steady

Hello everyone,

I have been looking through the UKBA website to see if their rules insist that every document is presented in English, but can't find an answer. I have marriage certificate etc all translated into English but I might have to provide things like a chanut (title deeds) or tabian baan (house book) to prove statements I am making on the covering letter about finances and where we have lived, or even the addresses on a Thai driving license as a way of proving our address and that we do live there.

So the question is, "Do all documents submitted to the embassy via VFS have to have certified english translations?".

I'm sure that some of the worthies who are regulars on this forum will know the answer.

Many thanks in advance.

Steady

Many thanks for the very full and informative post. I feel that I can meet the de facto adoption requirements because we have proof of us all living as a family in the form of school fees, 2 previous visas, medical insurance and photos, so you have given me a bit of confidence. Thanks for that.

I'm hoping someone with more experience and wisdom can help me. My family - wife, 2 children (UK citizens) and my niece are relocating back to the UK. Both my wife and niece are Thai and have had visitors visas to the UK previously without any problems and I don't foresee any problems getting my wife a settlement visa now. However when I read the UK rules on bringing children as part of the family I feel that my neice doesn't fit in any of their 'boxes'.

My neice lives with us as part of our family and has done so for a few years now, she is fully supported by us and is really just considered as a big sister to our 2 children. Her mother has signed the paper giving me and my wife sole responsibility for my niece at the local amphur office. But appartantly the UK wants only legally adopted children if they are not family but only appears to count family as children not neices. Every other condition relating to our situation can easily be satisfied. It appears that legally adopting can take years so that's not really an option - but if anyone knows different let me know. In Thailand the signed paper from the amphur office appears to be considered as all that's needed for our niece to be considerd as part of our family.

Has anyone been through this situation before? Any useful advice will be graciously received. Thanks.

Steady

You migth still want to consider n international adoption. It takes longer, but it will be recognised by your own country. A purely Thai adoptioon in all likelyhood not. Get competent advise about the diferences. Especially if you ever plan to return to your home country to live.

That's actually my situation. We have our neice living with us for about 2 years and she has been given 2 visitor's visas in the last 2 years to visit the UK. Our children have UK passports but now we are looking into returning to live in the UK. Wife should have no problem with settlement visa but people at VFS mentioned to the wife that we could not get a settlement visa for our niece, even though we have paperwork from her mother from the local amphur office giving us all custodial rights. Lady at VFS, the UK goverment's agents, also thought that we would have no problem getting the neice a student's visa but I thought that with that visa we would have to pay for her education and medical costs if anything happens in the UK. And more importantly it has to be renewed every so often, leaving us open to the whims of buraucracy!

Looking at the link provided by GregB the DSDW splits between what it calls local adoptions, where the adoptive parents (and one assumes at least one foreigner) is living in Thailand and Intercountry adoptions, where the adoptive parents are elsewhere. Does the local adoption have as many hoops to jump through as the intercountry, when a foreigner is involved? The website is a very good first point of contact and then sort of dries up when a little more information is required.

I have just helped a friend to send his money from the sale of his house out of the country ( 2 weeks ago). As earlier posters have said it's all about the land office tax receipt - you do need that, and if the house was bought in a company name you need a paper trail to prove that you and the company are one and the same. My friend took all of this to the local branch of his bank who really did not understand what he wanted - and told him why it wasn't possible!!!

The next day we went to the main branch of his bank, Kasikorn in Pattaya and asked for "International Transfers" we got sent upstairs and got a young man who not only spoke fluent Engish he actually knew all the rules. The money was in my friend's UK account within 3 hours. No problem, no hassle, no "front desk" misinformation - dead easy. And from reading the first posting, exactly the same circumstances.

My friend had even mislaid his original tortor3, money transfer certificate but because that was eleven years earlier when he bough his house, even that wasn't a problem.

So don't worry about the gloom and doom merchants, but do be aware that in Thailand if people do not know what to say they will say that you cannot do it. Get your Thai wife to find the international exchange section's number and give them a call, especially if the local branch appears to be putting the block on things.

