administrator is appointed
Tell the bank to freeze the account the moment the death is known and keep statements as evidence so the amount can be set off later
Filing in the wrong court by relying on the latest household registration rather than the true domicile
Let us confirm the real residence from receipts, tenancy papers, and medical records before we choose the court
Forgetting that some assets carry a charge such as a mortgage, so the estate is divided beyond what really exists
Read the reverse of every title deed and each loan agreement, then deduct the debts before computing shares
Heirs agree verbally, then change their minds, pushing the matter into a partition suit
Put the division into a written agreement, sign it with witnesses, and register the transfers immediately as agreed
Doing it yourself vs working with us
| Aspect | On your own | With our team |
|---|---|---|
| Completeness of the heir list | Relies on family memory and often misses estranged relatives | Checked against civil-registration records and status confirmations for every person before filing |
| Total elapsed time | Stretches out as the court orders amendments or extra documents round after round | The bundle is complete at the first hearing, so the inquiry usually finishes in one sitting |
| Risk of an objection | An heir who was never notified can object and turn the matter into a contested case | We notify every class of heir in advance and secure written consent |
| Transfers after the order is granted | You visit each institution yourself and meet each bank's own conditions | We take the order to each counter on your behalf until every item closes, then hand the heirs a summary account |
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
No will — how to divide?
Six statutory classes (§1629) — spouse gets half.
Can foreigners inherit land?
Yes, but must sell within 1 year unless Ministerial permission granted.
Recommended will type?
Public will at district office — hardest to forge; original archived.
Prescription for claims?
1 year from knowing / 10 years from death / 5-year hard bar.
Does the administrator get compensation?
Yes — as the will provides or as the court approves.
What if there is no will?
Distribution follows the statutory classes, and an administrator must still be appointed before any institution will transfer assets.
Must the administrator be an heir?
Not necessarily — the court may appoint any suitable person who is not disqualified, though in practice an heir the others accept is the smoothest choice.
How long until assets can be transferred?
Uncontested petitions usually produce an order in two to four months, with transfer time added according to asset type.
Can a foreign heir inherit land?
A foreign heir takes a share of the estate, but holding land is legally restricted, so in practice the parcel is sold and the share taken in money.
Written by: Thai Law & Accounting Services — attorneys and licensed accountants
Reviewed by: Reviewed by a Notarial Services Attorney registered with the Lawyers Council of Thailand.
Last updated: 2026-08
Information as of August 2026. Government fees and processing times change — verify with the relevant agency before acting, or let our team verify for you.