Thai passport

[Blackandwhite]

My wife is Thai I am English, We live in the UK. We have a dayghter she is 18 months old. We are planning a long trip to LOS. I did enquire a while back on a visa for her ( My daughter ). I found a very easy way round the visa. We registered the birth of our daughter at the Thai embassy and we also were able to apply for a Thai passport for her. That means she is able to go with my wife at anytime for as long as they wish.

I also hope at some point it will help with visa's for me when we settle there to live. ::

[chonabot]

Cool , it will  

[the scouser]

Simon,

I advise that your daughter perhaps enters and leaves Thailand on her Thai passport and enters the UK on her British passport as the Thai one will have no authority in it for her to stay in the UK (unless you've already been to the home office in Croydon). However, whatever you do, do not tell the Thai authorities that your daughter also has a British passport as they do not recognise dual nationality. The British do recognise it.

Scouse.

[chonabot]

Thailand does recognise dual Nationality , if they didn't, they wouldn't issue a Thai passport for a child born in the Uk.

Check out the website below. I found this out the hard way, when registering my son.

One interesting point though, if you have a son that you wish to get Thai citizenship for, he will be liable to be called up for the Army when 18.

dual nationality

[the scouser]

Sorry, Chonabot, I can't access the website. One observation, however, and that is that simply being born in the UK no longer automatically confers British citizenship (British Nationality Act 1981-effective from 1/1/83). One of the parents has to be lawfully settled in the UK; i.e. either they are British or a foreign national with no restrictions on their stay in the UK. Therefore it is possible for, as an example, a married Thai couple to be in the UK on work permits and for them to have a child. The child would not be British and a Thai passport would need to be obtained from the Thai embassy. Consequently, the Thai embassy would issue a passport for a UK-born child whether or not they recognise dual nationality.

Scouse.

[markt]

I knew an American couple who were working in the UK.

When their son was born he becomes an American, not British.

A childs nationality depends on its parents immigration status.

I think i read somewhere that Thailand allows dual nationality up to the age of 18 or 19 then the person must decide which passport they want to keep.  Doesn't sound right to me.  

Does anyone know more on this?

[benny]

Sorry to change the track somewhat. My wife gave birth to a baby boy last week. I have been advised by people that Thailand does and does not allow dual nationality. Does anyone have a definitive answer on this? What steps do I take to obtain this for the child? We have already registered our Son with the thai authorities. Any hellp or advice would be greatly appreciated. Is their a time limit for applications or registration?

Oh, sorry. We live in Bangkok and my wife is Thai.

[lopburi3]

My wife gave birth to a baby boy last week.

Your boy is Thai by birth.  The question is what nationality you are and if your country will allow dual nationality. Thailand does, but if laws do not change he will have to make a choice when he reaches military draft age.  You probably need to register his birth at your Embassy.

[benny]

Thanks Lopburi,

I am British and my wife is Thai.

[plachon]

On the same subject of dual nationality, I'd understood that there was no problem with it for the Thai authorities, up until the age of legal "adulthood" (18?), then the person is supposed to make a choice between being Thai or their non-Thai nationality. Sounds harsh and archaic, but then many Thai laws are. However, I heard Luk krung Brits  get round it by using a "Certificate of Entitlement" available from any British Embassy put in their Thai passports, then travel on these in Asia, and their British ones in Europe and no doubt, the ROTW. I'm thinking about getting one for my daughter (age 7), but they cost 7,300 Baht and there doesn't seem much point until she's nearer 18. Is there anyone with expereince on the pros and cons of these Certificates and can suggest any good reason for getting one earlier rather than later (bar saving on inflation, as their good for life I believe). ????

[chonabot]

Speak to the British Embassy on Wireless road, they should have some info on registering your son as a Uk citezen.

[samran]

Absolutely no problem with having dual nationality. I have it, friends if mine have it and it has never been a problem. A couple of things to remember though:

1) Always leave and enter Thailand on a Thai passport. Don't worry about not having to have a visa for the destination country in your Thai passport when you leave Thailand. No one at immigration asks/cares. I have 30 entry/exit stamps in my thai passport but hardly any entry/exit stamps in the thai passport for other nations I have visited, as I use my Australian passport to travel outside of Thailand. Never has been a problem

2) When checking in for your flight to the the UK, show both British and Thai passports to the check-in people. They need to know that your daughter has the right to enter the UK. Don't forget though, only show the Thai passport to immigration when leaving the country.

3) Even though dual nationality IS legal, many people in thai officialdom aren't aware of this. Apart from embassy officials and airline check-in people at airports who are familiar with dual nationality , I would refrain from telling anyone about the fact that your daughter has dual nationality lest someone tries to make things difficult for you.

4) When travelling in Asia and crossing land borders, stick to using the same passport. Immigration officals get all flustered and can get difficult when they can't find the stamp of the country you have just left.

5) As for military service, check out the Thai consulate in LA. It has all the information you need to know about miliary serivce in a Thai language PDF file. Something that you should know, is that if a Thai male reports for conscription after the age of 30, even if he draws the wrong lot, he will only get put into the army reserves, which is only called up during a war. This effectively means he doesn't have to do any time in the military. This is good way out for Thai males who have grown up overseas.

[the scouser]

To answer Plachon's question, a Certificate of Entitlement is issued to a person who is British but it is endorsed in their "foreign" passport. It may be costly at 7,300 baht but is a one off expense. Plachon's daughter would then be free to travel to the UK no matter how frequently on her Thai passport without firstly having to obtain a visa and upon arrival she can pass through the European Union queue, thereby saving time. When a subsequent Thai passport is obtained then the bearer just needs to carry both the current and old passport containing the C of E. Essentially for the purposes of entering the UK it changes the bearer's passport into a British passport. However, it does not confer the right, for example, to travel around Europe without obtaining visas first.

Scouse.

[edd]

:laugh: My wife is Thai and British[naturalised] we have just sent her Thai passport to be renewed in london.

This is the 3rd time of renual and we have always declaired her dual nationality.

There is no problem all they want is the MONEY        what a shock.

I hope this helps   Edd and Tia  :cool: