Tango7

hello everybody,wife submited all our paperwork at vfs for her settlement visa on 12 march still no word as of yet ,frustrating yes,as she is 16 weeks pregnant,and we need an answer asap,but i dont think its going to happen soon ,anyway good luck for everyone

Similar position: submitted on 10th March, wife 11 weeks pregnant and nothing yet.

moral to the story(?) if you see Thai people arguing, stay clear.

If it appears they're drunk and there are weapons involved, duck for cover.

However, on the other side of the coin, there are some among us who might be inclined to step in to try and rescue someone being browbeat. pedestrianus emptor.

Hope they caught the a**hole with the gun - and get him to suffer the full weight of the law.

This happened in Pattaya a few years ago, 2 brits pulled a thai off a restarant owner that was getting slapped,, he returned later with a gun and killed 2 of them, as advised elsewhere, keep out of thai arguments, they dont value life as we do and dont consider the consequences of their actions, .

Thais do value life when they are sober and calm. What's frightening are the petty things that can take that calmness away. There are violent people everywhere in the world. Thailand is probably unique in that even a sarcastic remark or a caring criticism can get you killed by people who are not even gangsters by any stretch of the imagination.

I was around Rama 2 two days ago and saw a taxi driver and a van driver having a bit of a barney together but as I drove by, I noticed the taxi driver had a huge machete in his right hand which he was "hiding" down the length of his right leg. In other words, he wasn't pointing it at the other guy or waving it about, but it was there in all it's glory.

What was clear, was the fact that this wasn't a machete for cutting a mango off a tree or cutting down a durian or coconut, this was a mean mother, with jagged edges, and looked more like a foot long ( or longer ) army knife.

The taxi driver didn't just have this item in his car from his last trip to Isan, this was clearly bought and kept as a weapon and it's scary that a little driving argument could lead to his whipping out something the Taliban might use for severing heads.

Basically, whilst not getting into an argument is the best policy, and running away is the second best, what would people do if confronted with that situation? Run or strike out hard and fast before they had time to use it? Personally, I'd walk away fast but not turn my back

...

I too think that PVR is going to be too expensive to justify, although i do think if it does all they say it will, it will be a good system and has some notable advantages over DVD recorders. For one, it will allow you to watch one channel whilst you record another - that's a feature i could certainly make use of.

LivingLOS - regarding your comments about having your box replaced for a better model. I'm wondering if one has to wait until theirs breaks before they'll give you the better one, or whether one can request (maybe i should refer myself back to my own comment about UBC's level of service for the answer to that!)?

Hugely expensive considering a dual tuner Humax with 320 Gb HDD in the UK costs 9,672.78 ( 185 GBP ) and that's a fairly expensive one.

14,000 + Baht for 160 Gb is a rip off.

There is a discussion on whether Abhisit is actually in charge, and to answer this question we should perhaps take a look at the glaring double standard that exists in Thailand.

When the PAD causes chaos and enormous financial loss by shutting down the country's international airport, shooting and fighting in the streets, the army did nothing. When the Reds cause chaos, the army intervenes. Corrupt politicians in the yellow camp, and there are many, are ignored by the judiciary, whereas corrupt politicians in Thaksin's camp who are the elected government of the day are hounded for infractions as small as appearing on a TV cooking program, and expelled from office.

How undemocratic. There is a school of thought that says that Thailand is not ready for a democracy, that the poor majority is too stupid to vote sensibly and should therefore have its representation diluted by the elite. That is what the PAD has said publicly, but who trusts them or the old guard generals and elite who sponsor them and who have never really done anything to improve the lot of the average Thai.

Thaksin's lot are highly unpalatable, but they were an elected civilian government, marking the first time in Thailand's recent history that worn out and corrupt generals and career bureaucrats were not calling all the shots, bickering amongst themselves, and getting nothing done. The PAD tore down a fledgling democracy that was an example to other countries in SE Asia, and replaced it with mob rule. What they should have done was show how much support they really had by beating Thaksin at the ballot box, peacefully. They seemed unable to do that, and now we are in an unending cycle of street violence and Myanmaresque military intervention.

