paully

Why problematic, Paully?

Yes, perhaps 'a little bit more complicated' instead, in that she would have to actually apply for ILR.

What happens if the British partner dies 7by7

Again, it depends on the spouse's immigration status. If she already has ILR, then she could stay and even apply later for naturalisation on her own account (if she wished to). If the British partner dies before she has ILR then it would be more problematic.

the CAB sent her to a solicitor in Farnborough (Hants), so hopefully she's a specialist.

That may well be the same solicitor in Farnborough that a Thai friend of the wife's was put on to by a local CAB in Hampshire, also concerning domestic violence and immigration. The firm were pretty good - but a bit of a drive for her to attend meetings!

She does tend to let things drift and then panic when she thinks she's running out of time; after all, it's been 14 months now since he kicked her out!

One of the problems with the DV route is that there is no police report. The one time she tried to report it the police would not take her seriously and refused to take any details, so she never attempted to report it again. I advised her when she told me this to make an official complaint; but she is worried about complaining about police officers; despite my assuring her that it's not the same here as in Thailand.

Yes, there's only so much you can do for her, 7by7. That's a pity about the police, but she could still get enough together for a decent DV application if she tries.

she finally spoke to CAB and they put her in touch with a solicitor who she saw last week. She has persuaded her to try the domestic violence route to ILR; even though she has very little evidence of DV other than her husband throwing her out of the marital home while she was pregnant. The solicitor reckons this is enough for her to not only be successful but because she is currently living on friend's floors, including ours

The solicitor says an ILR application under the DV rules would be better than a Zambrano application as once she had ILR that would be it, until and unless she applied for citizenship.

Any thoughts?

To get back to the topic, the solicitor may well be right about the advantages of an ILR application citing DV in support over a Zambrano application. But, as mentioned, there would need to be fairly compelling evidence of domestic violence, mental and/or physical, by this man over a period of time. It would not have to be as strong as the evidence needed for a judge to grant an injunction in a court, but there would need to be detailed evidence which looks convincing.

Has she begun to put together a diary of events and abuse, 7by7? With all due respect, if I were her solicitor, I would have told her to keep as comprehensive a record as possible of abuse/threats/harrassment etc by whatever means in the form of a diary, writing it down as soon as it occurs. This can then be put in the form of a sworn written statement in which she certifies that the contents are true to her knowledge and belief (and so can be relied on by the authorities). The police report and a brief statement from her friend should also, clearly, be included. I appreciate that this lady may not be the most organised person in the world (not trying to be nasty about her), but she needs to work methodically to collate her own evidence.

Nearly 15 years as a driving instructor (until I had to retire for medical reasons) teaching and advising foreign licence holders makes me sure that no insurance company would issue cover to someone with just an IDP, they would want details of that persons national licence as well.

Well, you speak as you find, 7by7. My experience with Thai nationals with IDPs is different - they were able to obtain insurance in Britain (for a fair premium, admittedly). The OP stated that he could not obtain insurance for his missus on her Thai licence.

a Thai licence is sufficient. Though an IDP can be useful if the Thai licence is an old style one without an English Translation on it.

An IDP is also useful to obtain insurance in the UK so the owner can drive immediately; as the OP has already found out, it can be very difficult to obtain insurance on a Thai driving licence.

" ***On a side note, the school have been taking 1,000 baht per month from her salary (and everyone else's) and claiming it is "bond money". It is not stipulated in the contract that they do this. 2 other employees have left their contracts (not quit, the contract ran out) but the school refused to pay them this money (a total of 24,000 baht which is a fantastic sum considering they earn only around 16,000 per month) This is unethical and immoral as far as i am concerned, but with nothing being written in the contract i don't think there is much anyone can do. Again, any help or advice is most welcome."

This does happen, but it is not strictly legal to do this unless the right for the employer to deduct from her earnings is set out in her employment contract.

The short answer, I'm afraid (not so easy for her as a non-native speaker) is to find another job with a better school.

Thank you for that.

No problem, thaigirl. Remember that everyone in the UK now has to go through the same procedure for a first UK passport, British citizen by birth or otherwise. Years ago (too many), when I got my first passport it was much simpler and no interview. You should be fine.

booked in one name and letter in another name may be a reason.

Either that or different ID was used from that when registering for the test (although the OP maintains it was the same). Annoying and pedantic, but there it is. However, there's no excuse for rudeness.

"how long was the interview and wha happened in the interview room?"

