A Thai will covers what you own in Thailand. We draft it in Thai and English for foreigners and mixed families in Chiang Mai, so your assets here go to the people you choose. If you want to plan more than one asset or more than one country, see our estate planning in Chiang Mai page.
Wills and estates are the centre of our practice. We draft the will in Thai and English, keep the original safe in our office if you wish, and handle the probate in Chiang Mai when the time comes.
Read the video transcript
In this video, Aphiwat Bualoi explains how to write your own will under Thai law. He covers who can make a will, the forms of will Thai law accepts, what each form needs to be valid, and the common mistakes that make a will fail. The video is in Thai. For a will in English or in both Thai and English, call 064-932-1365.
A Thai Will for Foreigners in Chiang Mai
A will in Thai and English, drafted by a lawyer, signed with proper witnesses, so your assets in Thailand go to the people you choose.
Fill in the checklist at home, we draft, you sign at our office. Most clients are done within one to two weeks. If you want to plan more than one asset or more than one country, start with our estate planning page.
Your will from home does not protect what you have here
If you own anything in Thailand, a condominium, a bank account, a car, a business interest, Thai law governs what happens to it when you die.
Without a valid Thai will, your family faces intestate succession. Thai law decides who gets what in a fixed order. Your partner may not be first in line. Your wishes may not be followed. And the process can take a long time and cost a lot of money.
A proper Thai will fixes this. It is not complicated to make. But it has to be done correctly to hold up when it matters.
Six things worth knowing about us
Wills and estates are not a side service for us. Some years ago Aphiwat decided to make will writing, probate and estate planning the centre of the practice. That decision changed how we work.
When you come to us with a will, you are exactly the type of client our whole practice is built around. We know the questions to ask, the mistakes to avoid, and the details that matter under Thai law, because we do this work every day.
In 2026 Aphiwat completed the 1,000 Wills Project, a study of about 700 historical wills from five countries, written between 1873 and 1967. It produced an academic article, “Structural Patterns in Common Law Testamentary Instruments”. The findings shape every will we write.
Aphiwat has lectured on Thai inheritance and will law to financial advisers at AIA Wealth Center in Singapore and at the AEPA Conference 2026, and has met the AEPA Board of Directors for a knowledge exchange on cross-border estate planning.
AEPA is the Asia Estate Planning Association, a professional body raising the standard of estate planning across Asia. It keeps us connected to developments in estate law across the region, which matters for clients with assets or family in more than one country.
As of 13 October 2026 we have drafted 100 Thai wills for our clients. Behind that number are real stories: a probate we finished during Covid, and a will the court upheld after a challenge because we had filmed the signing. You can read both below.
We use AI for research. We do not use AI to draft your will. Attorney Patcharaporn Chantajit drafts every will by hand for your family and your assets, and Aphiwat reviews every draft before it goes to you.
The 1,000 Wills Project
Most will writing services rely on standard templates from legal textbooks. We wanted to test those templates against real wills, so we studied them.
Aphiwat collected about 700 historical wills from ten archival collections across the United States, Canada, England, Australia and New Zealand, written between 1873 and 1967: handwritten holographic wills, printed court forms and solicitor-drafted trust instruments. AI read 1,313 scanned images of the original records. Aphiwat did the analysis.
The study found nine structural elements that appear in a fixed order in virtually every competent will: identification and capacity, revocation of earlier wills, payment of debts, specific gifts, the residuary clause, trust provisions where needed, executor appointment, the signature, and witness attestation.
The most common drafting failure across a century of wills is no plan for what happens if the main beneficiary dies first.
A will without a residuary clause leaves property to be distributed by law, not by the testator’s wishes.
Naming a substitute executor, which most simple wills fail to do, prevents costly court proceedings and family disputes.
Published: the academic article, the Universal Will Template with frequency data, and a seven-point Will Analysis Framework. These findings inform every will we write.
What you can put in a Thai will
Condominium units. Bank accounts in Thai banks. Vehicles registered in Thailand. Jewellery, furniture and valuables. Shares in a Thai company. Usufruct rights and lease agreements. Cash and savings.
You can also name your executor, the person who carries out your wishes and manages the estate, and a substitute in case that person cannot act.
What a Thai will cannot cover
Land owned by a Thai company belongs to the company. Your will passes the shares, not the land. Assets in other countries follow the law of that country. Life insurance with a named beneficiary passes directly to that person outside the will.
We always tell you clearly what falls inside and outside your Thai will. No surprises.
What makes a Thai will legally valid
Thai law sets out specific requirements. If any is missing, the will can be challenged or rejected in court. This has happened. We have seen it.
The will must be in writing.
It must state the date it was made.
The testator, the person making the will, must sign it.
Two witnesses must be present at the same time and both must sign.
A witness, or the spouse of a witness, cannot receive anything under the will. A gift to them is void.
There are other forms under Thai law, including a holographic will written entirely by hand, and a will made before a public officer. For most foreigners living in Thailand a properly witnessed written will is the most practical and reliable. We draft it in both English and Thai, because probate in Thailand runs in Thai and a Thai version from the start avoids translation disputes later.
How we do this together
People imagine making a will is long and complicated. It does not have to be.
Download the checklist. Fill it in at home at your own pace: what you own in Thailand, who you want to leave it to, who should be your executor. Send it back when you are ready. No need to come in first, and no obligation.
We draft the will. Attorney Patcharaporn Chantajit prepares a draft in English and Thai. Aphiwat reviews it. You read it, and we revise until it says exactly what you want.
Signing at our office. We arrange two qualified witnesses who are not beneficiaries. The signing usually takes less than 30 minutes. This is the step that matters most in court, so we do it carefully.
