kwilco

I'm planning on visiting Laos in Jan or Feb 2023. can anyone update me on the visa requirements and Covid vaccination requirements on entry?

more and more critics of Brexit are being reported - basically as the cloud of covid nd other "excuses" are stripped away the stark reality remains.....

Why is UK struggling MORE? Because of Brexit. Citing other problems is deflection

As the clouds of Covid and economic lunacy clear, what remains is the stark reality that anything the world is suffering from is exacerbated by fir the UK by Brexit...... The media is now reporting more and more of the da.aged caused by this aberration...

Sadly all you can do is cherry pick and move the goalposts when you argument falls flat. I make nothing up unlike Brexit , my arguments are based on evidence and reason things tat are anathemas to Brexiteers. They are NOT training people they have left - what fantasy world do you live in - I have spent the last year looking after elderly people and have seen first hand the problems of he NHS in England I have also witnessed t disappearance of people from the health service at all levels. My best friend from school a retired doctor had to come back into service due to the dite shortage in his area. All you are doing is grubbing around nonsense looking for a plausible alternative to the "bleedin' obvious" (JC) - just admit it Brexit has been an absolute disaster. Depite you efforts to change the goalposts re NHS - it isn't just in the NHS this is happening,,,it's been lorry drivers, catering worker/tourist workers - and many. many more. This is NOT happening in the EU as people there have freedom of movement and can work where and when they want. the only thing "coming back to bite them" is Brexit.

These are is such pathetic cliches! - "British don't want to work"? So suddenly after Brexit they won't work??? "Exploited overseas workers" - You can't replace these people without training which takes months or even years - so you admit we need to recruit? Why must we recruit? Because thousands left - not because they were suddenly released from exploitation - they had freedom of movement and could leave whenever they wanted - they have now gone to other countries in the EU where wages may even be better but they don't have to get visas and work permits or worry about losing their accommodation or listen to racist comments on their way to work. If these workers were exploited how will the NHS attract new workers? By offering new higher wages? Well the nurses are being offered lower tan inflation - as are doctors and carers - so that's hardly "not exploiting"; isn't it just exploiting another bunch of untrained Brits. maybe they could use the £350 million a week? Oh no because that didn't exist.. for the first time ever in history, the nurses are going on strike because they are receiving "exploitative wages from government that wants to destroy the NHS = the Government has admitted they are training the armed forces to take over fire fighting and ambulance/nurse services - other countries have problems but this single issue Brexit goverment has proved incapable of running the country. They wanted to "take the country back" - and they have - to the 1930s!

well my family has Doctors and Physios who have "worked for years" but rather than claim family - I look at the evidence - - but the difference is that perceptions of bad management etc are a constant that doesn't explain the profound b=nose-dive the NHS has take since Brexit. We haven't suddenly got bad managers - we've suddenly lost between 20 and 40 thousand staff. wE are also falling behind the quality offered in EU countries. we haven't "suddenly" got bad management - we have suddenly LOST thousands of staff which has caused a fatal backlog in the hospitals themselves

It is the aftercare services that are so screwed - this is because they left after Brexit. You do understand what is happening in the NHS, don't you? Boris and the Brexiteers promised to spend £350 million pounds a week on the NHS - in reality funding is reduced and staff have exited from all levels of healthcare. Ambulance response times that should be 8 minutes are up to over an hour. I was actually pt on HOLD on a 99 cal a month ago. Without a buoyant economy the NHS can't function - Brexit has killed all that. Blaming the sick and elderly is just that - SICK

So are you saying that over 20,000 people left the ambulance service/emergency/responder/care because they don't like the people they transport? Or that suddenly people have started malingering?

I think what's emerging on this thread is that a lot of expats are beginning to realise they aren't driving legally in Thailand by relying on their home licence or IDP and have lost their licence back home by failing to renew it.

If I have a work permit makes no difference. If I was from Singapore and commuted to Thailand every day, or lived in London and commuted to New York, I'd still need a work permit. I also pay taxes in both countries. Very few people have residency in Thailand - they are immigrants byt not so under Thai law. The salient points on this thread are: - I - You don't invalidate your UK licence when living/staying abroad - renewal can be done online. a valid UK passport to be a resident of Great Britain - there’s a different service in Northern Ireland to pay £14 by MasterCard, Visa, Electron or Delta debit or credit card (there’s no fee if you’re over 70 or have a medical short period licence) addresses of where you’ve lived over the last 3 years your current driving licence (if you do not have your licence you must say why in your application) your National Insurance number (if you know it) to not be disqualified from driving - (DVLA) 2- Many UK expats don't realise there [pink plastic licence only lasts for 10 years. 3 - If you live over 90 days on Thailand you need to get a Thai licence 4 - An IDP if only valid as long as the licence it covers is valid Your driving licence should arrive within a week if you apply online.

If you present a "green" licence in UK now and you've been issued with a pink one since, it is no longer valid. If the police notice - and they may well these days - they can check your license immediately on the spot They'll know a pink licence was issued and would probably tell you to get you licence renewed or face a fine. If you never had a pink licence , you old green thing may still be valid. The thing is they really aren't worth having in Thailand if you don't have an IDP. I've always had a valid address in UK and an address in Thailand - I'm not a Thai resident or citizen, but had a work permit which had my Thai address on it - this was proof of address sufficient for a Thai D?L and several other things too. I also paid tax here. The new numberplate system will tell them if you are insured, Mot'd and taxed and the D/L is accessible straight away too. Putting in your D/L number gives them instant access to the DVLA

Correct - cap above thinks that if you live in Thailand you can't have a UK licence - but very few are "resident " in Thailand as they have non-imm status and they can keep their uK licence for 10 years or until they change their address. If you want to renew or apply for a licence, you need a UK address. you can renew you UK licence online form Thailand so long as you have a valid UK address. He said " It is unlikely that you are a resident of Great Britain given your Thai work permit status - this is rubbish

Ah - that's rubbish you seem to be making a lot of unsubstantiated statements, just repeating what I said or not understanding what you dug up on Google.

