looking for a bank in bangkok to open account . They all refuse.

[anon789561]

OP,  nevermind BKK6060. he's weird and would like people to have taken the contact name of people and god forbid they haven't.

 

I will share this flawed information with you and it is current and up to date. checked by myself today.

 

Get your passport certified at the embassy on wireless road and after take a cab or walk to Abdulrahim Place on Rama 4. Close by

 

As you walk in the front entrance you will see Bangkok Bank. Go in there and you will be greeted most likely by a big thai bloke and he'll sort your ticket for you. (Let's call him Somchai)

 

All you need is your passport and the certified copy from the embassy but it may be worth taking rental agreement also just in case.

 

Go there then please report back and let us know how you got on.

 

Good luck

[BuckBee]

All you really need is persistence and take every form you got such as marriage cert, condo papers rental agreement etc, be polite yet try offer solutions to anything they may try block you with.

Try Kasikorn Bank silon by convent road or smaller branch under mcdonalds or one other end silom near tops market . You get a different story to everyone you go to so keep going till find the story you like.

I just made impossible possible with getting medical docs for a thai friend in prison, lot of obstacles both ends (hospital and prison) Have a extra good dress and hygiene day, be super polite and nudging direction things mixed with persistence of keep trying and anything possible here regardless of what actual rules are .

Edited March 6, 2018 by BuckBee

[Skeptic7]

On 3/5/2018 at 10:57 AM, StayinThailand2much said:

I remember, Stickman complaining in a column of his website that all the Nana crooks had their accounts with that particular branch... 

"Dickman" complained about lots of things...while actually participating and overindulging in most of them. Opened, closed and reopened an account at this branch over the past 20 years and I'm no criminal. 

[balo]

Look , this is no big deal , its printed on the Kasikorn website in English !!!  You dfo not need a work permit , all you need is a tourist visa and documents about rental contract etc .  That's all you need !!!

If the staff say no , then call the head office with your phone , and hand the phone over to the staff, I promise you that will work .  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[bbbbooboo]

I second Kasikorn Bank, I opened an account on a visitors visa. Make sure you have your Thai partner with you , they see them as a type of guarantor I think.

[jackdd]

1 hour ago, balo said:

Look , this is no big deal , its printed on the Kasikorn website in English !!!

Can you post a link to this? I only see the requirements for Thais, even on the english version of their website.

[Scott]

Inflammatory post reported and removed.  

 

[Tanoshi]

I really don't get this 'can't open an account' business.

A friend who regularly visits, twice a year, for 2/3 months at a time made the same complaint.

 

I took him to Bangkok bank, Passport, copy of wife's Tabien Baan (address).

Savings account opened, with Union Pay debit card supplied in 40 minutes.

Just to prove a point, we then walked 100m to a Kasikorn branch.

For the sake of 500 baht each, copies of passport and proof of address, we both opened a Savings account. Visa debit card issued within 40 minutes. That was 3 weeks ago!

 

Sorry, but I'm convinced some of you create your own problems, either requesting the wrong type of account, or not having the necessary documents.

 

Same scenario with 90 day online reports by local expats..........'won't work'.

I try on their behalf and they go straight through as 'Pending'.

Go figure where the problem lies!

 

[Tanoshi]

2 hours ago, jackdd said:

Can you post a link to this? I only see the requirements for Thais, even on the english version of their website.

Documents required

Individuals

National ID card (Smart Card)

Copy of House Registration (in case other ID cards are submitted)

https://www.kasikornbank.com/en/personal/Account/Pages/savings.aspx

 

Passport is a persons National ID card. It has a microchip for personal identification.

[jackdd]

13 minutes ago, Tanoshi said:

[...]

Then you were obviously lucky. I experienced the "can not open account without work permit" by myself. There are a lot of branches (or clerks) that will refuse to open one. And if you never opened a bank account, never know their bullshit and so on, you maybe don't call the manager, or get the idea to call their head office while in the bank.

I think if i wanted to open a Bank account today i would somehow be able to do it even with minimal documents, but i've learned how to handle these people by now, if somebody doesn't, it definitely can be difficult

 

Edited March 7, 2018 by jackdd

[jackdd]

5 minutes ago, Tanoshi said:

Documents required

Individuals

National ID card (Smart Card)

Copy of House Registration (in case other ID cards are submitted)

https://www.kasikornbank.com/en/personal/Account/Pages/savings.aspx

 

Passport is a persons National ID card. It has a microchip for personal identification.

This is the Thai ID card, so this are the required documents for Thais. I want to see how they put my passport in their card reader

[Tanoshi]

1 minute ago, jackdd said:

Then you were obviously lucky. I experienced the "can not open account without work permit" by myself. There are a lot of branches (or clerks) that will refuse to open one. And if you never opened a bank account, never know their bullshit and so on, you maybe don't call the manager, or get the idea to call their head office while in the bank.

I wouldn't say, we were lucky Jack.

In a foreign Country, you need to do your homework first and be prepared with facts.

