Changes To British Passport Services In Thailand

[bigsteve]

there's an easy peel strip that runs down one side of the DHL envelope. They peel back just enough from one end only so they can get the white envelope inside.It's then been cello taped over.The white envelope contains your passport which has also been opened neatly with a pair of scissors at one end. Its like a credit card envelope. If your not looking closely you wouldn't notice it.

Its very dodgy IMO and I cannot believe they are supposed to do this because what would they need to check and for what reason ? and the way she handed it to me, it was like open it in our presence so you can check it. I said "its been opened already" and she quickly mumbled "for check" Its been done so neatly its alarming. Add that to the fact that some passports have been there for longer than they should have ... maybe the passports did a .... best stop there eh

Yes, this is exactly how my DHL package and the inner envelope inside had also been opened.

It stinks, we pay all that money for a personally couriered package sent to the handling agent to 'prevent ID theft' who then sneakily opens the package and does god knows what with our passports.

This added to the cost and inconvenience of travelling to BKK to collect our new passports to prevent ID theft (and admittedly to cancel the old passport), they then sniff around inside on the quiet, it's just laughing in our faces.

Yet again we see that this is a third class service for us patentlyThird Class British Citizens.

I will definitely formally complain about this through the correct channels and demand that the courier fee that was extorted from me be returned in full.

Sounds like another valid issue to complain about to HMPO/the powers that be/anyone who will listen.

What strikes me is the way they are opening the parcel. Surely if it was an official check (although I can't imagine why there should be -as these are your personal docs, addressed to you) it would have been quite obviously opened with no attempt to hide the fact. The way partyhandy and Digital Chromakey describe it, it's definitely surreptitious and they try to hide that is been opened. How can that possibly be official?

Sent from my GT-N7105 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[canarysun]

I too collected my passport today. Flew from Chiang Mai yesterday and was diverted to U-tapao due to severe storm at Swampy. Flew back today.

Agree, interview conducted in cubicle, and girl spoke very good English. She had no objections to me taking the DHL envelopes. Passport was applied for on 7th May, it was issued on 14th July and arrived at Trendy on 18th July. Trendy notified me on 22nd July. My submitted documents arrived back at Trendy yesterday, 29th July even though I had told them at the application that I didn't want them returned.

My proof of address was a Residence Certificate issued at Thai Immigration and English translation.

Approximate cost:

Translation 400 baht

Return flight to Bangkok for application 3,200 baht

Return flight to collect passport 3,200 baht

Taxis/train/MRT fares 1,350 baht

Hotel for 1 night 1,600 baht

2 phone calls at normal rate & skype call 620 baht

Passport cost 5560 baht

Total nearly 11,000 baht

Not including meals, as I have to eat no matter where I am, or the added cost of taking my wife on the journey to collect the passport.

It's not really about the money for me, as it is for a lot of people, or getting time off work, as I am retired. It's mainly about all the ****ing hassle, stress, and inconvenience the UK government puts its citizens through to save a few bob.

WOW!!

I really cannot believe why you really need to waste so much money and " make a meal " out of renewing your passport! ( I also renewed my passport recently)

Why spend so much on flights? Why not take the train from Chiang Mai to Bangkok for 231 baht ? Or if you have to fly then use Thai Lion Air from around 800 baht.Leave the wife at home! and go off on " an adventure for a few days " Plenty of cheap places to stay around Bangkok from 150 baht a night! It really doesn't have to be so expensive or stressful !!

[jonesthepost]

WOW!!

I really cannot believe why you really need to waste so much money and " make a meal " out of renewing your passport! ( I also renewed my passport recently)

Why spend so much on flights? Why not take the train from Chiang Mai to Bangkok for 231 baht ? Or if you have to fly then use Thai Lion Air from around 800 baht.Leave the wife at home! and go off on " an adventure for a few days " Plenty of cheap places to stay around Bangkok from 150 baht a night! It really doesn't have to be so expensive or stressful !!

I do not believe you could have such an opinion. A train from from chiangmai to bangkok takes over 14 hours, and a stay in bangkok for 150 baht must be a right dump. I think you are just having a laugh or not playing with a full deck, but I suspect you are just taking the mickey

[OJAS]

WOW!!