I notice that a lot of foreigners seem to miss this obvious double standard, automatically vilifying Thaksin as the devil incarnate, while holding up Abhisit and his lot as clean and democratic. Looking at the Bangkok Post or the Nation, which most foreigners depend on for political insight, I can see why. They are clearly biased toward the PAD, and have been since its inception.

Abhisit is a nice guy in a party just as rotten as the rest of them. In charge of Thailand he is not.

I personally don't think Samak was ousted because he was on a TV cooking show. I think they looked for a way out in order to save him face. He had to go and rather than kick him out, they looked for a way to justify it and the only thing they could come up with that everyone knew about was because of his cooking show.

Now he can say Ï wasn't kicked out, I had to go because of that show. I didn't know I wasn't allowed to be on a TV show...blah blah". The average Thai would probably believe that. Even some here do.

As a matter of interest, under what other circumstance would you pay a fee of 500+ pounds and then wait 9+ weeks to receive your answer/goods/service ?

she got the visa. it says it's date of expiry is August 30, does that mean she has to enter by the 30th, and then can stay 30 days, or she has to leave before the 30th??

I believe so. The visa must be utilised before it expires. if you leave on the 29th August and go for 30 days, it should be fine.

No good news here - we are still waiting..

My wife also spoke with her friend whom spoke to the Embassy about her application (submitted mid Febuary) and she was apparently told that the system has changed from Settlement Visa's now taken a total of 3 months to process and not 'within' 3 months - i.e. you wait 3 months either way and that the website had not been updated to say this yet.

I am not sure this is right and may have been misunderstood - did anyone else hear anything to suggest this?

I know when you ring them they always state the 3 month bit. This is simply a way to fob you off and not get into a discussion at all. don't take any notice of it. 3 months is still the target only. They will not keep a completed application till the 3 months are up. This would only go to cause complaints and is creating more work for themselves.

Out of interest has anyone recieved any good news on this front in the last couple of weeks. The good news posts seem to have dried up.

Placed my application on 10th May. Still waiting. Only "news" I have had was when the embassy called to enquire about my wife's pregnancy which we discovered after we submitted the application. I faxed them this info and received a call roughly a week later but as her pregnancy is only 8 weeks, it's not considered urgent and so we're just waiting...and waiting....and eating into savings..and waiting

I am assuming thats a typo and you mean 10th March. That would put you about 2 weeks ahead of me. a friend of mine is roughly 2 weeks further along again at 8 weeks total and still not heard anything.

I am beginning to think we need to re revise the expected average waiting times from 6 or so weeks to something more like 9-10 weeks. This is why i was hoping some people had some received better news but not reported it. The desperate hope that SOMEONE has had theirs in the last week and is within the 6 week window, is fast fading.

Sorry, my mistake. Yes, I meant 10th March.

I've decided not to go back without my wife unless she gets a rejection and then we'll be up the creek.

Like many of you here, I'd hate to be away from my wife. I've been living with her for 6 years and now she pregnant and so to be separated will cause a huge amount of stress for her and me. Stressing just thinking about it.

Good luck to all...

Out of interest has anyone recieved any good news on this front in the last couple of weeks. The good news posts seem to have dried up.

Placed my application on 10th May. Still waiting. Only "news" I have had was when the embassy called to enquire about my wife's pregnancy which we discovered after we submitted the application. I faxed them this info and received a call roughly a week later but as her pregnancy is only 8 weeks, it's not considered urgent and so we're just waiting...and waiting....and eating into savings..and waiting

I once taught at a famous English speaking university here in Bangkok and I can tell you that their standards were (are?) terrible.

They do not care what the students know as long as they pay the fees.

Each English lesson started with a dictation. This meant the students listened to a brief paragraph and then on repeating it slowly, they'd write it down as a comprehension exercise. I collected their work immediately afterwards.

On one occasion, I was handed a dictation for s tudent who wasn't even there and when I reported this blatant attempt to cheat, I was told by the head of faculty to ïgnore it.