Many thanks to all who had suggestions about the way forward. We have now successfully completed the process (legally) of transferring the money overseas.

Being in Thailand as the more observant and seasoned veterans will notice, this does not mean it will happen every time but here is what we needed.

The papers relating to the house sale, including tax related items and company papers asssociating the house selling company to the individual were all that was required, apart from the obvious copies of passport and bank account details....and the rest was easy. It actually was easy!

However we did find, after going in to a few banks, that talking to the 'front desk' for information is not a positive option. Go in and ask for 'International transfers' and then you get to talk to someone who really does know what they are talking about. The rest is simple.

So to all who contributed, thank you very much and I hope that this thread helps someone else in the future.

Hello,

I've got a friend who has just sold his house which he has owned for 10 years. However he now realises that he cannot find the TorTor3 form. That's the one that proves he brought the money into Thailand. We've already approached his bank who say that they don't keep any copies - it's up to the customer.

So down to the nitty gritty is there any way to take his money out of Thailand legally without stashing it in a suitcase. He has all the paperwork relating to the recent sale.

Over to the informed and imaginative Thaivisa members to help dig my friend out of the hole he is in.

Thanks in advance.

There's a front-page article in Thai Rath today which says that Japanese businesses are accusing the government of not being 'sincere' in their rehabilitation plans, of giving out false information about the situation, and for lacking clear standards for industrial parks.

They are also complaining about general lack of government help especially regarding all those factories in Ayutthaya, where the companies are estimating damage at a billion dollars, with 16,000 people out of work, but no help has boon received for 2 months.

I believe that is what the vast majority of educated and worldly Thaivisa members think too! But maybe this is the "wake up call", maybe Thailand now realises that a corrupt society makes it a weak society which in turn provides weak willed (minded?) politicians. I haven't been affected by the floods other than missing out on some eggs or beers but I can empathise with the ordinary people. Yet when I watch the policicians at work I just keep wondering what sort of people get to the top of the tree in Thailand. It's certainly not the best, most able and honest, but what do I know, I'm only a guest in the kingdom paying taxes and jumping through petty hoops for the priviledge.

This thread and the original piece about the professor with the 50 year masterplan sums up what I have seen over the last few weeks and months in Thailand.

It goes like this; expert one says something, in this case, build these waterways in 50 years is the answer. Then expert 2 says, but isn't Bangkok going to be under the sea in 30 years. Not a problem because as has happened here recently the prime minister says that she has listened to experts and we are only opening the sluice gate 20 cm because that is the best option. Then those who have been up to their armpits in filthy water for a month start shouting to open it further, probably rightly so, and the prime minister says, "ok, we can open the gate another 30cm". So now we have 4 groups of "experts" and to me the only ones showing ownership of the problem are the ones up to their armpits in the water. They are dealing with something tangible.

After seeing all this I'm going to encourage my children to become an "expert". As a career it must be on a par with politics or the law.....and you may have died of old age before you are found out!!!

...and he practically not saying anything of value. He is just telling us, whet we know: nothing! All speculating and tea-leaf- reading!

Can I write an article in THE NATION, too?

No, I'm using the crayons next!

I was living in Bang Phlat ( Thonburi) ,in 1995 , we were flooded for 4 months. Stop whinging ,learn to live with it, as we had to do. We were knee deep , in our Soi, had to walk 3 kilometres to a main road to catch a bus, water much to deep for our motor- bike taxis. To take my children to school and for me to go to work. We survived . Albeit ,it got a bit boring trudging through all the used condoms, dead rats,dead cockroaches, dead snakes.lots of shit ,from all the septic tanks that overflowed. Don't be a wuss.

I lived in a paperbag in the middle of the road, in the middle of a drought, all my family suffered, we were happy to eat the dead rats and cockroaches.....only 3 kilometres - on a road, we had to crawl over 30 kilometres over broken glass...didn't have much use for the used condoms though. Whose a wuss now?

Pick stuff off the shelf.

Line up with the other thais at the counter.

Wait while they pack it and give you straws and plastic spoons.

