Opening Thai Bank Accounts to Become More Difficult

[Guest fountainhall]

Until now, it has been relatively easy to open private accounts at Thai banks. That is scheduled to change from August 21. But

"[After Aug 21], opening a bank account will not be easy," Pol Col Seehanat said.

Apart from rigorous pre-checks, applicants will be asked about the purpose of opening the account.

 

The bank must immediately inactivate accounts registered by a proxy.

 

Banks which fail to carry out a background check of account applicants will be fined 500,000 baht for each account it did not vet.

 

Pol Col Seehanat said there have been instances where account owners claimed they were students who had no source of income. However, the Amlo found tens of millions of baht were remitted to their accounts.

 

The banks must monitor to see if account owners' professions, as stated in the account registration forms, correspond to the amounts of money coming in and leaving the accounts.

 

Pol Col Seehanat said a tightening of the regulation was proposed after the Financial Action Task Force, the inter-governmental body, named Thailand as a high-risk country for money laundering.

 

http://www.bangkokpost.com/news/local/300314/amlo-wants-stricter-rules-to-open-bankaccounts

[Bob]

Apparently the big deal here is that banks no longer (after August 21) are allowed to open a bank account based on a photocopy of identification cards. That provision really won't affect us falang as I believe banks have always required us to produce an original passport to open an account.

 

But, years ago, there were occasional comments by banks that we falang couldn't have an account unless we had a work permit and/or some banks (Bangkok Bank in my case) refused to allow internet access for the bank account unless you had a work permit. The last sentence in the article you cite reads:

"However, since last month, the SCB has requested foreign nationals seeking to open accounts with the bank to produce additional identification documents such as a work permit."

While this statement doesn't directly say that SCB and other Thai banks won't allow falang without a work permit to open an account, it smells close to some of the requirements some banks asserted 5 to 10 years ago.

 

The article doesn't say anything about changing existing accounts that falang or others already have. That's good but, of course, that's no guarantee that things won't be changing there too (as we know, it's a bit difficult to know if the newspaper article is very thorough or accurate). If we're lucky, this new regulation won't mean a thing (or, if it does, it will quickly lapse into disuse like many other Thai "laws").

[atri1666]

I am happy i never will need account in LOS.

[Bob]

I am happy i never will need account in LOS.

 

Why the heck not? I rather am enjoying the one I have...especially the 5% interest SCB is paying for this 6-month time period (last 6-month period of a two-year cd).

[Gaybutton]

While it is still relatively easy for a foreigner to open a Thai bank account, if you are a frequent traveler to Thailand it might behoove you to open such an account for a variety of reasons including:

 

1. It saves you that 150 baht fee for foreign debit card transactions, along with any fees the foreign bank assesses for transactions in Thailand. If you are withdrawing money from any ATM in Thailand with use of a Thai debit card, the most you'll pay for the transaction is 25 baht.

 

2. If you make sure you can get online banking (not all Thai banks permit online banking without a long-term visa), you can monitor your account from wherever you are in the world. If you have a Thai mobile phone number, you can even keep it topped up with your online banking.

 

3. When you are planning your next trip to Thailand, you can transfer in however much money you'll need in Thailand without having to bother with travel checks or worry about loss or theft of your foreign debit card. No more having to seek out a place to exchange travel checks and sit there for who-knows-how-long waiting your turn. You also won't have to carry your passport around with you every time you need to exchange money.

 

4. If you are providing support to a Thai boyfriend, having a Thai bank account and online banking makes it simple to transfer money from your account into his account from anywhere in the world.

 

5. While in Thailand, if your Thai debit card is lost or stolen, you can have a new one issued within minutes of walking into a branch office instead of going through having to contact your home bank and having to wait for a new debit card to be sent to you.

 

6. No way you're going to return home only to find that somehow there was fraudulent use of your home debit or credit card, and now your account has been cleaned out of thousands of dollars.

 

7. No worries about suddenly finding your home account's debit card has been locked because of "unusual" transactions in a foreign country.

 

8. If you are purchasing something quite expensive, you can probably pay with your Thai debit card rather than having to carry large amounts of cash.

 

9. If retirement to Thailand is among your plans, you'll already have a Thai bank account.

 

10. You never know when rules will change. It's still relatively easy to get a Thai bank account. Depending on your circumstances, it might be better for you to get the account while you still can rather than later wishing you had done so when you had the chance.

