beerBear

Not as a bank, but they do have a Customer Services contact number - see under:

HDFC Bank Ltd-NRI Customer Services,

G3 Worldwide Mail Logistics (Thailand) Co. Ltd,

Bkk/Bom/120690/Th1,

PO Box 88

Klong Toey Post Office,

Klongtoey,

Bangkok 10111,

Thailand.

ah thx for the info

Yes, you are right. I checked this. they had personal accounts also before but sold that business to KRUNGSRI Bank Thailand.

But HSBC is still a good choice in India and one should get support from Krungsri Bank in case anything goes wrong.

hm...allright...but is HDFC available in BKK too?

To work in Thailand you will need a work permit first. Once obtained, and you have been working 3/6 months, with payslips etc, you will be able to obtain a Credit Card here with most banks, rather than in India. If you have an Indian CC and use it in Thailand you will be paying currency fees. My recommendation would be to obtain two cards - one in India, which you could probably get straight away, and another once you have been in Thailand for the required period - banks here vary, some say 3 months and others up to 6 months.

I have no experience of sending money from Thailand to my home country, only the other way round - UK to Thailand. I use Bangkok Bank for that as they have a London Office which is a far cheaper way of sending sterling to Thailand.

I hope this helps you.

thanks for replying again

yep..they'll be arranging me a work permit..

correct me if I am wrong:

First I will be getting a non-imig. B visa without this I/my employer cannot apply for a work permit and a work permit can only* be obtained/applied for when I am in TH and have the non-imig. B visa ?

Also, is there a minimum age, work exp. criteria? such as 25 years of age and 5 years of work exp.? to obtain/apply for a work permit and/or to stay longer than a year? acc to new regulations?

Which country are you from? How long is your work in Thailand going to last for? Are you going to be paid in Thai baht or currency of your home country? Once you answer these questions, I may be able to give you more advice.

hi thanks for replying.

am from India. I just got a new job in bkk so I guess I'll stick around for atleast* 2-4 years and I will be paid in bahts

anyone..?

anyone..?

Hi all,

I will be moving to bkk next month and I don't have a credit card here in my home country; just have the usual mastercard debit card for now.

so..if I get a credit card from my home country (even though my employer would help in opening up a salary account) and use it in TH would that be ok? should I expect deduction of taxes apart from the ones which occur when I pay credit card bills using my home country's bank issued CC ?

although I wouldn't really have a choice of which bank my employer opens an account with for me but which is the best bank in BKK if I want to open up a 2nd account ? taking into consideration that I will be transferring money from TH to parents in home country..so I would want hassle free transactions? and less taxes/deductions

please guide me I am new to the expat scene

Hi all,

I am looking for a condo / 1 bedroom apartment(1BHK?) in bkk for long term work related stay preferably in pathumwan/watthana area or somewhere nearby(victory monument or near university?) but having a BTS station close by would be necessary.

preferably having:

- a cool and easy manager/owner )

- decent living space inside condo/apt.

- decent internet(would want an unlimited connection so I can pay max. 2000b/mo; pls suggest a broadband network provider having low latency for connecting to servers outside TH)

- rest is basically a full furnished condo/apartment (washing machine, AC, fridge, furniture etc)

budget: 5000-10000b/mo. contract of 1year (what extra charges will be payable? like water/electricity bill?) or long term contract (can increase if everything is ok)

All in all..I am looking for a budget area to live in (nearby jain food places; as I am 100% vegetarian and an alright market would be nice) and not that hifi styled condos.

Also, I found this: http://www.ddproperty.com/en/property/1-bedroom-condo-in-watthana-bangkok-1352000

Please remove link if I missed forum rules while posting this

certainly the photos are not of the advertised apartment/condo...hahaha :| ?

I know that this might not be my thing (me being a newcomer..here on forum) but guys..let's just stick to the topic..and not confuse others reading this thread :| ?

Correct me if I am wrong, I think its fairly safe to assume you are new to the world of expating and overseas contracting.

I would pay no attention to anything written on jobs r us or any other website.

You didnt negotiate, theres your first mistake, dont worry, we have all been there and learned from it.

I can assume based on the salary offered, nothing has been mentioned concerning an accomodation allowance, never mind education allowance.

What about at least one return ticket per year back to your home country?

What medical insurance package will be provided?

What annual bonus will be paid (at least 2 months salary)?

Take it no mention was made of transportation package, I know for a fact you wont be provided with a car and driver.

