Changing Wife's Thai passport to her married name for UK Passport

[Nealy]

Yes..It was posted to the FCO in London, it then had to go to the Thai Consulate who are not keen to accept postal applications, so at a cost of £60 it was presented in person by a translator recommend by them. Hope that is helpful. There was a further charge of 400 baht to have it stamped at the town hall in Ubon. My marriage cert was translated for 900 baht plus 400 baht to have it stamped at the town hall.

[Gary & Nok]

Good luck with this one Gary but I was of the understanding that all dual nationalities had to disclose all passports whether current or expired(have you ever been known by any other name etc).
Just been through all this process..happily the missus now has both current passports in the same name.
I found problems between differing communications I was getting from the passport office(e-mails) and the actual caseworker.
I,m amazed you actually got to talk to anyone! I couldn't find any phone contact details (that led to actual talking to a human being)and all correspondence was by either e-mail (probably to a call centre /answering service working on the behalf of the HMPO or by actual letter(caseworker)
Seems as if the HMPO are telling you to not disclose any expired passports of other nationalities...seems strange to me.Just be careful that the information you have been told isn't coming from the bottom rung of the ladder.
Good luck anyways..I originally told the missus not to send her thai passport alongside her soon to be expired UK passport...if I had known what was to come...I would have hid her thai passport!!
regards

Have to say I am very dubious about this myself. A few sleepless nights.
Keeping fingers crossed that what i was told will pan out.

[rasg]

The more I think about it, I don't see why it isn’t possible to simply change her name in the way that so many Thais do.

My wife did exactly that when she divorced from her first husband quite a few years ago. She changed her first name because she had never liked it and her surname back to her family name.

Is there any reason at all why she couldn’t do that or am I being dense here? I still have to send her old name change certificate when she applies for her various visas.

[Gary & Nok]

The UK changed the rules in 2016 I think it was, before they did not worry about different surnames as there is space to declare "known by any other name" and all was good.

Since the change all passports must be in the same name. But as I was advised, as the passport had expired and therefore no longer valid, it was not needed to be sent.

Nothing is ever simple

[rasg]

Can anybody answer this for me please?

The more I think about it, I don't see why it isn’t possible to simply change her name in the way that so many Thais do.

My wife did exactly that when she divorced from her first husband quite a few years ago. She changed her first name because she had never liked it and her surname back to her family name.

Is there any reason at all why she couldn’t do that or am I being dense here? I still have to send her old name change certificate when she applies for her various visas.

[galahad]

Aslong as her thai passport name matches her (future?) Uk passport application then I can,t see a problem whatever she calls herself.

[Gary & Nok]

The uk passport office ask dual nationals to send in any other passports,whether expired or not,alongside their Uk passport.

There is nothing on the passport application form that says this. It only asked for any uncancelled passports to be sent.

Even tried waiting a year till Thai passport expired so no clash, but you can't do that either.

Worked for Nok.

This whole thing about different names in passports had me worried after reading these comments but after a few sleepless nights I can now sleep easy.

Yesterday this appeared
2019-08-20 07.37.15.jpg
A nice new NON EU passport

07/08/19 - Sent application
08/08/19 - Received by HMPassport
13/08/19 - SMS Received "Unless we contact you for more information, passport should be with you by 03/09"
16/08/19 - SMS Received "Passport should be with you within a few working days"
19/08/19 - Passport arrived (and old one too).

Passport is valid for 10 years (no extra months added from old expiry date). Those are now lost.

Passport is slightly different in that the information page is at the front of the passport and no visible electronic loop. Also all the pages are really fancy with various drawings.
You now have to sign your passport, it is not digitally inserted as was the case in the old passport 10 years ago.

All round relief, Nok will now be taking her first trip back home in years.

[galahad]

Well done on getting the passport .Just out of curiosity what are you going to be doing about Noks thai passport...are you just binning it or are you planning to change names etc in Thailand?

[Gary & Nok]

Well done on getting the passport .

Thanks

Just out of curiosity what are you going to be doing about Noks thai passport...are you just binning it or are you planning to change names etc in Thailand?

Things are a bit more complicated than I let on and as I didn't want to complicate things on this thread so I mentioned Nok's Thai passport, but in actual fact Nok is from Laos.

