Handwritten Wills in Thailand: Why Printing and Signing Is Different

Writing it yourself means more than drafting it

Typing your own wishes and signing a printout does not make it a wholly handwritten will under section 1657. That form requires the testator’s own handwriting for the entire text, date and signature. Choose the intended legal form before preparing the document and signing arrangements.

Failure to meet one form does not allow a verdict on every document from a single photo. Another form may require examination of signing and witnesses. This article compares two commonly confused forms; it is neither a template nor a validity opinion on an unseen will.

Section 1657 covers text, date and signature

Section 1657 requires the testator to handwrite the full text, day, month, year and signature. This form does not require the witnesses specified for section 1656. Filling beneficiary names into a printed form, or signing text written by someone else, is not wholly handwritten under this form.

Family members knowing the wishes does not resolve a formal defect: intent and statutory form are separate issues, and section 1705 specifies consequences for breaches of the listed formal provisions. If handwriting is difficult, seek advice on an appropriate form during preparation instead of having someone write it and labelling it handwritten.

A printed document needs the correct alternative formalities

Section 1656 requires a dated written document and the testator’s signature before at least two witnesses together, who also attest by signing then. Do not assume a previously signed document passed separately to witnesses later meets that process. Witness qualifications and restrictions on participants also require review.

Hypothetically, A types a will, signs alone and says it is the form that needs no witnesses. That combines the handwritten form’s convenience with typed text. During preparation, select a form and execute a compliant document after reviewing all conditions; merely adding the title “Will” does not solve it.

Alterations and the original document

Under section 1657, alterations must be made in the testator’s own hand and authenticated by their signature as prescribed. A relative should not change names or figures assuming the existing final signature covers them. Alterations under section 1656 must follow that section’s formalities; the two methods are not interchangeable.

If the document is found after death, never add a date, correct a name or obtain retrospective signatures to make it appear complete. Preserve it as found, copy it for review and record its source and discovery date. Submit all versions for examination rather than destroying one you assume is obsolete.

Formal compliance is not the only question

Capacity, genuine intention, lawful provisions, beneficiaries and the property the testator can dispose of still need review. Jointly owned assets do not become wholly theirs because a will says so. Clear language helps, but does not resolve title questions or interactions with other wills.

For B Law Firm’s will-drafting service, bring your wishes, asset and title records, previous wills and any writing or travel limitations. The objective is a suitable form properly completed and stored, not a promise that a signature eliminates future disputes.

References

• Thai Civil and Commercial Code, sections 1656–1657 and 1705 (in Thai)
• B Law Firm: will-drafting services (in Thai)