What are your promotion prospects, will further education and personal development be provided and paid for?

What would you earn per month if you stay where you are, and why would you take a pay cut to come here?

If you want to experience an overseas country and workplace, fine.

If you want to try a different way of doing things fine?

If you want something to put on a CV for use at a later date fine.

Dont sell yourself short, accept no less than the going rate for the job.

yep it's my first time out of my country and this is my 3rd job (2nd job switch) and so the negotiation *facepalm* :|

well..trust me the given no. of work ex. (part/full time) I have 3-4 def. falls in a range of 40-60/mo. so I guess 50/mo is neither insanely great/great nor a totally bad pkg either..it's just that I could've negotiated for more...

aahh..well it's the work environment, work permit, crowd am more looking forward to :] having an exp. such as this is considered a great opportunity in my country where people are still struggling to get decent jobs..and even considering current pkg this is not a loss to me..it's just allright like I said above^ and isn't a price cut in any way.

this sal. is gross sal. so it'll include all the allowances; insurance is being provided namely dental and some kind of group health insurance :|

it's an MNC so am sure that future prospects will be like any 3 companies out of 5 that they'll fund me for further studies depending on some ifS and butS.

@all

can you guys suggest me a condo/1 room place to rent out near pathumwan/watthana/victory monument? preferably next to BTS as I would need to travel to pathumwan area and my max. budget including elec./water bill is 10k/mo. looking for hot water, tv(nice to have), washing machine, wifi(a decent connection), guarded entrance/security, an allright neighbourhood :]

Your salary can be zero baht for all the government cares. if you qualify for a work permit you will get one.

If you want to apply for an extension based on employment though.... you will need to show the salary.

um...correct me here:

if my employer gets a work permit for me then again there will be a need to extend it (I guess on a yearly basis? or maybe 3 yearly?) if I continue my employment :3 ?

oh and I got to know recently that I would be required to get a work permit when am there (physically present) in TH :] and not before that..(was thinking that I can apply for the same at the time of applying for the non-imm B visa )

coming back to OP's question (which also aligns with mine) a gross sal of 50k/mo is it underpaid, overpaid or so-so..? location being Bangkok and for an ex-pat who has a work experience of 4 years as a mobile software developer?

Its underpaid (for an ex-pat), I know a young Thai kid who was making 60-70k per month, Next month he is off to Japan to do his PhD.

but if work exp. requirements are taken into consideration and/or jobs @ jobsdb then I fall under the category of 35-60k/mo.

I din't negotiated..1st because..well as I thought 50k should be good enough as per the govt norms to get a work visa/permit for an expat having work exp. of ~4 years as to what my employer told me that acc. to new rules/regulations it's a min 5yrs of wrk exp. and 27yrs of age; am just 25 now :s

2ndly: am confident that I can get a hike the next year based on my hard/smart work

coming back to OP's question (which also aligns with mine) a gross sal of 50k/mo is it underpaid, overpaid or so-so..? location being Bangkok and for an ex-pat who has a work experience of 4 years as a mobile software developer?

Check pm

hi,

can you PM me the details too? looking for a studio 1BR in BKK with walking access to a BTS

Looking to retire in Bkk? LOL, no chance.

Thailand, really quiet places, sorry wrong country unless you want to live in the monastrey with the barking dogs.

Working for a MNC, get yourself to Singapore and earn some real money, stash it away and maybe in 25/30 years time you can think about retiring here.

You aint one of these digital nomads we keep hearing about are you?

lol

ohk..but what about having a beach retirement life?

and pattaya def looks like a place to stay around :]

ah..well let's come back to my queries..

can I really get a fully furnished condo in BKK with a max budget of 15K a month including utility bills (elec, water, decent broadband internet?) next to a BTS not fr from pathumwan area?

I must admit life is Not about money (unless you are Thai....) I would rather live on 6,000 baht a month than being "stuck in an office all day" on a " telephone number salary" I prefer being outside on the beach in flip flops ( my cool " Kitos "..)

just browsing through those station pics

Simple question. Varying levels to answer it.

- Depends on what you mean by "average". In Thailand as you know those at the bottom earn a few thousand baht and are large in number. Those at the top earn millions and are few in number so would skew any "mean".

- Having a degree is important when starting. This puts the minimum at 15k a month for most people in BKK for example

- Without a degree 300 may be the minimum wage - so say about 7,500 on a 25 day month. But some people will illegally get less.

