sandyf

3 minutes ago, FruitPudding said:

Has this policy changed recently?

 

I thought this was an old policy.

 

Why is everyone talking about it again now?

 

The wrongs of the past are never old, how do you think women got the vote or gay men avoided prison.

A recent petition on the subject reached a level that required an answer in the House. This brought about media coverage that has never been seen in the past and a significant increase in public awareness, the majority of the UK public have no idea.

Petition and answer can be seen here.

https://hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2024-02-19/debates/24021975000085/FrozenBritishPensions

1 hour ago, theoldgit said:

It would be unfair to blame Thailand for the lack of one, though l suspect Thailand has never raised the subject. The UK has intimated that there would be no further agreements, the Canadian government broached the subject a year or so back, but the UK government declined to negotiate such an agreement.

Indeed, I think it was 1981 whe the UK government said it would not be entering into any new reciprocol social security agreements, until brexit came along.

Canada does have a reciprocal agreement in place but at the time it was drawn up the Canadian pension could not be exported so pensions were  not included. Some time later the Canadian policy was amended to allow pensions to be exported but UK has consistently refused to revisit the agreement.

The whole issue stems from the fact that politically the state pension is viewed as a benefit and the legislation is embedded in the Social Security Act. The government could  extract the state pension and make it stand alone legislation but there is no political will. About the only politicians that have said anything significant in the House are Jeremy Corbyn and Ian Blackford, in 2015 it was the topic of Ian Blackford's maiden speech.

Every year the Social  Security Act comes before parliament but debate is only allowed on the government changes, any attempt to bring up the state pension gets sidelined.

4 hours ago, Chongalulu said:

But generally not enough was paid in NI to cover the real costs.

Didn't the government reduce NI contributions just a couple of weeks ago, and not for the first time.

The Tories have been buying votes with the revenue that was intended for pensions for years. It is all a deliberate plan to make  pensions fully funded from income tax and dispensing with NI, making it easier to run the scheme down as time goes bye.

Income tax may eventually have to be raised to pay for abolishing national insurance, Jeremy Hunt has suggested the day after delivering the government’s spring budget.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/mar/07/income-tax-likely-to-go-up-if-national-insurance-scapped-hunt-suggests

8 minutes ago, delh said:

I'd paid in the full 35 years, now, im 4 years short of full entitlement. 

There was a time when it was 44 years of contributions. A friend of mine who had been made redundant had made his up with voluntary contributions and when they suddenly dropped it to 30 years he wrote and asked for a refund.

Doesn't take much to guess the reply.

14 minutes ago, AAArdvark said:

Does the government offer any sort reasoning?

The governments main argument is that it has been that way for over 70 years. In that same 70 years there has been numerous instances of legislation being overturned, but then it is all about public opinion and how many votes can be generated.

I hope Keir Starmer was paying attention at the time.

"The Labour Party have today formally announced that they will support the APPG in its efforts to annul the Social Security Benefit Up-rating Regulations."

https://frozenbritishpensions.org/jeremy-corbyn-gives-labours-backing-pension-unfreezing/

13 hours ago, MicroB said:

William Hague pointed out that todays NI contributions pays for today's pensioner, not your future pension. So arguments about paying into a system for future entitlement falls fat on its face.

That is a distorted perspective. The UK state pension is a "pay as you go" scheme where the workers of today make contributions to pay the pensioners of today. When you become a pensioner that still applies.

Government revenue from workers contributions is by default index linked so all pension entitlement arising from workers contributions should be indexed linked, selective index linking is pure discrimination.

Brexit brought the legal requirement to pay uprated pensions in the EU to an end. The government didn't like the thought of the backlash from so many close to home so they manipulated the legislation to suit.

In 2019 Therese Coffey made this statement, which was then withdrawn. Fairly obvious she thought pensioners elsewhere didn't need peace of mind.

