NightSky

2 hours ago, darren1971 said:

Of course it will get harder after Brexit, the tories want a 'hostile environment' and they have already shown that is their aim. Don't rely on the one sided view from this forums 'experts', have a dig around and the evidence is clear.

 

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/ng-interactive/2017/sep/05/post-brexit-immigration-10-key-points-from-the-home-office-document

I noticed that you mention 'hostile environment' quite often in recent posts. Its true that right wing politics are gathering momentum globally and in Europe - not a god thing and dangerous in my opinion. Having Trump in charge of the US as a gleaming example doesn't help at all.

I believe Brexit wont be a good thing for immigration quite the opposite although my question was related mainly at the spouse visa for non EU national spouses. I as a British citizen, taxpayer and business owner should be allowed to bring my wife to the UK to live without needing to jump though hoops or worry about being declined as long as there are no threats to national security and lets face it this is hardly ever going to be the case for anyone. 

I agree with vetting extended family etc but spouse and children should have no issues. I was asking opinions about this particular situation after Brexit whereas it seems that Brexit issues are mainly focused on restricting EU nationals who currently have free movement - I hope for our sake it doesn't become more difficult for spouses of UK citizens.

8 hours ago, rodney earl said:

It is not just about saving pennies (as you put it) it is about enforcing justice and protecting the community. I have also read that about 60% of all crime is commited by repeat offenders so if the government did its job and enforced justice instead of trying to please certain groups the world would be a far far better place and if you save money as well that is an added bonus.!!!

You seem to be missing my point entirely when I say 'I'm sure there are smarter (humane) ways to apply restrictions, controls and identify any possibility of reform/treatment required.'

Its not about the money or not obliging to protect the community., these are most important. But to kill other humans willingly is not the answer.

On 9/9/2018 at 7:47 AM, rodney earl said:

Tax money always gets spent. It should get spent on things that are beneficial to society. NOT on criminals who have committed crimes that prove they do not belong in society!!!

Identifying, controlling and where possible rehabilitating criminals is necessary although without having to resort to killing and barbaric methods.

Tax money can be saved or used more efficiency in other areas quite easily I would have thought before resorting to killing people to save pennies.

Im no sparky although when  we had a similar problem I noticed the circuit included outside lights and fittings and it tripped when it rained so I am looking for an outside switch, wire, light that might be letting in water. What I did was to look around any sockets or light fittings for gaps and applied sealant to fill the gaps. Of course it could also be old wire or damaged wiring etc.

On 9/7/2018 at 7:37 AM, rodney earl said:

The government does not kill people. It enforces justice. Look at the case of the man who killed his mother with an axe. He deserves no less and I as a tax payer begrudge having to pay to keep these people locked up in jail.!!!

Your tax paying money will be spent regardless weather it be on long term rehabilitation and control or services supporting the death penalty. Both cost money.

Besides..

Money is simply a tool invented by humans to make trading easier,

..human rights always trumps money.

4 minutes ago, wvavin said:

Was this survey conducted at the mental institutions?

Yes, for plants  ?

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“Best Country for People” 

as opposed to?

..best country for plants??

Thanks Old Git, great pen name too! ??

This is all welcomed information.Thanks for the info so far.

It makes sense about the 6 months settlement prior to wife application although I was considering potentially becoming a resident in the UK up to 1 or 2 years prior to the wife applying for a spouse visa.

I think this should be fine if Im spending at least 6 months with her during the year?

Thanks for your input so far.

I am still wondering about whether my own residency status makes a difference to the 'proof of relationship' though if I were to return as resident to the UK a year or two before my wife.

Of course If i am resident of UK and wife is resident of Thailand, I wouldn't have thought that this is the best scenario for 'proof of relationship'? We do have certificate of marriage etc and we are in a legit relationship for more than 10 years (2 of those years only are legally married).

Also, what counts as 'proof of declared funds'? I guess I need to speak with an accountant about this.

Also, is it recommended to hire a visa agent or immigration lawyer to assist complete the application process for Spouse Visa?

