Equatorial

What exactly counts as an "authorized representative"?

There is typically a fixed cost to do a SWIFT, ranging from $15 to $50. It is more expensive for transferring small amounts, but it may actually be less expensive if you transfer the entire amount of THB800k in one transaction using SWIFT.

Do you need to make any prior arrangements, or do you just send the money and it magically appears in Thailand? Also, how exactly do you "send" it? Their website says they don't accept ACH transfers, only "international ACH" transfers, but I have not found a way to do that from my US-based credit union.

How does that work? (The context was a reference to a form of payment...)

That's what I'd like to know...

For opening a separate account, I would suggest considering a different bank. The BB mobile app sucks. I much prefer SCB. I have not used Kasikorn but I hear good things about it as well.

One more comment. Another poster in another thread mentioned that he keeps a bank account dedicated to the EOS requirements, where he makes required the monthly deposits, which he immediately transfers to another bank account that is dedicated for everyday use. I like the idea of keeping the two separate. For one, the bank book provided to the IO has a small number of entries and it clearly shows the information that the IO is looking for. More importantly, it helps to guard against a mistake that would cause your balance to dip below the minimum required for the EOS. There is an ongoing thread where the OP is asking about his options, because his balance dipped below the minimum - by mistake.

Impossible to tell for sure without clicking through the different options, so this is just guesswork. It is my understanding that Activate refers to a new card that has not been activated. Greyed out implies that your card has been activated, meaning, the issue is elsewhere. I would click through the Lock/Unlock and Change Limits options and see what the settings are and if they need adjustments. Or even the Suspend option (in case your card is in Suspend=YES state and needs to be unsuspended). All else fails, you're right, it may take a trip to a branch, but I'm sure one way or another you'll be able to get your card to work. Btw, hearing about all of the CC and ATM card scams it's probably a good idea to keep your card in a locked state, and only unlock it briefly when you are using it.

Can confirm, that when I do a Google Maps search for "sisaket", or "Sisaket", takes me to the exact same screen as shown on the screenshot posted by @youreavinalaff. And yes, it displays "Si Sa Ket" on the search result screen, despite the fact that the search term did not contain the two spaces. The explanation is simple - Google Maps, just as many other Google services, displays personalized results. It is not unusual that given identical search term two different users will be presented with completely different information. You clearly don't understand the intricacies of Google search engine. Yet, that is no reason to accuse anyone of being illiterate or needing help. Let that be a lesson for you. Maybe next time you want to pontificate about things you don't know anything about - THINK FIRST! PS: Thanks for pointing out that my implying to speak for anyone other than myself was inappropriate. Point taken.

How did that switch from retirement-based EOS to marriage-based go?

Using your Bangkok Bank app, look at the ATM card settings. Bangkok Bank (as well as other banks) allows you to enable/disable not just the card as a whole, but specific types of transactions (e.g. international, online, etc.) and also to set limits. My guess is some of those settings are disabled and that is interfering with what you're trying to do.

I agree with @Upnotover - in Thailand, people use savings accounts for what we would typically use a "current" or a "checking" account. Over here, only businesses use current account and write checks. In terms of quality, they are all pretty much the same, at least that's my impression. If they offer interest on the balance, it's not much. What I look for is the quality of the banking app. I only have experience with Bangkok Bank and SCB; BB's app is poorly designed, and there are still some things I haven't figured out how to do. SCB has a much better app with more functionality and flexibility.

Not to mention illiterate... As the saying goes, people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. As I said earlier, anyone vaguely familiar with Thailand would have known what we're talking about. I suggest that in the future you start your posts by saying that you don't know anything about Thailand, can't spell, and that you're stupid, uneducated, incompetent, and illiterate. And offensive to boot, with no value to add. We are a bunch a nice people, you know, and we'll understand!

Let me try to summarize the OP situation and options. The OP is on marriage-based EOS. The renewal comes up within a few months. The OP expects not to have 400k seasoned for 2 months at the time of application for the next EOS. Options: 1/ Switch to income method. This will NOT work because it would need to be retroactive for the full 12 month period, starting since the last EOS. 2/ Get a 60-day extension "to visit wife," to give himself additional 60 days to get the seasoned 400k for the next EOS application. 3/ Get an agent, which involves switching to a retirement-based EOS. That can be reverted back to marriage-based the following year EOS, assuming the financial requirements are met by that time. 4/ Exit Thailand, reenter visa exempt followed by 60-day extension "to visit wife." Repeat if necessary, until such time that the finances are in place to meet the requirements for a Non O.

