Hundreds of LGBTQ+ couples in Thailand made Thursday a life-changing occasion, registering their marriages legally on the first day a law took

Hundreds of same-sex couples are tying the knot across Thailand on Thursday as the country becomes the first in Southeast Asia to recognize marriage equality.

Hundreds of couples this week are poised to marry in Thailand as its overwhelmingly popular marriage equality law goes into effect, according to multiple reports.

In the 2019 election which returned Thailand to civilian rule after five years under a military government, a new reformist party called Future Forward, which fully supported equal marriage, did unexpectedly well. They won the third-largest share of seats, revealing a growing hunger for change in Thailand.

It's a big week for LGBTQ+ couples in Thailand. On Thursday, they will be able to legally register their marriages, making it only the third place in Asia, after Taiwan and Nepal, where they have such a right.

Last year, Thailand’s parliament passed its Marriage Equality Bill, making it the third country in Asia, after Taiwan and Nepal, to allow same-sex marriage. The bill was then signed into law by King Vajiralongkorn in September, and came into effect 120 days afterward.

It is a big day many in Thailand's LGBTQ+ community have long been waiting for, as couples celebrate a law giving them the same legal rights as married heterosexuals.

Hundreds of LGBTQ couples in Thailand get married as the country's landmark marriage equality law comes into effect.

It was a historic day in Thailand as hundreds of LGBTQ couples became legally married. It’s the first nation in Southeast Asia to guarantee equal marital rights for same-sex couples. Patpicha Tanakasempipat attended the mass marriage registration event.