What future is there?

Post by **Big Boy** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 4:36 am

Jaime,

My wife (son's mother) is Thai. She arranged with her brother in Thailand to have his birth registered in Thailand soon after the birth - so even though we never had any intention of using it, he does have a Thai Birth Certificate.

Our basic problem is that we want to retire to Thailand, but don't want to leave our son high & dry in the UK. Even if we wait 3 more years, at the age of 18 he won't really be able to afford to fend for himself ie where would he live? He'd probably have to live with relatives, and we would feel as if we'd 'dumped him'.

We decided some time ago that there was not much future in the UK - our son would probably have a hefty mortgage around his neck for many years. If we took him to Thailand with us, we could purchase a house for him. With his own property, we felt he could easily survive on a basic Thai wage (with the odd handout from mum & dad).

When we were in Thailand last August, he did meet a few younger expats, and will be contacting them when we visit in April to find out how they dealt with this problem.

Post by **Guess** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 5:39 am

Big Boy wrote:...Although I previously stated that he is well and truly English, when he was born, his Uncle also registered his birth in Thailand - a fact that I never thought would play a part in our lives. Does this change the situation? Would this qualify him for an ID card?

If the answer is yes, what are the disadvantages? The first I've thought of is that it would probably qualify him for National Service - is this correct?

I do not think that anybody on this forum will be able to answer the questions that you ask as it is a rather unusual situation.

My advice is to get onto a Thai Consulate site in the UK. I have found Hull the most helpful.

London seems to deal mainly with Thais working in Britain rather than the British wanting to visit Thailand.

Somwhere you will find a "contact us" button where you need to send an email detailing all the specifics of your case and see what they come up with.

My understanding is though that you have to be 16 or maybe 18 years old to qualify for an ID card. Not having an ID card for mionors does not mean thought that they have no right of recidency.

I would have thought that being born in Thailand he should have priority over foreign born nationality seekers.

Good luck with your quest.

Post by **Jaime** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 6:12 am

Guess, it makes no difference: born in UK or born in Thailand. If the mother is Thai that is it - all rights to Thai nationality are (currently) guaranteed.

Our youngest was born here in the UK and had a Thai passport and even a Thai birth certificate before he had even been to Thailand. All organised very efficiently by the Thai Consulate in London.

You are correct about the ID card in that there is a qualifying age and that minors can reside in Thailand without the ID card. That is after all how the locals do it!

Post by **Guess** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 5:08 pm

Jaime wrote:All organised very efficiently by the Thai Consulate in London.

Jaime,

Is that your recommendation (i.e.London). I have only had to deal with consulates on the subject of my visas to Thailand and advice for Thais working in Britain.

I found Hull to be the best for the visas but they could not deal with issues regarding Thais in the UK.

I believe for Big Boy the first point of contact must be the consulate in London. If you look at the page on the URL below you will get a listing of all of them.

Here is the details for London

United Kingdom, Royal Thai Embassy

29-30 Queen's Gate, London, SW7 5JB

Tel: +07 1 5890173, 5892944

Fax: +07 1 8239695

Here is the URL for a list of all UK and Ireland consulates.

http://www.thailand-uk.com/thaiemb.html

Post by **Jaime** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 6:08 pm

For visas I have only used the Thai consulate in Cardiff. They were good but then it was only for a 60 day tourist visa. As for Thai consular matters, you are correct in that London is the place to go.

Post by **Big Boy** » Wed Feb 08, 2006 7:19 pm

Gentlemen,

Thank you both very much for your advice - I will continue my investigations with the Thai Consulate. If I get any information which might be useful to other members, I will certainly share it.

I am grateful for your help and advice.

Post by **Big Boy** » Wed Jun 14, 2006 5:05 am

Its taken me 4 months, but I have contacted the Thai Authorities here in the UK, and their reply was good news. I've attached the reply below in case there are any others in a similar situation:

You son will be eligible to apply for Thai nationality by registering the birth at the Royal Thai Embassy in London. This would enble him to live in Thailand as a Thai citizen and of cause he can study and work there. He can hold dual nationality untill he turn 20. For details please visit www.thaiembassyuk.org.uk

Please note: the British full birth certificate must be legalised by the FCO and certified by the Royal Thai Embassy in London. Please refer to website http://www.thaiembassyuk.org.uk/legal.htm

Royal Thai Embassy

JW · Post by JW » Wed Jun 14, 2006 1:41 pm

Hi Big Boy,
Thats good news for you. I am 32 now and count myself as one of the younger people living here. My quality of life is great, i have a good job without the stresses of life in the UK - BUT i always keep open my links to the UK for work if something went wrong out here. I have a good friend here who is 18, he has a Thai mother. He planned to come here and work and live with his parents. He struggled to both get a job and cope with various factors of life here after being brought up in the UK, particularly the way the girl thing works here, he went back to england 2 months ago. I honestly think it would be tough for a young guy with little life experience to get along here and be really happy, we see how experienced guys get into trouble everyday. However, if your son is level headed, isnt easily led and wil isten to advice from his parents and peers then maybe give it a try. Its a really tough decision you have to make, good luck with whatever you decide to do. Why not take some time out after exams and bring him to stay for some months and see how he gets on.