 

It's not to say I haven't had some issues with banks, where I find the frontline staff are poorly trained when dealing with 'foreigners'.

At Bangkok bank I wanted to open a Savings account in my name, but with my wife named as an account user, with two debit cards.

'No can', I was told.

Now I know Thais can do this and found nothing in small print to suggest foreigners couldn't, so I stood my ground and questioned their information. After I called their Head office, the account was opened (my name) but two debit cards issued.

[Tanoshi]

18 minutes ago, jackdd said:

This is the Thai ID card, so this are the required documents for Thais. I want to see how they put my passport in their card reader

Why would they quote the requirements for opening an account in English........for Thais.

 

You can switch between Thai/Eng language........same requirements.

 

 

Edited March 7, 2018 by Tanoshi

[jackdd]

4 minutes ago, Tanoshi said:

Why would they quote the requirements for opening an account in English........for Thais

Because they gave somebody the job: Translate our website to english. And - of course that surprises a bit - they did what they were told, translated everything to english.

And... i even know one Thai personally, he speaks English as well as Thai fluently, but never learned to read Thai. So for him this would be useful.

 

[Tanoshi]

2 minutes ago, jackdd said:

Because they gave somebody the job: Translate our website to english. And - of course that surprises a bit - they did what they were told, translated everything to english.

And... i even know one Thai personally, he speaks English as well as Thai fluently, but never learned to read Thai. So for him this would be useful.

 

A Passport is your 'International' ID.

A 'National' ID card is only good for the Country that issues it.

 

If our Passports were not accepted as a form of ID, then you wouldn't have foreigners entering Thailand.

[bkk6060]

Just now, Tanoshi said:

I really don't get this 'can't open an account' business.

A friend who regularly visits, twice a year, for 2/3 months at a time made the same complaint.

 

I took him to Bangkok bank, Passport, copy of wife's Tabien Baan (address).

Savings account opened, with Union Pay debit card supplied in 40 minutes.

Just to prove a point, we then walked 100m to a Kasikorn branch.

For the sake of 500 baht each, copies of passport and proof of address, we both opened a Savings account. Visa debit card issued within 40 minutes. That was 3 weeks ago!

 

Sorry, but I'm convinced some of you create your own problems, either requesting the wrong type of account, or not having the necessary documents.

 

Same scenario with 90 day online reports by local expats..........'won't work'.

I try on their behalf and they go straight through as 'Pending'.

Go figure where the problem lies!

 

Ha.  You did this someplace in Thailand? See the problem lies with people who post broad information with no details.

How does your post help anyone?

Hey, its a bank who mostly wants business. Is there a secret?

So what Bangkok bank branch was that again??

 

[jackdd]

4 minutes ago, Tanoshi said:

A Passport is your 'International' ID.

A 'National' ID card is only good for the Country that issues it.

 

If our Passports were not accepted as a form of ID, then you wouldn't have foreigners entering Thailand.

And they clearly say: "National ID card (Smart Card)"

They don't say international ID or passport, if they would have meant this they would have written it.

I'm quite sure that they won't accept my german national ID card, so this are the requirements for Thais, not for foreigners.

 

So i'm still waiting for the link to the requirements for foreigners, at least balo said that it exists.

[buick]

12 hours ago, bkk6060 said:

Great then for someone that needs an account, which I do not I have lived here for several years.

But, since you are sharing the information and you claim it is current, what is the name of the contact person there to assist others in opening an account?

a contact name isn't important.  there have been several reports of people opening bank accounts w/o having a contact name.  you were part of a thread about 45 days ago where a guy set forth a few options/banks he was thinking of.  he ended up getting an account at bangkok bank's siam paragon branch.  he didn't have a contact name before he went there to open the account.

 

in this thread, i believe the handle is 'seancbkk', has reported that he opened an account at bangkok bank's emporium branch.  he had started a thread previously asking what branches he should try.  that one was recommended.  he went there and opened an account.

 

what is most important is the bank name and branch.  next in line is, what documents are required, and of course it varies so it is best to have the embassy letter saying your passport is real and a copy of your lease with a cover letter from your landlord saying the lease is real.  that said, there are reports, including the one about the siam paragon branch, that don't need anything other than a passport and tourist visa.

 

you and i read the same threads but come away with the exact opposite view on the probability of opening a bank account with only a tourist visa.  the people that start those threads, come back to report success and you still think it is difficult despite the reported success.

[BritTim]

18 minutes ago, jackdd said:

And they clearly say: "National ID card (Smart Card)"

They don't say international ID or passport, if they would have meant this they would have written it.

I'm quite sure that they won't accept my german national ID card, so this are the requirements for Thais, not for foreigners.

In context, it is clear that other forms of id are acceptable, but you then need to show house registration in addition

Quote

 

National ID card (Smart Card)

Copy of House Registration (in case other ID cards are submitted)

 

In the past, I have found other kinds of proof of address accepted, but have not opened new accounts for a couple of years. I can believe it is now more difficult, but also that senior bank officials can use their discretion.

