#  >  > Travellers Tales in Thailand and Asia >  >  > Thailand, Asia & the rest of the World Questions & Answers Forum >  >  Australian Passport for a Thai Wife .

## Wasp

I know that if I spend a lot of time searching I will find this has already been asked .
But I honestly don't know which Topic look in .
And if I am reviving a much-answered question I apologise .

Quite simply ... if you hold an  Australian Passport just how difficult is it to get an  Australian Passport for  your Thai wife ?

And thanks . 


W.  :Confused:

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## Ozcol

Once she becomes an Australian citizen no problems.

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## Davis Knowlton

Getting a passport is not just getting a travel document. It means she is an Australian citizen, with all the rights and obligations thereof. Look up a thread by JPPR2 which details fully the three year+ process for his Thai wife to obtain US citizenship. I doubt Australia is much different.

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## jamescollister

Long drawn out process, first a spouse visa, after 2 years PR, then 2 more years, citizenship.
My problem is we live in Thailand, wife has PR, 2 kids born in OZ, but she can't apply for citizenship, have to stay in Australia for 2 years.
Every time you leave, for a period of time, the 2 year clock starts again and now they have started this resident return visa.
Just a money grab, even with PR you have to buy a return visa, can't just come and go.

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## Davis Knowlton

Getting a Thai spouse foreign citizenship generally means you and your wife intend to live in that country. If that's the case, no worries....you just get her there, live there for the required number of years, take and pass the citizenship test, and you're good.

If you just want the document, there is no quick fix. It's going to cost you time in the country, and some money.

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## Wasp

Davis , james , Ozcol ...... thank  you .

My wife is in UK . Speaks on the phone to English people all the time . Watches English Soap Operas ( Eastenders et cetera ) . In other words she's  getting by absolutely fine with the language . Goes to the station and reads the timetables and the Underground information . But there's no way in the World she can ever pass the Written Test for Citizenship . ( Not when they're asking questions like " What Year was the Act of Union ? ) !!!!

But I have dual citizenship and wondered about going back to Australia - however it sounds no simpler for her to acquire an Australian Citizenship.

Plan squashed .

But many thanks to you for answering .


W.

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## Davis Knowlton

Wasp: Don't underestimate her. My wife is/was a Filipina, and zipped right through the US citizenship test, missing only one question.

That's not the tough part...the tough part is having to live there for X number of years before she can take the test.

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## Wasp

I appreciate your words Davis.

But she has sat the UK test and there was no chance of her ever passing .

You and I would struggle .

Do YOU know how many people sit on a jury in Scotland ? Who the Hell knows that and why do you need to know it ? Stand outside Sainsburys and ask and very very few will know . It's plain stupid .

And Australia ......  well I really don't want to spend more than 2 months  there at any time.  So I will let that go .

But I appreciate what you say .


*W.*

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## mingmong

I believe must be in Oz for 3 years, my Mate has put His Thai Wife thru this, 

and my self, been here 50 years but must remain here so many months in a 2 year period to become an Oz.
 too many Chinese roarting the system!

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## bobo746

My missus is here with me at the moment on a 6 month tourist visa,had no problems getting it took 10 days.
Different story for spouse or defacto visa a lot of hoops to jump through.
Like the boys^ said if you get the visa she can't travel outside oz for 2 years if she wants permanent residency.

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## Storekeeper

> Getting a passport is not just getting a travel document. It means she is an Australian citizen, with all the rights and obligations thereof. Look up a thread by JPPR2 which details fully the three year+ process for his Thai wife to obtain US citizenship. I doubt Australia is much different.



Forum for this sort of stuff specific to the USA. Painful ... 

VisaJourney - Your US Immigration Community

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## bindog

For the Australian citizenship test, the questions are drawn from a 70-odd page document you can download and study.  Is there not something similar for the UK test?  

Our questions are "secret", but there are only 200 of them (you get 20 random on the test.) I'd imagine there are websites where people post the questions that were on their test, and they build a list of all questions. 

But the UK sites are likely in Urdu / Hindi / Romanian / Syrian.     :Smile:

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## Davis Knowlton

I got my hands on a copy of the 100 questions on the US exam. They can ask as few as ten, or as many as 100. You need 70% correct to pass.

My wife was only asked 10. She got 9.