Have no idea what they say to you in rapid fire thai.

Look at the display to see the amount you owe.

Hand it over.

Collect change and happy cat stickers.

Have no idea what they say to you in rapid fire thai.

Say thank you and leave.

What do you want? A massage? They don't do any different to thai customers whereas at least I smile at them.

This person has got it right. The people working there don't really want to be there, or at least would rather be somewhere else. The customers have to be there...for a short time, to buy what they want. It's easy - get in, get out, stop effin about! That said it's best to be happy and smile, there are lots of workers who are just as happy when you take the time to smile and interact with them.

Go to jail do not pass go

Steady on!. Whilst I don't agree with huge overstays I don't think it warrants jail time. Some of you really need to get off your high horses and start living!

You must come up with some other punishment if you say it doesn't warrant jail time. Also why doesn't breaking the law warrant jail time? It does in every other country I know.

Why give an amnesty - if you overstay then you have broken the law. You do not do it accidentally you set out to do it so take the punishment. I am all for the law being applied fairly and firmly. A period in the slammer would at least go some way to making sure these people do not do it again but I think it should be a day for day punishment overstay 50 days then 50 days inside. Blacklisting is pointless as it only ensures that the passport does not return to the kingdom it does nothing to stop the person getting a new passport and re-entering under a new name etc etc.

As soon as Thailand does something positriver everyone thinks they do it for money - well I can asure you that most countries have strict immigration laws and they apply them - Thailand tolerates foreigners and we should never forget we are mere visitors in the kingdom and should act accordingly.

Put them in the slammer day for day.

Your comment "I am all for the law being applied fairly and firmly." is the issue. Not today and not in Thailand.

Thanks everyone, the replies are clarifying things. I'm now get a feel for what to buy. A 9.6k BTU inverter air con seems to be just the thing.

And yes it was a typo when I wrote 9.6 BTU and not 9,600BTU. Remember that if I was an expert and knew what I was doing I would be answering these questions not asking them!

No one can tell you the answer without knowing the volume of air space of the room to be cooled.

The answer can be calculated once the maximum amount of current drawn is calculated. When the aircon is working at maximum, that's it. I just can't find information (that I trust) from shops or internet.

As a background I want to be able to close the bedroom windows at night. The aircon is probably going to be used as an air filter at night mostly, never during the day and only when it's very hot will the cooling actually be used. My walls are 25cm thick insulated blocks, the ceiling has 6 inches of insulation above it and the 2 windows are only 2 sq m each. The room is actually a comfortable temperature already but to buy an air filter / dehumidifier comes in at about the same price as aircon (with filter and dehumidifier), so aircon seems the best idea, especially as I would have to shut the windows to benefit from an air filter. If anyone knows any different.......

I am looking to buy a 9.6 BTU air con unit. When talking to shop assistants or searching on the internet it is not clear to me what the power consumption will be. I have read as little as 1.1 kW but have also been told up to 2.9 kW.

As I do not have any space for a new circuit from the consumer unit I might be left with the only option being to take a spur of my ring main (32 A mcb and 2.5mm cabling, only serving 3 bedrooms, presently only used for fans). I'm not too concerned at 1.1kW but a higher value especially if unknown isn't the way forward.

Any ideas or suggestions would be great.

Thanks.

perhaps the sensitive Saudis would feel better if Thailand were to chop off his hands, in line with their own barbaric ideology of justice

I think I would prefer that way rather than have a police force that promotes officers with a background like Somkid's. As another poster said, everything about this case is barbaric. Just becuase they smile when they kill people doesn't make it less barbaric.

I see that some people like the idea of curiosity, others like the idea of thinking. I personally prefer the idea of encouraging thinking because as I look around Thailand I see many adults who do not think. People like motorcyclists who turn onto main roads without stopping, or even looking, pedestrians who just walk across roads etc etc. We all have seen something and thought "Why did they do that?". There are enough forums around discussing similar things and they usually just end up negative and Thai bashing. To me though it does indicate a missing link in the wiring of a brain. Why would an adult with similar intelligence to me then not think about consequences? Is it geographical, cultural, lack of education or what? I don't know but do tend towards the lack of encouragement to think.

