rimbung

As we were promised action to reduce the queues what is the latest?

I'm not due to go through for a few weeks but it appears the complaints have subsided?

Any deaths, civilian or not, is not good. To use such terms as 'wipe the floor' is not acceptable. War is not glory.

Agree but keep in mind Israel was attacked by 4 nations on all fronts, and to make matters worse, one of the wars they attacked on the holiest day of the year.

Both wars were won with minimal casualties on both sides, in one case entire Egyptian air force was taken out-just imagine how many deaths were avoided

Gaza..The worlds biggest concentration camp.1.6 million people, as of July 2011, locked up by the Israeli's.

Imagine if the shoe was on the other foot.

It appears that Stickman stirred up a hornets nest last week with his column and now his nemesis who has caused him so many problems has returned.

John Galt appears to be on the rebound.

Check out http://www.notstickmanbangkok.com/

Is it just in Issan or is the trend for driving around with no lights switched on common in all Thai towns and villages.

I see not just one or two but dozens of cars every nights and 3 out of every 7 motorbikes with no lights and whizzing along heading for an accident. In the city where I live we have a couple of accidents every evening. At least one is usually fatal.With a car approaching you at night plus the awful tinted screens that every car has it is impossible to see a motorbike. Worse still are the samlor motorbikes which very rarely seem to bother with lights.

And of course when the so called emergency services (a pick-up with half a dozen guys in boiler suits and a couple of flashing lights) arrive they just stand around taking photos while the victim bleeds to death.

I hate going in to gasoline stations and having to wait to re fuel. In the UK I just do it myself. I do the same here now if they hang around talking. They soon come running

No Heineken in a 7-11 between 1400 and 1800. However Laos whisky available everywhere.

Motorbikes everywhere with no lights after dark and dead motorbike riders being burnt in temples every week.

No smoking in public places but rice fields and roadsides burnt everywhere.

Car tents with no prices on the screens.

This is Thailand

Sadly a man is born with two heads and they do not work well together.

I have heard the same story and worse over the years.

Just remember: NEVER BRING ANY MONEY IN TO THIS COUNTRY YOU CANNOT OR DO NOT WANT TO LOSE!

My feeling is you have to get your own affairs in order first. You have zero chance of getting your wife a visa at present.

Get a job, work hard for a year or so and save like mad. You will then be in a slightly better position to achieve your ambition.

By the way, does your Thai wife know the situation?

The boyfriend will only have to serve 12 weeks of the six month term.

3 months early release for good behaviour.

I understand the rules for wives and the married allowance change in April 2010.

Retirees after that date will only get the basic pension and will have to claim pension credit for dependants.

However pension credit is only paid in the UK and is checked from time to time.

Could a couple live on 22k a month? I guess there would also be problems meeting the criteria for the retirment visa as well?

In the home country you have to buy the bottle, why would they give it to you, may never see you again, so what would be different about Thailand? Try organising to sell it back to supplier when you leave.

Yes, in the UK you have to pay for the bottle. Also, as far as I know, you are not allowed to use gas in multi story buildings.

Not so. The only bottle you pay for is the little blue 7k calor used on caravans. Keep the receipt as you can only take it back to where you bought it.

All other 15k (normal size) gas bottles are free. I had to take a whole load to my tip some months ago. They send them back to the gas suppliers.

You will get your own state pension at 65 but you won't get the married/dependents allowance because that is only available to people who reach 65 before 5th April 2010 (and then only payable until 2020).

Anybody who reaches 65 after that date will just get their own single persons state pension and then as a family unit will be means tested for any further benefits (pension credit,housing benefit etc) they might

be entitled to.

Which I understand means for those retired to Thailand only the UK pension is payable. The other benefits are only available for UK residents. I know quite a few here in Thailand who are basing their retirement prospects on also claiming the married/dependents allowance for their Thai wife. The current UK single persons pension will give you 22,207 baht a month.

However that will never increase and be eroded by inflation each year.

Mods

Any chance of pinning this?

Many thanks for those helpful replies.

I was of the opinion I would be OK claiming the married couples pension when I retire.

My wife is also an Irish citizen and has an Irish passport.

I assume for those married to a Thai with ILR in the UK that the pension for the wife stops when the husband dies.

Can we forget the rants on European workers in the UK and what they can claim.

Can someone please tell me if a UK resident of pensionable ages retiring with his Thai wife to Thailand can claim the allowance that is available for a UK spouse. (My wife is a long way short of the pension)

Heathrow is the pits and you are doing a dog leg journey with two stops en-route!

You would have been a lot better off routing via Amsterdam Schipol.

I suspect it would have been cheaper using China Airlines direct to AMS.

So do I understand that the moment my stepson alights in the UK I can start claiming family allowance?

What if he comes back to Thailand?

The way the rules work seem to suggest that keeping a UK house is worthwhile however small.

As I understand it you could rent your UK terraced home out in the winter,avoid the high fuel bills and then take up residence from April until the end of September when you return to Thailand.

During the UK stay if you claimed pension/unemployment etc you would get the mortgage/rates paid plus unemploment/pension and income support.

As stated before you both need to apply for the visa in the country where you reside. You can not just turn up on holiday in Singapore and apply for these visas. If you are married and living in Cambodia you could apply there.

However the requirements for UK entry are pretty much the same as Australia.

I guess you have never had any dealings with a UK entry clearance officer at a location such as Bangkok.