Can't find it - do you have the actual page address? All I can find is this "Renewing a driving licence that has been expired for some time ..." "If more than two years has passed since your driving licence expired, you may be made to retake your driving test in order to get a new licence. This is especially the case if your licence has expired due to age (driving licences need to be renewed when you reach seventy years of age) or for medical reasons. For these, you may also have to pass a medical. In other cases, you can simply apply for a new licence without problem, although the DVLA will often want to know why your licence has been expired for so long." - https://news.jardinemotors.co.uk/how-to/what-happens-if-my-driving-licence-has-expired

Not sure what you mean by this my licences are all valid. I'm not talking about personal licences, Im talking about how the UK law affects people in Thailand who want to drive. - The green licences were first issued in 1973 If you have a green licence ONLY and the details are correct - (e.g. address, name etc) - then it would still be valid - as I said before - BUT if you have the pink plastic card attached to it, then it will have expired after 10 years - the date is on the plastic card even though it says in 70 yrs on the green bit. Once you get to 70 you have to re-apply regardless of what type of UK D/L you have. Once you have a pink card - you can in fact chuck away your green paper - I keep mine as a souvenir - as for your green paper licence in Thailand - even though it isvalid in the UK , it may not be here unless accompanied by an IDP - you green one has no photo. It may interest you to know that Thailand ratified the Vienna convent of 1968 in 2020 and this may supersede any 2 bilateral agreements or understanding between Thailand and the UK This is from the DVLA websi=te in 2013 "Motorists reminded of the importance in renewing their photocard driving licences Motorists must renew their photocard licence when it expires. If they fail to renew their licence they will be breaking the law and risk a fine of up to £1,000." Here is te DVLA on the old paper licence "If you have a paper driving licence Paper driving licences issued before 31 March 2000 are still valid. Do not destroy your licence. When you update your name or address, or renew your licence, you’ll only get a photocard licence." As far as I'm aware the period in UK for no licence is 2 years. - So You'd need to show where your info comes from that contradicts that.

I think Mr O is embarrassed, The information I've posted is not just for his benefit anyway - it is useful for a lot of long-term expats in Thailand who unwittingly - like Mr O - have let their licence expire. I found out on a trip back yo UK when I wanted to rent a car at Heathrow. Fortunately we were able to sort it over the phone with the DVLA in the Europcar office and still get the car. there is another problem for all expats, regardless of nationality, and that is the possibility that they are driving on a foreign licence after 3 months. THis raises problems wit insurance companies who want you to have a Thai licence. The advice is that if you have been driving in Thailand for more than 3 months continuously, it is best (if not essential) to have a Thai licence. I know people who despite their claims to be "superb" drivers cannot pass the Thai test or fail aspects of the physical. I have heard o f people who have passed as a result of tea money too....probably cheaper than paying you way out after an accident when they find you weren't licensed and therefore uninsured.

So 20 ago your licence was valid - I too have had a Thai licence for over 20 years - however that does not have anything to do with your UK D?L validity now. As said your pink one is only for 10 years.

curious response...stop what?

Yes - The percentage of passport holders in UK and Europe is higher than in US and Oz because even the most parochial families will have been on holiday in a foreign country - e.g. Spain, Greece or France. Day trips to France for shopping before Christmas were very common.

Many older Brtish expats have failed to address the problem of healthcare as they enter old age and may well find they hae to return home for financial reasons - having to re-activate you D/L is just another hassle. If more than two years has passed since your driving licence expired, you may be made to retake your driving test in order to get a new licence. This is especially the case if your licence has expired due to age (driving licences need to be renewed when you reach seventy years of age) or for medical reasons.

I noticed in OZ and US people use a D/L as ID - I've always kept my passport as ID - but that was because I worked in Europe a lot and the UK doesn't issue ID cards. Certainly in OZ on showing a D/L no-one even considered whether I was a resident or not.

For many years my licence was at a family member's address - I renewed there. i didn't get any tickets for about 30 years though. However I recently got a UK speeding ticket which was sent to the address my car was registered at. Notifying a change of address is free - I did this recently with no problem. Whilst living in Thailand I have. work permit and B visa for about 20 years, but I'm not an official resident I have always kept an address in UK for purposes of looking after my interests there - property rentals, banks, taxes, licences etc etc...

Yes - you can do it online but it will be sent to a UK address - when you get to 70 any goods/passenger vehicle licences you have will need a full medical from a doctor to continue. However if you already have a plastic bit the expiration date is 10 years after issue at 4b on the licence. Whether or not you have a green part. A green one on it's own is no good in Thailand as it doesn't have a photo. (see my post above) - you will need an IDP with it and this is issued in UK. I've seen a 5 year IDP issued by Thailand but the Vienna convention says 3 years is the max. Te thing is if your licence has expired, so automatically, has your IDP - it's only valid if accompanied by a valid D/L

Incidentally - you can renew you UK D/L online even if you hit 70 but without a doctors signed medical you will loose any passenger and goods vehicle (inc 7.5 ton) licences you had. You will just be issued with a car or M/C licence. depending on which you have. You won't even qualify to drive larger H/Ds without a medical!