Are you paying a "Foreign Exchange Rate" from your bank from overseas?.

[jackdd]

1 minute ago, jimn said:

The Thai bank change for withdrawals of 220 baht is unavoidable

Withdraw money at the bank counter (yes, from your credit card) then you don't pay 220THB (not possible at all banks, and some might charge a fee, but for example at UOB it's free)

But some banks (the banks in our home countries) charge extra fees if you withdraw money over the counter, so you should check this beforehand

[DJ54]

US bank account get charged US bank fee and Thai bank fee every time. I’m going to set up BKK in New York and then no charges when I transfer to BKK Thailand 

[lopburi3]

3 minutes ago, DJ54 said:

US bank account get charged US bank fee and Thai bank fee every time. I’m going to set up BKK in New York and then no charges when I transfer to BKK Thailand 

Not sure what you are talking about as a $2,000 transfer using ACH through Bangkok Bank will be subject to any fee your home bank changes, A $10 fee at Bangkok Bank New York, and then a 200 baht fee at the Thai branch of Bangkok Bank (range 200-500 baht based on 1/4% of baht amount).

[DJ54]

Ok thanks for the info I was misguided and have not tried yet. 

[K J C]

I use a Revolut card, there’s no fees when using abroad and you can top up your account via the app - It’s basically a MasterCard without fees. I’m not sure if it’s available globally yet, but definitely worth a look. 

 

https://www.revolut.com/

[Acemaker]

7 hours ago, hansnl said:

Face the music, bad as it may be.

Banks are in the business to get as much profit from you as they can.

In general, one might even get the idea banks are legalised criminal organisations.

Moneygrabbing is a high art in banks

 

Long live Crypto !

[dabhand]

8 hours ago, jimn said:

I cant speak for other countries, but the UK has a few credit cards that have zero transaction fees to withdraw cash. You always get the current FX rate as well as long as you opt for the exchange rate to be completed in the foreign currency not £££. All you have to do is immediatly go into online banking and pay off the amount in ££ in your own currency. The card I use is the Halifax Clarity card. The Thai bank change for withdrawals of 220 baht is unavoidable but other than that zero fees and perfect exchange rste

Think you will find that the Halifax Clarity card uses the MasterCard exchange rate. This rate is always lower than that used by Transferwise which is normally close to the mid-market rate. Even with the fees charged by TW it still works out better than the Halifax card.

But, yes, the Halifax card, with its' zero transaction fees, is very useful to have for fast cash. I have one and Halifax don't make it easy for non UK residents to apply for one.

[Rhys]

Western union refused to send a money transfer .. to Thailand, as the reputation of money laundering is high.. The amount was 5K USD.. and WU first accepted ,then put a hold, the refused it..

 

So now .. no choice the bank route.

[lopburi3]

8 hours ago, Rhys said:

Western union refused to send a money transfer .. to Thailand, as the reputation of money laundering is high.. The amount was 5K USD.. and WU first accepted ,then put a hold, the refused it..

 

So now .. no choice the bank route.

Suspect there was more to that than "money laundering is high" but there are alternatives - transferwise is often spoken highly of for transfers at much less cost.

[Buzzboy05]

Transferwise from Aus is the best I have found. Best do in larger amounts as there is a transfer fee ( less transfers ) exchange rate very good sometimes better than paper, plus you can do it when the exchange rate is up. I transfer to there bank in Sydney for free and receive in my Thai bank next day. Saves me about Bt12,000 from doing it via my 2 banks on $ 4,000.

 

[Pib]

11 hours ago, dabhand said:

Think you will find that the Halifax Clarity card uses the MasterCard exchange rate. This rate is always lower than that used by Transferwise which is normally close to the mid-market rate. Even with the fees charged by TW it still works out better than the Halifax card.

But, yes, the Halifax card, with its' zero transaction fees, is very useful to have for fast cash. I have one and Halifax don't make it easy for non UK residents to apply for one.

 

Below is Mastercard exchange rate as of 10 Mar/Saturday....MC rate reflected will be a day behind but this is the weekend so FX and credit card rates change none to very, very little.  Also below is Transferwise exchange rate as of 11 Mar/Sunday/time of this post.  But as mentioned this is the weekend and FX markets are quite so I expect the Transferwise exchange rate was very, very similar to 10 Mar/Sat. 