 

There are probably several more reasons that aren't occurring to me as I write this that might make it advantageous for you to open a Thai bank account. If nothing else, it certainly can't hurt anything for you to open a Thai bank account. You can always close it later. Most Thai banks will allow you to open an account with an initial minimum deposit of 500 baht.

[Guest]

To open an account, I just needed a passport, a mobile phone number and an address scribbled on a piece of paper. I omitted the name of the hotel from the address .

I set Google calendar up to remind me to log in every 3 months, to ensure the internet banking facility does not expire.

[Rogie]

While it is still relatively easy for a foreigner to open a Thai bank account, if you are a frequent traveler to Thailand it might behoove you to open such an account for a variety of reasons including:

 

Thanks for supplying ten reasons why opening an account might be a good idea. As it would appear to be quite a simple thing to do it makes sense to do it - even if you do not make much use of the account you haven't lost any money. I assume there are no hidden (ie. not explained to you ) nasty charges for 'current accounts'. I am now convinced it behooves me to open one.

[mahjongguy]

Most of the banks charge you 200 baht a year for a Thailand-only ATM card, or 300 baht for one with international functionality (i.e. PLUS or other networks). It is also possible to skip the ATM card (if that suits you) and pay no fee at all, but that may prevent you from getting online banking.

 

The 0.75 % interest is paid in June and December.

[Gaybutton]

To open an account, I just needed a passport, a mobile phone number and an address scribbled on a piece of paper. I omitted the name of the hotel from the address

 

If you don't object to revealing it, it might be helpful if you tell us which bank that was. Not all banks do things the same way and some require much more complicated procedures. Also, while some banks will permit a foreigner to open an account with them, they won't let a foreigner have online banking unless he has a long-term visa.

 

I'm guessing it's Kasikorn Bank (K-Bank). They still make things easy for foreigners and I believe they do permit a foreigner to have online banking without any problems about it even if you opened the account with only the 30-day privilege.

 

 

Most of the banks charge you 200 baht a year for a Thailand-only ATM card, or 300 baht for one with international functionality

 

What banks are you referring to? I've never been charged anything at all other than the initial fee for the "VISA Electron" card.

 

 

I assume there are no hidden (ie. not explained to you ) nasty charges for 'current accounts'.

 

None that I know of. The only thing I've ever seen occurred when View Talay 5 was under construction. A friend from the USA was in the process of purchasing a condo there. He opened a Thai bank account, put in enough money to cover the payments until his return trip to Thailand, which would have been about six months later, and made an arrangement with the bank to take care of making the payments for him each month.

 

The bank was willing to do that for him with no fees. However, my friend wanted hard-copy bank statements each month rather than online banking. The bank said that's fine, but the statements need to be mailed to a Thai address. That's where I came in. He asked me to let the bank send the statements to my address and wanted me to hold the statements for him until he returned.

 

Then came a slight complication. Back in the USA, in early 2008, my friend passed away. His sister was left with settling his affairs. She managed to sell the condo, but the bank would not close out the account unless she came to Thailand herself, with a death certificate, and went to the bank personally. Even if she mailed a death certificate to me, the bank still would not release the funds to anyone other than an immediate family member.

 

There was no other way they would release the money that was still in the account. She found his debit card, but nobody had any idea what his PIN was, so that rendered the card unusable. There was only about 5000 baht left in the account when he passed away, so it wasn't worth it to her to make a trip to Thailand.

 

Meanwhile, since there was no way to get the money released, there was also no way to close the account. So, to this day I still receive the statements at my address. Obviously, the account was not closed out, but after a full year of no transactions the bank considered it a dormant account. The bank started assessing a fee of about 50 baht or so per month for "service." I suppose they'll just keep on doing that until the account is eventually cleaned out completely.

 

Those are the only fees I can remember ever seeing, other than online banking bill payment fees, which are 10 baht each transaction, transfer fees to an account at another bank - 25 baht, and a 25 baht fee if you use the debit card at a different bank's ATM or use the card in another province.

[Gaybutton]

In my list of 10 reasons to open a Thai bank account, I think I need to explain a little more detail about:

 

4. If you are providing support to a Thai boyfriend, having a Thai bank account and online banking makes it simple to transfer money from your account into his account from anywhere in the world.

 

If you're going to do that, I suggest trying to open your account with either Bangkok Bank or Siam Commercial Bank. Several banks require you to submit an OTP (one-time password) before they'll let the transaction go through. The problem is, they send that password to your mobile phone number. That's going to be a little tricky if you don't happen to be in Thailand.