"The government is sending out letters outlining that even if we leave without a deal, pensions for those in the
EU will be uprated for a further 3 years –an increase of at least 2.5% annually for the duration of this Parliament,worth up to £200 a year per person.
And pensioners will be told they do not need to do anything to continue receiving their State Pension.
During the 3-year period, the UK government plans to negotiate a new arrangement with the EU
to ensure that uprating continues.
Work and Pensions Secretary Dr Thérèse Coffey said:
Pensioners in Europe who have paid into the system for years deserve peace of mind over their future finances.
Not only are we providing much-needed reassurance for hundreds of thousands of retirees, we’re ensuring we are fully prepared for leaving the EU on 31 October.
No matter the circumstances of Brexit, we’ve made sure that pensionersdo not need to take any action to continue receiving their hard-earnedState Pension.”
A new dedicated call centre team based in Newcastle has also beenestablished in order to answer any questions from those affected.
The uprating will also affect those living in the EEA states and Switzerland.
The letters will be sent next week."

13 hours ago, Ralf001 said:

What year did the frozen pension policy come into effect ?

 

1948

23 hours ago, transam said:

I did it from up country once, all in a day. Two flights, long taxi ride with BKK flooded.......😕

They didn't like my photo's, luckily I took 2 different sets.

All in all a pain.

The next renewal used Key Visa Service, couldn't have been simpler.

All from home..........

Of course, there are those that like the "adventure", but not for me, once was enough......😔

Each to their own whichever suits, was last time for me, pushing up daisies by time it's due again.

23 hours ago, IvorBiggun2 said:

No he didn't. He said "You can't use this method here, as you need to surrender your old passport by posting it to UK". Doh. 

And guess who the "method " came from?

Your words "Do it online or get yer wife to do it."

You are free to believe the "online" method does not require the original passport being sent to HMPO.

On 4/22/2024 at 4:21 PM, OneMoreFarang said:

If you plan to use the tablet while traveling, then yes.

Otherwise WIFI is basically available everywhere.

 

I have a tablet without SIM, I only use that tablet at home.

My gf has a tablet with SIM, because there is no WIFI if she visits her father up country.

I think her tablet was about 2000B more expensive. 

You don't really need a SIM if you have a phone as you can use the hotspot if you have data.

I don't have data on my phone and just piggyback my wife's phone when out and about.

On 4/22/2024 at 12:24 PM, Furioso said:

I see the Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE Plus is now on sale for 20,000 baht.

 

I know Honor and Redmi tablets are cheaper but prob not near the quality of the S9 series 

You should try the pharmacy,tablets will make you feel better.

Seriously, android is a pain in the neck, I had a Lenevo and quickly changed it for a Windows version.

2 hours ago, MangoKorat said:

Agreed, I also use cash as much as possible in the UK. Any form of payment where you don't see the money actually leaving you risks you losing track of what you spend.

I only do contactless in the UK or when travelling, and only use the Wise card. They send an email within seconds of the spend which is quite handy.

8 minutes ago, IvorBiggun2 said:

According to 'Doctor Tom' you can't DIY

No he didn't, he said it shouldn't be done online.

Most people do it themselves at VFS, i was one of the first when it move from the FCO in 2014.

Went back to UK in Sept to do it again. VFS sucks.

8 minutes ago, IvorBiggun2 said:

What a load of tosh you write up. My wife renewed my passport in May 2019. She also acted as agent for a friend at the same time. Never a problem. Took photo copies of out passports pages and had our Visa stamps transferred the next time we had to report to immigration. So yes you can use whatever method you're referring to.

The online method that was suggested requires the original passport to be sent to the UK and Mr Tom was quite right in what he said.

You may well think it is ok to be without a passport but I doubt many would agree.

3 hours ago, Doctor Tom said:

I'd rather just stay around Sattahip and pay an agent 

If you are in Sattahip I wouldn't disagree.

