MangoKorat

Why? You don't bypass Passport Control, provided you don't travel by air, there isn't one - not as such. That does not mean there are no checks whatsoever. The last time I travelled, I simply drove off the ferry. There were people standing around with uniforms on who might have checked the odd car or passenger but there is no requirement for a British Citizen to use their passport to travel there. Crossing the next border into the EU is a simple drive down a motorway. I have heard that in the past, there have been checks on the roads due to security alerts.

Thank you Mr Duterte.

I can't answer you question but I would just caution. My Thai bike and car licences both expired at the same time in 2022. I'd been unable to renew them as I was not in country and travel had been difficult due to Covid. I was told as they'd expired, I'll have to take a test again and that it is more involved than it was the first time. Initial online application ..................................................

It is also probably 'peanuts' compared to the other money they waste without our knowledge.

Not at all. It is entirely possible to leave and enter the UK without needing to go though Passport Control. A person born in the UK of British parents can never be an illegal immigrant.

Yes well they need it........they have to fund the ridiculous amounts of taxpayer's money they waste - often without any benefit to or with the knowledge of those taxpayers. A couple of examples: The Rwanda relocation scheme is reported to have cost £500 million so far and is not yet actually working and its unlikely to too. Lesser known: Boris Johnson spent £53 million on his 'Garden Bridge' scheme. The bridge was never built. That figure included £161,000 on a website and £470,000 on a Gala Dinner to announce the scheme. £43 million of that came from the taxpayers - its unclear where the other £10 miillion came from. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-47228698 That's just 2 examples, there will be thousands. They should be made to publicise every major spend they make. You could say that we vote for these people but how many of them include these things in their Manifesto's?

Its the UK government that are on the fiddle.

I am not way off track at all - you fail to realise just how many people are only entitled to a basic pension. If you have been receiving Pension Credit before your pension age, then you'd better be expecting a letter shortly requesting repayment. Pension credit is there to top up the pensions of those who for whatever reason do not have enough contributions to enable them to get a full pension. It is therefore - EVERYTHING to do with pensions. You should get your facts straight: https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/money-legal/benefits-entitlements/pension-credit/ https://www.gov.uk/pension-credit/eligibility I suspect that you have actually been receiving Universal Credit. Everyone has received a Full State Pension have they? Well then perhaps you can tell me why my sister has just been notified that she will be only be getting £539.68 every 4 weeks from June when she retires because she doesn't have enough contribuitions?

All that was taken care of a long time ago. My tenant does not have a current agreement. That apartment has always been an 'insurance policy' for me and if I was staying in the UK, I would be moving there when I retire. Think of it like this - I currently live in a tourist area of the UK and a couple of weeks ago I spoke to a couple who were in a camper van in a local car park. We get literally hundreds of them every year and their season seems to get longer and longer. This couple told me that since they retired, they've spent every year travelling around the entire UK with a few visits to Europe. Provided they didn't have access to my passport details, how would anyone know my whereabouts and that I was any different to the couple I mention above? Travel and passport details can be shared between countries but as far as I know, other that names on 'arrest lists' cropping up or a court request, there is no routine sharing of travel details in that way. The main thing here is not to raise any suspicions in the first place - therefore not triggering any more detailed investigations. I very much doubt that HMRC simply go though pensioner's details randomly and think..........hmm let's check if that pesky pensioner is really living in the UK. You would need to do something to raise that suspicion in the first place. You might not be aware but HMRC are having serious staffing problems at the moment -as has been reported in the national news. I don't think their main attention is focused on pensioners.

Agreed although we have moved off topic - which is about the police carrying guns. I'd rather not see an increase in the number of armed police officers in the UK but I'd have to accept that there is a growing case for that as more and more criminals seem to routinely carry guns.

That door is not likely to move - I'm not going to advertise it but its regularly used by tax exiles etc. Neither is it illegal or does it require any subtifuge. Most that need it, know where it is and how to use it. I don't rely on my tenant staying there but she's been there a long time already and I see no reason why that should change. I don't though, think it will be difficult to find another similar tenant should she wish to leave. There are other options too.