I really cannot believe why you really need to waste so much money and " make a meal " out of renewing your passport! ( I also renewed my passport recently)

Why spend so much on flights? Why not take the train from Chiang Mai to Bangkok for 231 baht ? Or if you have to fly then use Thai Lion Air from around 800 baht.Leave the wife at home! and go off on " an adventure for a few days " Plenty of cheap places to stay around Bangkok from 150 baht a night! It really doesn't have to be so expensive or stressful !!

I do not believe you could have such an opinion. A train from from chiangmai to bangkok takes over 14 hours, and a stay in bangkok for 150 baht must be a right dump. I think you are just having a laugh or not playing with a full deck, but I suspect you are just taking the mickey

Not just a PR consultant for the BMA but also one for the PRD, I strongly suspect!

[OJAS]

Next year will be a general election in the UK, should the Labour Party win then those current messy passport application procedures might be changed, and applications for Brits in Thailand might be made again via the UK Consulate to the US Embassy in Bangkok.

An election in which most of us long-suffering expats won't be able to vote, unfortunately, thanks to the quirkiness of the UK electoral system. Definitely reinforces digitalchromakey's view that we're all 3rd+ class citizens in UK officialdom's eyes, I think.

That said, as a direct consequence of this whole passport renewal mess I have now applied to rejoin the electoral roll in the constituency where I lived before moving out here in 2008, with a mate of mine who still lives there acting as my proxy. Not that my vote would, in practice, amount to little more than an molecule-sized drop of water in the ocean, of course. But neither would it were I still living in the UK. And at least I would then have an MP to whom I could complain about this whole charade!

Edited July 31, 2014 by OJAS

[OJAS]

So much for having to keep our passports as ID. My ThaiDriving Licence is sufficient, or a certified passport copy just as I suspected all along. An email to the"authorities"will be winging its way from me.

Immigration: Foreigners must now carry valid ID at all times, report within 24 hours

1.jpg

Representatives from the expat community, thaivisa.com and from local hotels was today Tuesday informed by Thai Immigration

and Hua Hin Municipality.

HUA HIN: -- [thaivisa.com] Hua Hin Immigration is from today enforcing the existing rule that foreigners are required to carry a valid photo ID at all times.

At a meeting with Hua Hin Immigration and municipality, Thaivisa.com was informed of the news about the immediate enforcement regarding the requirements for foreigners - both tourists and expats - to carry valid photo ID at all times. Thaivisa has learned that Immigration is likely to enforce this nationwide.

Valid ID's are:

- Thai Drivers Licence

- Passport original

- Copy of passport verified and stamped by Hua Hin Immigration

Penalty:

Failure to carry valid ID as above is 2,000 Baht.

24-hour reporting

Hua Hin Immigration is from today also enforcing the requirements that you and your landlord (condominium owner, house owner etc) must report to Immigration within 24 hours of moving in to a new address. On your arrival card you already reported your place of stay, and if that changes you need to visit Immigration and report your new address. This applies to both tourists and expats.

This requirement would only appear to apply in Hua Hin at the present time. Therefore as a matter of tactics I think that it would be better to await an official announcement from the Immigration Bureau (if/when forthcoming) that it is being applied nationwide before pressing HMPO to modify their passport renewal procedures accordingly.

All academic now, unfortunately, in view of the thread at http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/747424-hua-hin-immigration-clarifies-rules-on-foreigners-carrying-id/ But, given that we are required to provide colour copies of all existing passport pages with our renewal applications in any case, why cannot HMPO see it within their gift to accept suitably-certified copies in lieu of existing passport originals, if this is the reason why a double-trip to Bangkok from wherever we live in LOS is now deemed to be necessary at passport renewal time?

Edited July 31, 2014 by OJAS

[theoldgit]

A number of off topic posts removed, more to follow.

[sandyf]

All academic now, unfortunately, in view of the thread at http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/747424-hua-hin-immigration-clarifies-rules-on-foreigners-carrying-id/ But, given that we are required to provide colour copies of all existing passport pages with our renewal applications in any case, why cannot HMPO see it within their gift to accept suitably-certified copies in lieu of existing passport originals, if this is the reason why a double-trip to Bangkok from wherever we live in LOS is now deemed to be necessary at passport renewal time?

