2 hours ago, CecilM said:

Makes sense. Since you don't spend the pension money in the UK, why should the gov't support your overseas lifestyle?

2 hours ago, CecilM said:

Makes sense. Since you don't spend the pension money in the UK, why should the gov't support your overseas lifestyle?

2 hours ago, CecilM said:

Makes sense. Since you don't spend the pension money in the UK, why should the gov't support your overseas lifestyle?

I am Australian so can someone explain why it would be better to provide the full pension to expats seeing as they don't use the NHS health system.Surely the savings there would exeed the cost of the extra pension expenditure.

4 minutes ago, emptypockets said:

Don't forget. It was your choice.

Not knowing about the frozen pension before coming to Thailand isn't a valid point.

Anyone considering leaving the mother country after a lifetime of residence should research EVERYTHING before making such a life changing decision.

a) I have not emigrated yet

b) I am fully aware of the injustice the UK has placed on it's expats for years without shame

c) Don't lecture us by reading more into peoples comments than they have stated

9 minutes ago, Bday Prang said:

Indeed pension credit opens a treasure trove of additional benefits which are unavailabe to those on the full pension, strangely many these benefits are unadvertised and have to be sought and millions of £s go unclaimed. Its another case of being penalised for doing the right thing. However, I believe expats here are not eligible for pension credit I have no idea if its available for those retired in the Philippines or the EU

Only available to UK residents. Its means tested. Former mum in law was getting £93 a week and that was increased to £120 a week plus other benefits. She had struggled for years.

UK expats who may have retired to Spain or somewhere warm were still getting the Winter Fuel Allowance.

5 minutes ago, emptypockets said:

Nah. Haven't got the time nor interest.

Besides my question was to BM 2. Not you. But thanks for sticking your nose in.

I think you mean "thanks for pointing me in the right direction " talk about lazy and ungrateful

Could always move to Benidorm. Sunshine cheap beer belly buster breakfasts and pension increases. What's not to like.😇

1 minute ago, potless said:

Only available to UK residents. Its means tested. Former mum in law was getting £93 a week and that was increased to £120 a week plus other benefits. She had struggled for years.

I makes me furious when comparing that to what the illegals get ! I wonder what they will get when they reach pension age, probably some special pension will be invented, just for them, gotta keep the two tier system going eh?

3 hours ago, CecilM said:

Makes sense. Since you don't spend the pension money in the UK, why should the gov't support your overseas lifestyle?

We all paid tax when we were working. Does this also apply to retired MP's who move overseas? Of course not.

3 hours ago, CecilM said:

Makes sense. Since you don't spend the pension money in the UK, why should the gov't support your overseas lifestyle?

I pay full UK tax of 3000 gbp a year. I also save in a UK bank. Don't receive any UK services. It's 2 tier like everything else over there.

Those pesky parliamentarians certainly vote themselves a good pension though.

3 hours ago, JAG said:

I suspect many do not realise that expatriates still have the vote to write in Westminster elections and referendums. I understand that you can ask tyo remain on the electoral register in the Constituency in which you last lived. It is relatively easily managed by email, and proxy voting. A significant number of registered to vote expatriates making this an issue may concentrate minds?

Yep I initially lost my vote after ten years or something of being away but the electoral office wrote to me saying the rules have changed - I get my vote back. Registering and writing to our MPs might 'focus minds' better - when we had no vote, nobody cared but now we do - so use it

49 minutes ago, Andyfez said:

But if you go back to the UK for any duration and claim you live there, it gets uprated:

I attach edited AI conversation in case you are interested:

The long-term impact is severe. One example: a retiree who moved to Thailand saw his pension frozen at £6,360 and it will remain at that level for the rest of his life, leaving him tens of thousands of pounds worse off over time. Ross Naylor

If you return to the UK: Pensioners who return to the UK can get their pension uprated to the current full amount by applying to the DWP, but that higher rate only applies for as long as they remain in the UK. Wikipedia

One practical note on timing: It is your residency status — not where the money is paid — that determines the freeze. Whether the pension is sent to a Thai bank account or a UK account makes no difference; once full-time residence in Thailand is established, the pension is frozen

When you return to the UK, your pension gets uprated to the current full rate — but only for as long as you're actually in the UK. The moment you return to Thailand, it freezes again at whatever the current rate is at that point.

So in practical terms:

• While in the UK: You'd receive the full, uprated pension amount that UK residents get.

• When you return to Thailand: It freezes again at the rate applicable at the time you leave.

This means a stint back in the UK could be worthwhile if you time it well — you'd "bank" any increases that have accumulated while you were in Thailand, and your new frozen rate would be higher than the old one. Some expats do deliberately return to the UK periodically for this reason.

