Renewing A Thai Passport +transferring Visas

[GuestHouse]

My wife's Thai passport is due for renewal later this year, she will be in Thailand at the time the renewal takes place.

Her passport contains a number of visas, most importantly a residence visa for Italy and a 5 year Multiple Re-entry Visitor Visa for the UK.

Can anyone advise on how she needs to go about getting the visas added into her new passport.

The last time she renewed her passport the Passport Office simply extended the validity hence no need to move any visas over.

She is also concerned that the Visa office may not return her expired passport.

Anyone have advice/experience on all of this?

[lopburi3]

She will get her old passport back and should be able to use that for visa proof but you should check with Italy and UK to find out there regulations. Will move to other country visa section as there is probably more experience there.

[the scouser]

In my days as a visa officer we simply used to issue a new, free visa of the same validity in the new passport, but I suspect those days are gone and a charge would be made to make the transfer. However, as Lopburi3 suggests, your wife may simply carry both the old and the new passports. That one has expired does not negate the validity of the visas inside.

It is worth checking up with the local British embassy, though, to see if they would make the transfer to the new document free of charge.

Scouse.

[GuestHouse]

I've had a response from the Visa Office at the British Embassy in Bangkok

Valid visas do not require transferring or renewing. If you have obtained a new passport, simply travel using both passports, some applicants choose to attach them together.

So there's the answer, and thanks for the input chaps.

[thaihome]

The new passport will have some words to effect that this is a new passport and please honor any visas in the old passport. I think they put the old passport number in the statement.

TH