Post by **Big Boy** » Wed Jun 14, 2006 1:56 pm

JW,

Thanks for those words of wisdom - much appreciated.

We will probably be coming to settle in Hua Hin in about 2 years time - a lot can change in that time.

My son does have a bit of an advantage in that he already has a good understanding of the spoken language, looks Thai, and has some Thai friends of his own age in Hua Hin. Even so, I don't underestimate the challenge ahead.

He is planning on starting up a Karate club in the area, and already has the support of some senior European teachers, who have volunteered their services free of charge to help get him going. Of course, you can guess who will have to fund it!

As I said, a lot can change in 2 years, and we're grateful for any advice that anybody can give.

Post by **simonrogers1975** » Sat Sep 02, 2006 12:38 am

Personally, I'm not a great believer in further education. I've had so many friends who have wasted their time at university, only to get a dead end job at the end of it. My friend's kids these days tend to go to university, get into a serious amount of debt and end up working in Tescoâ€™s or ASDA - not one of them (and there are many) has ended up with a job worthy of university education.

One thing I would ask, what does your son want? I fully appreciate what you want and I can only assume that he is going along for the ride. You mentioned that he wanted to join the police force, is that correct? If so then maybe he should try.

My point would be, as you mention people with degrees working in Tesco's, but education is not only for work but also for self-development. I went through the whole thing and I am looking to squander it by going to Thailand. However, I have learned a lot of things not what to do rather than purely what to do through education. I would not dismiss it; it may be very useful once he has finished to go to Thailand with full education to provide a distinct advantage over other excpats. Just a thought.

I wish you the best of luck

Simon

Post by **Big Boy** » Sat Sep 02, 2006 1:12 am

Simon,

There is a more up to date thread (I appreciate you're new and probably haven't got to it yet) where I have detailed my son's current aspirations ie http://www.huahinafterdark.com/forum/vi ... 8&start=15.

My son is as keen as my wife and I to move to Thailand - he wants to be closer to his sister and her family. You will see that I am now considering how to continue his education in Thailand to ensure he can achieve his ambitions ie: http://www.huahinafterdark.com/forum/vi ... highlight=.

Please don't get me wrong, I have always said that if my son's ambitions required him to obtain a university degree, then I would have financed it - and his ambitions in Thailand require just that. I would not, however, agree with him studying something like business studies (along with the majority of UK University students), just to incur debt and end up with a dead end job.

Post by **PJG** » Sat Sep 02, 2006 1:41 am

One option to look at for your son may be to study at either Stamford or Webster University's in Hua Hin. My daughter who is half Thai and has been brought up in UK was going to start Uni in UK at the end of the month but having just visited the Campus at Stamford (Palm Hills) has decided to enroll there this Autumn. She is going to do the Hospitality and Tourism Management BA course which is then same as she was going to study in UK.
.
I visited and must say that I was impressed by the facilities and life style. Certainly it is better than the UK in Winter.

We chatted with quite a lot of students and got mostly positive feedback.

Post by **Big Boy** » Sat Sep 02, 2006 2:08 am

PJG,

Thank you, that was already one of his options, but he has to complete his O/A levels first. O levels will be here in the UK, but we intend moving out during his A level course.

Would you mind telling me the cost of a Stamford course (PM if you would prefer) - I'm still trying to ensure that his ambitions are well within my budget ie I can't do a bit of overtime to pay for it once I've retired.

Post by **PJG** » Sat Sep 02, 2006 3:04 am

No probs the fees are in the public domain. With Residence Hall which they insist on for the first year around £3000 for the year (3 semesters). That is going to cost me a lot less than Uni in Uk and she is not going to be burdened by have a large student loan to repay when all is finished. Also the living costs are going to be a lot less in Thailand.

Years 2 and 3 are £2800 per year.

Post by **Big Boy** » Sat Sep 02, 2006 3:33 am

PJG,

Thanks for that - very re-assuring. At least I shouldn't have to sell Somtam from the front of the house to make the fees.