Things to be aware of though:

• You'd need to genuinely establish UK residence, not just visit

Genuinely returning to live in the UK ("ordinarily resident") There is an exception — if you retire abroad "part-time" but live in the UK for part of the year and remain "ordinarily resident" in the UK, you will get annual increases in your state pension.

The pension reverts back to the date you first left UK, not the current rate. This has been discussed many times

1 hour ago, Bangkok Barry said:

That isn't the point. Expats don't flock back to the UK when they're sick for free treatment, because it isn't. Until you've been resident for six months.

3 years ago, I was diagnosed by the best private hospital in Thailand that I had prostate cancer. My French company private medical insurer refused to pay on a technicality for treatment (bastards..), and I therefore made the decision to return permanently to the UK and seek NHS treatment. I arrived in the UK, rented a temporary room in a dingy hotel in Blackpool (a city with which I had no family ties etc), and went down to the local GP to register. I explained that I was a returning expat from Thailand, with the intention of remaining in the UK, (which was true, because I had been told that I had prostate cancer, and being in my 60s, it seemed the best path to take). At no time was I asked to pay for treatment/investigations, nor was I made to wait. I was fast-tracked....

I hid nothing from the GP. He registered me immediately and within 5 days I was at Blackpool NHS, where I was seen by a postate cancer doctor. Again, I explained my background and was fast-tracked for further tests etc, especially because the experienced doctor looked at the MRI scans from the expensive Thai hospital and stated his doubts that I had cancer.

Subsequent to all this and 2 months of waiting for an extensive biopsy (they didn't want to do the biopsy immediately because I had bad UTIs etc), the 24-needle biopsy was performed, and not a single cancer cell was found, only benign calcium nodules!!

With this shadow hanging over me removed, I then had second-thoughts about remaining in the UK, and I asked my GP if I returned to Thailand/overseas, would I need to pay for the NHS treatment that I had. The answer was an emphatic 'no', because at the time of treatment etc, it WAS my honest intention to remain in the UK (because those wonderful Thai doctors said I had cancer). The fact that I subsequently changed my mind over where to live was irrelevant (said my GP), because my original intent was clear (I had registered with a GP, registered on the electoral role etc).

If you return to the UK with the honest intention to remain there, then NHS treatment is free and not delayed, (apart from the typical delays incurred by everyone for having your gammy hip replaced etc). Cancer diagnosis etc is fast-tracked.

4 minutes ago, boloaf said:

I pay full UK tax of 3000 gbp a year. I also save in a UK bank. Don't receive any UK services. It's 2 tier like everything else over there.

I don't follow you. GBP 12.500 is 0%, up to 50k it is 20%, so up to 37.5k @ 20% = 7.5k.

So your 3k a year means your income is about 15k+12.5k = 27.5k, less the 3k tax = 24.5k = 90k Baht per month.

Wish I had that much to live on.

41 minutes ago, emptypockets said:

Educate me.

No debit or credit card use. No monetary transfers. What am I missing?

A wise card pound and baht account and a Mrs to funnel it through is a start.

1 minute ago, Tidal wave said:

A wise card pound and baht account and a Mrs to funnel it through is a start.

The pension can be paid directly to Wise?

30 minutes ago, sammieuk1 said:

Only a ill informed fool would do direct bank to Thailand transfers that's what Wise is for🤔

I don't follow you, I do direct bank to Thailand transfers using Barclays, Revolut (Now a full UK Bank) & Wise with Revolut being the better option & Wise probably the worse nowadays ... What's foolish about that?

1 minute ago, emptypockets said:

The pension can be paid directly to Wise?

Wise has a sort code and account number...so yes it can

1 hour ago, Off Piste said:

There are some things in life one takes for granted and for most Brits, one of those things is their government pension. Many would not even give it a thought, they just trust in their government to do the right thing and that thing, is to pay them their pension. What difference does it make if they move abroad. Why should equally hard working and equally contributing folks be discriminated against and denied an increase unlike others who remain in the country........

Sure those 'fools' as you call them maybe should have read the fine print; I haven't and am certainly no fool, it just would never have entered my mind to check that the government has a way out for what I would consider doing absolutely nothing wrong...Thank goodness for this forum and the likes of YT in recent years as it's only through these mediums that I learnt this fact.

Then, if it is like you say, then Brits are very gullible. I saw it as a natural thing to look over everything, before moving from Sweden, so there would not be any surprises later in life. That´s something I expect everyone to do, instead of just don´t give a rat's ass and later complain. The only difference with you, is that there is no complaining from you. Otherwise, you were same foolish not to even think about checking how it works with your pension in the country you are moving to.

Besides that, you also talk about that it´s not fair when quoting my post and replying to me. I never mentioned anything regarding that and only stated the facts. Was that your way of smoothly making it look like I am bad, nicely disguised. That doesn´t work, as I don´t think it´s fair at all, but it´s beside the point. The need to check, and the need to be aware!