 

Please note the MC rate is better that the Transferwise exchange rate.  

 

Now it boils down to cranking in the associated fees like any Sending Fees, Receiving Fees, Foreign Transaction Fee with your card which effectively lowers the exchange rate,  ATM User Fee (like Thai bank Bt220 fee) which may or may not be reimbursed, etc., to see which method puts more baht in your pocket after completely costing out the exchange rate, associated fees, etc. 

 

Since people will have different cards and banks with different associated fees from low to high the use of a money transfer service like Transferwise might work out better for them...or it may not work out better.  If a person has a no foreign transaction fee card that also reimburses ATM User Fees the that will most likely be the method that always puts the most baht in your pocket, plus you get the money immediately.  But it seems like since most banks and cards are fee-evil banksters money transfer services like Transferwise can work out very good for many people. 

 

Also keep in mind that Transferwise has different core Sending fees for different currencies....like for the pound  and EUR it's 0.5%...but for the USD it works out to around 1% which don't make Transferwise very attractive for USD transfers unless your bank/card fees work out to more than 1%.    

 

Mastercard Rate

 

Transferwise

[dabhand]

1 hour ago, Pib said:

 

Below is Mastercard exchange rate as of 10 Mar/Saturday....MC rate reflected will be a day behind but this is the weekend so FX and credit card rates change none to very, very little.  Also below is Transferwise exchange rate as of 11 Mar/Sunday/time of this post.  But as mentioned this is the weekend and FX markets are quite so I expect the Transferwise exchange rate was very, very similar to 10 Mar/Sat. 

 

Please note the MC rate is better that the Transferwise exchange rate.  

   

You may need to look again at your MC calculation. Transaction currency should be THB / card currency should be GBP.

 

As you say, you are not comparing rates at the same time, particularly when MC only update once per day whereas TW change numerous times during a trading day. So, a one off weekend calculation does not give a true comparison. Maybe look at the same calculation, corrected as noted above, over a period of time.

 

 

 

[Pib]

8 minutes ago, dabhand said:

You may need to look again at your MC calculation. Transaction currency should be THB / card currency should be GBP.

 

As you say, you are not comparing rates at the same time, particularly when MC only update once per day whereas TW change numerous times during a trading day. So, a one off weekend calculation does not give a true comparison. Maybe look at the same calculation, corrected as noted above, over a period of time.

Yea, you are right....I'm so use to using the Visa exchange rate page (since almost all my cards are Visa) where the currency entry fields are the reverse of Mastercard's currencies entry  fields.  The correct MC rate for my post above should have been 43.202...still very close to the Transferwise's 43.379.   Then as I mentioned before a person needs to see how much baht you actually get when cranking-in associated fees such as the Sending, Receiving, Foreign Transaction, ATM User, etc., for the transfer method you are using such as your card, your bank, Transferwise, etc.    Just be sure to consider both the exchange rate and associated fees to see what the bottom line gives you.

 

MC Exchange Rate Page

https://www.mastercard.us/en-us/consumers/get-support/convert-currency.html

 

Visa Exchange Rate Page (For EU bank issued cards)

https://www.visaeurope.com/making-payments/exchange-rates

 

[Surasak]

On 10/03/2018 at 11:04 AM, lopburi3 said:

Have you checked the exchange rate used for conversion to Baht?  Have you accounted for the .25% fee at the Thai end?  You might want to take a closer look.  Do you get the same amount into your Thai account that you would with transferwise?

The exchange rate is the same as is posted on the KTB currency exchange rate web page on the day. I inform WesternUnion of the transfer, they inform me of the amount I will have deposited in my KTB A/C. It usually arrives within 12 to 14 hours. And NO. KTB do not make a charge of .25% , and never have done. I cannot speak for others, I only know what I get is always the KTB quoted exchange rate on that day. WesternUnion only charge £2.90 for the transfer, up to a total of £4000 max.

[lopburi3]

30 minutes ago, Surasak said:

KTB currency exchange rate web page

They list 2 exchange rates - sight bill or TT?  

[jimn]

16 hours ago, dabhand said:

Think you will find that the Halifax Clarity card uses the MasterCard exchange rate. This rate is always lower than that used by Transferwise which is normally close to the mid-market rate. Even with the fees charged by TW it still works out better than the Halifax card.

