theoldgit

You don't say if you are waiting for your passsport to come from your embassy or not. If you are British then it should have gone to Hong Kong to be processed, not the Embassy.

As an aside, it is always a good idea to keep copies of every page of your passport before you send it off for renewal. Personally I am waiting to see how the new arrangements for using Hong Kopng work out before I will risk sending my passport.

For the avoidance of doubt, and off topic, when renewing a British Passport in Hong Kong you only need to send them a photocopy, not your actual passport.

Etihad are currently offering sub 30,000 from Bangkok to London, including taxes and surcharges, still expensive in my view but I think the days of cheap flights is over.

My understanding is that the posession of child pornography for personal use is not illegal here.

My understanding is that it is illegal, but I wouldn't stake my pension on it.

Don't know about the processing times but the office will be closed, or at least have restricted staff numbers during the Easter and Songkran holidays.

http://ukinthailand.fco.gov.uk/en/about-us...office-holidays

How about making child porn illegal here ? It is.

How about stopping the people selling child porn openly on Beach Rd in Pattaya and Pantip Plaza in Bangkok ? A very good question, I suspect we are back to the money talks bit.

I suspect there might well be a few people crossing the Mekong, reporting their passports stolen and making their way home.

I wonder if Thailand might attempt to extradite in such circumstances, though whilst these people could be prosecuted in their own countries I'm not so sure it would happen.

Really? My understanding is that the laws are in place for Thailand. The issue is that money talks. Read the perp apprehension stories. Always some guy that looks like he lives hand to mouth. Never see someone that has money. I wonder why? Is this one of the side effects of tolerating corruption?

Again absolutely right, this country is divided into the have and have not, very few of the haves will get themselves into trouble because their money talks.

Thailand really needs to get out of this corruption culture, everybody seems to accept that as a fact but is unwilling, or unable, to do anything about it.

Sorry I am veering well off topic.

Unbelievable! How is a child supposed to know what they are consenting to? They only know after the deed is done and then their childhood has gone already.

Absolutely right, and that's why the government is right to address the issue, starting with foreigners is a start, but they must also address the mindset of the Thai people who are no doubt putting these poor little ones in danger.

I think the minister by his statement accepts that there is a major problem with the Thai way of thinking.

I agree 100% that convicted child abusers should be locked up for as long as they are a threat to other kids, and that may mean for the rest of their lives, but I am not sure about the quote below that indicates Sweden wanted Thailand to severely punish child-abuse suspects. I suspect this is just a case of bad reporting or at least a poor translation as suspects are just that and are innocent until proven otherwise in a court of law, though I do agree that bail should be very difficult and maybe impossible if there is compelling evidence.

I am however glad that Thailand seems to be taking these types of offences seriously, let's just hope that neighbouring countries soon follow suit.

Permanent Secretary for Justice Kittipong Kitiyarat said Sweden wanted Thailand to severely punish child-abuse suspects and recommended that they never be released on bail because this was a serious crime.

Yes I had rather hoped it was more about today's date then another government initiative.

^^^^^

From the Entry Clearance Guidlines, 7by7 has even provided a link.

I have never believed in the death penalty for any reason, if the offence is murder then sadly it wouldn't bring the victim back, and whilst it might bring some short term satisfaction to relatives, I suspect that satisfaction would be short lived.

In the case if sex offenders then it is not so clear cut, as has already been pointed out what about the teenage girls selling herself and makes out she is far older than she is, any guy caught with her could be sent to jail and on release placed on the sex offenders register, I couldn't in all honesty sentence them to death.

In the case of a classic paedophile, and by that I mean somebody who interferes with young kids, someone who trades them as sex objects, somebody who photographs them for profit, or even those who buy these dreadful pictures, because without these people there would be no need to take the pictures in the first place, thus saving some kids, well then it's no so straight forward, execution is a quick release for the perpertrators and possibly in years to come the abused child might have a sense of guilt.

One could say that the possibility of a death sentence would be a deterrent, but the evidence doesn't support this.

On balance I wouldn't vote for the death penalty, I think life in prison would be far better, trust me that's not a soft option.

You cannot rule out the possibilty of a wrongful conviction, and whilst I take the point about being sure with DNA evidence mistakes can and do happen. In a previous life I have come across the most awful people who have been convicted of murder and child sex offences, and whilst they were truly obnoxious they were later proved to be innocent of the crimes for which they had been convicted. If the hang em brigade had their way then the state would have killed innocent people.