At the end your reply, you are also making kind of a fool out of yourself. You thank goodness for mediums that have delivered this information to you during recent years. Are you for real? Why would you call people that only state there are available information open for all regarding the subject? In other words, you don´t have to be a medium. You only have to be an enough clever person to find the information.

Also, there are not only Brits that are affected by different changes in their pension when they move abroad. Several countries have different clauses that in one way or another affects your pension. So, yeah! By replying like you just did, you made an even bigger fool out of yourself, by openly admitting that you didn´t have a thought of checking up such important things. Have a nice weekend now.

1 minute ago, emptypockets said:

The pension can be paid directly to Wise?

And why would you want to do that if you don't want to leave a trail.

9 minutes ago, wavodavo said:

I am Australian so can someone explain why it would be better to provide the full pension to expats seeing as they don't use the NHS health system.Surely the savings there would exeed the cost of the extra pension expenditure.

I think the idea is that they will not offer the free healthcare to expats if they return when sick although over the years I have returned to the UK several times, not specifically for medical treatment, but things happen , and as a result , I did need to visit a hospital on several occasions and I received treatment free, as I have a cunning trick , I was never asked if i was living overseas, (Why would they ask ? ) and I certainly did not tell them. Furthermore, had I been asked I would have simply said "no"! Job sorted.

In a previous thread a member, presumably not prepared to lie reported receiving a bill for £15,000 (IIRC) after treatment !! I would have wiped my ar$e with it and sent it straight back to them. I guess in the future they may ask for money up front, but they can't have what people haven't got Should I find my self in a situation like that I would simply sit on the floor in the entrance, I doubt they would want the bad publicity of me dying there , I'm white native British , i'm hoping that might start to mean something in the former "Great" Britain getting rid of Starmer and co will be a good start,

3 hours ago, CecilM said:

Makes sense. Since you don't spend the pension money in the UK, why should the gov't support your overseas lifestyle?

3 hours ago, CecilM said:

Makes sense. Since you don't spend the pension money in the UK, why should the gov't support your overseas lifestyle?

It's about what you paid in during your working life in the UK, regardless of where you wish to end your days.

Expats should get the same increases as UK residents.

This makes perfect sense not to allow an increase in pension benefits as the money is needed by the socialist Labor Party to support the thousands of migrants that the Labor Party is allowing to invade the UK. Many of these Thai living pensioners voted for the socialist Labor Party so they should understand.

Troll post removed.

@Farage discuss the topic not other posters. Rule 9. You will not post disruptive or inflammatory messages. You will respect other members and post in a civil manner. Personal attacks, insults or hate speech posted on the forum or sent by private message are not allowed.

3 hours ago, CecilM said:

Makes sense. Since you don't spend the pension money in the UK, why should the gov't support your overseas lifestyle?

Spending the money all your working life in the UK, paying tax, vat, We don't use NHS, get child support, pension benefits. Most pensioners who live overseas do so for many reasons, such as divorce and ending up with no house, cost of living, how can you live in the UK on £250 pw? Life style, being able to mix with like-minded people. Finding out there are ladies who want you, for one reason or another. Most us thought that we were thought paying into a pension scheme smae as a private pension. The problem is calling it a pension scheme when it is not; we still call it a pension, which is incorrect. The governments tell us it's a benefit. Which is also incorrect, you don't have to pay into a benefit scheme for 30 years before you get benefits. You can land in the UK and be paid benefits on your arrival.

40 minutes ago, sammieuk1 said:

Only a ill informed fool would do direct bank to Thailand transfers that's what Wise is for🤔

If your good enough to tax your good enough to get paid is my view.

2 hours ago, Bangkok Barry said:

It saves £930 million a year, according to an internet search. Peanuts in the big picture.

Not really peanuts, is it? Thank you for the research.

36 minutes ago, Rams86 said:

We all paid tax when we were working. Does this also apply to retired MP's who move overseas? Of course not.

A retired MP who moved overseas to a country like Thailand where no uplift is available, would be treated just like any other UK citizen in regard to the state pension. Obviously their employer's pension is not affected, just like any UK citizen's employment pension.

This is also true for Canadians. While Canada Pension Plan into which one made contributions while working remains the same, the Old Age Security Pension deducts 25% for those living abroad.

The workaround is to have one's pension by direct deposit into one's local bank. Perhaps this would work for Brits, too. Don't tell 'em where you live!

2 hours ago, Surasak said:

Did the last three words of my post not reach you!?

No, sorry. Which last three words are you referring to?

1 minute ago, Briggsy said:

Not really peanuts, is it? Thank you for the research.

well it is in comparison to what is spent on some other things, accommodating illegal immigrants would be one example most of whom are not in the least bit grateful and detest our country and culture.