shortstop2

As Friendly Farang said above this is not not paid so if your plan is to get a refund from your home country of taxes paid that plan may not be accurate. Some people have said that on their USA they claim this amount as foreign tax paid and then they deduct from their USA. It may work for them because they don't get audited but it is contrary to the USA tax code and guidance.

Are you talking about the tax you actually paid to the Revenue Office or the amount that withheld by your bank? If your Thai interest and other earnings are less than 150K baht then I think there is no tax due and everything withheld can be refunded.

Good job maximizing your interest! Does the UOB account have a bank book? Googling around I see that the 1.25% is a bonus rate if 4 transactions a month but it is not clear to me which accounts are eligible for the bonus. Which account at UOB do you have. I know some people have not have problems using SCB Easy Account at Immigration for the 800K but I am leery of getting the wrong IO on teh wrong day.

Perhaps a reasonable sentiment for sports contests where someone with male genitalia could have a competitive physical advantage but in a beauty contest those born with female genitalia should have the advantage.

If you have a Thai Tax ID card and are persistent SCB will stop the withholding. You can get the ID card at a Revenue Office.

On the app tap to view more details. then when you see E Passbook Ez savings there is a drop down arrow you can hit and when you do that you will see accrued interest.

Thanks Gambler, Great news about the revised SCB limit as I don't have to keep my balance at exactly 1M anymore. I know you can see accrued interest at SCB and you can't see it at Krungsri. I don't believe the interest is compounded daily at SCB though as I don't think you get interest on the interest. Anyone know the exact details beyond the nominal rate as to the differences in the interest rate algorithm between the Krungsri Mai Tee Dai account and the SCB Easy account? I realize that no matter how it's compounded 1.5% is going to beat a mostly 0.9% account.

Sorry, To be honest I'm not sure. I do remember asking the rep to tell me what she is doing and her English was poor and my Thai even worse so I just went with the flow. My head is swimming from dealing with 3 banks yesterday and don't want to test it by making a large not needed transfer. If someone would tell me how I can check if I have the facial recognition without making a transaction then I'll let you know. I know that the facial recognition works with Bangkok Bank.

I had problems updating both my Bangkok Bank and Krungsri mobile apps on my phone. Could just be my phone but SCB is able to update OK. Krungsri and told them that I want their app on my IPad which doesn't have a Sim instead of my phone. I was told the initial registration must be done with a Sim. The rep told me it wasn't possible. Went back yesterday and a different rep was able to set it up but it was a complicated procedure. Bangkok Bank was also able to sort it out but again a complicated procedure. So a bank rep can arrange it so that your app is on your IPad instead of your phone. It's not that useful to have the app on an IPad instead of my phone but my phone otherwise works great and don't want to buy a new phone just to use these two apps. Many reason that I want the app is so I'm all set up if Bangkok Bank and Krungsri follow SCB's and go app only.

Yesterday, got the facial recognition/increased limit from both Bangkok Bank and SCB branches at Central Festival Pattaya and it was relatively painless. Great place if you use several banks as 7 banks have branches on the 4th floor.

Sending a Swift to Fidelity isn't too straightforward and my money got sent back. But I got it right the second time using the app. For those who are sending money to their Fidelity Brokerage account you are not the Beneficiary. National Financial Services LLC is the Beneficiary and their address is 499 Washington Blvd, Jersey City, NJ 0310 but the address probably doesn't matter. Their account number is 066196-221. In the comments area put FBO (your name) FFC (your Fidelity account number which probably begins with a Z or X followed by 8 digits. Choose the JP Morgan Chase from the drop down menu that has the Swift code CHASUS33. Their Fedwire number is 021000021. https://www.fidelity.com/cash-management/information-needed-wire-to-fidelity-account

I have a problem with my phone and I am unable to update the Bangkok phone app in the Play store. Was not a big deal as I do most of my banking on my laptop but figured I should sort out the problem sooner than later in case other banks follow SCB's lead and going app onlu. So I recently went into a branch to get the app installed on my Ipad. The bank first had to delete my current registration of my useless app on my phone and then was able to install on my iPad. The bank rep said I can only have the app on one device.

I'm considering transferring money from Bangkok Bank to my Fidelity Brokerage in the USA. It seems pretty easy, the fees are low, and the TT Selling Rate, while not great, looks reasonable enough for an approx 100K THB transfer. https://www.bangkokbank.com/en/Personal/Other-Services/Transfers/Transferring-Out-of-Thailand/IFT-mB For those who have used Bangkok Bank for sending money are there any surprises lurking or anything that I should be aware of?

