OJAS

So it's only OTP's added to Thai bank accounts that are childish and naive in your eyes, then? Whereas OTP's added to our home country bank accounts are, on the other hand, worthy of praise to the very highest heavens as being the best thing in mature adulthood and sophistication since sliced bread, right?

In connection with (2), if relying on a non-THB account you may need to keep a close eye on the relevant bank notes buying exchange rate at all times so as to minimise the risk of the balance inadvertently dipping below the equivalent of 400k or 800k THB depending on the time of year in your case.

Depends on what powers said elected HoS would have, I think. If their role as President was a purely ceremonial one as in Germany and Ireland, for instance, that might arguably be a bitter pill worth swallowing eventually. But under no circumstances would it be acceptable in my eyes for the UK to run the risk of having clowns like Trump and Macron actively involved in running its affairs!

In particular I earnestly hope that they won't have the audacity and temerity to want to set foot in Sussex ever again, the county where I was born and whose proud name they have, as far as I am concerned, taken great delight in gleefully trashing through all their whinging and whining under the guise of their dukedom.

Well, all these points are, of course, equally applicable to his brother who, in stark contrast to him, isn't exactly whining and whinging about his lot in life, is he?

Well one thing he's definitely helping the world in is by demonstrating to it what a deluded individual he is!

An even bigger headache IMHO is being forced to make 2 trips in person to a rundown tower block in Bangkok (or its Chiang Mai equivalent which may not necessarily be rundown for all I know) or fork out an extra 5,000 THB for an agent to make these trips on your behalf. Not to mention that obtaining mugshots complying with HMPO's over-fussy requirements as regards acceptable background colours can be easier said than done in Thailand as most professional photographers here are simply not geared up to take mugshots against physical plain cream or plain light-grey backgrounds.

Wouldn't be surprised if they didn't once DHL told them that they couldn't accept any new applications for delivery as there would be no-one in HMPO's mail room to sign for them. They certainly had no hesitation in pulling the plug for several weeks at the height of the pandemic as I recall (although in fairness to them I think that they were acting under strict orders issued by their HMPO masters on that particular occasion).

We might need to hang on until exactly 23:59:59 on 31 March before knowing for certain one way or the other! ????

In this connection the following thread illustrates perfectly the downsides to using an agent IMHO:-

I started this thread on the UK Home Country Forum before coming across this one!

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-64981979 Not good news for those with UK passport renewal applications in the pipeline or about to be submitted. Looks like we can kiss goodbye to any chance of receiving new passports within 3-4 weeks for the next couple of months at least.

Indeed there is. As far as UK documents are concerned this procedure is spelt out in the following links:- https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/714089/Legalisation_info_June_2018.pdf https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/714090/Legalisation_info_graphic_June_2018.pdf I only hope for the widow's sake that any surviving family members of her late husband will be willing and able to help her out as necessary at the UK end in getting his death certificate legalised!

Disagree with you about drives to Rayong City and Koh Chang being particularly easy at the present time, thanks to extensive roadworks taking place on Highway 3/Sukhumvit to the west of the newish split-level intersection with Highway 363, which make getting to the local immigration office from where I live to the east of Rayong City a particular PITA at the present time. But I am reliably informed by a fellow Asean Now member who lives in Ban Chang that there is an alternative route to the immigration office from there, which avoids all this disruption. @jacko45k - this may also be of interest to you.

Click on the following link for details as to how you go about applying for a 90-day non-O visa conversion for retirement at your local immigration office:- https://www.immigration.go.th/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/9.FOR-RETIREMENT-PURPOSES-50-YEARS-OLD-NON-O.pdf

Or alternatively near the expiry of the 90 days apply for a one-off 60-day extension for the purposes of visiting your Thai wife, maybe? Would that give you enough time to accumulate 400k in your Thai bank account and then comply with the 2-month seasoning requirement?

This link sets out the requirements for a non-O conversion application for retirement:- https://www.immigration.go.th/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/9.FOR-RETIREMENT-PURPOSES-50-YEARS-OLD-NON-O.pdf

But they might nevertheless need to make an emergency trip back to their home country at short notice because of (e.g.) a seriously ill relative there. I'm sure that they wouldn't welcome having to overcome the bureaucratic hurdles placed in the way of visiting Thai nationals by their home country in such circumstances! So definitely best to hang on to your home country citizenship if at all possible IMHO, no matter how unlikely such a situation might appear in your case - until you're faced with it, of course!

And please accept my profuse and humblest apologies for taking it all with a ginormous pinch of salt.

There is a hard core of cyclists back in the UK who consider themselves completely above the law with what they feel is their God-given right to ride wherever they like and in whatever manner they choose, be this, for example, riding on pavements or jumping red lights. And whenever this attitude brings them into conflict with other road users, it is always the other road user (vehicle driver or pedestrian) who invariably finds themselves on the wrong side of the law, with the cyclist receiving a gentle rap over the knuckles if even that.

IMHO this thread is yet more evidence, if we really needed it, that CW regard themselves as serious contenders for the 2023 Rogue Immigration Office Of The Year award!

Depends on how often you are planning to travel back to the UK. If only occasionally could you not make do with your Thai debit card (assuming that it can be used to make GBP payments in the UK, of course) - even though this will inevitably mean a double-whammy on the exchange rate front if your income is derived in the UK but paid into a Thai bank account. A bitter pill which you might just have to swallow, I'm afraid.

Because DWP are hell-bent on making this shining example of pointless bureaucratic nonsense just as difficult for us as is humanly possible!

And definitely no mention of legislative requirements in the following link, for instance! https://slothmove.com/uk-bank-account-if-i-move-abroad/

Indeed, when it comes down to ease and grace, American passport renewal procedures from Thailand IMHO knock spots off the cumbersome bureaucracy that we local Brits here are faced with at passport renewal time. In our case, unfortunately, the use of the excellent Thai Post EMS system is clearly considered far too technologically advanced by the Luddites back in the UK who are responsible for inflicting the nonsensical procedures which we Brits are required to endure on us!