Apparently, "A huge mistake" was not the correct answer to "What was Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation".

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## Wasp

Yes *bindog* . There are webpages with lots of trial questions from the UK  test .But the problem isn't just knowing the answers or trying to memorise answers . It's how the questions are phrased that's utterly utterly ridiculous. I would insist - that if you stood outside a supermarket and asked full-blooded English speakers these questions they would just stare at you with a blank face .

" Adult citizens of the UK, and citizens of the Commonwealth and the Irish Republic who are resident in the UK, can vote in all public elections . True or False . "

An easy answer but My God that's a difficult bit of English .


" King Henry VIII's daughter Mary was a devout Catholic and persecuted Protestants, which is why she became known as ...... " . 

 How does this have ANYTHING to do with settling into a country and finding a job cleaning in a service industry job ?   It would be far more relevant to ask a question about Manchester United . Or Eastenders . Or Big Ben . You're still testing their English . These questions demand an A Level understanding of the language .


" In 55BC Julius Caesar led a Roman invasion of Britain. It was unsuccessful and for nearly ______ years Britain remained separate from the Roman Empire "  !!!!!!

" When was the first Union flag created?   1506  1556  1606  1656 ? "

Who knows the answer to that ? I don't know and I don't care . That's not testing your understanding of English . It's a GCE examination in History .

" Judges can make decisions in disputes about contracts, property or employment rights or after an accident . True     False "

So yes you can look online for assistance but you also need to go to an English Secondary school full-time for 7 years and study medieval History .
I'm not against testing immigrants basic ability to get by while they learn . But I could write a much fairer language test in about 15 minutes. Imagine if we had to answer similar questions written in Thai and about Thai history !!!!!!

" The Northern Ireland Assembly has ______ elected members, known as MLAs (members of the Legislative Assembly). 108  118  128  138 . "

 WHO KNOWS ?

 AND WHO GIVES A TOSS ?



*W.*

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## Nawtier

Why you want to deliberately put yourself at a disadvantage?

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## Wasp

> I got my hands on a copy of the 100 questions on the US exam. They can ask as few as ten, or as many as 100. You need 70% correct to pass.
> 
> My wife was only asked 10. She got 9.
> 
> Apparently, "A huge mistake" was not the correct answer to "What was Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation".


 :smiley laughing: 




Yes - My wife got 9 right too . Out of 30 . Every answer was a guess . 
If she had know that in England "  judges developed 'common law' by a process of tradition and precedence " then she might have got 10 .
She needed 23 .

Never stood a chance ..... and had to pay $80 for the test.

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## Wasp

> Why you want to deliberately put yourself at a disadvantage?


Don't know what this means.  :Confused:

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## bindog

> An easy answer but My God that's a difficult bit of English .


Might be easy for you!  (So, as an Australian citizen would I get a vote in a UK general election if I lived there? )  

I think of that convoluted English as "by committee" - like some of the PFJ skits in Life of Brian - "what have the Romans ever done for us?"  (All right, but apart from the sanitation, the medicine, education, wine, public order, irrigation, roads, the fresh-water system, and public health, what have the Romans ever done for us?   :Razz:   )  

And 'GLBT' - WTF?  If they just said "gay" we'd know what they mean, but that might hurt the feelings of some downtrodden drag queen somewhere.  Come up with a name that matches 'P.O.O.F' if they must. (Not that there's anything wrong with that!) 

I always wonder do they really mean BLT (Bacon Lettuce and Tomato sandwich) and it's a typo.  

Anyway, I can see that I'd get maybe one of those citizenship questions correct right off the bat. Five minutes on Google and I'd be up to 50%.  But that's just a few questions and English is my native language.  

Your wife is caught up in the rules trying to stop people rorting the system I'm afraid.  Like my government trying to stop pacific islanders pissing off home with an Australian pension in their pocket is making it more difficult for genuine citizens to retire somewhere cheap - like Thailand.   Sucks.

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## Wasp

And I agree with the governments !!

I completely agree .  We've now got 3 Libyan soldiers who were invited here for training who sexually attacked three young women in Cambridge . They were jailed but now they want asylum !!!!!
And all the attached benefits .