But, yes, the Halifax card, with its' zero transaction fees, is very useful to have for fast cash. I have one and Halifax don't make it easy for non UK residents to apply for one.

Thanks for that. I wont debate about the Mastercard rate because I dont know for sure. However I always check every purchase I make online and the rate I get is what I would expect from the Yellow exhange booths in Pattaya and Superrich in Bangkok

[jackdd]

I just checked the rates for Mastercard, Transferwise, Visa and Superrich for yesterday.

I assumed the credit cards do not charge any additional fees and i checked how many US Dollars you have to pay to retrieve 10k THB in Thailand, the result, best to worst.

Mastercard: 319.20 USD

Superrich: 319.80 USD

Visa: 320.54 USD

Transferwise: 324 USD

Yesterday Transferwise was about 1.5% worse than Mastercard

 

 

[SunsetT]

Leave all these rip off bank charges behind and sign up to transferwise! Their exchange rate is clearly declared up front  and even after their modest charge is the best. The transfer is fast, weekends and bank holidays excepted, and their is no charge from my Thai receiving bank which is Kasikorn.

 

Use this link and get the 1st dollar equivalent to £500 of your transfer free.....

 

https://transferwise.com/u/terencep15

[SunsetT]

On 10/03/2018 at 9:55 AM, 4MyEgo said:

Thx for that, will have to have a look into Transferwise to see if they have any fees, or if fees are charged when the money lands here.

 

Transferwise is user friendly, fast and offers the best exchange rate even after their charge, and there is zero charge from my Thai receiving bank which is Kasikorn. And you can use this link to get the dollar equivalent of £500 free of charge on your 1st transfer:

 

https://transferwise.com/u/terencep15

Edited March 11, 2018 by SunsetT

[russianrobert]

I simply withdraw money on my card over the counter at the bank to avoid the ATM charge. My UK bank doesn't charge for withdrawals and has a great exchange rates. See Halifax Clarity Card for Brits...

[Grumpy Duck]

Personally, I will have nothing to do with Paypal. I have heard way too many horror stories about it. I bank with Citibank USA my pay is direct deposited and I used to pay <฿200 per transaction plus an inconsistant foreign transaction fee from Citibank. I was offered a Premier account with a $30 monthly fee if I didn't maintain a $5000 or $15000 monthly balance. I was paying >$50 a month in foreign transaction fees so the $30 was a good deal. I also learned that if I use a Citibank ATM world wide there is no ATM fee. I also seem to get a break on the exchange rate at times. So i go to the nearest Citibank ATM (@ ASOK) take all but what I need to leave for my US bills, and deposit into my Thai bank account. There aren't many Citibank ATM's here, 3 locations in the entire country all in Bangkok. 

[heybuz]

i just take cash

[Surasak]

22 hours ago, lopburi3 said:

They list 2 exchange rates - sight bill or TT?  

Yes you are correct. Its the TT

[Jeremia Juxtaposed]

On 3/11/2018 at 9:45 PM, SunsetT said:

Transferwise is user friendly, fast and offers the best exchange rate even after their charge, and there is zero charge from my Thai receiving bank which is Kasikorn. And you can use this link to get the dollar equivalent of £500 free of charge on your 1st transfer:

 

https://transferwise.com/u/terencep15

Hi SunsetT,

 

I have followed your link - thanks very much - but before I go further into the transaction may I ask what method you used to provide Transferwise with the funds and how easy was it. My funds will come from UK..... I am unsure of a "cash fee" if I use a debit card ???

[SunsetT]

46 minutes ago, Jeremia Juxtaposed said:

Hi SunsetT,

 

I have followed your link - thanks very much - but before I go further into the transaction may I ask what method you used to provide Transferwise with the funds and how easy was it. My funds will come from UK..... I am unsure of a "cash fee" if I use a debit card ???