 

Neither Bangkok Bank nor Siam Commercial Bank require the OTP in order to transfer money, even if it's to an account at a different bank. However, with both, you'll have to set up the accounts to which you'll be transferring money while you're still in Thailand. They do require the OTP when setting up accounts you intend to transfer money to, but once you've done that they don't require an OTP for the actual transfer transactions. I don't know of any other banks that will allow online transfers to other accounts without the OTP.

 

There's another way around it. When you open your bank account, instead of your own mobile phone number, use your boyfriend's number. That way, when the bank sends out the OTP it will go to his number. However, back in your home country you'll probably need to be on the telephone with him when you're ready to do the transaction. If the OTP isn't submitted within 12 to 15 minutes of the bank sending it out, it expires.

 

That would also give your boyfriend a good incentive to be very careful not to lose his phone or let it get stolen. If he loses the phone, he also loses his phone number, so goodbye being able to receive the OTP. Of course, he can get another phone and another number, but if the number changes, guess what - you can't change the number online without an OTP. Good luck receiving the OTP if he no longer has his phone . . .

[kokopelli]

Although I do have a Thai bank account getting internet banking is not a simple matter unless one has a retirement visa, at least according to my experiences. International wire transfers from a foreign country to a Thai bank may cost about $50 USD which might negate any benefits benefits of using a foreign ATM card for the casual visitor.

[Gaybutton]

Although I do have a Thai bank account getting internet banking is not a simple matter unless one has a retirement visa, at least according to my experiences. International wire transfers from a foreign country to a Thai bank may cost about $50 USD which might negate any benefits benefits of using a foreign ATM card for the casual visitor.

 

I don't agree. First, whether you can get online banking without a retirement visa depends on the bank. That's why I mentioned K-Bank. I was with a friend who was in Thailand on the 30-day privilege when he opened his account at K-Bank. By the time he left the bank and went to an internet shop, his online banking was already there and functional. And don't forget, if one bank branch tells you they won't permit online banking, try going to another branch of the same bank. Chances are you'll get a different answer.

 

As for the $50 wire fee, do the math. If you use a foreign debit card, that's going to cost you 150 baht per transaction - about US $5. I don't know how many times you pull money out of an ATM when you're on a holiday in Thailand, but I'll bet a lot of people pull money at least 10 times, probably more. And that's before factoring in the home country's foreign transaction fees.

 

In other words, even with that $50 wire transfer fee, you'll probably still come out ahead, along with not having to deal with the other worries.

[mahjongguy]

I said: "Most of the banks charge you 200 baht a year for a Thailand-only ATM card, or 300 baht for one with international functionality".

 

He said: "What banks are you referring to? I've never been charged anything at all other than the initial fee for the "VISA Electron" card".

 

Kbank and the other major banks. If you check your statement for the month exactly a year (or any year) after the card was issued, you'll see the deduction, but it won't leap out at you. Kbank's item detail says that it's an "ATM withdrawal" which it definitely is not. A bit sneaky, that.

[Bob]

Bangkok Bank, years ago, refused internet access to me without a work permit so I simply moved over to SCB where I've had internet access for 8-9 years. Got it while I was on holiday in Thailand on the 30-day exemption deal (didn't get my retirement visa until 3 years ago).

 

SCB does not charge me an annual fee for my ATM/debit card (and, yes, I've checked my monthly statements online for years). The only fee I pay to SCB for having or using the ATM/debit card is when I rarely use it outside of Chiangmai province and, if my memory is correct, it's 50 baht to do that.

 

Agree with GB about the wire fees. My US bank charges me $45.00 for a transfer and, given I only do it once a year, it's an insignificant expense. A simple and safe way to transfer funds to my Thai accounts.

[Gaybutton]

Kbank and the other major banks. If you check your statement for the month exactly a year (or any year) after the card was issued, you'll see the deduction

 

I keep precise records of exactly how much I have in my accounts at all times. I keep track of what I have and what's happening with my accounts more closely than Scrooge ever would even have considered. If there was such a debit, believe me, I would have spotted it, but there never has been such a debit.

 

In what city did you open your account? Did you open your account somewhere other than Pattaya? If so, then the only explanations I can come up with are they either do things differently where you are or I opened my account before they started making such debits and they're not doing that with older accounts. Other than that, I'm drawing a blank.