The OP says he's already on an EOS (vs the original 90-day visa). Can a 60-day extension be granted at the expiration of an EOS? If the answer is "yes," can an extension "to visit wife" be granted at the expiration of the retirement EOS (of course, assuming one is married to a Thai)?

I would treat this option with extreme caution, but I have used it before (for a different purpose): You (actually, your wife), can borrow locally the money needed to show the required 400k. First of all, only do it if you are 100% certain you can repay the loan. The loan sharks here are nasty people! Secondly, the interest is high. Let's say 5% per month. So make sure to repay as soon as you can. But, say you need to borrow 100k for two months. The fee for that service would be 10k. Very expensive, by out Western standards. But, in special circumstance, it may be worth it.

This is hilarious! First of all, if you're going to go on about misspelling, you should look up the word. It is NOT "mis spelling." Second of all, the region the OP is referring to is a province that is properly spelled ศรีสะเกษ, and not Si Sa Ket, as you erroneously claim. Si Sa Ket, Sri Saket, Sisaket, etc. are variants of the name using something called romanization of Thai. There are many different systems of romanization of Thai, thus there are many different variants of the Thai words and names. Anyone remotely familiar with Thailand would have recognized that the OP is referring to the Sisaket province in Thailand, bordering, among others, with Ubon Rachatani. You can say that again!

Come again, @SAFETY FIRST ?

We all have our reasons... but I'll offer my thoughts. I thought about doing the same. In the end I decided against it. I prefer to keep my retirement money in the US, and only bring to Thailand as much as I need. If for no other reason, when I travel back to the US, or to Europe, I want to have my money available to me. Too many restrictions imposed on THB. It's a matter of a few clicks, and a few seconds, to transfer money from the US to Thailand when I need it. I just can't think of a good reason to tie up all of my money here... And, as you pointed out, these are uncertain times. Money is definitely safer (in terms of value and liquidity) in the US than it is here. Here is the link to the form on the SSA site: https://www.ssa.gov/forms/ssa-1199-op107.pdf

Right, Ubon is not far, and it's considered a "big city." Probably more city type things to do than anywhere in Sisaket. But I have no first-hand experience so I can't offer any suggestions...

I asked a similar question recently - you may want want to look at the thread at https://aseannow.com/topic/1358341-favorite-western-food-places-in-sri-saket/ Here are a few suggestions for the Khun Han area, about 50 miles south of Sisaket City. There is a place called Coco Bar. They have three rooms and a small pool. Clean and comfortable. Pleasant staff. Nice place for a mini-vacation. THB 800 per night. Comes with breakfast. I've had American breakfast once, didn't care for it, so I switched to Thai food for breakfast. All good. Restaurant serves decent pizza and chicken quesadillas. They also serve the best Isaan sausage I've ever had. Sai krop Isaan. There are two locations. One is in Khun Han - that is in town and that's not the one I'm talking about. The one in Ban Pran (about 10 miles outside Khun Han) is the one with the rooms to rent and a pool. I will mention two other places in Khun Han - on Fridays, 6-9PM, Rerawadi Resort is a good place to meet local farang and have some food. Their goulash is outstanding! They also serve very good wienerschnitzel and pizza. Also, Little Bird Cafe serves good farang food. All of these are easy to find on Google Maps.

I second that. There is no downside - worst case scenario is they tell you what you're already assuming.

Good to know! Related, in case one needs to show foreign source, and the foreign-sourced money has been in the bank for extended period of time (over a year, or 2-3 years), will the bank be able to issue a bank letter or a statement going that far back?

It is common to tax behaviors that the state wants to discourage. All of us who already paid out fair share pay additional taxes when we buy cigarettes and whiskey.

No need to demonize the immigrants! Otherwise, correct, both to curb the immigrants' remittances, and to tax them (as a source of revenue).