[buick]

here is the thread where the person opened the account at bangkok bank siam paragon.  take a look at post #44 and you'll see he opened it with just his passport.

 

 

 

 

[jackdd]

5 minutes ago, BritTim said:

In context, it is clear that other forms of id are acceptable, but you then need to show house registration in addition

This is most probably for the case that the person has an old National ID card which does not have the smart card capabilities.

[buick]

 

and in post #33 in this thread 'bkk6060'  talks about experience in pattaya.  and evidently uses that experience to inform people on the probability of success in their efforts to get a bank account opened in bangkok.  that seems like a bit of a mismatch to me.  certainly a bigger flaw than not providing a contact name means the account wasn't opened.  maybe stick to advising people who ask about opening accounts in pattaya.  unless you've recently opened one in bangkok.

 

 

Edited March 7, 2018 by buick

[bkk6060]

Just now, buick said:

a contact name isn't important.  there have been several reports of people opening bank accounts w/o having a contact name.  you were part of a thread about 45 days ago where a guy set forth a few options/banks he was thinking of.  he ended up getting an account at bangkok bank's siam paragon branch.  he didn't have a contact name before he went there to open the account.

 

in this thread, i believe the handle is 'seancbkk', has reported that he opened an account at bangkok bank's emporium branch.  he had started a thread previously asking what branches he should try.  that one was recommended.  he went there and opened an account.

 

what is most important is the bank name and branch.  next in line is, what documents are required, and of course it varies so it is best to have the embassy letter saying your passport is real and a copy of your lease with a cover letter from your landlord saying the lease is real.  that said, there are reports, including the one about the siam paragon branch, that don't need anything other than a passport and tourist visa.

 

you and i read the same threads but come away with the exact opposite view on the probability of opening a bank account with only a tourist visa.  the people that start those threads, come back to report success and you still think it is difficult despite the reported success.

A contact name may be the most important.

And as you said several threads mostly with broad info. that helps noone.

People claiming they were denied by one person, then spoke to the manager or head office and whoever the contact was, was directed to give the person an account. 

I am actually trying to help someone get an account.  But just walking into some bank and announcing you are there, can be a huge waste of time.

Would it not be better to speak to a specific person who can properly assist you?

 

[buick]

here is the thread for 'seancbk'.  he reported some problems after he went to the bangkok bank emporium branch.  and in this thread (where we are commenting now0 he reports that he was able to open the account.  it isn't clear what he did to open the account, wait for the embassy letter or create a condo purchase document.  in any case, he went there, asked what was needed, and he now has an account.  that is what you need to do.  ask what is needed, obtain it (be creative if necessary), and you can open it.

 

[buick]

1 minute ago, bkk6060 said:

A contact name may be the most important.

but not one person who has reported opening an account here on TV in recent months has suggested that being important.  they've been able to do it w/o a contact person.  they walk in, make 'contact' with a  person and find out what they need.  in some cases, the account is opened on the spot and in others, they have to go and get some more documents, etc... and then they come back and open the account.  in the siam paragon case, i believe the person went back in to confirm what was needed and they just opened the account for him instead.  this all current info, within the last 3 months.  you obviously had a tough go in pattaya but that isn't helping out people in bangkok.

[jackdd]

For the people who claim it's so easy to open a Bank account, Kasikorn:

Edited March 7, 2018 by jackdd

[buick]

5 minutes ago, bkk6060 said:

And as you said several threads mostly with broad info. that helps noone.

the threads i've cited have very specific info, like the bank name and branch.  and then the report of successfully opening the account.  yet you claim that doesn't help anyone ?  but your experience in pattaya does ?

[buick]

1 minute ago, jackdd said:

For the people who claim it's so easy to open a Bank account, Kasikorn:

 

try bangkok bank, silom branch, emporium branch or siam paragon branch.  it isn't easy to open an account, you can't just pick a branch of your choosing and expect to walk away with a new account.  you have to know which bank and which branch.  plus knowing what account to open (savings) plus getting the documents they require.  then it is much easier. 

[bkk6060]

Just now, buick said:

but not one person who has reported opening an account here on TV in recent months has suggested that being important.  they've been able to do it w/o a contact person.  they walk in, make 'contact' with a  person and find out what they need.  in some cases, the account is opened on the spot and in others, they have to go and get some more documents, etc... and then they come back and open the account.  in the siam paragon case, i believe the person went back in to confirm what was needed and they just opened the account for him instead.  this all current info, within the last 3 months.  you obviously had a tough go in pattaya but that isn't helping out people in 

You still seem to have no clue.

Its ok, just walk into any bank anywhere and talk to anybody. 

Easy peasy....

good luck.

[buick]

1 minute ago, bkk6060 said:

Its ok, just walk into any bank anywhere and talk to anybody. 

i think it is clear that i've said the most important thing you need is the name of the bank and the branch.  that is in stark contrast to 'walk into any bank anywhere and talk to anybody'.