The main reason they give for going back to collect is to have the old passport visually cancelled. They cut the corners off my old one in exactly the same manner as they do in the UK. Front cover,photo page and rear cover.

This is obviously to ensure that the old passport can never be reused. How was this handled when renewals were went through the FCO?

[sandyf]

there's an easy peel strip that runs down one side of the DHL envelope. They peel back just enough from one end only so they can get the white envelope inside.It's then been cello taped over.The white envelope contains your passport which has also been opened neatly with a pair of scissors at one end. Its like a credit card envelope. If your not looking closely you wouldn't notice it.

Its very dodgy IMO and I cannot believe they are supposed to do this because what would they need to check and for what reason ? and the way she handed it to me, it was like open it in our presence so you can check it. I said "its been opened already" and she quickly mumbled "for check" Its been done so neatly its alarming. Add that to the fact that some passports have been there for longer than they should have ... maybe the passports did a .... best stop there eh

My wife brought the envelopes back so I had a closer look. They had been opened and then stapled closed.

[OJAS]

Next year will be a general election in the UK, should the Labour Party win then those current messy passport application procedures might be changed, and applications for Brits in Thailand might be made again via the UK Consulate to the US Embassy in Bangkok.

An election in which most of us long-suffering expats won't be able to vote, unfortunately, thanks to the quirkiness of the UK electoral system. Definitely reinforces digitalchromakey's view that we're all 3rd+ class citizens in UK officialdom's eyes, I think.

That said, as a direct consequence of this whole passport renewal mess I have now applied to rejoin the electoral roll in the constituency where I lived before moving out here in 2008, with a mate of mine who still lives there acting as my proxy. Not that my vote would, in practice, amount to little more than an molecule-sized drop of water in the ocean, of course. But neither would it were I still living in the UK. And at least I would then have an MP to whom I could complain about this whole charade!

Further info for anyone wishing to follow in my footsteps and applying to re-register for voting in UK elections is at https://www.gov.uk/voting-when-abroad

Even if there was no-one back home whom your could appoint as a proxy (and postal voting would, of course, be to all intents and purposes out of the question in view of the length of time for a return snail mail trip between the UK and LOS), this might still prove a worthwhile exercise since it is only possible to escalate a complaint to HMPO in its final stages through "your MP" - see https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/hm-passport-office/about/complaints-procedure

Edited July 31, 2014 by OJAS

[OJAS]

The main reason they give for going back to collect is to have the old passport visually cancelled. They cut the corners off my old one in exactly the same manner as they do in the UK. Front cover,photo page and rear cover.

This is obviously to ensure that the old passport can never be reused. How was this handled when renewals were went through the FCO?

In the Hong Kong era we were merely told to wield a pair of scissors and snip off the top and bottom front cover corners of our old passport ourselves! Alternatively we could trot along to the Embassy for them to perform this onerous task for us at no cost!!

In any event, since the old passport will already have been electronically cancelled by HMPO's Liverpool office before your renewal application is then placed into an orange box to gather dust in an ex-conference room there for the next few weeks (or months?), I fail to see how it could then continue to be used fraudulently for travel purposes at any rate. To quote a couple of metaphors in the same breath, HMPO are using both a belt-and-braces approach and a sledgehammer to crack a nut IMHO.

Edited July 31, 2014 by OJAS

[soihok]

Like the idea of voting from abroad, until I read this. As I left about 20 years ago I guess I'm out of the picture.

Still, very relevant to a lot of people and thanks for the info.

British citizens moving abroad

You can register as an overseas voter for up to 15 years after leaving the UK, as long as:

• you’re a British citizen
• you were registered to vote in the UK within the previous 15 years (or, in some cases, if you were too young to have registered when you left the UK)

[sandyf]

The main reason they give for going back to collect is to have the old passport visually cancelled. They cut the corners off my old one in exactly the same manner as they do in the UK. Front cover,photo page and rear cover.

This is obviously to ensure that the old passport can never be reused. How was this handled when renewals were went through the FCO?

In the Hong Kong era we were merely told to wield a pair of scissors and snip off the top and bottom front cover corners of our old passport ourselves! Alternatively we could trot along to the Embassy for them to perform this onerous task for us at no cost!!

