Thailand’s king has signed into law a landmark marriage-equality bill, making the Buddhist-majority country the first in Southeast Asia to officially recognize same-sex unions. The bill, which passed the Senate in June, received royal endorsement and was published in the Royal Gazette on Tuesday. The law will take effect on 22 January 2025.
The legislation is being hailed as a historic step by activists, marking the culmination of years of advocacy for marriage equality in Thailand.
“The Marriage Equality Bill will be one of the most gender-inclusive bills as it will amend around 60–70 sections in the Civil and Commercial Codes,” said international human rights expert and legal scholar Vitit Muntarbhorn. (Bangkok Post)
Co-founder of the Bangkok Pride movement Ann Chumaporn expressed excitement: “Today we’re not only getting to write our names in marriage certificates, but we are also writing a page in history . . . that tells us that love never set a condition of who we were born to be.” (BBC News)
Chumaporn said she planned to organize a mass wedding for more than 1,000 LGBTQ+ couples on the day the law comes into effect.
Thailand, long seen as a relative haven for the LGBTQ+ community in a region where such rights are limited, now leads Southeast Asia in legalizing same-sex unions. The new law uses gender-neutral terms, replacing references to “husbands” and “wives” with more inclusive language. It grants same-sex couples the same legal rights as heterosexual couples, including adoption and inheritance rights.
Advertising strategist Kwankaow Koosakulnirund noted that the new law “means we are fully accepted and can live our lives without conditions or compromises.” He added that Thailand’s LGBTQ+ community could now move beyond the struggle for basic recognition and embrace a future of pride and equality. (BBC News)
Another activist, Siritata Ninlapruek, echoed these sentiments, saying: “We’ve been fighting for our rights for over 10 years, and now it’s finally happening.” (BBC News)
Thailand’s prime minister, Paetongtarn Shinawatra, also celebrated the passage of the law, posting on social media: “Congratulations on everyone’s love. #LoveWins.” Former prime minister Srettha Thavisin, who was a vocal supporter of the bill, described the development as a “significant step” for the country. “Equity and equality have become concrete in Thai society. Gender diversity will eventually be fully accepted,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter). (BBC)
The signing of the bill marks the culmination of a long struggle by advocates in the country. And while it is widely celebrated, some have noted that it does not recognize transgender and non-binary people, who are still not allowed to change their gender on official identity documents.
With the new law, Thailand will become only the third territory in Asia to allow same-sex marriage, following Taiwan and Nepal. Taiwan was the first Asian country to legalize same-sex marriage in 2019, while Nepal registered its first same-sex union in November 2023, five months after its Supreme Court ruled in favor of the practice.
Elsewhere in the region, progress has been mixed. Singapore decriminalized gay sex in 2022 by scrapping a colonial-era law, but simultaneously amended its constitution to prevent courts from challenging the definition of marriage as exclusively between a man and a woman. Meanwhile, India has seen its top court decline to rule on same-sex marriage, leaving the decision to the government, which has formed a panel to explore legal rights for same-sex couples.
For Thailand’s LGBTQ+ community, the passage of the marriage equality law represents a significant shift toward inclusion and acceptance in a region where such rights remain limited. Chumaporn emphasized the broader implications of the law, stating, “It’s a triumph of equality and human dignity.” (BBC News)
As the country prepares for the law’s implementation in January, LGBTQ+ advocates and allies are celebrating what many consider a long-overdue victory for human rights in Southeast Asia.
See more
Marriage Equality Bill becomes law (Bangkok Post)
Same-Sex Marriage Legalized in Thailand, Beginning January 2025 (Time)
Thai king signs same-sex marriage bill into law (BBC News)
‘Victory for the people’: Thai lawmakers pass marriage equality law (France 24)
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