The Thai will: the cheapest insurance a retiree can buy

Here is what actually happens when a foreign retiree dies in Thailand without a Thai will: the bank freezes the accounts; the condo cannot transfer; the widow — often a Thai spouse with no income of her own, or children on another continent — must petition a Thai court to appoint an administrator, gather legalised documents from two countries, and wait 6–18 months. We administer these estates. Every one of them would have been shorter and cheaper with a ฿15,000 document.

What a Thai will covers

A bilingual will limited to your Thai assets — bank accounts, condo, vehicle, lease rights, personal effects — drafted so it does not revoke the will you keep at home for home-country assets. Two wills, two jurisdictions, no conflict: this is standard cross-border practice, and getting the non-revocation clauses right is precisely the lawyer's job.

If you do nothing: Thai intestacy

• Statutory heirs inherit in classes — children first, then parents, siblings, and outward. A surviving spouse shares alongside the closest class.
• Unmarried partners inherit nothing. If you live with a partner you never registered marriage with (how registration works), a will is the only thing that protects them.
• A court-appointed administrator is required before anything is released — even with a will, but the will names your choice and cuts the contested steps.

The condo problem

A foreign heir inheriting your condo must qualify for foreign ownership (building quota, fund-transfer rules) or sell within about a year. Your will should say which, name a backup, and give the executor sale powers — otherwise the unit sits in limbo while its value pays common fees. Bought recently? Plan the will in the same engagement as the purchase; we discount the bundle.

Inheritance tax — mostly a non-issue

Thai inheritance tax starts at ฿100 million per heir (5% descendants/ascendants, 10% others, spouses exempt). The real costs of dying unplanned in Thailand are court time, translation/legalisation of foreign documents, and frozen cash your family needed for, say, the funeral and the rent.

Practical package

• Bilingual Thai will, properly witnessed: ฿15,000–30,000; couples (mirror wills): ฿25,000–45,000 (fees).
• Executor appointment and storage instructions included; we keep an executed copy on file.
• Living-will (end-of-life medical directive under Thai law) can be added — ask when instructing. Also see healthcare in Thailand.