In any event, since the old passport will already have been electronically cancelled by HMPO's Liverpool office before your renewal application is then placed into an orange box to gather dust in an ex-conference room there for the next few weeks (or months?), I fail to see how it could then continue to be used fraudulently for travel purposes at any rate. To quote a couple of metaphors in the same breath, HMPO are using both a belt-and-braces approach and a sledgehammer to crack a nut IMHO.

There it is in a nutshell, UK passport holders can no longer be trusted to participate in national security it has to be subcontracted to foreign nationals.

From what i can gather, electronic cancellation is a bit academic as the forgers can do a pretty good job of replacing the photo page and chip.

Interesting that the new passports have a second photo but there doesn't appear to be a chip, must have done a good job of hiding it. The enclosed leaflet still refers to a chip.

[digitalchromakey]

The main reason they give for going back to collect is to have the old passport visually cancelled. They cut the corners off my old one in exactly the same manner as they do in the UK. Front cover,photo page and rear cover.

This is obviously to ensure that the old passport can never be reused. How was this handled when renewals were went through the FCO?

In the Hong Kong era we were merely told to wield a pair of scissors and snip off the top and bottom front cover corners of our old passport ourselves! Alternatively we could trot along to the Embassy for them to perform this onerous task for us at no cost!!

In any event, since the old passport will already have been electronically cancelled by HMPO's Liverpool office before your renewal application is then placed into an orange box to gather dust in an ex-conference room there for the next few weeks (or months?), I fail to see how it could then continue to be used fraudulently for travel purposes at any rate. To quote a couple of metaphors in the same breath, HMPO are using both a belt-and-braces approach and a sledgehammer to crack a nut IMHO.

There it is in a nutshell, UK passport holders can no longer be trusted to participate in national security it has to be subcontracted to foreign nationals.

From what i can gather, electronic cancellation is a bit academic as the forgers can do a pretty good job of replacing the photo page and chip.

Interesting that the new passports have a second photo but there doesn't appear to be a chip, must have done a good job of hiding it. The enclosed leaflet still refers to a chip.

It's under the yellow sticker marked 'Please Remove this Label' towards the top centre of page 48/32.

Wikipedia

In 1998^[19] the first digital image passport was introduced with photographs being replaced with images printed directly on the bio-data page which was moved from the cover to an inside page to reduce the ease of fraud. These documents were all issued with machine readable zones and had a hologram over the photograph, which was the first time that British passports had been protected by an optically variable safeguard. These documents were issued until 2006 when the biometric passport was introduced. The bio-data page is printed with a finely detailed background including a drawing of a red grouse (a native British bird), and the entire page is protected from modification by a laminate which incorporates a holographic image of the kingfisher; visa pages are numbered and printed with detailed backgrounds including drawings of other birds: a merlin, curlew, avocet, and red kite. An RFID chip and antenna are located on the obverse of the data page and hold the same visual information as is printed, including a digital copy of the photograph with biometric information for use with facial recognition systems. The Welsh and Scottish Gaelic languages were included in all British passports for the first time in 2005,^[20] and appear on the titles page replacing the official languages of the EU, although the EU languages still appear faintly as part of the background design. Welsh and Scottish Gaelic precede the official EU languages in the translations section.

We all know how much Thai Immigration love staples, so it's only a matter of time before the chip gets wacked when they staple in your 90 day report.

Phuket Immigration loves to staple 90 day reports to page 47, which is the same leaf as page 48 - already have one staple there!

So the question is begged as to who pays for the cost and inconvenience of getting yet another passport once Thai Immigration have knackered the RFID Chip with their staplers?

Edited July 31, 2014 by digitalchromakey

[sometimewoodworker]

The main reason they give for going back to collect is to have the old passport visually cancelled. They cut the corners off my old one in exactly the same manner as they do in the UK. Front cover,photo page and rear cover.

This is obviously to ensure that the old passport can never be reused. How was this handled when renewals were went through the FCO?

In the Hong Kong era we were merely told to wield a pair of scissors and snip off the top and bottom front cover corners of our old passport ourselves! Alternatively we could trot along to the Embassy for them to perform this onerous task for us at no cost!!

