bunta71

Ah yes!!! It all comes rushing back…like a hot kiss at the end of a wet fist. I appreciate your reply…I used to know all this…really thanks again

Care to expound how that works?

I remember in the past that if timed correctly you can use an OA visa for two years before getting the retirement extension providing all requirements are met

Thanks...I ended up buying a Honda Rebel 300... and will probably sell it due to needing a pickup now...

22 hours ago, Pib said:

If you opened a fixed or regular savings account it will "not" work to receive US govt payments such as social security, military retirement, VA, etc., because Bangkok Bank head office will see the incoming payment is a reoccurring US govt payment and not deposit the funds to your account...will put the funds on hold.  They will then contact you by letter/phone telling you that you must come in an open a special Direct Deposit account within approx 2 weeks or they will send the funds back.  

 

Have your local bank contact HQ Bangkok Bank for more info....and definitely show them their own website page talking the special Direct Deposit account.  The "bank" will complete the form...the top part that normally the individual completes and then they complete their bottom part.  They will then email/fax it to the POC at HQ Bangkok Bank who receives the forms from branches throughout the country and then sends them to the Manila SSA office.  

 

And when your local branch contacts HQ Bangkok Bank below is who they will need to talk to.

 

 

Thanks very much. You seem to understand the conflicting info on these links in particular and the Bangkok Bank website...

23 hours ago, marcusarelus said:

I gave you the link above and told you to have the bank employees to click on the link.  Do you want me to post it again? So much fun. 

actually doing exactly as you suggested on Monday morning...chill

On 3/14/2019 at 4:33 PM, YT3k72Em said:

No, a fixed deposit account is not what you want. That is similar to what americans call Certificates of Deposit. I would assume your savings account is fine for what you want.

Yes it seems so...I have a savings account with an atm card so from what I gather I need to get rid of the atm card. Then again the Bankgkok bank website says they have a direct deposit account but the local bank here does not know of them....so much fun

1 minute ago, crees said:

The impression I have gotten from SS Manila is they have no time to answer anything. I keep getting an automatic e-mail reply that I must wait 5 business days before trying to contact them again … what they mean to say is "good luck and see if Jesus will help you"

Seems Jesus won't help either as usual....crazy and so important,but Lopburi's clue helped...now if I could only get that form...

1 minute ago, JohnnyBD said:

Better you ask Ubonjoe about SS direct deposits. I am not on SS yet and I do international transfers to Thailand.

OK tried sending a message to him this morning...it said I cannot message him...He is the guy though. Thanks again Johnny

2 minutes ago, JohnnyBD said:

Why do you say "with only passbook access"? My THB savings account has an ATM card tied to it where I can withdraw monies from an ATM and that is what I use and that is accepted...

Johnny is that with a Social Security direct deposit?f so...I am already setif I could only get the for from SS

6 minutes ago, JohnnyBD said:

The bank officer was probably confused by you calling it a direct deposit account. All you really need is a THB savings account. When you send money over, it is automatically converted to THB. If you want to convert USD to THB yourself, then you would also need a foreign currency account, then you would convert it to THB at your convenience. That's what I do...

cool...I keep being told that my savings account will not work for this and I must open a direct deposit account, then can transfer it at the counter into my savings so I can use my atm, etc....who knows? So I opened up what they called a "fixed" account also. Now cannot get the form to change my direct deposit due to not having access to the "My Account". I forgot my login details and last night they blocked me from too many attempts. Been one of those days...weeks....

2 minutes ago, marcusarelus said:

Google Bangkok bank direct deposit account. 

 

https://www.bangkokbank.com/en/Personal/Other-Services/Transfers/Transferring-Into-Thailand/Transfer-money-from-US-to-Thailand-via-Bangkok-Bank-NewYork-branch

 

As Bangkok Bank is the only provider in Thailand offering a direct deposit services into a Thai bank account, you can ask the relevant US government agency to route your payments into your Bangkok Bank account via Bangkok Bank’s New York branch. If you reside in Thailand, you can apply for the service in person at any Bangkok Bank branch (except for micro branches).

 

Tell your bank to click on the link.

Thanks for your response...what I need is the link for the direct deposit change form from US social security. I cannot access it because it is only available through "My Account" and I have been blocked access because I cannot find my username nor my password

Having a difficult time getting the US Embassy in manila to respond to my emails or answer their phones...I set up a "my account" years ago and cannot find my username/password and it has blocked me from further attempts. Does anyone have the link to print out the form for changing your direct deposit account. Seems I saw Ubon Joe post it but cannot find it now. Also Bangkok Bank Krabi main branch did not know what a direct deposit account was and after 45 minutes they decided I needed a fixed account so set one up but fear it may be the wrong one to receive my direct deposits from SS through the New York branch of Bangkok Bank

5 minutes ago, allane said:

I am a longtime Thai resident, and I too am not clear what you  are talking about.

  - my best guess is that you are going to be receiving a regular social security payment (from The Philippine government) ?

 - what embassy in Manila are you referring to ?  If you will be receiving  payments from the Philippine govt., contact whatever part of the government will be issuing the payments.

- Most, if not all foreigners in Thailand who receive automatic monthly deposits have savings accounts.

   I don't know if direct deposits are permitted into fixed-term accounts or not.  My guess would be not.  Some of these accounts have minimum requirements for deposits, others might require that the bankbook be provided each time. I was once told that I could not make a deposit to my fixed-term account because I was not at my home branch.