There were no real standards to talk of, many students bought their way into and out of the university, and considering the students spent 4 years learning 90% of their subjects in English, many left with no real ability to speak it.

What amazes me is that thousands of these students end up with Master's degrees when they really shouldn't have got into university.

You may wish to consider observing Thais of a different social position. A great many Thais limit their alcohol intake. I drink more than a few of my friends and I'm a wuss by western standards.

I agree.

My wife's family have not lost anyone to alcohol and neither have any of my wife's friends.

The most I have ever seen any of her friends or family drink is a glass of beer with ice in it. Mind you, they are Thai-Chinese.

I "like" it becuase Bangkok empties and places are nice and quiet. Department stores, roads and even Siam Square.

I dislike getting wet especially with dirty water but I've now had 4 dry songkrans on the trot and I do go out. I just Ninja train for a month or two prior to April.

Other than that I'm baffled at how a place as teaming with people as Khaosan Road can be seen as enjoyable. It's just a mass of katoey's bearing their fake breasts whilst looking for Farangs.

I have just had a text from a mate on Koh Chang. He reckons Thaksin is there with some military figures.

Now come on Obercommando, get texting him back. If what you say us true it is the most significant thing on this forum. It would make a lot of sense. Cambodia would be more than willing to offer safe haven to Taksin if he promised to end the feud over the Temple dispute in Cambodias favour. His presence on Thai soil if unchallenged would make a huge symbolic call to arms for the red shirts. Time for the Thai navy to seal off Koh Chang. Get more info please.

This rumour is on Pantip.com which, for those of you who do not already know, is a Thai chat forum. It's either the same rumour or there might be some truth to it ?

Supposed to be staying in a 5 start resort but if he were, the staff would surely turn him in for the million Baht reward..

I have it on good authority that the monk seen hitting the PMs car was actually demanding a lift to Pantip Plaza.

Pictures from Channel 6 news shows protestors trashing Abhisit's car.... no-one doing a thing. Body guards doing nothing, police doing nothing.

In the UK, USA I'm sure they'd have shot the protestors at that point.

Arrived home today to have the guard tell me a soaking wet package had been delivered.

This package contained all my original qualifications, birth certificate, etc etc.

I had sent them to Australia for an immigration assessment and they'd sent them back after finishing with them.

THe parcel had clearly been on the back of a motorbike which had been caught in the rain and even though this was a special delivery, the Thai service still allowed it to get so wet that the contents are totally F@#$ed.

This is a public "Thanks" to the Thai postal service for screwing up such a simple job.

Now that I've thanked them, I'd like to follow up with a suggestion:

"Get a frickin' waterproof container for carrying mail. Or use a van"

Un-frickin' believable !! Bunch of dumb asses..

This is the kind of thing that would make a PM step down.. fear for his life.

If the police etc can't provide protection, or are unwilling to stop people when a situation gets bad, you'd have to wonder whether you're life's in danger and it's just not worth the hassle in Thailand.

PMs here tend to hang onto power just long enough to immensly fatten their wallets and then they're off, leaving the door open for the next person to get rich.

Looks like there might not be enough time to get rich in this case...

What just a month ago everyone was going on about how it was looking up that British born Abhisit was to be PM. Now, everyone is slagging him off - is it soemthing to do with the fact that he doesn't like College girls earning extra income by selling their bodies on the internet?

I don't think we can expect him to be puking out new policies left, right and centre as Obama is, Obama has a h3ck of a lot more money behind him - another post here was stating that he was handed a reserve less than a month's worth of civil servant wages! Not a lot to build on. Thaksin made no end of promises, predictions and policy statements - mostly to fool the rural vote into thinking he was a savior that loved the struggling underclasses. Many promises and predictions turn out as hot air, and many of the policies he did put in '30 baht medical' etc sounded good, but never worked - many of the others helped him and his family and companies, but not many others - and certainly not the working classes and below.

I think we need to give him more time before we make a judgement and give him enough rope - this country really doesn't need more change that's for sure.