In any event, since the old passport will already have been electronically cancelled by HMPO's Liverpool office before your renewal application is then placed into an orange box to gather dust in an ex-conference room there for the next few weeks (or months?), I fail to see how it could then continue to be used fraudulently for travel purposes at any rate. To quote a couple of metaphors in the same breath, HMPO are using both a belt-and-braces approach and a sledgehammer to crack a nut IMHO.

There it is in a nutshell, UK passport holders can no longer be trusted to participate in national security it has to be subcontracted to foreign nationals.

From what i can gather, electronic cancellation is a bit academic as the forgers can do a pretty good job of replacing the photo page and chip.

Interesting that the new passports have a second photo but there doesn't appear to be a chip, must have done a good job of hiding it. The enclosed leaflet still refers to a chip.

It's under the yellow sticker marked 'Please Remove this Label' towards the top centre of page 48/32.

Wikipedia

In 1998^[19] the first digital image passport was introduced with photographs being replaced with images printed directly on the bio-data page which was moved from the cover to an inside page to reduce the ease of fraud. These documents were all issued with machine readable zones and had a hologram over the photograph, which was the first time that British passports had been protected by an optically variable safeguard. These documents were issued until 2006 when the biometric passport was introduced. The bio-data page is printed with a finely detailed background including a drawing of a red grouse (a native British bird), and the entire page is protected from modification by a laminate which incorporates a holographic image of the kingfisher; visa pages are numbered and printed with detailed backgrounds including drawings of other birds: a merlin, curlew, avocet, and red kite. An RFID chip and antenna are located on the obverse of the data page and hold the same visual information as is printed, including a digital copy of the photograph with biometric information for use with facial recognition systems. The Welsh and Scottish Gaelic languages were included in all British passports for the first time in 2005,^[20] and appear on the titles page replacing the official languages of the EU, although the EU languages still appear faintly as part of the background design. Welsh and Scottish Gaelic precede the official EU languages in the translations section.

We all know how much Thai Immigration love staples, so it's only a matter of time before the chip gets wacked when they staple in your 90 day report.

Phuket Immigration loves to staple 90 day reports to page 47, which is the same leaf as page 48 - already have one staple there!

So the question is begged as to who pays for the cost and inconvenience of getting yet another passport once Thai Immigration have knackered the RFID Chip with their staplers?

Sorry but that is incorrect it isn't on the data page (though it used to be) or page 47, the chip is located in the cover of the passport all you need to do is hold page 47/48 up to a light to see there is no chip there. http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2010-08/25/new-uk-passports-unveiled There is no standard location for the chip in passports, the Thai chip is in the back cover, the only universal indicator is that the place where the chip is, is thicker and stiffer than other parts of the passport.

The yellow "please remove this label" sticker has a metal trace on the back. My best guess is that the metal trace blocks the RFID signal and only needs to be near the antena to block its signal. So I have (like a good little citizen) removed the sticker from the passport and placed it on the inside cover of my passport cover. Incidentally it just happens to be in exactly the same position relative to the cover. :)

I think that the sticker is a security measure to prevent the RFID chip being scanned while in transit, as if they could be scanned before you got it that would leave a massive hole in the security of the passport.

Edited August 1, 2014 by sometimewoodworker

[sandyf]

Sorry but that is incorrect it isn't on the data page (though it used to be) or page 47, the chip is located in the cover of the passport all you need to do is hold page 47/48 up to a light to see there is no chip there. http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2010-08/25/new-uk-passports-unveiled There is no standard location for the chip in passports, the Thai chip is in the back cover, the only universal indicator is that the place where the chip is, is thicker and stiffer than other parts of the passport.

The yellow "please remove this label" sticker has a metal trace on the back. My best guess is that the metal trace blocks the RFID signal and only needs to be near the antena to block its signal. So I have (like a good little citizen) removed the sticker from the passport and placed it on the inside cover of my passport cover. Incidentally it just happens to be in exactly the same position relative to the cover.

I think that the sticker is a security measure to prevent the RFID chip being scanned while in transit, as if they could be scanned before you got it that would leave a massive hole in the security of the passport.

Thanks for that. I could not see or feel anything where the yellow sticker had been. I noticed the back of the yellow sticker and wondered if it was some sort of protection.

