Thai Passport Holders Warning

[bmanly]

Today my Thai wife attempted to get a new Thai Passport from the Sydney Thai Consulate. Her old one could not be extended as it was expired too long.

If you get married overseas and you adopt the surname of your husband/wife then you will not be able to get a new Thai passport at the Consulate unless you have made changes to your ID card and house book prior. On the forms you fill out it asks: Are you married? What is your husbands name? and Where was he born?, amongst other questions. The officials said that both passports (Thai and Foreign) must be in the same surname.

Even though my wife had a current ID card and house book photocopies this is not enough. She was told that on her next visit to BKK to change her surname to mine, then change her ID card to the new surname, then change the housebook and then apply for a new Thai passport. I was an idiot for overlooking this. It was explained that if you have an air ticket the surnames must match. I did not think of that but nobody alerted this to us either.

Just a warning for the dear ladies that might end up in this predicament to be prepared and if in Thailand get your surnnames to be legal and identical in both countries. It does not matter whether you use your old surname or your husbands but it must be consistent in both countries.

If you do this your rights in Thailand will not be affected in anyway and you can hold 2 passports and have duel citizenship. Hope this info helps.

[taxexile]

we were married in the uk.

the marriage has never been registered here in thailand.

my wife uses her married name in the uk and has obtained a uk passport in her married name.

she has kept (and renewed) her thai passport in her maiden name.

when travelling to thailand the ticket is purchased in her maiden name and she checks in at the uk airport and enters thailand on her thai passport.

she leaves the country on her thai passport but enters the uk on her uk passport, (not that it has ever been checked at heathrow in 20 or so trips.)

we have been told by the thai embassy in london that it is ok to have 2 passports with different surnames.

[bmanly]

I don't understand, are you telling me she uses her Thai passport at immigration at exit at UK? If that is so doesn't immigration in UK ask where is her visa? Her passport won't have a visa in it?

If she uses the UK passport to exit UK then the name on the ticket is in conflict with the name in the passport. They wouldn't check her through with those discrepencies would they?

Mate the Consulate in Sydney are a pain in the ####. The information about 2 passports with 2 different surnames is opposite to what they told us. You obviously have a better Consulate to deal with, lucky guy.

[taxexile]

she presents both passports at the check in desk and the passports are not really checked after that. sometimes you wonder what the immigration people at heathrow airport bother showing up for work for.

[bmanly]

OK, it wouldn't work here. They check at the bag check in desk, check again at the entrance to the exclusion zone, then a stringent check at immigration, then a check again at the boarding gate. On the way in it is even worse for all passport holders. FORTRESS AUSTRALIA.

[huski]

I don't understand, are you telling me she uses her Thai passport at immigration at exit at UK? If that is so doesn't immigration in UK ask where is her visa? Her passport won't have a visa in it?

If she uses the UK passport to exit UK then the name on the ticket is in conflict with the name in the passport. They wouldn't check her through with those discrepencies would they?

she has dual citizenship and doesn't ever need a visa, perfectly legal

the airlines need to see a passport for id, immigration from each country just need to see her passport issued from their country.

[bmanly]

I hear you guys! OK so why is the Sydney Consulate being so difficult. They will not process my wife's application for the reasons stated above.

This is not so different from what the Swedish guy was saying. The Thai Consulate told my wife to reapply in BKK. That means she will go into Thailand on her Aussie passport, she is then stamped in. Then when she gets the Thai passport she can't use it to leave because she has to be exited again on the OZ passport. What should we do? We just want to establish her with duel citizenship with 2 passports.

[markt]

Welcome back Tax.

My wifes Thai passport has a stamp in it saying that her surname has been changed.

When she went to the Thai embassy in London to get a new passport they asked her if she had a British passport, to which she told them, no.

She uses just the Thai passport for journeys to Thailand. On return to Heathrow they look for her visa & change of surname stamp.

[thaihome]

when travelling to thailand the ticket is purchased in her maiden name and she checks in at the uk airport and enters thailand on her thai passport.

she leaves the country on her thai passport but enters the uk on her uk passport, (not that it has ever been checked at heathrow in 20 or so trips.)

I guess this will work until you leave a country that has stringent immigration when exiting the country. Which in my experience is virtually all of them except Europe and the US. Every country in Asia requires a boarding pass and passport when exiting. The names on boarding pass are checked against the passport and entry data in the computer.

You can get two passports with 2 surnames, it just may cause problems in some countries.

TH

[huski]

I hear you guys! OK so why is the Sydney Consulate being so difficult. They will not process my wife's application for the reasons stated above.

the thai consulate is ball busting you but is technically right. however, she has every right to a thai passport being thai, has already had one but it expired.

her name change needs to be reflected on her thai id and house papers. so IF you can't get a thai consulate to help with your existing paperwork while you are in australia, you need to get her back into thailand. if that is using her austrialian passport then get a visa in there and come back to thailand. once here, get her new thai id and house papers changed.

the thai id update can drag on for months as my wife's little village took 4 months to give her a new id with my last name on it. hopefully it won't take that long.

once she has the id and housepapers updated and a new thai passport, you still are at the mercy of the visa in her austrialian passport in a way.

my question to doctor pp is when she leaves thailand eventually, what do you think? when she leaves she should show the austrialian passport as that is the registered visa with the computer when she came in. however, she is thai and will have a new blank thai passport in her married name at that time and could easily have that swiped into the computer at immigration .