I agree with governments trying to put a stop to the conniving and lying . But if someone telephoned my wife she can communicate fine ! She did complain one time about Harry Potters flying over our garden so clearly there are flaws in her English . 
But she doesn't NEED to know the years of the Irish potato famine !!!

Just make it fair.



*W.*

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## Neverna

Those questions above in reply number 14 are not for an English test, are they? They are for a citizenship test. Somewhat different beasts.

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## jamescollister

> I completely agree . We've now got 3 Libyan soldiers who were invited here for training who sexually attacked three young women in Cambridge . They were jailed but now they want asylum !!!!!
> And all the attached benefits .


In there lays the problem, honest immigrants are penalized and charged money.
Bad people get it for free, kill, torture, rape, then declare asylum, can't go back, you may be treated unfairly.

Did a deportation report for an Afghan drug dealer, guys in prison, immigration 
want to know, good or bad crim.

Guy was a Taliban commander, or so he said, killed and tortured lots of people, if sent back, the families would kill him.
Granted PR at no cost, state government paid, armed escort to and from immigration, on the taxpayers money.

After he got out of prison, back to Afghanistan to visit family and no doubt sort out the drug money.

Honesty doesn't pay, if I get off a plane back in Australia, as a non resident Australian, I get nothing for at least 3 months.
Throw my passport in the toilet, claim asylum, get free housing, private medical, food etc.

OZ government may offer me resettlement in Cambodia and 2 years welfare while I settle in, I'll take it, I'm just north of the border.

System stinks, paying to support scum, while taxing your own into poverty is wrong.

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## Wasp

Wow james !!!

Of course if you say it  like it is then abuse will follow .


But not from me james. Not from me.



*W.*

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## Wasp

> Those questions above in reply number 14 are not for an English test, are they? They are for a citizenship test. Somewhat different beasts.


The point being that if the citizens of the country itself don't know the answers then the questions don't in any way reflect ' citizenness ' . And we don't need to put this to any test . It's blindingly obvious that I can stand in Portsmouth train station , stop people and ask them these questions and they will not know the answers .

You could give them the whole test and they would fail .

Do they lose their citizenships ?



" The Elizabethan period is also remembered for the richness of its poetry and drama, especially the plays and poems of ...........
 Edward Thomas    William Blake     William Shakespeare    Wilfred Owen  ?"

I can see the cultural desirability of referencing Shakespeare .... but look at the language of the question . 
This is language that an educated person might use and definitely will understand . 
But it's not the language of a perfectly ordinary person who stands on the terraces at West Brom . 
If an immigrant can reach that standard they are doing well enough . 



*W.*

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## Neverna

> Originally Posted by Neverna
> 
> 
> Those questions above in reply number 14 are not for an English test, are they? They are for a citizenship test. Somewhat different beasts.
> 
> 
> The point being that if the citizens of the country itself don't know the answers then the questions don't in any way reflect ' citizenness ' . And we don't need to put this to any test . It's blindingly obvious that I can stand in Portsmouth train station , stop people and ask them these questions and they will not know the answers .


I agree, Wasp, 100%. 

Did you know there are also books and booklets available on the topic(s) of the test? I've seen them in WH Smith's at different prices. Here's one of them. It's also available on Amazon.


http://www.amazon.co.uk/Life-UK-Test.../dp/1907389202

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## Wasp

We bought those books . And used them to go through every Trial run question.

48 Tests . Each had 24 questions .

Do *YOU* know when The Habeas Corpus Act became law ? 

" The Habeas Corpus Act became law in ______ 1679 1689 1699 1709 ?"
Of course you don't know . NOBODY knows . 
And nobody needs to know unless you're studying constitutional Law or training to be a barrister.
Apparently if you are an under-educated female from Issan who dreams of becoming a medical assistant in a hospital ( a cleaner with a trolley ) you definitely need to know when Habeas Corpus became law.

" The great thinkers of the Enlightenment were - (Choose any 2 answers)
 Adam Smith    Robert Louis    Robert Burns   David Hume ."