I would agree on the Thai passport, the back cover is certainly a lot stiffer than the back although on my new one there does not seem to be a great deal of difference. As you pointed out, it is there in black and white.

Firstly, the RFID chip that contains biometric data about the carrier has been moved to the inside of the passport cover, where it won't be visible. This change means that it's better physically protected, as well as more difficult to swap out without noticeable damage to the cover.

[sandyf]

Watched an episode of "Nothing to Declare" last night. It appears that the stiching in a passport is encoded. It showed the immigration officer examining the passport with an eyeglass to see if the pages had been disturbed.

[digitalchromakey]

There it is in a nutshell, UK passport holders can no longer be trusted to participate in national security it has to be subcontracted to foreign nationals.

From what i can gather, electronic cancellation is a bit academic as the forgers can do a pretty good job of replacing the photo page and chip.

Interesting that the new passports have a second photo but there doesn't appear to be a chip, must have done a good job of hiding it. The enclosed leaflet still refers to a chip.

It's under the yellow sticker marked 'Please Remove this Label' towards the top centre of page 48/32.

Wikipedia

In 1998^[19] the first digital image passport was introduced with photographs being replaced with images printed directly on the bio-data page which was moved from the cover to an inside page to reduce the ease of fraud. These documents were all issued with machine readable zones and had a hologram over the photograph, which was the first time that British passports had been protected by an optically variable safeguard. These documents were issued until 2006 when the biometric passport was introduced. The bio-data page is printed with a finely detailed background including a drawing of a red grouse (a native British bird), and the entire page is protected from modification by a laminate which incorporates a holographic image of the kingfisher; visa pages are numbered and printed with detailed backgrounds including drawings of other birds: a merlin, curlew, avocet, and red kite. An RFID chip and antenna are located on the obverse of the data page and hold the same visual information as is printed, including a digital copy of the photograph with biometric information for use with facial recognition systems. The Welsh and Scottish Gaelic languages were included in all British passports for the first time in 2005,^[20] and appear on the titles page replacing the official languages of the EU, although the EU languages still appear faintly as part of the background design. Welsh and Scottish Gaelic precede the official EU languages in the translations section.

We all know how much Thai Immigration love staples, so it's only a matter of time before the chip gets wacked when they staple in your 90 day report.

Phuket Immigration loves to staple 90 day reports to page 47, which is the same leaf as page 48 - already have one staple there!

So the question is begged as to who pays for the cost and inconvenience of getting yet another passport once Thai Immigration have knackered the RFID Chip with their staplers?

Sorry but that is incorrect it isn't on the data page (though it used to be) or page 47, the chip is located in the cover of the passport all you need to do is hold page 47/48 up to a light to see there is no chip there. http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2010-08/25/new-uk-passports-unveiled There is no standard location for the chip in passports, the Thai chip is in the back cover, the only universal indicator is that the place where the chip is, is thicker and stiffer than other parts of the passport.

The yellow "please remove this label" sticker has a metal trace on the back. My best guess is that the metal trace blocks the RFID signal and only needs to be near the antena to block its signal. So I have (like a good little citizen) removed the sticker from the passport and placed it on the inside cover of my passport cover. Incidentally it just happens to be in exactly the same position relative to the cover.

I think that the sticker is a security measure to prevent the RFID chip being scanned while in transit, as if they could be scanned before you got it that would leave a massive hole in the security of the passport.

Thanks for the correction and reference link.

Safe in the knowledge that I am now only considered, at best, to be a Third Class British Citizen, I have no longer any firm plans to be "a good little (UK) citizen" and thus had not yet removed the "please remove this label" label, so when I held page 47/48 up to the light, compete with the sticker, I could see what looked like an antenna, assumed that this was for an RFID chip in the page, but you, as a label remover, say it's not in this page and I believe you.

The passport has the e-passport symbol on the front at the bottom, so the RFID tag is definitely in there somewhere, but now seems to be definitely well hidden as sandyf had pondered when posting.

[OJAS]

Sorry but that is incorrect it isn't on the data page (though it used to be) or page 47, the chip is located in the cover of the passport all you need to do is hold page 47/48 up to a light to see there is no chip there. http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2010-08/25/new-uk-passports-unveiled There is no standard location for the chip in passports, the Thai chip is in the back cover, the only universal indicator is that the place where the chip is, is thicker and stiffer than other parts of the passport.