Storage, if you wish. You take the original home, or leave it in our safe box. We keep a certified copy either way, and we update the will when your life changes.
We can keep your will in our safe box
An original will that is lost, damaged, or found too late is the most common reason a probate stalls. The court wants the original, not a copy.
You can leave the signed original in our locked safe box at the office. We record who may collect it and hand it to your executor with a certified copy when the time comes. There is a small yearly storage fee, which we quote in writing together with your will.
How much does it cost?
Our fees are set at local Thai rates. We do not charge foreign clients more than Thai clients. A straightforward will for one person costs less than a situation with several properties, a business or family in different countries.
We give you a fixed written quote after the first conversation, before any work begins. Couples can make their wills together, and clients come back to us to update them.
Request a will quoteHow long does it take?
A will is usually drafted and signed within one to two weeks of the first meeting.
Simple cases can be faster. If you are visiting Chiang Mai, tell us your dates and we plan the signing around them.
Probate after a death takes longer, usually 4 to 6 months from filing to the court order. See our probate page.
Real cases, real families
The best way to understand what we do is to read what has actually happened. Not textbook examples. Real situations.
An American man living in a care home in Chiang Mai wanted to leave his condo to his son. We drafted the will properly under Thai law. Four months later he passed away, during Covid, and completing the probate was very difficult. We finished it. His son received the condo as his father had wanted.
A bedridden Australian man wanted to change his will and leave everything to his long-lost brother. Aphiwat happened to bring his camera and recorded the signing. Six months later he passed away and the previous beneficiary challenged the will. The judge watched the video and upheld the will.
An Italian man came for will advice two years before his passing. He already had a public will, so we gave him guidance and expected nothing more. Then his wife walked in and said he had just died. We took her through the probate at our standard fee. Honest work lasts.
What do you need from me?
The filled-in will checklist, or the same information in an email: what you own in Thailand, who gets what, and who should be executor.
A copy of your passport, the title deed of your condo, bank book or statement, and marriage or birth certificates where family members are named.
The spelling of every name exactly as in each person’s passport or ID card. A wrong spelling is the most common reason a bank or the Land Office asks questions later.
Send it through the will quote form, the contact page, or call 064 932 1365.
Who will handle my will?
Your first meeting is with Aphiwat Bualoi, in our office or by video. He is a Thai lawyer licensed by the Lawyers Council of Thailand, a leader within AEPA Thailand and a co-founder of SmartWills Thailand.
He asks and listens before he advises, reviews every will before you sign, and tells you early if your plan has a problem.
Attorney Patcharaporn Chantajit holds an LL.B. from Thammasat University and is licensed by the Lawyers Council of Thailand. She drafts the wills our clients sign.
She takes each client through what Thai law will ask of the document long before a court ever reads it, which is where most foreign wills in Thailand fail. She is also a registered Notarial Services Attorney.
On 3 September 2026 Aphiwat Bualoi spoke on Thai estate planning to 160 financial advisers at the AEPA Conference in Singapore. In March 2026 he lectured on Thai inheritance and will law at AIA Wealth Center, Singapore. From June to July 2026 he taught a free six-week estate planning class for lawyers in Thailand.
Questions we hear often
Yes. Any person, Thai or foreign, who is 15 or older and of sound mind can make a will in Thailand. You do not need to be a citizen or resident.
Not automatically. A Thai court can accept a foreign will, but it must be certified, translated and proven. That takes time and money. The simplest and most reliable solution is a separate Thai will for your Thai assets.
Your Thai assets go to your statutory heirs in a fixed order: a registered spouse, children and parents first, then brothers and sisters, and so on. If you are not legally married under Thai law, your partner may receive nothing.
Yes, if your partner is named in a valid Thai will. Without a will and without a registered marriage, your partner has no automatic right to the condo.
Yes, at any time while you have legal capacity. Review it when you buy property, marry, divorce or your family changes.
You can write your own will in Thailand. But a poorly worded or incorrectly witnessed will can be challenged or declared invalid. We have seen it happen. Getting it done properly the first time costs little compared with the problems it prevents.
Yes. We draft in both English and Thai. Thai courts work in Thai, and a will that exists only in English needs a translation later, which creates a point of dispute.
Someone you trust who can travel to Thailand and sign at the bank and the Land Office. We help you choose, and we always name a substitute.
What our clients say
In their own words.
“I have known and worked with Mr Aphiwat Bualoi for several years. Aphiwat is a man of high character and integrity. He is fluent in English. He is disciplined and organized in his work, and I can recommend his services without reservation.”
“It has been a pleasure to work with you and I would fully recommend your services to anyone looking for a fast, friendly English speaking lawyer in Chiang Mai.”
“Aphiwat is able to bridge the cultural gap between the Thais and foreigners he works with very easily.”
“Aphiwat is organized, professional, personable, and ambitious. His command of the English language is impressive.”
Where are you?
Room 3i, third floor, Siriphanich Building, 191 Huay Kaew Road, Suthep, Mueang Chiang Mai, Chiang Mai 50200.
We are directly across the road from Kad Rincome and MAYA. There is free parking at the building. Open Monday to Friday, 9:00 to 17:00, Saturday by appointment.
Call 064 932 1365.
About the firm
Aphiwat Bualoi Law Office Co., Ltd. is registered in Thailand under number 0505564002453. There are five of us, in central Chiang Mai. As well as wills and probate we handle property, notarial work, translation and employment law.
We work with English speaking clients every day. You will not need to explain your situation twice.
Making a will does not have to be complicated or uncomfortable. Most of our clients say the first conversation was easier than they expected. Ask us anything before you decide. No obligation.