" The group of refugees that settled in England before 1720 were ______
 Bretons   Welsh   Huguenots   Germans"

" From 1945 to 1950 the major welfare changes introduced were:
(Choose 2 answers)
 State retirement pension
 National Health Service (NHS)
 A social security system for all
 Employment exchanges  "

" The composer George Frederick Handel (1695-1759) was born in ______ and spent many years in the UK and became a British citizen in 1727.
Hungary  Germany  Holland  Bulgaria  "

 " Important aspects of the Reform Act of 1832 were:
(Choose any 2 answers)
 It gave women the vote
 It decreased the power of the monarch
 It abolished rotten boroughs
 It increased the number of people who could vote "



I've given 6 questions here . I'm sure of just one of them.



*W.*

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## bankao dreamer

Bloody hell Wasp I have always considered myself a history buff !!

I couldn't answer most of those questions  :Confused:  I had better hand in my passport  :Smile: 

Mind you I did stand on the terraces at West Brom as a lad  :Sorry1: 

Are you really in Ghent ?

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## Neverna

> We bought those books . And used them to go through every Trial run question.
> 
> 48 Tests . Each had 24 questions .
> 
> Do *YOU* know when The Habeas Corpus Act became law ?


No I don't, and I would struggle with the rest of the questions you posted, perhaps guessing a few of them by elimination.

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## Wasp

> I would struggle with the questions you posted, perhaps guessing a few of them .


Stupidly enough ..... if you just tick " True" all the time you get a decent score - though not enough to pass .

The Crown Jewels are kept at the Tower of London
True  False

The court systems in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are similar
True  False

Shakespeare is renowned as an English playwright
True  False

But then you get .....

'We shall fight them on the beaches' is a famous quote from a speech by Queen Elizabeth II about the Spanish Armada
 True  False

And now we're back to ----

" What is the second sentence of the citizenship pledge?
 I will uphold its democratic value
 I will give my loyalty to the UK and respect its rights and freedoms
 I will fulfil my duties and obligations as a British citizen
 I will observe the laws of the UK faithfully "

" European laws are called
(Choose any 3 answers)
 civil law
 criminal law
 directives
 human rights
 regulations
 framework decisions "

Yo're being unusually civil Neverna !


*W.*

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## Neverna

> Originally Posted by Neverna
> 
> 
>  I would struggle with the questions you posted, perhaps guessing a few of them .
> 
> 
> Stupidly enough ..... if you just tick " True" all the time you get a decent score - though not enough to pass .
> 
> The Crown Jewels are kept at the Tower of London
> True  False


I knew that one. 




> The court systems in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are similar
> True  False


A tough one without reading the booklet first. I know they are not the same but "similar"?  I suppose a guess would be 'yes'.




> Shakespeare is renowned as an English playwright
> True  False


True.




> 'We shall fight them on the beaches' is a famous quote from a speech by Queen Elizabeth II about the Spanish Armada
>  True  False


False. It was the cigar eating Churchill. 




> " What is the second sentence of the citizenship pledge?
>  I will uphold its democratic value
>  I will give my loyalty to the UK and respect its rights and freedoms
>  I will fulfil my duties and obligations as a British citizen
>  I will observe the laws of the UK faithfully "


I have no idea.




> " European laws are called
> (Choose any 3 answers)
>  civil law
>  criminal law
>  directives
>  human rights
>  regulations
>  framework decisions "


Another guess. Directives? 




> Yo're being unusually civil Neverna !


 :Biggrin:  It's not unusual. Really. I am a nice guy. And I like to be helpful where I can. But I don't suffer fools gladly and I tend to retaliate if someone has a pop at me, especially if I feel it is unwarranted. Anyway, this is a top half thread .. 



> *NO FLAMING, NO ABUSE OR ANY NASTINESS* tolerated in this section.


So I am following the "top half thread protocol".

 :Smile:

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## Wasp

OK Neverna ...........

Here's a whole test . You have to get 18 right .

The Roman Catholics in ______ were afraid of the growing power of the Puritans
 England
 Scotland
 Wales
 Ireland

Who was recognised as the leader of the new republic?
 Robert Burns
 Isaac Newton
 Oliver Cromwell
 William Shakespeare

During the 18th century, new ideas about politics, philosophy and science were developed, this is often called
 The Bard
 Glorious Revolution
 Hogmanay
 The Enlightenment

In the 18th and 19th centuries the development of the Bessemer process for the mass production of steel led to the development of 
(Choose any 2 answers)
 hospitals
 the shipbuilding industry
 motorways
 the railways

