State agencies are preparing to amend regulations and measures related to people's gender and marital status after the marriage equality bill was passed by the Senate on Tuesday.
Thailand is about to become the first country in Southeast Asia — and just the third in Asia after Taiwan and Nepal — to recognise same-sex marriages after the Senate approved the bill. It will take effect within 120 days of being published in the Royal Gazette.
Many legal drafts and measures that must be amended to respond to the bill are now awaiting approval by the cabinet.
According to the X account of iLaw Club, the changes include how people identify in terms of gender and the use of honorifics.
The amendments will be tabled for consideration by the new Senate, for which the final round of voting will take place on Sunday. The results are scheduled to be announced on July 2, with the 200 new senators to be sworn in shortly afterward.
Bangkok governor Chadchart Sittipunt said he has ordered all district offices under the Bangkok Metropolitan Administrative (BMA) to promptly accommodate the new marriage registration forms approved by the Ministry of the Interior.
Measures related to medical expenses and financial benefits for the 80,000 employees under the BMA are also due to be changed. Decisions on that front are set to be completed within a week, said Mr Chadchart.
Dr Sura Wisetsak, director-general of the Department of Health Service Support (DHSS), said related agencies are also working on an amendment to the Protection of a Child Born by Medically Assisted Reproductive Technology Act, in response to the marriage equality bill.
The amended child protection bill is being drafted in conjunction with the marriage equality bill by the department’s legal team, Dr Sura said.
The bill will also focus on surrogacy and subordinate legislation including changing gender-specific terms like “husband” and “wife” to the gender-neutral “spouse”.
“The requirements and measures for LGBTQ+ couples regarding surrogacy are similar to those set for heterosexual couples,” he said.
Dr Sura said the amended bill would, however, require that only Thai nationals can request surrogacy. If one of the marriage partners is not Thai, the couple must prove they tied the knot at least three years earlier.
"Despite the activation of the marriage equality bill, people are encouraged to wait for their right to have a surrogate for a while, as the amended law is set to be activated later this year,” he added.
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