- Bottom line for someone with no degree, 20k a month is reasonable/good going, particularly if originating from up country. For an unskilled worker/labourer it would be good going. For an office worker with a degree in Bangkok 20k would be below average.

- For someone in a professional capacity, (meaning accountant, lawyer etc) it would be below average. For someone in the "other professional capacity" in foreigner orientated places it would also be low.

Cheers

Fletch

thanks for the note^

- yep I do have a BS degree but I din't get as to how that would have an advantage here except for the min. wage increment.

can you please give me a breakup say if I have 40k a month (after tax, company deductions) then how much should I expect to pay for the accomodation(I'd want to live in a furnished condo with a BTS nearby and certainly close to pathumwan area), transportation (BTS; possibility to rent a bike?), food, mobile, a beer or two every weekend in BKK and finally save for the future?

If you actually have a BS degree why on earth would you want to move here for a paperboys salary.

No offence but what country are you posting from?

Forget it on the salary you talk about.

am from India and personally I'd want to move in a country which has some relly quiet places (talking about rural areas, mountains, forests etc); as far as India is concerned I've already travelled and lived my life so far from the remotest parts of eastern India to as far as northern parts of India and currently based in the NCR (Near Capital Region) of India.

hmm..well am not looking forward to have huge $(more than a hundred thousand?) bank balance for now but yes given my current company in India this one in BKK is a leap (well idk if not in terms of salary but def. it is in terms of future prospects..as the company is an MNC having major operations in singapore so besides the international exposure and cheap electronics, awesome! beaches in TH am looking to retire in BKK idk..maybe and am just 25 right now..yea that might sound awkward but meh)

all in all I'd def want to retire in some mountains in Northern TH instead of settling in dust back there in India; but ofc I would aim for higher cities as well outside BKK

my current plan is to work outside of India, gain considerable amt of work ex and then go back to float a small software services based firm or maybe float one in the country am in (if my work permit/visa allows)

Simple question. Varying levels to answer it.

- Depends on what you mean by "average". In Thailand as you know those at the bottom earn a few thousand baht and are large in number. Those at the top earn millions and are few in number so would skew any "mean".

- Having a degree is important when starting. This puts the minimum at 15k a month for most people in BKK for example

- Without a degree 300 may be the minimum wage - so say about 7,500 on a 25 day month. But some people will illegally get less.

- Bottom line for someone with no degree, 20k a month is reasonable/good going, particularly if originating from up country. For an unskilled worker/labourer it would be good going. For an office worker with a degree in Bangkok 20k would be below average.

- For someone in a professional capacity, (meaning accountant, lawyer etc) it would be below average. For someone in the "other professional capacity" in foreigner orientated places it would also be low.

Cheers

Fletch

thanks for the note^

- yep I do have a BS degree but I din't get as to how that would have an advantage here except for the min. wage increment.

can you please give me a breakup say if I have 40k a month (after tax, company deductions) then how much should I expect to pay for the accomodation(I'd want to live in a furnished condo with a BTS nearby and certainly close to pathumwan area), transportation (BTS; possibility to rent a bike?), food, mobile, a beer or two every weekend in BKK and finally save for the future?

50,000 baht a month wage? I could live nearly all year on that! lol Bangkok is a fab place you should be able to live easily on 15,000 a month and save 35,000 baht!

hey thanks for replying

lol but taxes, social security tax have to be deducted as well.. ? :|

what I heard/read across www is 35k a month should be allright to survive in BKK but when I searched for some condos..they're fairly priced in the higher 10k-20k bracket :| (those with basic air con, wifi, hot water stuff)

hi all,

sorry to interrupt but I have a question similar to what OP has asked (I thought it'd be better to ask here; thread seems active so..).

I've been offered a software developer job position (have 4.3 years of work ex.) by a company; gross sal they've offered is 50k bahts/mo. and job position is based out of central bangkok.

so my queries are:

- would that be enough for a single guy given Bangkok is very pricey to live in? I'd be getting married in about an year or so..my wife would be earning as well but then again "bangkok" == mother of all pricest cities in TH ?

- can anyone suggest me some condos(would want wifi, nice locality) nearby victory monument/pathumwan/watthana? err...I am looking forward to live next to a BTS station as I'd commuting for atleast an year to a BTS station next to my office (hate city traffic jams) , a mobile package/operator?

- am a strict vegetarian so is veggie food more expensive in/around BKK?

will highly appreciate if you guys can give me a walk through as I'd moving in about a month's time