[dr_Pat_Pong]

Huski ... Taxes experience is somewhat unique. The airlines themselves will have a heart attack over the two name thing at check in, and so will most immigration officers. Things are getting tougher and tougher in respect of security. I have heard lots of horror stories lately.

[taxexile]

my wifes thai passport has a stamp in it from the uk home office that confirms her residence status so she has no need for a visa.

she doesn't see any need to change her surname or register her marriage in thailand as there are no advantages to the procedure. it will just involve a lot of dealings with people in uniforms and interminable waiting around being shuffled from room to room and so on and so forth.

we avoid contact with government officers (in any country) unless absolutely necessary.

[meemiathai]

It was explained that if you have an air ticket the surnames must match.

Just 3 weeks ago, my wife and I went to Thailand from HK. The name on the air ticket was her original one and the one on her Thai passport has got my surname. Not a single problem. ???

[dr_Pat_Pong]

Today my Thai wife attempted to get a new Thai Passport from the Sydney Thai Consulate. Her old one could not be extended as it was expired too long.

If you get married overseas and you adopt the surname of your husband/wife then you will not be able to get a new Thai passport at the Consulate unless you have made changes to your ID card and house book prior. On the forms you fill out it asks: Are you married? What is your husbands name? and Where was he born?, amongst other questions. The officials said that both passports (Thai and Foreign) must be in the same surname.

Even though my wife had a current ID card and house book photocopies this is not enough. She was told that on her next visit to BKK to change her surname to mine, then change her ID card to the new surname, then change the housebook and then apply for a new Thai passport. I was an idiot for overlooking this. It was explained that if you have an air ticket the surnames must match. I did not think of that but nobody alerted this to us either.

Just a warning for the dear ladies that might end up in this predicament to be prepared and if in Thailand get your surnnames to be legal and identical in both countries. It does not matter whether you use your old surname or your husbands but it must be consistent in both countries.

If you do this your rights in Thailand will not be affected in anyway and you can hold 2 passports and have duel citizenship. Hope this info helps.

How long ago did her Thai passport expire ? If over 6 months it is an administrative hassle. Why not apply at the Embassy in Canberra 111 Empire Circuit Yarralumla 2600 02 6273 1149. No guarantees, but the Embassy there is said to be a bit more user friendly than Sydney.

[bmanly]

How long ago did her Thai passport expire ? If over 6 months it is an administrative hassle. Why not apply at the Embassy in Canberra 111 Empire Circuit Yarralumla 2600 02 6273 1149. No guarantees, but the Embassy there is said to be a bit more user friendly than Sydney.

Thanks Dr. PP I was wondering where you were. Her passport expired in 1998. She has held and travelled on an Aussie passport for 10 years. We mostly reside in Australia but we feel now is the time to excercise her rights to her Thai passport and free travel between Australia and Thailand, without visas as we now spend half our time there.

You know after the lengthy discussion she had at the Consulate we then had a private discussion down the road on the way home. The thing is we want to do it right and answered every question as required. This is what Thai Welfare tell their citizens via SBS radio here to do. My wife was geeed up to do as they said, get your passport and vote for your Country. At all times the Official seemed respectful but pedantic.

We only have 2 choices left now, try Canberra as you suggested or just go to Thailand and change everything. BUT!!!!!! My wife just had an experience in Thailand with her Mum, her Mum was taken critically ill to hospital and spent 2 Months there. She said I have a gold card now (medical) and I get 30 baht health in Thailand. Plus when Mum was sick they ask us who we are and where we work. If I had farang name they would say you have pay for your mother. Her Mum was released after 2 months in hospital on the Gold card pensioner 30 baht system.

You know what, we are both thinking about putting it in the "too hard basket" and stay distant, fancy that hey! My wife could be a bit paranoid but if she lives with me and goes to her Mothers bedside in a once in a lifetime major illness why should any Social Worker ask her where she lives and what her job is? It is a fact they did ask this. Sorry for rambling.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

Email me your name and address and I'll get Brisbane to mail you the forms for Canberra ( only Sydney and Canberra deal with passport issuance ) Send a very clear copy of her Thai ID, and as a sweetener, ask for her to be registered to vote. It just might work and don't let it expire next time

[taxexile]

reading bmanlys last posting about the experience with his mother in law confirms to me the wisdom of a thai wife keeping her maiden name and not taking a falang surname.

once you have a falang surname you are marked and liable to be treated differently by the authorities here,especially where pricing is concerned.

there is no advantage in doing it as far as i can see. keep it simple and stay away from lawyers,government officials,paperwork.