@rasg

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Quite a few couples on here just use visit visas and live six months in Thailand and six months in the UK.

That's interesting to know. I read that Visitor visas were more likely to be rejected a second and third time if the full 6 months is used but you are saying this can be done if sufficient time passes in between - interesting. Of course this wouldn't allow the wife to benefit from being a resident of the UK in the longer term (i.e. open a bank account, access lower cost health services, etc) nevertheless interesting as an option.

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With a visit visa you need to show that you are in a relationship, have sufficient funds to pay for the trip, have a good reason, or reasons for your wife to return to Thailand and somewhere to stay.

Yes I guess this depends on what counts as sufficient reason to return. Would a mortgage an house title in her name in Thailand count as evidence to return even if she stopped working in Thailand?

@brewsterbudgen

I agree Brexit should be reversed but as the days pass by the likelihood is that it wont be. Lets hope it turns out OK. I imagine immigration would only get more difficult following Brexit since that is what the vote was about in my opinion although lets hope you are right about the requirements being relaxed to bring in a foreign spouse, etc.

Im a British citizen and resident of Thailand for over 10 years. My Wife is Thai national, we have been living together for over 10 years but married legally for 2.

I have a business in the UK (on which I pay full taxes) and a property in the UK to stay.

My wife has never visited the UK and we would like to maybe visit in the near future.

We also have a small business in Thailand in which my wife and I work (with full legal documentation and taxes paid)

I am considering our options to return the the UK in the next year or to visit first and potentially later to go back to settle. I have done researched and to be honest it sounds daunting. However I believe we can meet all the requirements in due course (my spouse is currently learning to complete the English test requirements)

However I have 3 questions initially:

1) If I return to the Uk as a resident myself and stay there up to 6 months of the year for a year or two PRIOR to application for either a visitor visa or a spouse visa, would this affect the application success possibilities? (I am considering returning to help my UK business pick up again and we dont know exactly IF and WHEN my spouse will make the visa application until we gather information about all the options)

2) Also the financial requirement I can meet with savings however what proof of 'declared' income is needed? Could I potentially use savings from retirement funds / investment accounts (both inside and outside the UK) to show as financial proof and would this count as declared income?

3) With Brexit in sight, what are your opinions about immigration for spouse visa applications after Brexit? Do you think the requirements will increase in difficulty or remain the same? Or do you believe only free movement within EU would be affected mainly? (I know the answer is not available but I would appreciate your opinion)

Ok so 4 Thai employees and one million baht of registered capital then. Four employees still seems a little over the top though to run a small business with the wife. Two is more realistic I hope they consider relaxing these rules.

Does the wife count as one employee?

11 hours ago, PoorSucker said:

Red label or black label, keep on walking.... ?

11 hours ago, PoorSucker said:

There is no rule for number of employees for work permit. 

This is for extension of stay based on employment. 

 

Said that it's always up to your local office to interpret the rules. 

 

Never had VAT registered with my company. 

We never had over one milli baht revenue.... ?

 

As BritTim says up to your local office, bring a bottle of red label. 

This is contrary advice to what I've always been informed from multiple sources for years.

What I was informed was that..

There is a rule for work permit renewal with regards to the number of Thai employees the company is required to employ/pay social fund for? Also to support the work permit for foreigners the employer company needs to have 2 million baht of registered capital and be VAT registered.

Revenue threshold doesn't come into it if the company hires foreigners.

Im happy to be proven wrong though..

Im wondering what the difference is between being married and not being married with regards to the requirements?

12 hours ago, BritTim said:

I think these are questions for your local labor office. There is no consistency on things like this. It could also depend on whether you have a (good or bad) history dealing with that office.

It will be the Bangkok office. An agent has always renewed the work permit although we are no longer using the agent hence my post here for advice. When you say it depends on 'good or bad history' I assume there has only been good history although I cannot think what a 'bad history' would be? Everything is above board and legal unless you are implying otherwise?

My Thai wife and I started the company prior to getting married and I had a Non B visa at the time. We have been married for several years now and of course I now maintain a Non O visa based on marriage.