I will wait until some who does know something to respond...thanks anyway...the US Embassy in manila is the one I failed to mention

Good morning ..two questions please. went to Bangkok bank to open a direct deposit account at the main branch in Krabi. I only had a savings acct. I asked 13 people there about a direct deposit account...no one knew what I was talking about. Finally surmised that they called it a fixed account so I set up a new fixed account. question 1) is this the necessary account?

   question 2) I cannot get the embassy in manila to either answer the phone or reply to my email request for the form to transfer my ss direct deposit into this "fixed account" I remember seeing a post of Ubon Joe that began..." firstly lets get the direct transfer change application" ....and then you gave a link to it. I need to set up a vpn today , but asking if you have that link to download the change application...Thanks, Jack

Penang was sooo smooth and professional...picked up my non-O in ten minutes ......should have posted the results a couple days ago but have been simply drunk on the floor ....

11 hours ago, Mike Teavee said:

Do you think that they meant go to Penang and get a Non-O Multi-Entry which would give you unlimited 90 day entries for 1 year?

 

 

No they were both very specific about the o-a and discussed at length how the one year would get me plenty of time for the banking changes to occur. As to the income affidavit being available outside Thailand was news to me and I suspect others also can benefit from that and does explain why I was asked so many times for the embassy affidavit. Thank you for that tidbit. For a current update on my saga, I went to the consulate in Penang this morning with the same paperwork I have drug around now to 5 separate immigration entities. They had a gentleman outside before they opened checking everyone's paperwork before even entering the property. He then double checked everyone as they entered. Walked up to the window, exchanged pleasantries, and the man went through my paperwork, had absolutely no questions as he saw my bank statements that had no stamps, just printed out from my online banking for the last year showing every deposit and transaction. He then smiled, gave me the "ticket" to pick up my passport tomorrow afternoon.... visa is not in my actual hand but expect it to go as smoothly as it did 100 days ago in Kota Bharu. Very professional operation compared to the other various Thai Immigration facilities. There even was an enterprising young man parked outside with a van set up with copy machines AND a passport photo setup. Whoops! Actually before the righteous begin correcting me, it was a visa photo setup. So overall it was night and day between KL and Penang. Jack Thomson...thanks again for the info about the income affidavits availability at US Embassies outside Thailand. I believe this was the only actual true advice posted in this thread and will be useful to others instead of the usual attempts at tearing people down and appearing to have the correct knowledge... let us see what 2PM tomorrow brings

30 minutes ago, moe666 said:

The new rules are 65,000b deposited in a Thai Bank account each and every month. If you are one of the 4 nations who no longer provides the income letter. A lot of people are being caught out who do not keep up to date on the news in Thailand

Yes my problem is a matter of timing. I have re -opened a Bangkok Bank account but it can take 60 days for Social Security to change deposit. Not sure what all the talk of an O-A is about. It is an "O" that I am pursuing. I did receive an "O" in Kota Bharu about 100 days ago without any copies of my bank account. The banking deposit has not completed yet so if I get another 90 day non-O it will all be done. Being sent to get the non O-A was in Penang was at the direction of two different immigration officials that should have known better. Also the lady in KL who completely disregarded the 65,000 Baht method, along with being apparently unaware that the US Embassy stopped the income affidavits because she asked me several times for the letter from my embassy.  My perception was...is...that having the bank directly deposited into the Thai bank was more important when applying for the retirement extension rather than the non-O. Also for the mathematician, I have another bank account in Hawaii for another small Teamster pension that I choose not to include as the $3000 is way more than the 65,000 baht required but I do appreciate your math skills... another note, Krabi immigration requires at least two months of direct deposit completed before getting the retirement ext. We shall see what tomorrow brings...

will attempt one in Penang

9 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

On what basis were you applying for a the non-o visa. The do not show one for retirement on their website and you do not qualify for a OA visa.

I think they were looking for at least 400k baht in the bank if you were applying for a non-o visa based upon marriage to a Thai.

 

My wife is a filipina...really have no clue as to why I do not qualify....and I was very clear as to the 65,000 income for a retirement ext. Lived here for many years and always did the same. I realize I don't qualify for the O-A, was doing a non-O, I was instructed by two immigration officials to go get an O-A in Penang....and who am I to argue with two of them

1 minute ago, ubonjoe said:

The direct deposit of SS payments via the Bangkok Bank's New Your branch  is not going away on the 1st of April.

You need to change your account to a direct deposit account or open new one.

See: https://www.bangkokbank.com/en/Personal/Other-Services/Transfers/Transferring-Into-Thailand/Transfer-money-from-US-to-Thailand-via-Bangkok-Bank-NewYork-branch Click on "Advice to Bangkok Bank customers receiving payments from US government agencies....".

Only transfers from banks via the New York branch are affected if they send the ACH transfers in the IAT format for international transfers.

OK thanks Joe...will get on it. Side note...called penang consulate and they claim one can get the O-A in KL only...will report back next week after doing that or another "O"...thanks again

Been gone 4 years and now I am older and so much more senile...I apologize for such a simple question but...I am in the middle of the income/direct deposit/ retirement ext. debacle. I recently opened a Bangkok Bank Savings acct. just as Bangkok Bank is shutting down the NY transfer thing. Question is...how to do direct deposits to a thai bank of my Social Security payments. From what I read on the ssa.gov website , the us has no agreements with Thai banks. Am I just too old or brain damaged? As of now have only a Bangkok Bank savings acct