Best Way To Send Money To Thailand..please Help

[monch]

Im hoping someone can help me as Im finding all this onshore-offshore business very confusing and my uk bank seems to understand even less !!

I need to send a large payment for a villa we are purchasing in ko samui next month and was wondering the best way to do so.

Up to now I have secured a good rate with my bank at home and transferred funds in baht....no problem.

Now it seems things have changed and the only way to assure a good rate is to send the money out in pounds and just hope for a good exchange rate on the day it is recvd by the thai bank....that way at least getting the onshore rate.

Any advice greatly appreciated.

[backflip]

This must be very difficult to do, because hundreds of people have already posted the question. I hope you have the patience of Job, and more money than God, because this is how to do it right:

1. open a bank account in Thailand

2. SWIFT monet to your account

It is really that hard to do but, I'm sure with your infinite patience and financial resources, you can do this successfully.

[Khun Bob]

Open a forign currency account in thailand. Then when currenjcy conditions are right transfer to your baht account in thailand - it may even be possible to get the bank in thailand to do the transfer when a certain trigger is met ie 75 baht to the £ - then again you may have to wait for a long time !

HTH

[naka]

I need to send a large payment for a villa we are purchasing in ko samui next month and was wondering the best way to do so.

Up to now I have secured a good rate with my bank at home and transferred funds in baht....no problem.

Send in your home currency, (assuming your home currency is not Mickey Mouse money).

Send by SWIFT.

Naka.

[monch]

I need to send a large payment for a villa we are purchasing in ko samui next month and was wondering the best way to do so.

Up to now I have secured a good rate with my bank at home and transferred funds in baht....no problem.

Send in your home currency, (assuming your home currency is not Mickey Mouse money).

Send by SWIFT.

Naka.

Thank you......I think the swift transfer is probably the way to go...the onshore rates seem pretty stable even though the offshore rate is yo-yoing daily.

Is it relatively easy to open up a bank account in Thailand ?....I assume we have to be out there to do so ?

Secondly, when we are in samui this easter, does anyone know the best way to get the onshore rate on our spendings ?.....will the atm from our nationwide account reflect the on or offshore rate....similarly I assume mastercard will be offshore ?

Is it best to go back to the old fashioned ways of cash and travellers cheques ?

Thanks in advance

[ace]

My bank in the UK refuse to transfer money from my UK bank account to my Thai bank account without me being physically present, in the UK. Is this normal?

[naka]

My bank in the UK refuse to transfer money from my UK bank account to my Thai bank account without me being physically present, in the UK. Is this normal?

This is unusual.

I normally just send a signed letter requesting a transfer.

Some banks ... Abbey International for instance, even allow an international SWIFT to

be arranged on their Online Banking site.

Naka.

[binnsy]

I tried to open an account and was refused because i neve had a WORK PERMIT.If you manage to open one PM me which bank accepted you if you dont mind.

[Gaudente]

This must be very difficult to do, because hundreds of people have already posted the question. I hope you have the patience of Job, and more money than God, because this is how to do it right:

1. open a bank account in Thailand

2. SWIFT monet to your account

It is really that hard to do but, I'm sure with your infinite patience and financial resources, you can do this successfully.

It is a hard thing to do. To open a bank account, you need a business visa. To have the business visa, you need to own a Thai company to self employ you (and the company must have at least 2 million baht of net assets).

My advice anyway is not to buy anything in this country, expecially non condo real estate

[monch]

I had a feeling it wasnt easy for us to open a thai bank account....well stick to swift transfers for the time being.....and as we didnt want to go down the company route we have a very thorough lease contract drawn up with our solicitor to cover us for most eventualities...should enjoy 60 legal years in the sun anyway !!

As for my earlier qustion re the best way to get a good exchange rate on our hols.....do you think cash/travellers cheques are now the best option ?

[sumrit]

I had a feeling it wasnt easy for us to open a thai bank account....well stick to swift transfers for the time being.....and as we didnt want to go down the company route we have a very thorough lease contract drawn up with our solicitor to cover us for most eventualities...should enjoy 60 legal years in the sun anyway !!

As for my earlier qustion re the best way to get a good exchange rate on our hols.....do you think cash/travellers cheques are now the best option ?

It took me less than 15 minutes to open a bank account in Thailand with Siam Commercial bank. All they needed was my passport (I have a 1 year multi entry non imm O visa). They asked my address here in Thailand, but didn't ask for proof, and my telephone number (only took my mobile, not my house number). I was also able to set up internet banking at the same time. It was very easy. As for the rates the UK banks are using I don't know about any others but HSBC are using the off shore rate, I got less than 64 baht to the £ from an ATM 2 days ago. Won't be using their card here again.

[monch]

Thanks Sumrit...I think Ill be leaving my atm cards at home this easter.

As for visas....we plan on spending about 3 weeks every easter and all of august in our villa whilst the kids are still at school....how long can you stay without a visa ?

