SMS notifications as verification of deposit coming from abroad?

[KhunFred]

Like many of you, I am signed up with Bangkok Bank's SMS notifications, including international transfers.

Since BKK Bank generates these, can they be printed out as verification that the transfers came . from abroad?

Seems as "official" as anything we could get.

[scubascuba3]

I'd ask for the credit advices by email, usually a pdf and easy to print

[Kerryd]

I doubt it.

I'm guessing they will want to see an actual bank book showing the transfers.

Doesn't mean you can't try using SMS notifications as proof, but (personally) I wouldn't expect they'd accept them so I'd have the bank book with me as well (if I was the one trying that). Then you could cross reference the SMS notifications with the entries in your bank book and see what they say.

I suspect though that they will only accept the bank book as proof.

You know - to catch those people that think they've figured out the perfect scam by transferring 65k over here, then transferring it back (wherever) and then transferring it over again (and so on and so on). Like some people have been talking about trying to do for a couple months now.

Of course if Immigration looks at a bank book and sees 65k deposited, then withdrawn/transferred, then a month later the same thing, and the same thing the month after that, they will probably clue in to what someone is trying to do.

Some even thought they might be able to get away with simply depositing 65k into their account, then withdrawing it and redepositing it again the next month.

 

Others figure they've got the perfect scam - have accounts in 2 different (Thai) banks, then transfer the money from one bank to the other. Then withdraw it, deposit back in the first bank and then transfer it again the next month.

The funny part is - they openly discuss ways they think they can scam the system - on public internet forums ! Forums that are probably being monitored by the same people they think they can scam !

And people wonder why they cracked down on the "Infinite 30 Day Stamp" system, and brought in the "3 month seasoning" for the "money in bank" method, then cracked down on the "Income Letter" scam and have now extended the seasoning on the "money in bank" method to a 5/6 month period (2 before and 3 after or 3 before and 3 after, depending if it's your 1st Extension) as well as requiring people to keep 400k in the bank all year.

Just make sure that, if you don't have your bank book and they don't accept the SMS notifications, you have a back up plan !

[Pib]

I would expect a SMS would not be acceptable.   A passbook or credit advices with bank letter would be required.

[Tanoshi]

The order clearly states passbook/bank statements as proof of overseas transfers.

Why are so many clutching at other forms of evidence.

 

@KhunFred

Go to an ATM > Services > register Bualuang iBanking and select a 4 digit PIN.

You'll receive a receipt with a user number and a web address.

On your PC log onto Bualuang iBanking from the web address.

Enter your user ID number and your passcode, you can then change your 4 digit PIN to a more secure PIN of letters and numbers.

 

You can now view up to 6 months transactions, print off if required, and more importantly check if your overseas transfers are record as International transfers for Immigration purposes.

 

I also use TW and have been fortunate enough that all the transactions have been paid via their BKK account.

In my passbook they are coded as FTT.

On my online bank statements their are coded as 'International Transfer'.

[KhunFred]

2 hours ago, Kerryd said:

- to catch those people that think they've figured out the perfect scam by transferring 65k over here, then transferring it back (wherever) and then transferring it over again (and so on and so on). Like some people have been talking about trying to do for a couple months now.

Of course if Immigration looks at a bank book and sees 65k deposited, then withdrawn/transferred, then a month later the same thing, and the same thing the month after that, they will probably clue in to what someone is trying to do.
 

Am I to understand that after I transfer my money here, that I am then not allowed to use it to pay debts? That is why I am messing about with TransferWise in the  first place. I can't pay credit card debts in the USA out of Bangkok Bank. Were that possible, I would simply receive all of my income into Bangkok Bank.

[JackThompson]

22 hours ago, KhunFred said:

Since BKK Bank generates these, can they be printed out as verification that the transfers came . from abroad? 

Seems as "official" as anything we could get.

