UK Passport Applications from Thailand

[CheshireTom 1,377]

Disclaimer ... the motivation for this post is to share information that other BMs may find useful, not to show how clever I am.

 

The system of using DHL to convey the application via Hong Kong is no more. The new system is direct to the Passport Office in Liverpool - 175 quid for a thickie ...

 

 

 

 

Edited December 12, 2013 by CheshireTom

[Fireman Sam 336]

Thanks for the information Tom, will come in handy in the future.

 

Does anybody know if you can renew your British passport before it is full. My passport is due for renewal in December 2016, but I'm due to retire in August 2015, there will probably be only a few pages, if that, left by then. I don't want to apply for my retirement visa and re-entry stamp then have to move the whole lot to a new passport the following year if I can avoid it.

 

If possible would suit me to get a new passport in 2015.

 

 

Regards

[jacko 8,814]

Thanks for the information Tom, will come in handy in the future.

 

Does anybody know if you can renew your British passport before it is full. My passport is due for renewal in December 2016, but I'm due to retire in August 2015, there will probably be only a few pages, if that, left by then. I don't want to apply for my retirement visa and re-entry stamp then have to move the whole lot to a new passport the following year if I can avoid it.

 

If possible would suit me to get a new passport in 2015.

 

 

Regards

Yes you can.......you even get some credit for time remaining.

I say get it in the UK if you can!

[Fireman Sam 336]

Yes you can.......you even get some credit for time remaining.

I say get it in the UK if you can!

Cheers Jacko,

 

 

Yes will definitely renew in the UK.

 

 

Regards

[bratpack 91]

Just paid 10,500 baht for someone else to renew my uk passport.YES i know,the prices and i do know how to fill forms in,before any fucker starts to threadfuck,but i just feel lazy at the moment,and the price isnt that much different.

 

The visa company is at queen vic,s,hence my fish,chips,mushy peas for late brekkie lol

[Fireman Sam 336]

Yes you can.......you even get some credit for time remaining.

I say get it in the UK if you can!

 

A bit of further research reveals that they only renew a maximum of nine months ahead of the renewal date.

 

 

 

Quote below is from the passport direct website.

'When should I renew my passport?'

You can apply for a passport renewal a maximum of 9 months before your old passport expires, please save yourself any last minute panic and apply early! Any excess time on your old passport will be transferred to your new one.

 

I would be looking at renewing around sixteen months early, just hope the Thai immigration officers before then are even more sloppy at sticking entry and exit stamps in the remaining few pages so that the passport is full.

 

 

Regards

[papillon 695]

Just lose your passport and apply for a new one.

[jacko 8,814]

 

A bit of further research reveals that they only renew a maximum of nine months ahead of the renewal date.

 

Mine was more than that although it was nearly full............you need a clean page for many things and there was only 1 or 2.

Coincidentally I got my new retirement extension recently and they had actually squeezed it underneath last years on the same page......decent of them but it had me worried as I struggled to locate it.

 

Thanks for the feedback.

[redwood13 56]

 

A bit of further research reveals that they only renew a maximum of nine months ahead of the renewal date.

 

 

 

Quote below is from the passport direct website.

'When should I renew my passport?'

You can apply for a passport renewal a maximum of 9 months before your old passport expires, please save yourself any last minute panic and apply early! Any excess time on your old passport will be transferred to your new one.

 

I would be looking at renewing around sixteen months early, just hope the Thai immigration officers before then are even more sloppy at sticking entry and exit stamps in the remaining few pages so that the passport is full.

 

 

Regards

 

You can renew or replace your passport at any time. It costs £72.50 by post or £81.25 through the Post Office’s Passport Check & Send service. Time left on an existing passport is added to your new one - up to a maximum of 9 months.

 

https://www.gov.uk/renew-adult-passport

 

-redwood

[CheshireTom 1,377]

 

You can renew or replace your passport at any time. It costs £72.50 by post or £81.25 through the Post Office’s Passport Check & Send service. Time left on an existing passport is added to your new one - up to a maximum of 9 months.

 

 

The difference in price is amazing if you are applying from overseas. Anyone any idea as to why there is such a big difference?

 

Edit in ... I found the answer .... except I'm not really any the wiser ... it's as if they are charging for the passport being issued overseas.

 

"There are three components to passport application fees:

the costs incurred in administering passport applications (this forms most of the fee);

the costs of providing consular assistance to British citizens overseas (known as the ‘consular premium’); and

the costs of providing assistance to British citizens overseas in the event of unexpected emergencies (known as the ‘emergency consular premium’).10

 

The fees are reviewed on an annual basis. The IPS sets the fee for passport applications made in the UK, in conjunction with HM Treasury. The IPS cannot make a profit from the application fee; nor is it allowed to operate at a loss.11

The fees for British passports issued overseas are also set on a full cost recovery basis (calculated on the basis of the staff, accommodation and overhead costs proportionate to the average time taken worldwide to provide the service) and scrutinised by HM Treasury.12 The same fee applies in all countries, but it must be paid in the local currency, so the exact charge may fluctuate depending on the official consular exchange rate."

Edited December 19, 2013 by CheshireTom

[bigmick 840]

I would also be interested to know why. I got a second passport from Durban last year and had it sent back to the consulate in Accra and it cost close to 180 pounds.

 

The difference in price is amazing if you are applying from overseas. Anyone any idea as to why there is such a big difference?

[CheshireTom 1,377]

I would also be interested to know why. I got a second passport from Durban last year and had it sent back to the consulate in Accra and it cost close to 180 pounds.

 

I can see the difference if the passport is actually issued overseas, but if you live in LOS, it's issued in Liverpool - the same as if you lived in UK.

[bigmick 840]

I lived in Accra at the time and it was issued in Durban, so I guess its the same as Thailand and being issued from the UK. I am curious to know if the costs should all be the same for the actual passport and that they just sting you for the postage.

 

I can see the difference if the passport is actually issued overseas, but if you live in LOS, it's issued in Liverpool - the same as if you lived in UK.

[jacko 8,814]

Tch..... being British is only cheap if you weren't born there!

[papillon 695]

 

I can see the difference if the passport is actually issued overseas, but if you live in LOS, it's issued in Liverpool - the same as if you lived in UK.

 

Issued in Liverpool but where is it posted to you from? Bangkok Embassy?

[jacko 8,814]

 

Issued in Liverpool but where is it posted to you from? Bangkok Embassy?

My last one was sent DHL from the UK to Thailand.....at my expense.

A receipt was sent separately via DHL to me from Hong Kong, again at my expense, and to my annoyance.

[papillon 695]

'Rip off Britain' strikes again.

[jacko 8,814]

'Rip off Britain' strikes again.

The process looks a little easier now ( I perused it), and it makes more sense to me not to involve Hong Kong.

One stark difference now is the need to copy every single page of the passport, to be included with the application, previously it was just the face and detail pages...(from Thailand). Wonder why they need to know everywhere I have been.... and why they do not know that already?

[CheshireTom 1,377]

 

Issued in Liverpool but where is it posted to you from? Bangkok Embassy?

 

From Liverpool (I assume) ... you pay an extra 20 quid for the courier fee.