With the wife's, it took about 20 mins. It's an interview - formal questions from one interviewer, done in English.

"Can the partner of the applicant be in attendance?"

Not at the actual interview itself - why would he be (it's not his passport application)? But he can go along and wait outside, he'll probably overhear most of the questions but naturally he can't give any input into the answers.

"And what kind of questions are asked?"

Various questions about your family and background - remember it's satisfying the interviewer that you are who you say you are.

^ Well, we'll see what results. As you will note from this list:

The Commission therefore launched infringement proceedings against Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Germany, Italy, Malta, Lithuania, Spain, Sweden, Poland and the United Kingdom during the period from March to October 2011.

much of the EU is supposedly in breach of the directive, not just the UK alone.

Also, it's not quite as clear-cut as implied, the relevant part of the directive is here:

"(8)

With a view to facilitating the free movement of family

members who are not nationals of a Member State,

those who have already obtained a residence card should

be exempted from the requirement to obtain an entry

visa within the meaning of Council Regulation (EC) No

539/2001 of 15 March 2001"

The key is: has "already obtained a residence card". Not just turn up at the border with an EU national and be waved through without a visa.

The application can be 'checked' at a local registry office (Nationality Checking Service). They will go through the paperwork and copy + certify critical documents so you can have them back immediately.

Yes - well worth doing this in my view, even though there's a fee of £60. Takes away a lot of worry about lost passports, etc. and seems to speed up the process.

If I had NQT year done, and then return to UK 5 years later, would my Internatonal school experience count on the UK pay scale. I was under the impression it wouldn't.

Why wouldn't it? It's up to the school where they place you on the salary scale points. If you impress them at interview, they'll do you a deal. If you don't impress them at interview, they won't offer you the post at all. I started more than half-way up the teaching pay scale due to previous, non-teaching, experience.

Not a personal recommendation - I don't think you'll get many of those - but if I were you I would try contacting an "official" translator, particularly those who translate/interpret for the courts/police in the UK. An example site is below:

http://www.apciinterpreters.org.uk/

hi paully we were married in thailand and the visa stamp in her old passport is spouse of me

what is a marriage visa then??

thats what i thought we got?

It's that website's colloquial term for a settlement visa based on marriage to a UK citizen. It sounds like she has this and she also has ILR as you stated.

She should be fine with the application, just a bit of a bore to fill the form in. The huge fee to pay is a bit of a bore too!

"Have held a UK Marriage Visa or Unmarried Partner Visa (De Facto) for at least two years (WHAT IS THIS)?? WE WERE MARRIED IN THAILAND ."

Where you were married doesn't matter. But to apply for UK citizenship, she needs (in your case) to have been living in the UK on a marriage visa and be in the UK at the time of application.

Does having the PGCEi mean that you were able to obtain a full teachers licence without taking the MOE exams?

I would think so, if there is a genuine certificate awarded for it by a university. I don't think the word 'international' appearing after Post-Graduate Certificate (or Diploma) in Education would put the MOE off.

Don't get your friend to make a fake job offer. Just say that she intends to seek work and give examples of types of work she could do, ie she is qualified to do. By all means include some examples of online job ads if you can find some.

I wonder what assets she has in her name paid for by her husband sitting in Thailand.

Presumably, next to none - which is why she wants to fleece the kilt off his backside in the courts in Scotland (or the UK anyway).

the partner of a foreign student entering the UK with a student visa would not be applying for settlement.

That's why, I presume, the OP's quoted extract refers to "spouse or partner of a student". It doesn't mean spouse/partner of a British citizen who happens to be studying in the UK.

I think this bit (from the website) should ring a few warning bells:

"Thongsook College International is currently seeking CHE approval for this program and will inform applicants when they are fully approved by the MOE. "

I wouldn't touch any programme that hasn't already been formally approved by the national authorities.

A lot depends upon the ties the applicant has with the UK. Were his father still alive then I think it would be granted, but as his father is dead, his paternal relatives seem uninterested in him and he lives in Thailand, I don't think it will be so straightforward.

Seconded, I feel it will be very difficult - but not impossible.

I'm not so sure there is an 'average' TEFL teacher.

Fair point, but, let's face it, most inexperienced TEFL teachers coming to Thailand in their 20s or 30s wouldn't be able to "drive a new car", would they. Particularly if they don't have a degree and don't come over with a dollop of savings to hand.

I love my life here.

Great, good on you.