Hi all, once again thanks to all the help I recieved on this forum for getting the missus back to the UK. We are currently settled and she is absolutley lovin every minute of it here. What I would like to say is that anyone who has the wife or girlfriend returning to the Uk, do not forget to get them to have a chest x-ray with them in their hand luggage. I unfortunatly forgot, which meant joing a 200ish long que at Heathrow airport on the 13th. Luckily I managed to perswade the "English" staff to fast track me and the missus, much to the disgust of all those waiting [snip]! I was lucky, as their was one other Thai lady who had been waiting in the que for 7 hours!! I dread to think what this would do to the confidence of a person who has to deal with this alone. So again DO NOT forget to get a chest x-ray from Thailand, it will save a great deal of <deleted>. Oh apparently the increase of people was due to the shool terms starting? And you would not believe the amount of people their who did not even have a address to go to in the Uk, shocking! Hard to grasp why they are so vigarous with some and not others entering the Uk! Still hope this helps some people.

Bang...

Edited by Scouse.

hi bang

Very valuable advice pal, we didn't do the chest X-Ray in bkk either but luckily at heathrow there was no queue in the clinic but I can imagine it would of been a nightmare if it was busy as it is a small department there.

All the best to both of your futures here in the UK.

Regards

Clive sorts

hi bang

Very valuable advice pal, we didn't do the chest X-Ray in bkk either but luckily at heathrow there was no queue in the clinic but I can imagine it would of been a nightmare if it was busy as it is a small department there.

All the best to both of your futures here in the UK.

Regards

Clive sorts

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Why do they have to have to have a chest x-ray??

hi bang

Very valuable advice pal, we didn't do the chest X-Ray in bkk either but luckily at heathrow there was no queue in the clinic but I can imagine it would of been a nightmare if it was busy as it is a small department there.

All the best to both of your futures here in the UK.

Regards

Clive sorts

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Why do they have to have to have a chest x-ray??

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TB

For the benefit of any non Brits. Any person entering the UK on a long term visa, i.e. for more than 6 months, is liable for health screening at the port of entry on the occasion of their first entry. As this is mainly to check for TB a recent chest X-ray is required, and if you do not have one then this will be done at the medical centre at the port. The embassy do not tell you this when they issue the visa!

From reading posts on another board, it appears that this is almost certain to happen if entering via Heathrow, but far less likely if entering via a regional airport.

I understand that most other western countries require a medical check before issuing the visa, and the UK will soon be doing things this way too; see GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCES OVERSEAS TB SCREENING PROGRAMME (21/07/05). Far more sensible, IMHO.

Thanks for the info people. Mrs Bojangles will hopefully be coming over in the next week or so, alone. And i wouldn't want her going through that when she arrives. Where can she get it done? Is there any other advice, that would be useful to know?

Is there any other advice, that would be useful to know?

I am pretty sure that Manchester Airport don't do the screening, But Humberside, Leeds/Bradford definately don't.

I think it's just easier to have it done here, later. I have heard of cases where the immigration at Heathrow will insist that she has an x-ray, even though she has a clean bill of health from Thailand. Doctors letter etc.

Thanks for the info people. Mrs Bojangles will hopefully be coming over in the next week or so, alone. And i wouldn't want her going through that when she arrives. Where can she get it done? Is there any other advice, that would be useful to know? 

Any Private Hospital will do it for her.

If there are none in Chaiyaphum, then get her to go to either St Mary's or Ratchasima Thonburi in Korat.

Good luck for her arrival

Is there any other advice, that would be useful to know? 

I am pretty sure that Manchester Airport don't do the screening, But Humberside, Leeds/Bradford definately don't.

I think it's just easier to have it done here, later. I have heard of cases where the immigration at Heathrow will insist that she has an x-ray, even though she has a clean bill of health from Thailand. Doctors letter etc.

Cheers Monkey, she'll be arriving at Manchester

Thanks for the info people. Mrs Bojangles will hopefully be coming over in the next week or so, alone. And i wouldn't want her going through that when she arrives. Where can she get it done? Is there any other advice, that would be useful to know? 

Any Private Hospital will do it for her.

If there are none in Chaiyaphum, then get her to go to either St Mary's or Ratchasima Thonburi in Korat.

Good luck for her arrival

Thanks Derek. She's in Jomtien at the moment, so it should be easy for her to get it done there

In theory, anyone staying in the UK in excess of 6 months has to be referred to the Port Medical Inspector (PMI). In practice, however, referral can be haphazard depnding upon either whether the PMI is present, or upon the whim of the immigration officer.

