kimamey

Looking again it seems a new photo is needed for a new passport. Digital if applying online or 2 printed if not. One of the printed ones needs to be countersigned but the digital ones can be confirmed online. I've decided to apply using my UK address. It seems much easier up to now. Probably easier to confirm my information such as address, name, any previous names ect. I still need to get the digital picture confirmed as me later today but that's not a problem as I know a retired police officer. Transferring the visa may be more difficult but that would probably have been the case either way. It'll be a while before I get the new passport to be able to do that by all accounts so I'll have time to think about it. I'm lucky in that I still have a UK address otherwise it would be much more difficult. If that were to change then I'd make sure to get really friendly with someone here with a UK passport and preferably who is or had retired from a recognised profession.

It won't affect me but it's a good point to make as it may help others. I've been trying to think who I could get to countersign my passport photo. There is one guy I've known here for a while although he's not in one of the listed professions and I assume he's 'of good standing in the community'. There's a teacher I used to know but I haven't seen him for some time and I don't know where he lives now. I've been thinking that since I have an address in the UK I might go that route and just get it couriered over. I can do it online and I can get my digital photo confirmed easily. Tomorrow I'll look at what documentation I need. It might be easier to do it from that end. Unless I suddenly think of a flaw in my plan of course. ????

There won't be a problem with my old passport as it was lost. I needed a new one anyway due to damage. That might have been easier.

I've looked at their website and it doesn't seem to mention his death. I may consider that. I'll have to look at what documents are needed. I'd already got a digital photo and someone to confirm it's me. I'll have to get a printed one and have it countersigned, presumably by posting it to them. It's a pity I can't use a similar process with a Thai as I know a lawyer here. Of course then I'll have to get the visa transferred to my new passport Thanks for the link.

Thanks. I don't need the passport urgently, unless something drastic happens. I can use my Thai drivers licence for domestic flights and most other things.

Yes the 20 million would be 50% of the 2019 figure, assuming they can achieve it of course. Its age that it gets a bit vague. There's often bad translation and misquoting as you say so that may be part of the reason

I hope I'm posting in the right place. I lost my passport in Bangkok probably whilst out walking on New Year's Eve. I needed a new one anyway due to damage on the photo page. I reported it to the police and cancelled it online but applying for the new one seems a bit complicated. I've tried applying online but I start to get problems when it asks if I live in the UK. I used to switch between Thailand where I'm married and the UK roughly every 3 months but that changed due to Covid. I also used to stay with my mother but she's moved to a one bedroom property so it's difficult until I sort out somewhere else to live. I've been back a couple of times last year and I only arrived back in Thailand 5 days ago. I'm in the position of not being UK resident for tax purposes but still 'ordinarily resident' as I return on a regular basis and have family there. I realised there might be complications if I said I was UK resident but wanted my passport sent to Thailand. I phone the UK passport office and explained the situation and the guy sounded as confused as I am but said I should apply as if I'm living in Thailand so that's what I'll try to do. I also asked if the forms could be sent online as on their website it's not clear but he said they could. The form is in PDF format but I can't fill it in online as I have with other forms so do I have to print it out and then scan it to send off? I was hoping someone else might have some experience of this or at least part of it. I'm it's not as complicated as it seems but at the moment I keep hitting problems. Thanks in advance for any comments. Useful, derogatory, humorous or otherwise.

I don't know about the NHS surcharge but you're right about visa fees. I doubt it's changed but you could pay in local currency in some countries such as China and India but not Thailand. You couldn't use sterling either. You had to use a credit or debit card and in my case pay a non sterling transaction fee. Complaints were made at the time and the reply from the time James Brokenshire was in charge was that sterling wasn't a recognised currency for this purpose. I assume it's still the same. I wonder what would happen if you had to pay in Euros?

That made sense until I read the figures again. These targets equate to no less than 2.38 trillion baht in revenue and at least 20 million visitors, not including 180 million mainland Chinese travelers and domestic travelers. They seem to be basing these on just international arrivals but excluding from China. It mentions 180 million mainland Chinese travellers and domestic travellers. That number would seem to include both although a comma after Chinese travellers would make a difference I think. It all seems a bit of a mess so you could be right. It may just be poor translation.

There's no excuse for flippancy. The Thai government has clearly gone to the trouble of calculating these estimates so I expect to see similar rigour from yourself. You'll need to start by giving a breakdown of the relative size of dumps by country as they may differ and that could have a significant effect on the resulting spillage. I'm guessing from your avatar and spelling that you're from the USA. Does dump size vary by state or political affiliation? I can't imagine Texans or Republicans being satisfied with anything less than the biggliest dumps ever. 'Bigly' is a real word apparently. Does moving to another country affect the mass of your deposits over time. You've got a lot of research to do so I'd take your laptop and tape and sit (or squat) on the toilet to save time and give yourself the opportunity for more personal measurement. I await your data dump with ever increasing excitement.

