KhnomKhnom

For nine years, I have been able to satisfy the "money in the bank" Immigration Police question by supplying a signed letter from my branch bank office where I opened my account. I was told by Imm. Police that they did not want to use the bank book as proof of anything, but did not investigate how long I had held the money. Maybe after seeing me for years, the bank letter satisfies for my case.

Start at your bank with your question because they will have to provide you the support letter anyway and should know all about it. You will have to go there anyway.

Thailand does not want you. Proceed from that given. Sounds your best idea is to try to become a citizen, but.........

Rumors say that the Thai citizenship test is in written Thai language and not of the sixth grade level. My one source investigated and concluded he could never master that level of the language. My different source said that he has asked to take the Thai citizenship test and his request had been delayed now for over ten years. Both are Western foreigners.

Like this site, this question has lots of guesses attached to it. The first part is to obtain an account.

Go the the largest Bangkok Bank you can get to and talk to a senior person who really speaks your language, English. Explain you want to open a savings account of at least 800000THB (opening deposit can be less) and refill it via the system whereby you have American money paid to you via the arrangement of sending the money to your number at the Bangkok Bank in NYC (not an account, just a 'pass through' number) which will immediately direct that money to the THAILAND Bangkok Bank account of yours. This system is described clearly on BB web site. You should be able to talk yourself into a savings account at the Thailand Bangkok Bank; if not, you may be one of the early victims of the item below. Dress in tie and be nice.

There is a new USA law called Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act(FATCA) which is going after ALL American-held bank accounts all over the world (above $10000). The FOREIGN bank must report to the usa IRS (note IRS) all such accounts. This is without respect to privacy or other such niceties. It also requires that of the foreign banks without compensating those banks for this service to IRS. This law will simply add to the cost of a bank having an American account holder, and add to that, there are American-based penalties to the banks for non compliance.

Imagine the arrogant gall of this law!

Obviously, it puts Americans wishing to use their Thailand bank account to comply with the Thailand laws on retirement visas in a bind, a Catch 22. One could reasonably conclude that banks holding smaller American accounts, like 800000 to a few million THB, would just close the accounts instead of trying to mess with compliance with this weird AMERICAN law. No one seems to know how this will shake out in reality, but I guess banks will resist American-held accounts as soon as they fully realize what is going on.

This is your Police State American govt at work for you and all of the world. I suggest America also make a law that Americans living anywhere in the world be caught and reported for driving over 55mph and those reports go the the new Foreign Highways Speeding Compliance Act records collection office. That office will expect foreign police to make such traffic stops and report, uncompensated, and with fines for noncompliance, Americans, then accumulating bad driving records can have their foreign automobile insurance suppliers to raise their rates under threat of penalties from the USA.

My thin hope is 1. that Thailand will give the finger to usa and skip the mess and 2. some USA congresspeople change this law. The law seems like another kind of drone strike in other sovereign nations. Seems Uncle Sam wants to keep his little American babies at home where he can drain them even more. My skimpy retirement will put me in a trailer park down by the railroad tracks if I must move back to usa.