The yellow "please remove this label" sticker has a metal trace on the back. My best guess is that the metal trace blocks the RFID signal and only needs to be near the antena to block its signal. So I have (like a good little citizen) removed the sticker from the passport and placed it on the inside cover of my passport cover. Incidentally it just happens to be in exactly the same position relative to the cover.

I think that the sticker is a security measure to prevent the RFID chip being scanned while in transit, as if they could be scanned before you got it that would leave a massive hole in the security of the passport.

Thanks for the correction and reference link.

Safe in the knowledge that I am now only considered, at best, to be a Third Class British Citizen, I have no longer any firm plans to be "a good little (UK) citizen" and thus had not yet removed the "please remove this label" label, so when I held page 47/48 up to the light, compete with the sticker, I could see what looked like an antenna, assumed that this was for an RFID chip in the page, but you, as a label remover, say it's not in this page and I believe you.

The passport has the e-passport symbol on the front at the bottom, so the RFID tag is definitely in there somewhere, but now seems to be definitely well hidden as sandyf had pondered when posting.

I was under the impression that the RFID chip in my current 18-month-old passport was located right in the middle of the rectangular box under PASSPORT on the front cover - see attached PDF scan.

Do new passports being issued not now include said box containing said chip any longer?

01 Burgundy Cover.pdf

[BBJ]

Hi Folks,

I went through the process a month ago at the Trendy Office Building to renew my passport. The lady dealing with me told me to wait between 6-9 weeks which is fine, however, I was expecting being the British Embassy they would have deducted my account by now.

Roughly, how soon after was your account charged?

Cheers

[sometimewoodworker]

I was under the impression that the RFID chip in my current 18-month-old passport was located right in the middle of the rectangular box under PASSPORT on the front cover - see attached PDF scan.

Do new passports being issued not now include said box containing said chip any longer?

The box you mention is just the symbol indicating that the passport contains an RFID chip. It was never a definitive location of the position of the chip. As proof look at a Thai passport where the symbol is in the standard location but the chip has to be somewhere in the back cover, or (I think an Ausie one where it's in the middle.)

[OJAS]

I was under the impression that the RFID chip in my current 18-month-old passport was located right in the middle of the rectangular box under PASSPORT on the front cover - see attached PDF scan.

Do new passports being issued not now include said box containing said chip any longer?

The box you mention is just the symbol indicating that the passport contains an RFID chip. It was never a definitive location of the position of the chip. As proof look at a Thai passport where the symbol is in the standard location but the chip has to be somewhere in the back cover, or (I think an Ausie one where it's in the middle.)

But I was under the impression that the main purpose of the RFID chip for passport-holders at any rate was to enable them to pass through automatic gates at Immigration by holding the front cover of the passport against a scanner (just as Thai nationals, for example, can now, I gather, do at Suvarnabhumi when returning to LOS from foreign parts). If the scanner really has to penetrate the whole passport in order to read an RFID chip buried in the back cover, then the potential for error is surely greater than it would be if the chip was located in the front cover?

[sandyf]

I was under the impression that the RFID chip in my current 18-month-old passport was located right in the middle of the rectangular box under PASSPORT on the front cover - see attached PDF scan.

Do new passports being issued not now include said box containing said chip any longer?

The box you mention is just the symbol indicating that the passport contains an RFID chip. It was never a definitive location of the position of the chip. As proof look at a Thai passport where the symbol is in the standard location but the chip has to be somewhere in the back cover, or (I think an Ausie one where it's in the middle.)

But I was under the impression that the main purpose of the RFID chip for passport-holders at any rate was to enable them to pass through automatic gates at Immigration by holding the front cover of the passport against a scanner (just as Thai nationals, for example, can now, I gather, do at Suvarnabhumi when returning to LOS from foreign parts). If the scanner really has to penetrate the whole passport in order to read an RFID chip buried in the back cover, then the potential for error is surely greater than it would be if the chip was located in the front cover?

I have passed through the auto gates several times at Heathrow and you open your passport to the photo page and lay it on the scanner, then look at the camera. The camera has to identify the image or you cannot pass through. If I do not take my glasses off it will fail.