Well that's my two Satangs worth.

any ideas for UK? any info on the med cert??? please???

The UK charge a tad under 1900B for the letter, though it varies with the exchange rate and in any case is due for a modest increase on 6th April.

Of course the Brits being a very trusting race don't take your word for it, they want proof that the income actually exsists, they suggest a pension statement or bank statements as proof, though I believe they will accept other incomes. They used to give a letter on your total income but there have been some reports saying they will now only put the net income after tax, though I haven't had experience of this. Quite why the Thai Immigration will not accept the proof you have to show the embassy and cut out the middle man I really don't know, but them's the rules.

You don't have to provide a medical certificate to extend your stay.

And, sadly, International Departures has at least one.

Well, the "sponsorship" letter is about 3-4 pages. The other 4 are the index, and a more detailed explanation of included paperwork etc

Sorry for the assumption, seem like you have it about right.

One thing I forgot to add, I've read a lot of people say don't transfer any "large sums" of money prior to the application as it look's "dodgy". If I say "I'm paying for all the trip including her ticket and have sent £XXXX amount so she can buy a ticket" is that acceptable?

Spot on, certainly last minute large deposits of cash might ring alarm bells, given the problems some people encounter with buying tickets with third party credit cards this seems a sensible solution, I am assuming you will mention this in your covering notes.

One again good luck to you both.

As they say, the only way to make a small fortune in Thailand is to start with a large fortune.

The only thing I would add is that the sponsorship letter needs to be a readable length, don't forget the ECO doesn't have a great deal of time to make the decision, I think they would soon lose the plot with an eight page letter. I would try and make the letter short and concise, probably about three pages, perhaps highlighting the relevant points by using bullet points.

I agree with TVE suggesting original and copies, try putting them in a folder, though some people say VFS will take papers out of the folder they never have with me, number the sections and put an index at the front. Just try to ensure the application looks as professional and punchy as possible, that will make the job of the ECO a whole lot easier.

Good luck.

I think it would happen if they are inclined to grant the application but there are nagging doubts.

If they were at all concerned I suspect the application would have been declined without the phone call.

not tried the sponsors as I thought they were all cc booking and I don't have one and the offices are too far from me, I'll have another look though.

Think they prefer cash, also try the ads in the Bangkok Post, I have used them, you can pay the cash into their bank account and they will email or courier the ticket to you.

I went to that one in the Emporium for a Cathay Pacific flight to Singapore, I told them the Cathay website price in the hope they could undercut, no they have all gone so she offerred me a Thai or Singapore flight at twice the price. I reminded her that they were available online, she "checked again" - no all gone.

I went home and booked it online.

I really don't know how these companies stay in business if they really cannot be bothered, but they must know their business model.

Have you tried the forums sponsors?

I have used my Kasikornbank atm card in the UK and France, no problems, have also used it throughout SE Asia and Australia.

Anyone know about Tesco Lotus at On Nut? Is it available for overnight and long term parking?

Don't think so, well not for free anyway, they now give you a card and a ticket with the time of entry and I think you have to pay for more than a few hours.

Yes, they handle telephone enquires that cannot be answered by reading the website, as I said they are an outsourced telephone helpline.

Passport enquiries

All passport enquiries are handled by Careline Services Limited through their Passport Information Helpline. If you have a passport enquiry, which cannot be answered through the information on our passport web page, or, you would like a real time progress report on an application, please contact the following number.

The link you provided says you can apply in person or by post.

Applying by post

Completed applications and relevant supporting documents should be sent to:

The Passport Section

British Consulate-General

1 Supreme Court Road

Hong Kong

Applying in person

If you live in Hong Kong you may apply for passports at:

The British Consulate-General

1 Supreme Court Road

There is no Embassy in Hong Kong and the Consulate no longer handles passports per there web site. Contact is

You are of course correct in saying that there is no British Embassy in Hong Kong, but there is a Consulate general which the FCO say is bigger than most embassies. http://ukinhongkong.fco.gov.uk/en/about-us/

You can however apply for a UK Passport in Hong Kong, it is in fact the regional hub

http://ukinhongkong.fco.gov.uk/en/help-for...g-in-hong-kong/

Careline Services, who are an out sourced telephone enquiry company, just handle telephone enquiries.

2 questions on this:-

What are the latest estimates on opening? The latest estimate seems to be August, but it's only an estimate and there have been a few false starts.

Where, within the airport complex, is the Station? I understand it's on or just under the ground floor, I did see a sign on the ground floor, but I didn't check it out. There were some photos in the early days.