It is not always the case that the foreigners do things better than the Thais, however when it comes to bringing up children to be thinkers, curious and generally open to learning I think that we have the edge. Does anyone think that a forum similar to this one but used mainly by ordinary Thais would address this as an issue? I beleieve that generally it is not even identified.

I do agree with all of the positive posts which advocate taking children places, read books and just talk, especially the "think about it" mantra. If a child hits a problem then before giving help always ask if they have thought about it first and what do they think?

Ok, so we've done how good it is for society to seriously assualt and mark children. We've done the opposite in that any violence or corporal punishment is wrong but these are all the views of individuals on this forum.

Why did it take television to get this teacher removed. At least 40 pupils have now come forward and said he did the same to them. I assume that all had marks to differing degrees. Why did they not phone their parents at the time? Why did the parents not respond? As far as I am aware boarding schools have teachers in charge of different areas, room, form, social welfare etc etc. Why did another teacher not see the marks and react? Why is the school admistrator now saying that they don't support the teacher? I find it impossible to believe that they did not know this sort of thing took place.

When considering this whole episode, I find it a bit creepy. Especially the bit about children not talking. Never mind the talk about the Thai educational system, if Thai children are subjected to this and DO NOT tell anyone then the Thai society is sicker than some forum members assume. If they did tell someone and no further action took place, well that could be an individual or institutional failing. Or societal, in the same manner as police have yet to do anything, although police reports have been filed and it's unlikely they will get any better evidence than the videos which are now being shown around the world.

The thing that I find most disturbing is that it appears that pupils did not tell parents or other adults and hence, no one could respond in a positive manner.

In this situation I think that the magic word is "reasonable". It's all about reasonable punishment for the offence. I watched the video on television and the teacher was out of control. I would describe him as a maniac. No need for anyone to dissect the meaning of the word "maniac", I'm talking plain english. If most of us in our home countries had seen an adult inflict such an attack on another adult there would be outrage. Yet here in Thailand a fair percentage seem to think that the child deserves what he got. I would argue that no child deserves what that child got.

As for the people who come out with the "in my day we got......". Why don't we find some mines to send the children down. I realise that chimneys are hard to find in this part of the world!

Good on that teacher, at last someone who knows how to keep todays kids in line. Why all the the outrage? It happened all the time when I was a kid, it was the only way the teachers could control us. Never did us any lasting damage, in fact we had a lot more respect for our elders then than the kids do now. Kids don't get much discipline at home (especially Thai luuk-chaai) they are treated like kings by their folks, the parents even standing on buses while the kids sit.

Do you politically correct types want schools in Thailand to end up like some schools in the US and UK where the teachers regularly get beaten up by their pupils? I'd rather see a few unruly pupils caned and the rule of discipline maintained. Give a kid an inch and he'll take a mile.

By the way, I have six kids and they didn't need to be caned at school, they were taught how to behave at home. They've all grown up to be model citizens.

If you saw the whole video on TV and really believe "good on the teacher" then you are a very sick man. Get help!

Evidently only about 2% of Thais are affected by iodine deficiency. Fish sauce doesn't provide enough iodine. Check out this article.

http://www.idpas.org...eficiencies.pdf

Here are a couple of excerpts.

Two iodine and seven iron compounds were tested for use in the fortification of pure fish sauce, mixed fish sauce,and salt brine for cooking as a means to combat iodine and iron deficiencies.

Micronutrient deficiency is a public health problem in most developing countries [1, 2]. In Thailand, irondeficiency anemia affects such vulnerable groups as pregnant women and children, with prevalences as high

as 70% in some rural areas [3]. Moreover, although the overall revalence of iodine-deficiency disorders is low in Thailand (2.1%), food-based strategies are needed to maintain this level, as well as to reduce the revalence of iodine-deficiency disorders in areas where it remains high.

So are we saying that if this 2% are government, elite and civil servants it explains everything!!!!