List of approved providers published for English language te

Wow, this could be tough
How long will people have to study to meet the level required?
A1 is a basic level, which is judged to require 40-50 hours tuition for most learners
This level could take some time for a Thai to achieve.

Its a basic test and it is only for settlement applications.

Yes, from reading it, seems that if your wife is on a spouse visa but has yet to apply for ILR then the requirement to sit and pass this test still applies as well as the Life in Uk Test and/or ESOL route

All Englishmen please note:

If you marry someone from Latvia, Czechoslovakia, Greece, Germany or any other EU country she does not have to speak one word of English in order to live with you in England.

If you are British and chose to marry a lady from Thailand she will have to pass an English language exam before she is permitted to live with you in UK.

The is pure racict EU social engineering. It is disgraceful, and I urge all Brits to email or write to their local MPs and say that such blatant discrimination is unacceptable in our society.

treehugger wrote:All Englishmen please note:
If you marry someone from Latvia, Czechoslovakia, Greece, Germany or any other EU country she does not have to speak one word of English in order to live with you in England.

Well what you say is technically true, in fact the person from these countries does not need to be married or engaged to a person of UK nationality in order to enter the country - they can enter the UK, freely, any time they like on their own, without a sponsor. That is what being part of the EU is all about &, in a similar way, a person of UK nationality can freely go to those countries and enjoy full rights in those countries.
If a person from the UK wishes to enjoy similar privileges to a Thai citizen in Thailand then it would be necessary for them to go through (after fulfilling stringent requirements) the Nationality process, which includes being fluent in Thai.

These English tests might be an annoyance to anyone with a Thai wife who wishes to settle in the UK, but, in the scheme of things are not especially draconian..

Bob,

Perhaps I’m not making myself clear. I am not talking about someone coming to work in UK, nor am I talking about someone wanting to enjoy the same privileges as an English person. I’m talking simply about bringing a Thai wife to live with you in UK. There was a time when being the wife of an Englishman meant something to the British government, but apparently no longer. Remember, your wife won’t be permitted to stay if she can’t pass the English test.

My wife has no problems with her English, but it is the principle of the idea. Next these bureaucrats will say something like ‘non-Europeans must have University Degrees’. I still maintain this is social engineering by the back door!

But the practicalities of bringing a Thai wife to the UK to live with you means that she can then work & enjoy the same privileges as someone born in the country - that might not be the aim, but is the way the law works.
The fact that wives & husbands of British subjects no longer have an automatic right to live with their spouse in the UK has been a reality for a very long time now - whether I like that fact or not is immaterial.
My point is that this requirement is no different from that employed by many countries around the world for people from outside that country wishing to live in them full time - Australia immediately springs to mind - but it is also the method employed by Thailand as well...

Bob,

If 250million people from Europe are allowed to live and work in UK without having to speak English, then lack of speaking English cannot be the true issue - so why should it be a problem for non- Europeans? We are not talking about the citizenship test, but about passing a langauge test before they will issue a visa to stay in UK.

I think that whether or not the UK should base what it does on what other countries do is a separate topic.

Well we will just have to agree to disagree then treehugger.
The test is not applicable to all non-European as there are a number of countries where English is considered the primary language & they are excluded. So i think any appeal against this on racial grounds would be given short shrift.
While the visa is not for citizenship, it is a two year stay visa.
The level required is also pretty basic,

How long will people have to study to meet the level required?
A1 is a basic level, which is judged to require 40-50 hours tuition for most learners.

I would think it also offers some small level of security for the national entering the country as they will not be fully reliant on their partner if he should prove to be unreliable or abusive...

ajsp9 wrote:Yes, from reading it, seems that if your wife is on a spouse visa but has yet to apply for ILR then the requirement to sit and pass this test still applies as well as the Life in Uk Test and/or ESOL route

No only for applicants entering the country and applying for a visa all your wife must pass is the KOL/ESOL not both.

Hi All ,

My name is Ning . I live in Khonkaen . I work for Thaistaffsolutions(UK) Limited . I am representative in Thailand to service all kind of visas to UK . Earlier , we delivered the test for Tier2 Skilled workers for 6 times . Last week I went to organised 6th time plus English Test A1 for settlement visa partner in Bangkok . We are officially got allowance to deliver the test by EMD UK which is one of the provider in the list of UKBA . As these day I got a lots of calls from ladies in Udornthani for the test so I think I might deliver the test in Udorn soon . If you have anyone who want to join the test can contact me by Ning 089-8636688 .

I can guide about the test that it 's not very difficult plus we will make a small tuition for them before the test . They need only 2 skills of listening and speaking so it won't be long .

Just for confirmation/information this organisation's details were passed to me by the British Embassy Bangkok quote,
"The below test providers have been assessed as meeting the UK Border Agency's requirements for testing Englishat A1 level in Thailand."

They are certainly the nearest to Udon, and I will be contacting them to arrange the test for my wife.

treehugger wrote:The is pure racict EU social engineering.

I wouldn't really call it racist. It says anyone from a non-European country.

I'm a Yank. If my wife or girlfriend was a Brit and I wanted to go England to live with her, I would have to pass the test, also. As wouold anyone from Central or South America and Africa.

Farang, as a Yank you would not have to take the test as you come from one of the list of ‘majority English speaking countries’. Even those in your country who cannot speak English are exempt from the test.

Try this for UK logic. I am British and my wife is from Udon. She must take the test if she wishes to come to UK to live with me. Herman is German and his wife is also from Udon. She does not have to take the test to go and live in UK with Herman. If I should change my citizenship to German (or one of the other 26 EU nationalities) then my wife and I can go and live in UK without her taking the test.

So, what’s the point behind it?

Yes, if your partner/spouse is from South America or any other non-EU non-English speaking country they will have to take the test.