Never really watched how the Thai gates work.

The passport I have just renewed had the chip on the reverse of the photo page, quite clearly visible.

[parryhandy]

Hi Folks,

I went through the process a month ago at the Trendy Office Building to renew my passport. The lady dealing with me told me to wait between 6-9 weeks which is fine, however, I was expecting being the British Embassy they would have deducted my account by now.

Roughly, how soon after was your account charged?

Cheers

It took 4 days after my Trendy appointment for the money to be taken from my credit card and its got nothing to do with the British embassy, its HMPO that charges you.

[personchester]

So we don't send them to Liverpool. ?

Bugger! A trip to Bangkok will be more expensive than 185 Baht registered post !!

That is correct, It does of course require four trips - two times in, and two times out, and for those chaps in far South or far North it is expensive, and the four journeys are also causing travel problems.

[OJAS]

So we don't send them to Liverpool. ?

Bugger! A trip to Bangkok will be more expensive than 185 Baht registered post !!

That is correct, It does of course require four trips - two times in, and two times out, and for those chaps in far South or far North it is expensive, and the four journeys are also causing travel problems.

Plus the costs of 2+ nights' hotel accommodation for those living a considerable distance from Bangkok and not knowing anyone there they could stay with, of course.

Edited August 4, 2014 by OJAS

[OJAS]

I was under the impression that the RFID chip in my current 18-month-old passport was located right in the middle of the rectangular box under PASSPORT on the front cover - see attached PDF scan.

Do new passports being issued not now include said box containing said chip any longer?

The box you mention is just the symbol indicating that the passport contains an RFID chip. It was never a definitive location of the position of the chip. As proof look at a Thai passport where the symbol is in the standard location but the chip has to be somewhere in the back cover, or (I think an Ausie one where it's in the middle.)

But I was under the impression that the main purpose of the RFID chip for passport-holders at any rate was to enable them to pass through automatic gates at Immigration by holding the front cover of the passport against a scanner (just as Thai nationals, for example, can now, I gather, do at Suvarnabhumi when returning to LOS from foreign parts). If the scanner really has to penetrate the whole passport in order to read an RFID chip buried in the back cover, then the potential for error is surely greater than it would be if the chip was located in the front cover?

I have passed through the auto gates several times at Heathrow and you open your passport to the photo page and lay it on the scanner, then look at the camera. The camera has to identify the image or you cannot pass through. If I do not take my glasses off it will fail.

Never really watched how the Thai gates work.

The passport I have just renewed had the chip on the reverse of the photo page, quite clearly visible.

Thanks for the clarification. Looking at my passport again, I can now see a similar rectangular box with a dot in the middle (which I assume is the chip) in the top right-hand corner of the photopage, immediately to the right of the words UNITED KINGDOM OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND.

And thanks also for the tip about removing your glasses, which I'll bear in mind should similar automatic gates ever appear at the Gare du Nord Eurostar terminal when going over to the UK for a few days while visiting my sister in Paris.

[Jip99]

So we don't send them to Liverpool. ?

Bugger! A trip to Bangkok will be more expensive than 185 Baht registered post !!

That is correct, It does of course require four trips - two times in, and two times out, and for those chaps in far South or far North it is expensive, and the four journeys are also causing travel problems.

Plus the costs of 2+ nights' hotel accommodation for those living a considerable distance from Bangkok and not knowing anyone there they could stay with, of course.

I actually stayed at a hotel near the airport the night before my initial appointment and the night before collection.

850 Baht for a decent room (with online 25% discount) then park at Swampy and take the Airport Link/BTS/MRT for 70 odd Baht as I recall.

[digitalchromakey]

Hi Folks,

I went through the process a month ago at the Trendy Office Building to renew my passport. The lady dealing with me told me to wait between 6-9 weeks which is fine, however, I was expecting being the British Embassy they would have deducted my account by now.

Roughly, how soon after was your account charged?

Cheers

Unfortunately, something has definitely gone wrong with your application - your credit card should have been debited by HMPO Liverpool within 3-4 days of application.

Phone the HMPO UK Helpline (Skype works fine) now - they are pretty useless, but will at least be able to confirm if you are in the system.

[soihok]

Can anyone advise this member?

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/748992-new-passport/