Not necessarily in your case but there is often some confusion on these threads regarding extensions. Most entries - either exempt or by visa can be extended by varying amounts. Those who are married usually (always?) get longer. Those extensions are entirely different to someone who applies for a 12 month extension of their stay based on marriage/family or retirement. That is a once a year extension and is used to effectively live in Thailand.

I think they would find it difficult to prove otherwise. Anyone who knows about this as I now do, shouldn't find it too difficult to provide such evidence. I for example, have an apartment in the UK that I rent out. The girl who rents that apartment has been there for years and I know her very well - she loves it and doesn't want to move. I'm pretty sure she'll agree to facilitate what I need so when I move to Thailand, that will become my address and it will be me that pays the council tax. I will also make sure that I use my UK bank account regularly and leave and enter the UK by the back door when I return to visit family etc. I would prefer not to do any of that really but it seems I will be forced to if I want my pension increases.

Sorry I can't agree. When I was a teenager/early twenties it was pretty standard for fights to break out between young guys at clubs etc. on a weekend - combination of booze and testosterone. Rarely did it turn in to anything serious. These days, kids that are carrying guns - thankfully still rare in the UK, are very likely to shoot someone in those circumstances and think later. Look at the occasions in Thailand where people have been shot in road rage incidents. Why is that? - almost certainly because they are carrying guns as they are freely available in Thailand. The road rage incidents that I've witnessed in the UK have mainly involved a lot of shouting and flashing of headlamps etc. Yes, the cause is misuse of guns but as is so often illustrated in the US, how do you keep those guns out of the hands of people who are likely to misuse them. Sorry but I don't accept your argument that 'Those people would have found a way to kill someone anyway' - I suspect that a lot of shootings are done on the spur of the moment and/or simply because a gun was available. Besides - the crime figures comparing gun owning countries with non gun owning, speak for themselves.

And just how would it be proved that the intention was not permanent? One guy I know did actually return to the UK and not in order to receive his pension increases. He lasted 4 months - until the November fog made him realise he was better off in Thailand.

And the death rate from guns is?

Why would anyone think their pension would be treated differently simply because they choose to live their retirement years in warmer climes?

Shouldn't UK police carry guns? No thanks, we don't want to end up like the USA. Guns breed guns.

Strong? That's a gentle breeze!

I have a regular taxi guy that takes me from Suvarnabhumi to Khao Yai. I'm pretty sure he'd be interested in taking you to Yasothon but its a hell of a drive - I've often done it. Much better to get a flight to Ubon and rent a car/take a taxi from there. If you still want a taxi from Bangkok to Yasothon - PM me.

Are you sure there is no fee for withdrawing outside your branch's area - as there are with card withdrawals?

Where have I heard this before?

Not sure which other countries have State Pension Schemes - it would be interesting to hear from those who's countries do have them - as to whether they can receive their full pension if they move abroad.

Oh really, if you were not an expat or connected with living abroad in some way, you'd have known about the Frozen Pensions policy would you? Funny how every single UK resident that lives in the UK and has no connections to living abroad that I've ever talked know nothing about this policy. Why would they? When you finish work, you simply expect your pension to be paid.

A couple of years ago the UK government said they were planning to reform the pension system and just give everyone the same amount (that would not prevent any private enhancements). There would be some people who would have been upset by such a proposal as those who have lived 'on the grey' and never paid in any contributions would get pensions. However, under UK law, they would have to be given money to live on whether they'd paid in or not. That proposal seemed far more sensible to me as all these schemes/benefits must cost a fortune to deliver. Quite what happend to that proposal I know not but I haven't heard anything about it since. Perhaps they realised that giving everyone the same amount would most likley involve cancelling the Frozen Pensions Policy. No government likes backing down - especially the current Tory Nationalist lot.