4 hours ago, Mike Teavee said:

I used to do it a couple of times per month to go visit mates & always took the bus from Pattaya Nua to Ekkamai (got off at Udom Suk) & then the BTS... IIRC It's <140 THB each way, cheap as chips 🙂 

 

Indeed,we are in Chonburi and would  normally use BTS from Kheha. But VFS has moved from Trendy to Rama 9 and going to that area we would use the airport and Makkasan.

1 hour ago, Doctor Tom said:

That's where it falls down for me.  I'd pay a Kings Ransom to never have to go to Bangkok' 

I used to hate going to Bangkok but recent years has been a bit easier, i think due to better transport services.

From Pattaya you could get the bus to the airport and then the train to Makkasan.  VFS is not far away, within walking distance or a couple of stops on the MRT.

11 hours ago, Doctor Tom said:

You can't use this method here, as you need to surrender your old passport by posting it to UK, which you can't do if it contains your original and valid visa and extension stamps in it, which have to be transferred across by Thai Immigration. And what's his wife got to do with it? 

Agreed, you shouldn't be here without an original passport as proof of identity.

As far as the wife goes I think it meant send the wife to VFS in Bangkok with the application.

12 hours ago, NanLaew said:

 

eVisa entry at Savanakhet late March 2023, small visa 'Entry Permission' sticker + entry and exit stamps.

Apologies, I looked back at my old passports and when I went to Luan Prabang in Jan 23  I did get the same sticker as you show but never noticed. Nothing on previous visits but they were some years prior.

Same with Malaysia last visit was Feb 2020 and certainly no sticker on entry to Vietnam 2 months ago.

2 hours ago, MangoKorat said:

Surely you have to have a bank account in order to load money on to those wallets?  I'm struggling to see the benefits.

 

When in Thailand though, I mostly use cash.

The only card I have on Google is my UK credit card, no loading required.

I also only use cash here, my card is only to get cash from ATM. When I lost my ATM card at least it was protected by the pin number, contactless cards are very vulnerable.

On 4/24/2024 at 4:47 AM, scubascuba3 said:

Anybody actually used Google Wallet? if so which shops accept it?

It is a bit of a confusing topic. I have been using Google Pay for some years and found it quite useful. Google Pay came from a merger of Google Wallet and Android Pay but the wallet never actually went away.

Looks like Google wallet has been revamped and now taking over from Google Pay.

My understanding is that the new version of the wallet provides a contactless facility on an android phone for your cards so should work in any establishment that accepts contactless payment.

 Anywhere that you find Google Pay or contactless payment logos, you can make contactless payments with a supported form of payment that you stored in Google Wallet.

https://support.google.com/wallet/answer/11951709?hl=en#zippy=%2Cwhats-the-difference-between-google-wallet-google-pay%2Ccan-i-use-google-wallet-to-tap-to-pay

9 minutes ago, The Fugitive said:

Had to fill out an entry/exit form entering land border from Nong Khai but nothing else. 

I flew into LP and can't remember an arrival card but could have been. They opened the back doors and we were first off the plane, I was through immigration quicker than my wife.

38 minutes ago, PJ71 said:

How does one do this?

 

Thanks

Looks like it has come to an end.

From 1 January 2014, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has discontinued its service of depositing foreign marriage and civil partnership certificates with General Register Offices in the UK. 

https://www.tameside.gov.uk/registrars/births-deaths-marriages-abroad#:~:text=From 1 January 2014%2C the,Register Offices in the UK.

On 4/23/2024 at 8:47 AM, howerde said:

You can not register a Thai marriage in the UK, a Thai marriage certificate/translation is accepted by the UK.

You need to be a little careful on the wording. There was a time when you could deposit the marriage certificate with the General Registry Office(GRO) through the British  Embassy in Bangkok. I did it in 2008.

I should point out it was a deposit rather than a registration, as you say the UK will recognise a legal marriage in Thailand.

I think the embassy stopped handling GRO deposits in 2012 but not sure if you can still deal with the GRO direct.

In reality not a great deal to be gained but you did get an annotated copy of the deposit with the GRO seal which over the years has been very useful in visa applications for my wife.