You can get a printout from Bangkok Bank - local branch for 6 mo, or main-branch for a year - showing all your activity including foreign-deposits.  This would be a bank-generated / stamped document, which is what immigration is likely to want to see.

 

3 hours ago, Kerryd said:

Of course if Immigration looks at a bank book and sees 65k deposited, then withdrawn/transferred, then a month later the same thing, and the same thing the month after that, they will probably clue in to what someone is trying to do.

Unless surviving on air, some of each transfer would be spent here out of necessity.   Granted, much less than this is needed to live well in Thailand, which is why most retirees and others with non-Thai-sourced incomes move here in the first place.

 

Those who need to pay passport-country expenses, but worried immigration could complain about this 100% legitimate activity (since they aim to disqualify a % of applications to get agent-money) could withdraw it incrementally, deposit in another bank's account, and xfer back from there using Dee-Money, crypto-currency exchanges, or direct-xfers.

 

Personally, I have been paying passport-country expenses using my Thai-bank MC Debit card w/o issue - no need for the other workarounds.

[streetlite]

I am a US citizen. Because of the IAT format I decided to use Transferwise to send money to my Bangkok bank account. This is a recent message from TW:

"When we send funds out to your recipient, the money will come from our local bank account in that country. For example, when we send to recipient’s in Thailand, the money will be sent from our local Thailand account. Being that the money is coming from a local bank account in that country, it would not be an international transfer and won’t appear this way."

Can anyone verify otherwise? I have TW set up as a borderless account.

[Pib]

7 hours ago, streetlite said:

I am a US citizen. Because of the IAT format I decided to use Transferwise to send money to my Bangkok bank account. This is a recent message from TW:

"When we send funds out to your recipient, the money will come from our local bank account in that country. For example, when we send to recipient’s in Thailand, the money will be sent from our local Thailand account. Being that the money is coming from a local bank account in that country, it would not be an international transfer and won’t appear this way."

Can anyone verify otherwise? I have TW set up as a borderless account.

Transferwise currently use three partner banks in Thailand....Bangkok Bank, TMB, and Kaiskorn....these three banks accomplish the final leg of the transfer which is a domestic transfer.  Which partner bank TW uses will vary....appears TW generally likes to will use all three pretty equally based on some posts. 

 

However, if you have a Bangkok Bank account it appears TW heavy favors uses Bangkok Bank as the partner bank and when that happens the transfer gets coded as an International Transfer....basically an internal Bangkok Bank way of doing it.  However if TW uses TMB or Kaiskorn for the final leg to your Bangkok Bank account it gets coded as a domestic transfers.

 

Quite a few posts on ThaiVisa where people with accounts at various Thai bank frequently end up with domestic coding....but if having a Bangkok Bank account "currently" changes are good (not 100%...maybe around 90 to 95%) your transfers will be coded international.

 

The Transferwise coding issue was "not" an issue/concern until the new immigration rule came out which places some TW transfers in question for immigration extension purposes unless the transfers happen to get coded international.

 

[KhunFred]

I don't know if this is relevant to the conversation or not, but I noted the wording on an SMS in my Bangkok Bank account . "  TRANSFERWISE has tranferred . THB .  XXX .  USD XXX  FROM ABROAD into 484xxx xxx xxx"

Surely the wording of the bank's own SMS is sufficient proof that the payment originates from outside Thailand?

[Pib]

11 minutes ago, KhunFred said:

I don't know if this is relevant to the conversation or not, but I noted the wording on an SMS in my Bangkok Bank account . "  TRANSFERWISE has tranferred . THB .  XXX .  USD XXX  FROM ABROAD into 484xxx xxx xxx"

Surely the wording of the bank's own SMS is sufficient proof that the payment originates from outside Thailand?

If it was from abroad then it will be reflected as such on your Thai bank statement/Credit Advice.  An immigration officer is not going to care about a SMS.    Remember the new rule calls for "Thai bank statement/passbook"...not SMSs...not foreign financial docs....etc.