The PMI is more likely to be present at larger airports; i.e. Heathrow and Gatwick, so you do stand a better chance of not being referred if you land at a provincial airport. Certainly, my wife landed at Manchester and wasn't asked to attend the PMI, but that's not to say that no-one who lands there is referred.

Scouse.

Scouse, or anybody else who may know.

I've never tried before but is it possible to get a "Pass" at an airport that enables you to go through to arrivals? I'd like to meet the Wife off the plane and then wait in the Queue with her, rather than her being alone for who know's how long and me waiting with anticipation on the other side. I was going to get a cheap ticket to Ireland or France or something like that, so that i could go through the Customs gate and then just not bother catching the plane

Guys, is this screening safe for pregnant women?

Hi Mr BoJ,

Unfortunately, it's a non-starter. The airport authorities won't issue airport passes unless you have business associated with the airport and then only after security checks. Immigration officers have a statutory right to go anywhere within the airport and can use their warrant cards to effect entry. This right also extends to escorting members of the public, but they are unlikely to escort you airside unless there is a good reason; i.e. they have held up your missus for further questioning. Your plan to buy a ticket, not travel, and then mingle with the your wife as she arrives, is also not possible as departing and arriving passengers are segregated.

On a brighter note, I've just heard from the horse's mouth that the place to arrive if you wish to avoid the PMI is Manchester terminal 1. The PMI at MAN is based at TN2 and the immigration officers at TN1 don't bother to refer passengers as it would involve them (the IOs) escorting the "patients" both there and back.

Cheers,

Scouse.

Cheers Scouse,

I can't book the ticket until she has obviously got the Visa but if she comes by KLM, which is the one i normally travel by, then that comes into Manchester at Terminal 2. The other choice could be via Singapore but i don't know which Terminal that arrives at. I phoned her today and got her to get her mobile registered for overseas, so at least i'll be able to talk to her whilst she waits.

Just tell her you'll wait for her in the Dog and Partridge.......

Alternatively, you could fly to Amsterdam and then legitimately travel with her on the AMS - MAN leg of the flight.

Scouse.

Just tell her you'll wait for her in the Dog and Partridge.......

She'll be seeing her fare share of that "Watering Hole" my friend

As for Amsterdam, yeah looked at that but if you stay for less than 2 nights you get charged full price for the flight, instead of £20 each way. Could always do some window shopping for a couple of days

An alternative alternative is to fly Emirates BKK - DXB - MAN. As of 1 year ago that flight arrived at TN1 as that's the one my missus and I caught.

Scouse.

Doing chest x rays of incoming Thai babes.

....who said the life of an Immigration Officer was boring !

Years ago, one IO (no longer in the job) dressed himself up in a white coat and pretended to be the PMI. He had a good grope of an Austrian lady's chest and his indiscretions only came to light when she wrote in to congratulate the real PMI on his prompt service.......

Scouse.

Just to address a couple of points raised earlier in the thread:-

Having a medical and chest X-ray done in Thailand may speed the process up once you are in the medical centre, but it wont stop the IO from referring you there. The PMI may accept the medical report and X-ray, or may insist on you having another one. Although when my wife and daughter arrived for the first time the PMI took one look at their vaccination scars and sent us on our way, muttering "Why are they wasting my time sending people like you here?!" We were only in front of the PMI for 5 minutes, but had to wait over 2 hours to actually see her!

Pregnant women will not, of course, be X-rayed.

Pregnant women will not, of course, be X-rayed.

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Excellent news, so no wait for me at heathrow then. Cheers GU22, you made our day

Sorry, mate, but your celebrations are premature. They'll probably still refer your missus to the PMI, it's just that she won't be x-rayed.

Scouse.

Sorry, mate, but your celebrations are premature. They'll probably still refer your missus to the PMI, it's just that she won't be x-rayed.

Scouse.

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Bugger, thanks for the deflation Scouse. So why would she be shown to the PMI? Is there anything I can do here to get around that 'little' trip?

Being referred to the PMi is also meant to be beneficial to the passenger as, ideally, the PMI should take the person's name and address, and forward them on to the relevant health authority who, in turn, write to the passenger advising them that they can register with a GP. In your wife's case, they will probably just take her details and ask her if she feels well. PMIs are employed directly by the Dept. of Health and they have to be able to justify their existence to their bosses.

Ben, however, was correct in his initial post that the busiest time of the year for passengers being referred to the PMI is Sept/Oct when all of the foreign students arrive.

Scouse.

Ben, however, was correct in his initial post that the busiest time of the year for passengers being referred to the PMI is Sept/Oct when all of the foreign students arrive.

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That's alright then, as we will need to register with a doctor asap. We are hoping to arrive late October, so hopefully missing the student rush.

I'll be with her, so won't be too bad as she won't be alone mind you her English is getting better than mine.