I've no idea how they've worked this out or if it's likely to be accurate or just a matter of hope but it seems a bit confusing based on this report. The government has set a target for this year to achieve 80% tourism revenue and 50% of international arrivals compared to pre-pandemic levels. If they have set a target then they must have some expectation of achieving. 20 million tourists would be 50% of the numbers in 2019. Tourism revenue seems to have been around 61 - 62 bn US$ which is around 1.7 trillion baht so the calculations don't appear right to me. If I've got that wrong, which is quite possible as I'm not used those sort of numbers, please let me know. I'm also puzzled by the idea of getting 80% of revenue from 50% of tourists. Maybe that's accounted for by inflation or maybe the world economy is in a much better state than I've been given to believe. These targets equate to no less than 2.38 trillion baht in revenue and at least 20 million visitors, not including 180 million mainland Chinese travelers and domestic travelers. If they've predicted the number of international tourists from around the world except China I would have expected an estimate of the split between Chinese and domestic tourists rather than just '180 million we haven't included'. All the domestic tourists will by definition be spending their time in Thailand. The Chinese will just be 'travellers'.

I think you'll find they do do this. If they didn't and given that we've had a Tory government overseeing the police for nearly 13 years they'd be looney lefties wouldn't they? The circumstances here do seem strange but other than that it's just what happens in many countries including the UK

I think it was the police that located him rather than the BMW. Mind you if it had been a Chinese car then that might be different. Damn good at surveillance the Chinese so I've heard

Well if you live life expecting everything then you're going to be disappointed

You should go back. They've got gas and electric central heating now. ????

I've never used it although being in Mahasarakham it might be a useful alternative to Khon Kaen. As well as the long lead times on these sort of projects maybe they think a better airport might attract more passengers and airlines. As I say I've never been there so is it a good airport to use or not?

That's the same with a lot of countries isn't it. It's the regime in charge, often through rigged elections or none at all. The citizens are a different matter and in a lot of cases less of a threat.

I had to do the online driving course a few months back. Most of it followed the rules I've been subject to for the last 51 years in the UK. It might have been better if it was a little less, cheesy. That's the best I could describe it and maybe use some roads that aren't in the middle of a city, probably Bangkok. The thing is the next day whilst driving it was if I'd been shown a video with secret information nobody on the road was allowed to see, which they probably haven't. It's an ingrained system which will take time and effort to change and proper funding of the police from government. In the UK when cars first arrived a test wasn't required but they were brought in first for public service vehicles and then cars in 1935 for anyone who started driving after 1934. Those who were driving before that didn't need one but they have gradually died or been required to take a test after a road traffic offence. They could do the same if they brought in a proper driving test.

Great idea and most grown up countries have probably been doing this for years although I suspect more effectively. They certainly have in the UK. There's something missing from this though isn't there? Revenue Stream. From my observation the traffic police and probably all police is based on low funding from government which the police can top up from what might best be called 'dubious methods' or 'Thai culture' depending on your view. For the non traffic police it's most obvious form is in the retention of cars and goods such as in the case of Joe Ferrari. Lower down there are probably fines and further up payment for promotion. The traffic police obviously have roadside fines. There's no other obvious reason to have a a facility for payment directly to a police officer other than making a profit for the police rather the money going to the government. If you look at all the Grab, Food Panda and Lineman riders they as far as I can tell always wear a helmet. My guess is that it's a case of 'no helmet no job' and despite Thais love of not abiding by rules they don't like it does work because it makes sense financially. I suspect this applies to a licence as well. For the police it isn't intended to be a deterrent but a fee for breaking the law and like any fee if it's too much people will stop using the service which isn't a good business move. All those food delivery drivers are a loss of revenue unless they can find something else to fine.

Despite seeing dozens of bands in the early 70s I never saw Fleetwood Mac in any of their lineups but I did see Chicken Shack. Unfortunately that was after she left and I think t was a 3 piece then. RIP

I think the sanctions are having an effect over time but they won't work on their own.

It would be interesting to know how many are flying back over a longer period.

You're forgetting some may like the males.

I think one of the things he did was film people involved in a trial (some or all of the defendants were Muslim) as they entered the court against the rules surrounding court proceedings. The interference could have been used to claim the defendants had been denied a fair trial thereby preventing their prosecution. Something I doubt he'd thought of.

Maybe it's my lack of knowledge but it seems to me that they are doing this the wrong way round compared to what I've experienced in the UK. I'm guessing this is replicated elsewhere. The card containing a chip complimented the magnetic strip and presumably was superior and you entered your pin. Then came the readers that you could just swipe your card over so you only rarely needed to use your pin. Using NFC, as it became available meant the phone provided much of the security. Thailand appears to have come from the other direction in a lot of this. Making things easier for those using NFC first rather than the other way round doesn't make sense to me. Using QR codes between phones is great for those selling in markets ect as they don't need a separate terminal but for bigger shops it slows things down. I haven't needed to do it for years but I used to use my Lloyd's Bank Visa debit card to draw money from an ATM. I could also use my Sainsbury's credit card which is Mastercard. Given that Thais and foreigners can use Visa or Mastercard in Thailand and Google Wallet (Applepay as well I assume) can take money from both I can't see why it's so restricted.