I have a SCB Easy Account and am planning to get a debit card. Bank reps are usually incentivized to push a certain type of card so am researching which card. I will hardly ever use the card so am looking for one with low fees. On their website their two lowest fee cards are Debit SCB M Visa Card and Let's SCB Debit Card which appears to be a Mastercard. Do any of you have either of these cards or another SCB low fee cards? https://www.scb.co.th/en/personal-banking/cards/debit-cards.html I'm will hardly ever use the card. I basically just want a card in my wallet with a high limit in case of emergency.

I'm DYI for visa extensions but Mot was extremely helpful to me for obtaining a driver's license. Since they provide door to door service for licenses I'm sure they could come to a customer for visa services. Whether or not they can help with the bank letter etc. might depend on which bank you have an account with.

Visa agents can assist you with opening a Bangkok Bank account although as of this March it is a bit more difficult. Once one has the retirement visa visa (1 year Extension of Stay) then it should be easy to open an account with a different bank. 3 months after the Extension of Stay takes effect then 400K can be removed to the new account and the a few days later the other 400K can be removed. Then the Bangkok Bank account can be closed.

RIP Joe. Rock solid uber dependable friendly replies to visa questions. A great guy! RIP

Yup, a buddy got snared into the dragon lady's trap. But she had an expensive solution.

It seems that 3BB has 3 fiber plans, for 500, 699, and 999 baht a month. The two more expensive ones have include something called AP Mesh, whatever that is. Not sure if upload or download speed comes first but the most expensive plan has a speed of 1 Gbps/1Gbps while the 699 plan has 1Gbps/500 Mbps. I'm thinking that for my needs, which would be video calls somewhat similar to Zoom that the difference between 1 Gbps and 500 Mbps would not be meaningful but perhaps the APMesh would increase the chance that I don't lose connectivity. Are my assumptions correct or an I off base here? https://fiber.3bb.co.th/en/3bb-giga-fiber/

My terminology is probably not correct but I was told that 3BB has a plan with no installation charge and a also a more direct hookup that has an installation charge. If this makes sense my question for 3BB customers is do you have the direct wire connection or the wifi version? Is there a difference in internet reliability? I have been using an AIS 10 Mbs download speed on my phone and 15Mbs in a pocket wifi device and both were sufficient for my prior needs and the price was super cheap. But my needs are changing and will need a super reliable connection and the faster speed would also be helpful. This is not for torrents but for business video needs. So if reliability is my concern, is the special wired hookup to my floor what is needed? Note, I think 3BB is the only non-wifi option for my condo.

A PAC aligned with Trump put out a preemptive attack ad which is catchy. You can google Ron DeSalesTax. I'm just an observer and have no dog in this fight.

Re CDs,there is a difference between brokered CDs which places like Fidelity and Schwab offer and a regular CD offered by brick and mortar banks. At Fidelity, you can sell CDs but the market is not very liquid and you will take a substantial haircut. With a brick and mortar CD you often lose some interest if you break it early, perhaps three months. It is cheaper to break a CD with most brick and mortar banks. I think online banks that offer their own CDs such as Ally and Cap1 have penalties similar to the brick and mortar banks. Ay Fidelity you can buy either call protected or non-call protected CDs. It is far better to by call protected brokered CDs, especially for long durations, which means the bank does not have the right to return your money early. Now you're not going to want to break a 1 month CD and most likely not a 3 month CD, But 5 years is a long time to tie up your money in an instrument that's not easy to break in a cost effective manner. So (except for the current debt ceiling crisis) Treasuries are a better alternative in which the Bid-Ask spread is reasonably tight. But money market funds at Fidelity are paying a good rate too. 4.9% with a minimum 10K purchase in an IRA (100K if not in an IRA).

I also suspect that there is a secret undisclosed limit. In the past I used my Fidelity Visa debit card linked to a Fidelity Cash Management Account. The 220 baht gets refunded in a few days. Visa imposes no fee. Fidelity imposes no fee. The exchange rate is (or very close to) the interbank rate. If the Fidelity card is linked to your Fidelity brokerage account then you don't get the 220 baht refunded.

This clears up my confusion. I don't want to drive from mid-June until mid-November with an expired license. I have a 2 year license which I will be renewing for 5 more years. Is the procedure for renewing my initial 2 year license the same as renewing a 5 year license?

As many have suggested enlisting the help of an agent for one year should solve the problem and then next year you can go back to doing it yourself. Contact a few agents and see what their pricing is. I am a disorganized slob. Sometimes I search for three hours to find something, figure I don't have it and then a year later I find it. Usually old bank books have a hole punched through it. It's also a possibility that an agent with special connections with Bangkok bank could get you the the printout you need. Mot in Pattaya is one such agent. Although her connection is with a local branch it is "possible" that branch could possibly intercede for you with the head office. Good luck!