I think Abhisit will be trounced for everything he does. He faces constant pressure from the opposition who seem intent on harassing and hounding him so relentlessly on any and all issues that he, as any sane person would do, will just say "what's the point".

I watched a few days ago some debate in parliament where Abhisit was hounded about his not having gone through military training. Rather than deal with real issues, the opposition is intent on putting so much stupid pressure on him that he ends up looking like a tool.

Even his car was attacked and the back window smashed. Where in the world would the police allow a mob to get close enough to a leader's car that it is physically attacked....

Thailand always has been and always will be governed by people greedy for power that only reaps them huge financial rewards. Once the greed disappears only then will there be some semblance of hope.

It's a huge shame that "he who can't be named" has to watch this farce and witness those who claim to love this country rip it to shreds and make it the laughing stock of the rest of the world.

It's possible they said "processing February's applications" rather than stating that they were just starting. I hope this didn't confuse too much.

The embassy stated a possible further 2 month's wait, but I'm sincerely hoping this was said to provide a worse case scenario !! None of use wants to have to wait 3 months for a visa, especially if it turns out to be a refusal.

Just had a phone call from the UK embassy to ask about my wif's pregnancy which we've only just discovered.

We submitted our application on the 10th March but two weeks ago we found out my wife is pregnant by roughly two months and so we faxed the hospital report in support of the application.

We received a call today asking about it to determine whether it needed faster attention but we were not told anything regarding this issue.

What did become apparent is that they are just starting on February's applications and we should wait up to another two months.

It looks like they are getting bogged down and can't process fast enough and this looks like it will mean a spill over from month to month.

One of the "biggies" is Siam Paragon's website. If you go to their main URL you can choose "English" but the flash is still in Thai.

I doubt it's due to my recent complaint to them, but their main URL actually went to Paragon Department Store. The reason was because the main URL was pointing it rather than the main page we can see now. It was like that for ages. To get to the correct site, you had to edit the URL in your address box but this now seems fixed.

Many websites for large companies, department stores etc are unfinished or poorly written with broken links or re-directs that double back on themselves. There are plenty of pages with "coming soon" but never get addressed or completed. It's all very sloppy.

I have written to a number offering proof reading services but they'd prefer to spend their time and money one flash movies than creating substance and a finished site. Siam Paragon's front page has an email box at the bottom which asks for "yoursEmail"

Now, try Central World and see what happens... it doesn't work on my Chrome, Firefox or IE 8

Never mind eh..... the flash would look great if it worked !!

Siam Ocean World ..... front page has half in English and half in Thai but different topics and of course, the pricing. Thai prices in Thai to disguise how much less Thais are charged than Farangs......

One thing I've noticed is that there seems to be an unwritten code that says "Thou shalt not seek English proof reading from native speakers."

After all, look at the subway station. Billions spent on it and a sticker on the escalator that reads something along the lines of "Not lean on rail"

Congrats on your success. I was going to ask if anyone had heard anything. Hopefully, I've not much longer to wait. (applied 17/2)

Btw, does VFS always contact the applicant by SMS?

I think you have to state you want this service and then pay a small fee. If you do that, I think you get notification by SMS.

I'm in a very similar situation but be careful about the sponsorship from parents as it is no longer acceptable that they offer sponsorship from their finances

Not right, ECOs have discretion on this point.

Chapter 9 - The maintenance and accommodation requirements

9.7 - Assessing adequate means of maintenance for fiancé(e)s and spouses or civil partners

Members of the couple’s families in the UK may offer to maintain the couple adequately until they can do so from their own resources. This is acceptable in the case of fiancé(e)s/proposed civil partners who are not permitted to work until the marriage/civil partnership. However, for spouses or civil partners, such an arrangement would not satisfy the Rules, which require the couple to maintain themselves. Nevertheless, it may be appropriate in certain circumstances to exercise discretion for a spouse or civil partner where it is clear that such an arrangement will be for a limited period and that the couple will be in a position to maintain themselves shortly after the applicant’s arrival in the UK.

