the scouser

Hi Sirius,

OK, the fact that you are not taking your g/f to your home country for a holiday will ease the process of getting her a visa for a European country; e.g. if you took her to Canada for a holiday the belief would be that neither you nor she would return to Thailand but settle in Canada instead.

When you apply for the visa make it clear to the embassy that you will be accompanying her and, if this is the case, that you will return to Thailand together. There is no guarantee of success but you can but try.

They will look at her circumstances in Thailand but if you can convince the embassy staff that you are genuinely taking your g/f on a simple holiday then there should be little difficulty. One thought that may cross their minds is that you're taking her to Europe to work in prostitution, so make sure you have plenty of photos of the two of you together/letters/phone bills etc that you can show and which prove that you've known each other for a long time.

As I said in my previous post if you are going to travel around the Schengen countries then 1 visa fits all and you can go to the embassy at which you believe it will be easiest to get the visa! I can't remember all of the Schengen countries but here a few of them:- Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Portugal.

Hope it helps,

Scouse.

If her cards are already marked by the Singaporean immigration service then it's going to be difficult. She could always legally change her name and get a new passport.

Scouse.

Whichever country in Europe you take her to she will require a visa from the relevant embassy in BKK. The chances of success will largely depend upon her circumstances in Thailand; ie.e does she have a job/savings/children etc. Also are you taking her to your home country or just taking her on a holiday around many European countries? This too could influence the outcome. If you wish to visit European states which are signatories of the Schengen agreement then one visa is good for all of those countries for a maximum overall stay of 3 months. However, the UK, for example, hasn't signed up to the treaty so a separate visa would be necessary if she also wished to visit the UK.

If you can be a bit more specific I can give more detailed advice.

Regards,

Scouse.

Edd,

A'right wack. Been to Warrington meself, like, an' dey don't arf speak funny dere. Anyway, don't ya tink Thailand's gear?

See ya, la.

Scouse.

Hi Russty,

I used to be an immigration officer in the UK and have also worked at several British embassies as a visa officer, so I am quite well placed to give advice.

The decision to grant/refuse the visa lies solely with the interviewing officer and consequently it is unusual, but not unheard of, for the decision to be postponed. The fact that your g/f has been asked to return suggests that either she has been asked to provide further information or the visa officer is conducting further enquiries of his/her own. Without knowing either the details of your g/f's application or what she said at the interview I can't hazard a guess as to what is being sought.

However, on the bright side, I would suggest that the visa officer is looking to issue the visa but is not yet 100% happy otherwise he/she would have simply refused the application on the day your g/f went for her interview.

Regards,

Scouse.

PS. I must say though that your g/f having no job to return to does not exactly improve her chances of getting the visa.

A double-entry tourist visa is the answer. Each entry permits you to stay 60 days, extendable to 90 at the local immigration office. After 90 days you have to do a day trip out of the country and re-enter on your second visa entry.

Cost? Well, at the Thai consulate in Liverpool it is £25.00 per entry, so about $36.00, $72.00 in total. An additional fee of 2000 baht is charged by the Thai immigration service when you extend your 60 day entry from within the country.

Regards,

Scouse.

Exactly the same topic was recently discussed on this forum. See " Is it legal " on page 4 of this forum. Sorry, don't know how to set up a hyperlink.

Regards,

Scouse.

Dr P.P.,

In Liverpool people do in fact pluralise "you" as you suggested; i.e. "youse".

Scouse.

Hi Nelly,

I can't answer the question you have about working in Thailand, but a word of warning about your UK status. I don't know if you ultimately wish to return to the UK, but if you do, do not stay outside the country for more than 2 years otherwise you will lose your residency. Also, if you wish to eventually apply for naturalisation as a British citizen you can't have spent more than 90 days per year outside of the UK in the 3 years prior to your application. Therefore, if you spent two years in Thailand you would have to wait another 3 before you could seek naturalisation.

Perhaps the Thai embassy consular section in London can assist with your questions about working in Thailand. One of their primary functions is to assist Thai nationals living in the UK.

Regards,

Scouse.

Hi Roger,

In the old days a settlement visa was good for one entry and the immigration officer would then, upon arrival in the UK, place a stamp in the person's passport for one year. This stamp then allowed the person to leave and re-enter the UK as many times as they wished within its currency without having to obtain another visa.

The system has now changed in that the one year's permission to stay is now granted by the visa officer and is endorsed on the visa. The immigration officer no longer stamps the passport other than with a date stamp. However, the rules about travel remain the same. The person can leave and re-enter the UK as many times as they wish providing the visa is still valid.

NB. This applies only for visas granted for a stay in excess of 6 months. For visitors a visa may still be single or multiple entry depending upon which was requested at the time of application, and each time the applicant leaves the UK an entry is used up.