When are you planning to get married and what are you going to do about a US visa for her. It appears you are just looking for a short term fix to what could be a more complicated scenario.

I guess if this is the case then it applies across India,Pakistan etc.

i read that muslim men who are accepted for uk immigration will be allowed to bring with them , and be able to claim benefits , for up to 5 , yes 5 , wives ... even though polygamy is against the law in the uk.

they're giving it away !!!!

As a 56 year old married to a 35 year old I can state for sure one is enough. I could never satisfy five!

But to be serious, I cannot believe you can claim for a wife who has never been to the UK?

I have a stepson here in Thailand (11 years old) and we have been married for nine. He has never been to the UK but is a dependant. Can I claim for him? Family allowance etc.

Taxexile,

I'm a UK born British passport holder and my Thai wife is also a UK citizen.

I'm aware of what we can get in a few years time.

However I have heard bar talk of UK guys with Thai wives who have never set foot in the UK being allowed to claim the married couple allowance. I guess if this is the case then it applies across India,Pakistan etc.

The mind boggles as to who is paying?

As for those walking frames and shopping trollys I am glad Thai roads and pavements are not friendly to them.

The biggest obstacle on UK pavements now is OAP motor scooters followed by Lycra clad crazy bikers

Must say the heating allowance would not be a lot of use here at the moment but I could use it for a few beers to cool down.

I understand that a UK passport holder married to a Thai wife will get the married pension allowance while living in the UK but this is not paid once the couple take up residence in Thailand.

However I have heard stories that a Thai wife (non UK passport) who has never entered the UK still qualifies for a dependant allowance.

What are the facts on UK pensioners married to Thai's.

Will a UK pensioner living in Thailand still get the married allowance for a non pension age wife who only has ILTR?

My view is that there are several obstacles that the OP is trying to overcome in a short time frame without appreciating the problems he will encounter. As others on here know getting married in Thailand today will not get you a visa to the UK tomorrow.

He is from the USA, his girlfriend is from Thailand but he plans to enter the UK as a student.

Not a problem for a US citizen to do that but to try and get entry for his new wife will probably fail at the first hurdle.

I'm afraid that because of people trafficking in the past all new relationships/marriages are put under the microscope.

The immediate focus of attention is why he does not want to apply for a green card for his new bride to enter the USA.

If he did that then getting the UK visa would be more of a formality.

In short there is no quick fix here.

As a now departed barrister once told me, you never ask a question if you do not already know the answer. How you find the answer is in doing your homework and preparation to a degree over and above the other parties in the case.

And if you'd really done your homework and preparation to such a great degree, oh clever Sherlock, you'd have realised that there is no straightforward way in which you can find out where a particular individual has been granted a UK visa and who their sponsor is. Scouse has already told you the reason. If you were to have a 'man on the inside' of the Embassy or BIA it could be different, of course - but do you??

Care to names a few names torrenova!

http://www.britishembassy.gov.uk/servlet/F...d=1065721615138

Did you post that to refer to the fact that supporting documents are needed? Yes, if I understand it correctly, we have to provide as much evidence regarding the visa (i.e. the relationship, etc. and all the things usually asked for in a tourist visa) as we can?

What supporting documents are needed?

It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure they have read the available information on the category of visa they want to apply for. On the Visa Application Centre website we have provided a general list of the documents to help the Visa Officer to consider the application. Everyone’s circumstances are different and it is up to the applicant to decide whether to submit these documents, or different ones. Our list does not cover every single eventuality, and producing all the documents will not guarantee a visa. Applicants should make sure they include all supporting papers with their applications, and not send, or fax us any papers separately. Where possible, applications should submit original documents. We see large numbers of forged documents, and it is easier for us to verify if an original document is genuine, than a photocopied one. However, we recognise that some documents are too valuable to submit with an application. In these cases applicants should submit a good quality photocopy. Please don’t send us credit cards, or original airline tickets.

The UK, and other countries have 'outsourced' a lot of the trivial mundane visa application weeding to companies who are doing pretty much what agencies were doing before.

However the stuff that drops through requires an interview at the Embassy in BKK.

Others can shoot me down but I believe your application will require an interview.

Sadly the initial interview is often by a Thai who is inclined to reject more that 80% of applicants.

I am sure others on here can run you through the ritual.

You say you have the chance to study in the UK for six months. Questions will be asked as to why you have to study in the UK. Is it something you could not do in the USA? That seems a very short period.

Your wife will have to apply for her visa for the UK here in Thailand. You can not apply on her behalf in the USA.

She will have to attend an interview in Bangkok similar to that for a tourist visa. Just like a tourist visa they will want to be assured that she will leave the UK at the end of the 6 months. There have been countless cases of foreign nationals marrying just to get a visa and then splitting up once they arrive in the west.

The officials at the Bangkok Embassy will enquire in detail on your ability to support both yourself and your Thai wife in a very expensive country.

The concern is that you could enter the UK and then become a burden on health and social services. There has been a lot of UK publicity on sham schools and colleges in places like London's Whitechapel that are very often little more than fronts for illegal immigration. Many so called students have entered the country in the past and just disappeared.

Given that you are not yet married I suggest you have to take a longer view. Six months in the UK will not solve your problems.

As a US citizen you have to address the issue of getting your wife US residency.

I appreciate your frustration at the system but I'm afraid the rules are made for everyone.