Hello Jeremia,

 

When you proceed to payment you can choose how you wish to pay. The fee for each payment method is clearly shown. To pay by standing order/faster payment direct from your bank is the cheapest if u have online or telephone banking. It is £6.96 for a £1k transfer. Once chosen Transferwise will immediately show their bank details in order for you to set up and make the transfer, and once set up with your bank, u dont need to do it again for future transfers. The net exchange rate and total amount that you will receive is also clearly shown. If you choose to pay by credit or debit card the charge is a couple of quid more; £8 something or other. It is also clearly shown on their website before you commit to the transfer. The advantage of paying by bank transfer is that you dont have to pay immediately and can cancel it later if u wish. The exchange rate was guaranteed for 24hrs but their website has recently changed so Im not sure if this is still the case. I usually delay payment for 23hours in case the rate shoots up, in which case I would cancel, but it never has...haha. Last night, very tired, I forgot to make the online payment within 24hrs but I could still make payment 9 hrs later this morning and I even received this morning's better exchange rate. Hope this helps.

 

Here is the link again in case anyone else reading this wants to sign up for a free £500 transfer:

 

transferwise.com/u/terencep15

Edited March 23, 2018 by SunsetT

[Jeremia Juxtaposed]

1 hour ago, SunsetT said:

Hello Jeremia,

 

When you proceed to payment you can choose how you wish to pay. The fee for each payment method is clearly shown. To pay by standing order/faster payment direct from your bank is the cheapest if u have online or telephone banking. It is £6.96 for a £1k transfer. Once chosen Transferwise will immediately show their bank details in order for you to set up and make the transfer, and once set up with your bank, u dont need to do it again for future transfers. The net exchange rate and total amount that you will receive is also clearly shown. If you choose to pay by credit or debit card the charge is a couple of quid more; £8 something or other. It is also clearly shown on their website before you commit to the transfer. The advantage of paying by bank transfer is that you dont have to pay immediately and can cancel it later if u wish. The exchange rate was guaranteed for 24hrs but their website has recently changed so Im not sure if this is still the case. I usually delay payment for 23hours in case the rate shoots up, in which case I would cancel, but it never has...haha. Last night, very tired, I forgot to make the online payment within 24hrs but I could still make payment 9 hrs later this morning and I even received this morning's better exchange rate. Hope this helps.

 

Here is the link again in case anyone else reading this wants to sign up for a free £500 transfer:

 

transferwise.com/u/terencep15

Perfect reply!!!

 

I didn't want to go too far into the transaction menu. Thanks for your help and advice...

[Jeremia Juxtaposed]

On 3/11/2018 at 3:13 PM, jackdd said:

I just checked the rates for Mastercard, Transferwise, Visa and Superrich for yesterday.

I assumed the credit cards do not charge any additional fees and i checked how many US Dollars you have to pay to retrieve 10k THB in Thailand, the result, best to worst.

Mastercard: 319.20 USD

Superrich: 319.80 USD

Visa: 320.54 USD

Transferwise: 324 USD

Yesterday Transferwise was about 1.5% worse than Mastercard

 

 

 

Interesting - do these figures include a "cash fee" from the card company and/or a transaction fee from the card company and/or a 3% transaction fee at the point of payment? ... Or are your calculations the total amount?

[jackdd]

6 minutes ago, Jeremia Juxtaposed said:

 

Interesting - do these figures include a "cash fee" from the card company and/or a transaction fee from the card company and/or a 3% transaction fee at the point of payment? ... Or are your calculations the total amount?

As i said, i assumed that the credit card company / bank is not charging any extra fees. If you get charged any extra fee with your card you do of course have to include this in the calculation and if you plan to use the credit card to retrieve money you should try to get one without extra fees.

[Jeremia Juxtaposed]

12 minutes ago, jackdd said:

As i said, i assumed that the credit card company / bank is not charging any extra fees. If you get charged any extra fee with your card you do of course have to include this in the calculation and if you plan to use the credit card to retrieve money you should try to get one without extra fees.

Thanks Jack ...I have only been receiving my pension for a year or so and am looking at maximising my payments into Thailand..

[SunsetT]

1 hour ago, Jeremia Juxtaposed said:

 

Interesting - do these figures include a "cash fee" from the card company and/or a transaction fee from the card company and/or a 3% transaction fee at the point of payment? ... Or are your calculations the total amount?

Also the Mastercard exchange rate calculator shown online now is total fantasy! They are clearly just using it to promote themselves as u never get those rates on purchases or ATM withdrawals. I dont know how they get away with it! The rates  on the their old website used to be quite accurate and reflected the exchange rates u would get in the real world. But not anymore.