Laos do not allow Dual Nationality so we are debating what to do at the moment. As Nok has not been home for a few years it's not been a problem, but now...

According to Nok she cannot change her name to a foreign name (I'm not so sure but after all the problems we had trying to get married in Laos it would not surprise me) so that's a problem in itself.
If she wanted to get another Lao passport we need to find out if she has to declare having a passport from a different country on the Laos passport application form. If so then that throws up the problem of renouncing citizenship from Lao or UK.
So with that in mind we are taking a little time to think about what she wants to do and also she can ask a few questions when she gets home (November trip already booked).

[ray8472]

Yes when my wife got her UK passport, against my advice she got it in her married name. This new rule didn't exist then, but I always foresaw a problem with passports in different names.

I think what we will do is change my wife's name by deed poll in the UK back to her maiden name, and then renew her UK passport in her maiden name. That seems like a much easier route.

[Lommy]

Hi my name is lommy I'm new in this site I want advice I have a problem same as your wife I had apply for first uk passport with new new surname married certificate the problem is my thai passport haven't been changed to married name yet the hm passport office sent back thai passport and the letter for me to go back chage I'd card and passport to new married first them not send me citizen certificate and my birth certificate back they ask me to sent me some of proof and time I need to sorted my passport that they can hold up what I apply passport but I dont know what letter and proof I have to send to the hm passport office

[Gary & Nok]

Lommy, before you could have a Thai passport in your maiden name but now your Thai passport and your British passport must be in the same name.

As you have applied for your first British passport (I assume in your married name) it appears that they are asking you to first change your Thai passport and ID card to you married name also (same as on you application form for the British passport).

They will hold your Birth Certificate and Citizenship paper until they get the corrected Thai passport back, and then continue to process your application for the British passport.

Is it possible to post the letter they sent you (covering any sensitive information) so we can see exactly what they are asking for.

[Lommy]

Hi Gary they just sent me thai passport back and letter that I have a passport in different from the form i apply for they said i have to change my I'd and thai passport first i had rang them up yesterday what happen if i travel back to Thailand to it it take longer then 4 months hm passport office told I have to sent cover letter that I travelling back to do my I'd and passport and how long would take

[Gary & Nok]

OK, so what they want to know is what are you going to do?

If you are travelling back to Thailand to do this then they want to know when you are going to do it and how long before you come back with the changed Thai passport and ID. They will hold your application until they get the changed passport.

Have you contacted the Thai Embassy in London to see if they are able to change your ID and passport and save you a trip back to Thailand?

[galahad]

The uk passport office ask dual nationals to send in any other passports,whether expired or not,alongside their Uk passport.If all are in the same name you will have no problem in renewing the Uk passport.
Home office policy changed in 2016 so that all duals had to have matching names(never had a scooby do and it certainly wasn,t advertised).
My wife is hopefully coming to the end of this total debacle.Just waiting for her new Thai passport to arrive so she can send this off and finally get her new Uk passport.
The journey so far has meant a visit to a local solicitor, getting documents legalised (at £30 a pop)by the home office and 2 visits to the Thai embassy in London and the road show in Edinburgh.
My wife gave POA to a relative in Thailand to change her passport name,Thai ID and house registration.
The Thai embassy also charged for them to legalise both the Thai documents and the Uk home office documents at £10 per document(x7).
The Thai Embassy also need to see the original new house registration document so there has been a lot of post tooing and froing between the relative(niece)and my wife.Thankfully nothing has got lost...yet.
Good luck Paul...at least you've been warned.
If you need any further help/advice just ask.
I would suggest that it would be a lot easier to do in Thailand but my wife was also worried about reentry.
Btw, my wife also was naturalised and got her Uk passport in 2009.

This might be helpful from our experience.Good Luck it's a right chew on !
Your first port of call should be the Thai Embassy in London(they have a facebook/ messenger page) where they will tell you what is required if you want to do it here rather than Thailand.

[Lommy]

Yes I has contact the thai embassy in London about it they cant do it here only I can do it power off return for someone do it for me but the cost I cant pay for it every documents here have to send off to fco is cost £30per documents I need it about 5 after i have to sent if to translation to thai and stamp in thai embassy cost it over head

[rasg]

You mean power of attorney? Yes?