 

Whatever, I don't think I'd lose a whole lot of sleep over an annual debit of two or three hundred baht, but I agree - if that's what they're doing, yes it sure is sneaky if they're not up front about it.

[kokopelli]

I have accounts at Bangkok Bank and Kasikorn and both refused me internet banking as I did not have a retirement visa. I will try another branch to see their response. My guess is they will tell me to ask at the branch where I opened my account.

 

International wire transfers are an option if one has adequate funds prior to arriving to finance their stay and not have to rely on pensions, social security, paychecks, etc which are deposited to your home bank's account on a monthly basis.

 

The same coud be said about periodic stipends to bfs; if one could do a large wire transfer to a Thai bank and then feed the bf from that account it would save on other means of providing funds to him. It all depends on one's financial situation and internet banking.

 

But, yes, a good idea to have a Thai bank account if one intends to visit Thailand on a regular basis.

[TotallyOz]

I use K Bank mostly because all the guys I know used it. I also transfer money to Thai BF's accounts often. I have no problem doing this with K Bank.

 

I set up weekly deposits to the BF and it goes very easy. I can set that up for one year in advance.

 

If I want to do an additional one, I turn on my Thai cell phone and when they send the code, I simply punch it in.

 

Also, I love I can set up Mobile phone payments for all my "special guys." I just click on their number I have saved and it sends them 500 baht (or any amount you choose).

 

I find it very easy to do all this from USA. But, I have a Thai cell phone that I keep active.

[Gaybutton]

I have accounts at Bangkok Bank and Kasikorn and both refused me internet banking as I did not have a retirement visa. I will try another branch to see their response. My guess is they will tell me to ask at the branch where I opened my account.

 

I'm not surprised about Bangkok Bank, but I am about Kasikorn. My friend had no problem at all. If it helps anything, he opened the account at their branch in Central Festival in Pattaya.

 

Even if they do send you right back to the branch where you opened your account, it wouldn't surprise me at all if you talk to someone other than whoever you talked to before, and end up walking out the door with online banking all set up for you. I've seen times when you get totally different answers right in the very same branch.

 

I'll be interested to know how it plays out for you. If you can't get anywhere with Kasikorn, try Siam Commercial.

 

The part that's on my "I Don't Get It" list is why they even care what kind of visa you have in order to get online banking. If they're willing to let foreigners open an account, what difference would it make to them as to what kind of visa you have if you want online banking? I don't understand why that's a problem.

[TotallyOz]

I'm not surprised about Bangkok Bank, but I am about Kasikorn. My friend had no problem at all. If it helps anything, he opened the account at their branch in Central Festival in Pattaya.

 

I am not surprised at this as I use K bank and I was turned down by several branches and I finally found one in Pattaya that said yes and no problem. It depends on the branch you go to. You do need a visa that is longer than 30 days or at least that is what they told me. Even with my 1 year, many K banks said no but a few said yes and I had to open a new account not try to add Internet Banking to an old account.

[Gaybutton]

I finally found one in Pattaya that said yes and no problem.

 

Aren't you going to say which branch it is?

[mahjongguy]

In what city did you open your account?

Jomtien branch.

 

Here is Kbank's page which mentions the annual fee.

http://www.kasikornbank.com/EN/Personal/Debit/Pages/KDebit.aspx

[Guest]

I opened mine at Kasikorn in Silom Bangkok. If you get off the BTS @ Chong Nonsi & follow the line back towards Sala Daeng, it's the first Kasikorn branch you come to.

That was the second branch of the bank I visited, as the first one asked for a work permit.

[TotallyOz]

Aren't you going to say which branch it is?

 

Sure. It was the one in Jomtien near the Immigration Office. It is right across from the beach. They were very quick and easy to work with.

[Gaybutton]

Here is Kbank's page which mentions the annual fee.

http://www.kasikornb...ges/KDebit.aspx

 

Yes, I see it. I wonder why they're not charging me, not that I'm going to argue with them about it. Maybe it's because I've had my account with them since the days when they were still Thai Farmers Bank.

 

 

That was the second branch of the bank I visited, as the first one asked for a work permit.

 

That's exactly what people need to understand. Don't give up if at one branch you don't get you want. Just go to another branch and bingo! Totally different answer.

[Guest joseph44]

In Holland we say: "A storm in a glass of water!"

Again, they found something to annoy the foreigner.