An aim of the United Nations is
 to examine decisions made by the European Union
 to create a single free trade market
 to promote dictatorship
 to prevent war and promote international peace and security

Some constituencies controlled by a single wealthy family were called the
 county boroughs
 Parliamentary boroughs
 pocket boroughs
 municipal boroughs

Britain was the first country to industrialise on a large scale
 True
 False

Oliver Cromwell was ______ of the English republic
 the King
 the leader
 the artist
 the clans

Which form of religion developed as a result of the Reformation?
 Methodism
 Catholicism
 Mannerism
 Protestantism

During the Industrial Revolution in the 18th and 19th centuries children also worked in the factories and were treated in the same way as adults
 Yes, this is correct
 No, children were not allowed to enter in the factories

Members of the House of Lords are
 not elected by the people
 voted in by members of the House of Commons
 elected by the general public

In 1314, which Scottish king defeated the English at the Battle of Bannockburn?
 Malcolm
 William Wallace
 Andrew
 Robert the Bruce

For legal advice you can contact:
(Choose any 2 answers)
 The Citizens Advice Bureau
 Your local member of Parliament (MP)
 A local councillor
 A solicitor

The event was called the 'Glorious Revolution' because there was no fighting in ______
 England
 Scotland
 Wales
 Ireland

UK landmarks are:
(Choose any 2 answers)
 Edinburgh Castle
 The Eisteddfod
 The London Eye
 National Trust

Northern Ireland Assembly at where ?
 Stormont, in Belfast
 Lisburn, in Belfast
 Newtownabbey, in Belfast
 Bangor, in County Down

Adults who are eligible to vote in all UK elections includes:
(Choose any 2 answers)
 Citizens of the Commonwealth who are resident in the UK
 Only those born in the UK
 UK-born and naturalised adult citizens
 Citizens of the other parts of Europe

Which changes were introduced by the Education Act of 1944?
(Choose any 2 answers)
 Free secondary education for all
 New public examinations for primary education
 Primary education for all
 A clear division between primary and secondary education

National parks are
 areas of protected countryside that everyone can visit
 national sports grounds for people to hold sporting events

Political parties that formed the coalition government in 2010 are:
(Choose 2 answers)
 Liberal Democrats
 Conservatives
 Labour
 Communists

Life peers in the House of Lords are appointed by ______
 The monarch
 The Prime Minister
 The Speaker of the House of Commons
 Members of Parliament (MPs)

Famous UK landmarks are:
(Choose 2 answers)
 Snowdonia
 Loch Lamont
 Notre Dame
 Durdle Door

A jury is made up of members of the ______ chosen at random from the local electoral register
 Parliament
 public
 local council
 judges

______ developed ideas about economics which are still referred to today
 David Hume
 James Watt
 Adam Smith
 Howard Florey

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## Davis Knowlton

^I'm sorry, but this shit is simply idiotic. It has absolutely no relevance to anything.

The US exam is nothing like this utter crap.

Which begs the question, why is Londonstan Londonstan?

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## Neverna

> OK Neverna ...........
> 
> Here's a whole test . You have to get 18 right .
> 
> The Roman Catholics in ______ were afraid of the growing power of the Puritans
>  England
>  Scotland
>  Wales
>  Ireland
> ...


My answers are in purple.

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## Wasp

Davis Knowlton;  This shit is simply idiotic.

That's EXACTLY my point .

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## Wasp

> My answers are in purple.



I'm not all  that surprised ---- no reflection on you ---- but you must rip up your passport . 
As Davis says .... it's a shit way to examine somebody's citizenness .

Your score was 17 .

Missed out on getting your Passport by only one !!!!!

The Bessemer process asked for 2 answers and that cost your Citizenship Certificate .

It's truly crap  isn't it ? And massively unfair.



*W.*

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## Neverna

Oh dear. I missed that. Can I appeal?

My second answer would (have been) the shipbuilding industry

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## Wasp

And with that you would have scraped ignominiously into the country .

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## Wasp

OK .

If you start a Thread you should be allowed to end it .

So I'd like to end it here .

Thank you all for making clear I can forget the Australia route. 



W.

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## Wasp

> Are you really in Ghent ?


PS  Sorry *BD* . I forgot to answer .

No - not in Ghent . In Wakonpabas but moving to Turnhout.



W.

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