Regards,

Scouse.

Fredro,

Enculez mes vieilles bottes! I've just had a glance at your details and you live in Croydon!! Well, you've no excuse for not lodging the application on time. I'm not sure which building IND operate out of now, but it's one of those on Wellesley Road. Used to work there myself but got sick of it and decided the life of Reilly in LoS was a far better option.

Regards,

Scouse.

Fredro,

Providing your step-daughter returns to the UK prior to Feb 2004 she does not require another visa. However, once back in the UK she should apply for permission to stay in the UK indefinitely. She should do this around January time.

If she finds herself in Thailand at the age of 18 with no valid settlement visa for the UK then she will NOT get another one as she will have reached the age of majority and will no longer be classed as a dependent of your wife. You would therefore find yourself in a position whereby the family is split; your wife and one step-daughter in the UK and the other in Thailand.

Once your step-daughter has been granted permission to stay in the UK indefinitely (indefinite leave to remain) she can come and go as she pleases as long as she spends no longer than 2 years outside of the UK. After 3 years she can apply to be naturalised as a British citizen.

The application for indefinite leave should be submitted to the Immigration and Naturalisation Directorate of the Home Office in Croydon, cost (for postal application) £150.00 per application. You should submit all 3 simultaneously; ie your wife's and two step-daughters', cost £450.00. Applications in person are dealt with on the day but cost £250.00 per application.

Any further questions, I'll be pleased to help.

Scouse.

Barney,

It's not an impossible dream, but your lack of employment does hamper your g/f's chances of obtaining the visa. The immigration rules for the UK provide, inter alia, that the applicant has to be maintained without recourse to public funds and the best way of proving this is through evidence of a regular income.

The fact that you currently do not have this does not mean that the visa will be refused outright, but the visa officer will then make an assessment of whether he/she believes that the money you have in the bank is sufficient. There is no figure for exactly how much is needed. It is up to the visa officer to determine whether the amount is reasonable or not. Bear in mind that should your g/f get the visa then she will intially be allowed to stay in the UK for 2 years, so the visa officer will be looking for sufficient funds for that period. It would help if you could show that you have a job to return to or that you are in the process of looking for work.

In terms of travelling around for a few months, it is likely that the visa application will be decided after only a matter of 2/3 weeks at the most depending upon how many other applications there are at the time. However, once your g/f has the visa she does not need to immediately travel to the UK. If the application is refused she will have a right of appeal which is heard in the UK and you can seek free representation from the Immigration Advisory Service.

Regards,

Scouse.

Thanks for the text message info, Valentino. I've subscribed and it works a treat. Cheers!

Scouse.

I used to be an immigration officer in the UK and also worked at some embassies as a visa officer. In the course of my duties if I encountered an individual who had a UK visa but had evidently not been in the country of issue at the time it was issued then he/she was on a one-way ride back home. That is not to say that the Thai authorities would behave similarly but they may do. It is not really a question of the legality of sending your passport by post but, rather, the legality of obtaining a visa from a given consulate/embassy when you are not even in that country at the time of application. I, for one, would not do it.

Regards,

Scouse.

I know I may be accused of bias, but it has to be Liverpool. It only accepts applications by post but telephone enquiries are always politely dealt with and good information given. The staff (I don't know how many there are) appear to be all British so there is no room for misunderstanding, and they deign to speak to members of the public unlike the Thai diplomats at the embassy in London for whom everyone who is not a diplomat is untermenschen.

Scouse.

I think the point being made is not that there is a crackdown on visa runs, but one upon people who don't do them however their passports do.

Scouse.

In fact, I firmly believe that we should hold a poll on whether to have more polls.

Scouse.

Chonabot,

Are you still miffed because no one took you up on your offer of a pint or two when you were last in Pattaya? Well, I'll tell you what mate, I'll be there in Oct/Nov time and if we coincide I'll buy you a Sing or two to settle your furrowed brow.

Scouse.

Tripxcore,

Providing that you are still in the States, approach the nearest Thai embassy/consulate with a view to registering your marriage with them. Then, for the purposes of Thai law, your marriage would be recognised in Thailand.

Regards,

Scouse.

Thanks for the advice Valentino. Yes the DTAC sim card is "live". It is in the hands of the current love of my life in Singburi.

Cheers,

Scouse.

Sorry folks, but I know sod all about mobile phones other than how to make a phone call. The question I have is.....

I have a British pay-as-you-go phone (Orange network - Samsung GSM dualband phone) which I would like to use in Thailand where I already have a pay-as-you-go DTAC sim card. What do I need to do to get the phone to work in LoS and am I better doing whatever's necessary in the UK or Thailand?

Cheers,

Scouse.