[Khun Bob]

I had a feeling it wasnt easy for us to open a thai bank account....well stick to swift transfers for the time being.....and as we didnt want to go down the company route we have a very thorough lease contract drawn up with our solicitor to cover us for most eventualities...should enjoy 60 legal years in the sun anyway !!

As for my earlier qustion re the best way to get a good exchange rate on our hols.....do you think cash/travellers cheques are now the best option ?

So where does your swift transferred money go to ?

Who assured you of 60 years on a land lease ? 30 is the best you can get and after that if you want more you may well have to pay the full market price again, if the land owner wants to let you lease...

Nationwide, with a Visa debit card is the way to go to get the onshore rate... (you should thank topfield for that research - he doesnt get the thanks he deserves) But best to test - you could of course bring GBP cash and then goto superrich in pratunaam for the best cash exchange rates...

[Khun Bob]

Just seen some small villas going in samui for 22Mbt ! <deleted> I can buy an island in the Phillipines or Indonesia for that much cash !

[monch]

There are dozens of villas in samui for that price and more ( not saying that ours is anywhere near that price range )

The swift transfer is either to our bangkok lawyers holding account or the developers.

As for the 30 yr lease business...we also had a clause put in saying we could opt to change to freehold at any time during the lease at no expense to ourselves.....I think within the next 30yrs well know whats happening to all those foreigners with their thai companies and can make an informed decision.

At the end of the day......owning a beautiful 4 bed villa near the beach for the same price as our spanish 2 bed apartment is worth the risk !...especially considering what it costs to rent a comparable holiday villa in samui.

[Khun Bob]

There are dozens of villas in samui for that price and more ( not saying that ours is anywhere near that price range )

The swift transfer is either to our bangkok lawyers holding account or the developers.

As for the 30 yr lease business...we also had a clause put in saying we could opt to change to freehold at any time during the lease at no expense to ourselves.....I think within the next 30yrs well know whats happening to all those foreigners with their thai companies and can make an informed decision.

At the end of the day......owning a beautiful 4 bed villa near the beach for the same price as our spanish 2 bed apartment is worth the risk !...especially considering what it costs to rent a comparable holiday villa in samui.

Well its not difficult to get your own thai bank account with fill internet access and the ability to transfer to other thai account remotely - also it can give you a virtual thai credit card too.

I say this as you dont want to transfer alot of cash to someone else account and then for them to do a runner, despite how professional they seem ! Thailand is full of skilled con artists both local and foregners - "trust no one"

My view on leases - at 30 years you dont know what is going to happen, but if you look at it as a 30 year rental then that is fine - the cost of living there over that time compare to spain will/should be better. Its good to have clause in the contract, but if you have been watching curent affairs in Thailand recently you will see that the Thais do what they want. However there are some discussion on here with respect to superficie and ursurfruct (not sure of spelling) which may be legal and better than a lease, but there is not much evidence yet. Still a lease is better than having a company just for property ownership.

HTH

[Khun Bob]

Some Thai banks have offices in Europe - there is a bangkok bank in london - it may be possible to get a thai based account with them.

Still if I was you I'd want to be there when it all happens and I hand the cash over.

[naka]

I tried to open an account and was refused because i neve had a WORK PERMIT.If you manage to open one PM me which bank accepted you if you dont mind.

You obviously did'nt try hard enough.

Naka.

[naka]

This must be very difficult to do, because hundreds of people have already posted the question. I hope you have the patience of Job, and more money than God, because this is how to do it right:

1. open a bank account in Thailand

2. SWIFT monet to your account

It is really that hard to do but, I'm sure with your infinite patience and financial resources, you can do this successfully.

It is a hard thing to do. To open a bank account, you need a business visa. To have the business visa, you need to own a Thai company to self employ you (and the company must have at least 2 million baht of net assets).

My advice anyway is not to buy anything in this country, expecially non condo real estate

What a load of twaddle

Naka.

[popshirt]

This must be very difficult to do, because hundreds of people have already posted the question. I hope you have the patience of Job, and more money than God, because this is how to do it right:

1. open a bank account in Thailand

2. SWIFT monet to your account

It is really that hard to do but, I'm sure with your infinite patience and financial resources, you can do this successfully.

It is a hard thing to do. To open a bank account, you need a business visa. To have the business visa, you need to own a Thai company to self employ you (and the company must have at least 2 million baht of net assets).

My advice anyway is not to buy anything in this country, expecially non condo real estate

What a load of twaddle :angr

Naka.

Yes the "advice" on opening a bank account is rubbish; it can be done without a business visa very easily at many banks here.

But the line

My advice anyway is not to buy anything in this country, expecially non condo real estate

is very good advice, in my opinion!

[BigSnake]

Ask yourself one more time do you really want to invest in this country, with all the turmoil.

[monch]

Well anyway....the villa is almost completed ( and looking fabulous ) and the contract is signed so were looking forward to lots of holidays and then maybe 4 months a year in 10yrs time....in 30yrs I will be 70 and my kids can sort it all out !!!

