FLR question regarding documents

[RTBruce]

Hello. I am currently putting together my wife's FLR application. She is from Thailand and came to the UK on a Spouse Visa in April 2014. I don't need to tell anyone that it appears this process has been made as difficult as possible by undecipherable guidance notes, no phone number to contact for advice on the application and contradictions in the guidance notes about originals/copies etc etc.

There is a part that states the applicant must provide birth certificates for their children even if those children are not in the UK, not subject to immigration control and will not be part of the FLR application. Why do they need this? My wife has 2 children in Thailand, but she does not have their birth certificates in the UK. Do we need to get someone in Thailand to get them from the Amphur/registration office and POST them to the UK? I had thought about email......but that would just make them copies which they wouldn't accept. Having these sent by post is rather worrying as to whether they will get here safely or not. We've already had a parcel from Thailand that took 8 weeks to come and seemed to have went from Bangkok to Australia before coming to the UK!

The originals may not be available....I'm not sure if my wife's family have them. The guidance notes say certified copies may be acceptable, but then on the same page it says...'.your application may not be accepted without originals!??' Which is it? Why do they contradict themselves?'

Do I have basically no option but to have these documents sent from Thailand by post!?

Thanks for any advice.