The small company that my Thai wife and I are shareholders of has always maintained 4 Thai employees to support my work permit renewal although we no longer require 4 employees at the moment.  Is it OK to maintain 2 Thai employees if one of those employees is my Thai wife who is not a director but just an employee for purpose of work permit renewal next year?

Also will the company need to maintain VAT registration status even if we are exporting only and never reclaim VAT? I was informed to support work permit the company needed to be vat registered however this was prior to being married.

Any updated info would be appreciated, thanks..

On 5/3/2018 at 9:58 AM, theoldgit said:

Your wife should apply for a Standard Visa, she cannot apply for an EEA family permit unless you are resident in an EEA State, which you're clearly not.

 

"You can apply for an EEA family permit to come to the UK if you’re both: from outside the European Economic Area (EEA) the family member or ‘extended’ family member of an EEA or Swiss national (excluding UK nationals) - check if you’re eligible"

 

https://www.gov.uk/family-permit

 

As you both live in Thailand, a Standard Visit Visa should be quite straight forward.

I don't know when you plan to travel, but keep in mind that the processing of visit visas is being transferred to India from next month, that may well lead to some delays.

I understand why this was confusing as Im now looking to take my Thai wife to the UK for a holiday (I too am a British citizen living in Thailand).

The requirements described on the .gov website for a family permit are not clear. It simply states..

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' you need to be the family member or ‘extended’ family member of an EEA or Swiss national (excluding UK nationals)

This is VERY confusing because a British citizen IS an EEA national even if not residing in the EEA or UK, as is confirmed here: 

https://www.ukcisa.org.uk/Information--Advice/EEA--Swiss-Students/Are-you-an-EEA-national

To add to this confusion the words (excluding Uk nationals) is included.

Im not sure what to do, any clues? Which should I apply for a Visitor Visa or a Family Permit?

According to the gov website I can apply for a  family permit but its not clear because it says in brackets (except Uk nationals) but this isn't clear whether this refers to the person applying for the permit OR the family member who is an EEA national.

Start here and follow this process to see if you agree this is not clear cut?

https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa/y

Union Pay is a part of China + Brix wanting to contend the US and the west for dominance in financial control, world currency, world power etc

Change your bank to one that offers a visa card

We've kept dogs in Thailand for a decade. There are some excellent vets in Thailand however there are also some vets that maybe are not as experienced, just out of college and heading up the entire veterinary. Take your dogs to another vets for a second opinion.

I have a company I may want to potentially transfer to a new owner, PM me if interested.

9 hours ago, melvinmelvin said:

 

give  me a b,

1400 out of 100 000/200 000 is plenty enough for proper analysis

 

u can't know much about mathematics/statistics

 

 

As Jimster mentions, this is 1400 Thai Visa readers and not necessarily a true representation of all western expats in Thailand.

Of course you can analyse the 1400 although the point is this cohort is potentially biased in many ways. Yes you can ANALYZE the data but it doesn't mean anything other than provide an insight into the lives of some Thai Visa readers.

And.. why do you need to know anything about statistics? Its common sense man! 

Thanks for all the replies. Many suggestions included Im worrying too much about the small piece of paper or that maybe it isn't important, although I was simply reporting what the immigration officer told me I needed to do which is report it lost to the police. Maybe I was unlucky catching the immigration officer on a bad day although this is what I was told I needed to do by the person who issues the 90 day report receipt.

The police report cost me 20 baht and 10 minutes and was accepted as a receipt by a different immigration officer this time around. Note the immigration officer did ask for the last receipt so it was easy to hand over the report rather than explaining everything (again).

Nothing in life is free... (have you checked your bank accounts lately? lol)

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(and before the Thai-girl-haters get going - they only cost me actual cost with no commission added - except for some mysterious expenses related to on-line clothes buying).

PS - Im not a Thai girl hater either Im happily married to a Thai woman and have been with the same woman for 15 years. Experience tells me this is a common misconception that things in life are free.. there is ALWAYS a price to pay one way or another. You just maybe haven't been presented with it yet.

Plus, I hardly ever watch TV its a waste of life. Each to their own though.