(MY emphasis)

I have just spoken to my solicitor about this asI was concerned he'd missed it but he wrote back saying that although the issue of discretion is there. it's rarely used and could raise more concerns about whether you can or intendto support yourself, so the advice seems to be "assume that clause is not there and don't rely on it or assume they will consider it".

It's safer to follow the route that is most likely to get you success rather than throwing caution to the wind and hoping the ECO is in a good and sympathetic mood.

Anyway, I'm just repeating my solicitors words. I'm no expert and am panicking like most other applicants...

I'm in a very similar situation but be careful about the sponsorship from parents as it is no longer acceptable that they offer sponsorship from their finances

Not right, ECOs have discretion on this point.

Chapter 9 - The maintenance and accommodation requirements

9.7 - Assessing adequate means of maintenance for fiancé(e)s and spouses or civil partners

Members of the couple’s families in the UK may offer to maintain the couple adequately until they can do so from their own resources. This is acceptable in the case of fiancé(e)s/proposed civil partners who are not permitted to work until the marriage/civil partnership. However, for spouses or civil partners, such an arrangement would not satisfy the Rules, which require the couple to maintain themselves. Nevertheless, it may be appropriate in certain circumstances to exercise discretion for a spouse or civil partner where it is clear that such an arrangement will be for a limited period and that the couple will be in a position to maintain themselves shortly after the applicant’s arrival in the UK.

(MY emphasis)

Interesting..... thanks for the info.

Thanks for the advice….really appreciated. As I understand it you can get the embassy to postdate the visa for up to 3 mths? If so I’ll be applying after Songkran…..watch this space!

I'm in a very similar situation but be careful about the sponsorship from parents as it is no longer acceptable that they offer sponsorship from their finances.

You need to show your own finances and all your parents can do is offer accommodation and provide a letter welcoming you and wife etc to stay there. They have to show they own / rent it and show size of house is ample for you and your family to live there too.

Show your past employment history, qualifications and intentions of how you will look after yourself and family. You only need to show your plans and intentions and make these plans realistic.

As on eposter stated, your parents shouldn't just throw money into your account. You need to show it's yours.

Here's info I got from a lawyer in UK who specialises in this kind of thing:....

In order for your wife to be granted a visa to live in this country, you will need to show that the Entry Officer (ECO) you have sufficient means to support you and her without being dependent on the state. This involves 2 parts – accommodation and living expenses.

Accommodation – the ECO will apparently accept an offer that you will live with your parents, so long as you will both have free access to the house. No doubt there will need to be good evidence of this .

Living expenses – the difficult bit! It is usually judged that for two people to live in this country, you will need an income of £12,000 to £15,000. This is done in primarily in 3 ways - 1) for you to obtain a job, 2) for you to have sufficient savings (probably in the region of £30,000 to £50,000) to support you both or 3) for you to receive an advance on an inheritance (although this is untested) – say £1,000 to 1,500 per month needs to be the minimum. This will need to be drawn up in a legally enforceable way in order for the ECO to be satisfied that it is not a loan.

The Court of Appeal has decided recently that third parties, such as your parents, are no longer able to act as financial guarantees.

I'm still waiting for my own settlement visa application to come back.... very stressful as I've also been here for 6 years and been with my wife almost every day of those 6 years. To be separated now would be a stressful time for us both.

Ignoring, for now, the fact that buying pirated DVDs is "ïllegal", has anyone else noticed that vendors are now lying about every DVD they sell.

I used to have a reliable supplier across from O'Reilly's pub, on the opposite side of the road, but even they now just tell me every DVD is a master and take the cash.

I have never believed that new movies are masters and usually wait 3+ months after official release before I consider buying a copy, but over the last few months the quality has got worse and worse and almost all movies are from hand held players smuggled into a theater.

I have tried about 4 vendors on Silom and all tell you anything to get your money. Sure, I know that you get what you pay for, but that isn't the purpose of this post.

I'm asking if others have noticed the poor quality increase.

As for me, I've just bought my last fake DVD