Document Forgery
Creating a false document, or doctoring a real one, and putting it to use. A non-compoundable offence whose penalty climbs with the document type.
One forged document can move land, create debts never incurred, or wreck a business's standing, so the law punishes the user as harshly as the forger, and lets no one settle it away.
We act for victims prosecuting and unwinding the damage, and for the accused who signed with consent only to be charged later.
What this dispute is, and where it comes from
Forgery is fabricating a document or altering a genuine one so others take it as real, forged signatures on loan papers, fake powers of attorney for land transfers, doctored figures, counterfeit official certificates. Whoever uses the forgery faces the forger's penalty.
Documents & evidence to gather first
- The suspect document, the original if possible
- Genuine signature samples from around the same period
- The authentic original for comparison
- Who held or benefited from the document
- Witnesses to how the document was made
How we can help
Legal knowledge worth knowing
Making a false document or altering a genuine one in a way likely to cause damage, up to 3 years' imprisonment or a 60,000-baht fine, or both.
Forging rights documents, loan contracts, receipts, or official documents: 6 months to 5 years.
Forging official rights documents, wills, share certificates, bills, or deposit books: 1 to 10 years.
Using a forged document attracts the forger's penalty, and a forger who uses it is punished once, for the use.
Forgery is non-compoundable, no 3-month complaint window, and the state may prosecute regardless of the victim's wishes.
Supreme Court No. 6446/2547, the bar on trying a defendant twice under Section 39(4) of the Criminal Procedure Code applies only where the earlier case was a genuine prosecution. If the earlier case was a collusive one, the right to prosecute the same act is not extinguished.
Limitation periods and deadlines you cannot miss
- 10 yrsOrdinary forgery prescription (s.95(3))
- 15 yrss.266 forgery prescription (s.95(2))
- No 3-mth windowNon-compoundable, report any time within prescription
The above is a brief summary of legal principles for general knowledge only, not advice on any specific case. Statutes may have been amended and application always turns on the facts. Please verify the current law or consult an attorney before acting.