[Khutan]

My bank in the UK refuse to transfer money from my UK bank account to my Thai bank account without me being physically present, in the UK. Is this normal?

I have an expat Banking account with Natwest they do anything I ask for over the phone. I have transferred money to all sorts of places from that service.

[Arkady]

There are dozens of villas in samui for that price and more ( not saying that ours is anywhere near that price range )

The swift transfer is either to our bangkok lawyers holding account or the developers.

As for the 30 yr lease business...we also had a clause put in saying we could opt to change to freehold at any time during the lease at no expense to ourselves.....I think within the next 30yrs well know whats happening to all those foreigners with their thai companies and can make an informed decision.

At the end of the day......owning a beautiful 4 bed villa near the beach for the same price as our spanish 2 bed apartment is worth the risk !...especially considering what it costs to rent a comparable holiday villa in samui.

Don't want to spoil the party but the option to renew for another 30 years is not enforceable under Thai law, nor is the option to buy the freehold. A 30 year lease in Thailand is not like a long lease in Western countries. It is closer to being an elongated one year residential lease and is only binding on the original lessor. If the owner sells the property or dies (in the case of a natural person), the new owner is not obligated to honour the remainder of the lease. Lawyers, brokers and developers in Thailand, including farangs, will tell you what you want to hear to get their money. However, I agree you should put those clauses in - just understand that, as the law stands today, you cannot enforce them.

In transferring the money, you should make sure that you do it in a way that does not get 30% taken away as an unremunerated reserve under the capital control regulations imposed by the Bank of Thailand in December. Purchases of property have been exempted and I assume that means leases but the receiving bank will need documents to proove the sale. If you are buying the lease from a developer, it may be easier to wire the money direct to them and get them to make sure it comes through the capital controls.

[sumrit]

My bank in the UK refuse to transfer money from my UK bank account to my Thai bank account without me being physically present, in the UK. Is this normal?

You can arrange to transfer money from Lloydstsb to a Thai bank by phone but it has to be set up initially in person in the UK. The maximum amount is £5000 per transaction but you can just do repeat transactions on the same day if you need to send more. It costs £20 per transaction.

[Sum Num Na]

Thanks Sumrit...I think Ill be leaving my atm cards at home this easter.

As for visas....we plan on spending about 3 weeks every easter and all of august in our villa whilst the kids are still at school....how long can you stay without a visa ?

Hang on a minute !!!

You are buying a Villa in Samui ? Yet you dont know haw to transfer money to pay for it?

You are planning to spend every Easter in your Villa and all August? But you dont know anything about Visas?

Me thinks that someone is telling porkies here.

I'm sure that before i went into such a large property transaction i would have looked into the legalities a long time ago and certainly wouldnt rely on replies from an internet posting to tell me what i should do next. I tihnk you have been playing Monopoly too much big lad!!!

Bloody hel_l a FLYING PIG - Duck everyone !!

[Sum Num Na]

Well anyway....the villa is almost completed ( and looking fabulous ) and the contract is signed so were looking forward to lots of holidays and then maybe 4 months a year in 10yrs time....in 30yrs I will be 70 and my kids can sort it all out !!!

Oh Dear

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...............................

Dream on .......................

[Arkady]

Well anyway....the villa is almost completed ( and looking fabulous ) and the contract is signed so were looking forward to lots of holidays and then maybe 4 months a year in 10yrs time....in 30yrs I will be 70 and my kids can sort it all out !!!

Oh Dear

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...............................

Dream on .......................

Not too much for them to sort out in 30 years time except the refurbishment of the property so it can be handed over to its legal owners it the same condition as it was at the begining of the lease. That's if the owners didn't sell the property beforehand and break the lease.

[monch]

Hang on a minute !!!

You are buying a Villa in Samui ? Yet you dont know haw to transfer money to pay for it?

You are planning to spend every Easter in your Villa and all August? But you dont know anything about Visas?

Me thinks that someone is telling porkies here.

I'm sure that before i went into such a large property transaction i would have looked into the legalities a long time ago and certainly wouldnt rely on replies from an internet posting to tell me what i should do next. I tihnk you have been playing Monopoly too much big lad!!!

Bloody hel_l a FLYING PIG - Duck everyone !!

Get off your high horse !!!!

If you read the thread correctly you will see all I asked was how to get the best rate....Ive happily been sending swift transfers from my offshore bank for months at very good rates but since the disparities between the 2 rates....just wanted a bit of advice...is that so bad ?

Secondly, seeing we have only been to Thailand for less than 30days at a time with a return ticket we have never needed a visa so I am not up to date with the regulations !

Thirdly....what makes you think Im a guy !!!

[Maestro]

I need to send a large payment for a villa we are purchasing in ko samui next month...it seems things have changed and the only way to assure a good rate is to send the money out in pounds and just hope for a good exchange rate on the day it is recvd

Yes, I would send pounds.

--

Maestro