george

It's a worldwide problem with several undersea fiber optics sabotaged. Could be one reason for slow internet.

I just topped up with a Kasikorn debit card. Instant.

@SherylI topped up my Revolut account with a foreign VISA debit card, no problems, it was instant. I deposited a small amount to cover the DHL delivery fee to Thailand. Are you saying it doesn't work to top up Revolut with a Thai debit card? DHL took only 3 working days to deliver my card to Thailand.

It's several broken fiber optics in the Red Sea right now, this is one reason for slow internet speed:

Red Sea cables have been damaged, disrupting internet traffic LondonCNN — Damage to submarine cables in the Red Sea is disrupting telecommunications networks and forcing providers to reroute as much as a quarter of traffic between Asia, Europe and the Middle East, including internet traffic. Cables belonging to four major telecoms networks have been “cut” causing “significant” disruption to communications networks in the Middle East, according to Hong Kong telecoms company HGC Global Communications. HGC estimates that 25% of traffic between Asia and Europe as well the Middle East has been impacted, it said in a statement Monday. The company said it is rerouting traffic to minimize disruption for customers and also “extending assistance to affected businesses.” HGC did not say how the cables had been damaged or who was responsible. Full story:https://edition.cnn.com/2024/03/04/business/red-sea-cables-cut-internet

You can't make this up 🙃

Was the transfer instantly? Great exchange rate or not?

Yea, the Revolut card is a VISA card so it’s valid worldwide where VUSA is accepted. You can top up your Revolut account with credit card or debit card. And bank transfer.

Yes they do.

Yes, USD as the source is an American visa info site.

UPDATE: Source: https://visaguide.world/news/thailand-introduces-higher-visa-fees-for-new-zealand/

It's pretty good, but it's not yet launched in Thailand as Meta is having issues with the Thai script in their language model, they will fix that in the coming months and launch here. There are ways around it though.

As a side note, the "visa friendly" Thai Consulate in Sydney, Australia, is launching e-visas from March 19, 2024. https://aseannow.com/topic/1321230-thai-consulate-in-sydney-au-launches-evisa-from-march-19-2024/

The Royal Thai Consulate in Sydney has today announced they will stop issuing "sticker visas" and go live with eVisa online applications from March 19th, 2024. The Sydney Consulate will only accept applications from people who live in NSW from that date. You can apply until Mar 9th, 2024 the 'old way'. As of today there is no mention of any visa fee increases on their website https://sydney.thaiembassy.org/ The Royal Thai Consulate in Sydney has long been known as the "easy" consulate in Australia, compared to the more "strict" Royal Thai Embassy in Canberra. Canberra is also moving to e-visas, to be announced later. As a note, recently The Royal Thai Embassy in Wellington, New Zealand raised visa fees by 600%. ASEANNOW are monitoring the visa situation at all Embassies and Consulates and will post updates as they happens -- ASEANNOW 2024-03-01

We are working on an update when MFA has one. Sorry for the delay.

That depends on your banks policy. Tip: Try Kbank next time…

Some Thai banks are slower. I have found Kbank to be the fastest on inward remittances.

Nice day today.

Correct! Revolut does the same.

Bangkok Bank and all other commercial Thai banks convert to THB automatically when your foreign transfer arrives in Thailand. They do so as they can't deposit foreign currency in your THB bank account. Simple, and this is the correct way to transfer money to Thailand. Never send in THB.

Here you can compare WISE with Revolut:

Just instruct sending bank NOT to convert to THB. Tell them clearly that your local bank will do the exchange to THB.

And regarding money transfers, here is a fresh compare, WISE vs Revolut:

You get very bad exchange rates! Don't do it.

Here is a comparison between WISE and Revolut, you may find that they are similar but also has a lot of differences, like exchange rates: