Transferwise international transfers heads up

[willyumcr]

Save yourself a lot of headaches. Use an agency. Once a year. Done. No need transfers, etc.

[MeePeeMai]

33 minutes ago, wgdanson said:

My July Transferwise went via Kasikorn, to my Bkk Bank so shows as SMT in my book and on statements. Previously all previous transfers were FTT.

Went to Phitsanulok Immigration and showed them the T'wise paper showing 65k left UK on 3rd July and 65k arrived in my Bkk Bank on 4th.

All OK, accepted by them.

 

I hope they remember what they said and stick to it once you return for your next extension.

 

From my experience, I have learned never to take anything they say as fact since I have been down that road with them before and they will deny ever saying any such thing or say that you "must have misunderstood" them.  I applaud your faith and trust in your local office but my experience has taught me not to even ask any questions as it was a complete waste of time and nothing but a runaround with a slap in the face afterward for being so gullible as to believe what I was told.

 

I hope you are correct though and I hope that all Immigration Offices around the country will be so accommodating.

[seajae]

On 6/29/2019 at 9:31 AM, oxmermaid said:

This glitch appeared last week, when was the last time you tried the BBL transfer?

I did one this week and it was fine, have never had a problem in all the years I have been doing it

[MeowBundit]

We can push the TW to fix this. I sent them several complaints and also asked to TAG account to transfer to BBL directly.

They will lost about $270 /year / one 50y.o expat, and  $170 / year / one married expat. This is absolutely HUGE loss, because only me and 3 my friends will pay as commission more than $1000 / year to TW... There is still 3 weeks until the end of this month, I think if they not fix in 2 weeks then all income idea is doomed for many of us.

If someone sceptic and ask for SWIFT, many banks not allow SWIFT remotely. No online SWIFT etc...

[misterphil]

This is what Kasikorn said.....

 

Dear misterphil,

According to your enquiry regarding the transaction, we would like to inform you that if you have received the international fund transfer normally the Teller ID that show on your statement will be TFNxxx and BNTxxx and in this case you will be able to request for the Credit Advice as a transaction evidence. 
 

Consequently, to request the credit advice, we do recommend you bring original passport and passbook contact any Kasikornbank branches in order to request for credit advice and the additional fee for issuing a credit advice will be as followings;

- If you request to issue a credit advice of a transaction backward no longer than 3 months, there will be no additional fee for the request. 

O Normally, the process for issuing a credit advice backward no longer than 3 months will take no longer than the same day you made a request. 

 

- Conversely, if you request to issue a credit advice of a transaction backward more than 3 months, Kasikornbank will charge for additional fee 500 THB per transaction. 
O The process for issuing a credit advice backward longer than 3 months will depend on the period of the transaction in backward.

 

Moreover, if your Teller ID on the statement is MCLxxx in this case Kasikornbank will unable to issues the credit advice due to the system will define the transaction as a local transaction, consequently, you are require to contact the sender bank to request for MT 103 as a transaction evidence. We truly apologize for the inconvenience caused.

Anyhow, you can contact K-Contact Center at Tel. (+66) 2888 8800, press 1, 0 and press 10 digits of your account number followed by # (24/7 service) in order to check the transaction detail on your account with our representative firstly.

Remark: Due to this process cannot be performed through E-mail channel since our bank applies the customer's strict security and confidentiality policy. The customer's personal data must be verified through a phone before providing services. 

[oxmermaid]

and here was my reply from them

 

Dear oxmermaid,

 

Referring to your request Kasikornbank would like to confirm about the teller ID on saving deposit account statement which is MCL00001.

 

The teller ID "MCL00001 " means international fund transfer from other bank with API system (Application Programming Interface).

 

and I already have the credit advice.

 

TiT

 

Folks, here we have the perfect storm, TW new software AND Kbank new software result chaos!

 

 

 

 

[pontious]

3 hours ago, willyumcr said:

Save yourself a lot of headaches. Use an agency. Once a year. Done. No need transfers, etc.

I never thought I would agree but it is close to it. I don't need any money transferred I have enough in our joint account. In just this month  I have transferred 100,000 baht that came as domestic so is useless and another 70,000 from my UK bank via SWIFT to ensure an FTT and make the monthly criteria. 15,000 Baht to a Pattaya agent and I have none of this monthly hassle. No one knows what is acceptable to immigration, no one knows which office is allowing leniency, no one knows  anything.  It is a complete fiasco.

[PJPom]

Hooray

49 minutes ago, oxmermaid said:

and here was my reply from them

 

Dear oxmermaid,

 

Referring to your request Kasikornbank would like to confirm about the teller ID on saving deposit account statement which is MCL00001.

 

The teller ID "MCL00001 " means international fund transfer from other bank with API system (Application Programming Interface).

 

and I already have the credit advice.

 

TiT

 

Folks, here we have the perfect storm, TW new software AND Kbank new software result chaos!

 

 

 

 

SCB wasn’t able to tell me what MCL00001 was but all my TransferWise deposits are marked as such so they all qualify.

I was not going to jinx myself by posting but yesterday my I O after a phone call to some other person at head office said it OK see you next week for extension.

[Maestro]

10 hours ago, MeePeeMai said:

My home bank is a credit union, they do not have a SWIFT code (and don't do SWIFT transfers) so that is not an option for me either and being that this months transfer has been coded as SMART, there goes my history of 12 month continuous foreign transfers anyway.

 

The SMAT code in your bank book should be no obstacle as long as the bank letter you have to get for immigration states that that the remittance came from abroad.

[Pumpuynarak]

17 hours ago, willyumcr said:

Save yourself a lot of headaches. Use an agency. Once a year. Done. No need transfers, etc.

I agree but how would one find an agent in Korat or any other city/town other than Bangkok/Pattaya where these agents services are advertised/recommended and well used ?

[willyumcr]

I am not sure as I live in Pattaya. Lots of agency's here do this.

[ecoscape]

i no longer have the 400k in my account having bought a house and a car. i rely on my pension income of 40 k per month plus. i am due to renew my extension. bangkok bank only provide 6 months statements also my monthly transfers from my pension provider in uk show up as Bahnet. I did show the bank an example of a letter which was recently posted here but the bank says these are obsolete. help!

[Pumpuynarak]

4 minutes ago, willyumcr said:

I am not sure as I live in Pattaya. Lots of agency's here do this.

Thankyou, yes i am aware of some agencies that operate in Pattaya but the problem as i see it is that you have to use your local IO to secure your visa extension, now using one from Pattaya could present me with other problems.

[Pumpuynarak]

4 minutes ago, ecoscape said:

i no longer have the 400k in my account having bought a house and a car. i rely on my pension income of 40 k per month plus. i am due to renew my extension. bangkok bank only provide 6 months statements also my monthly transfers from my pension provider in uk show up as Bahnet. I did show the bank an example of a letter which was recently posted here but the bank says these are obsolete. help!

You have joined the ever growing club Sir.

[ubonjoe]

20 minutes ago, ecoscape said:

i no longer have the 400k in my account having bought a house and a car. i rely on my pension income of 40 k per month plus. i am due to renew my extension. bangkok bank only provide 6 months statements also my monthly transfers from my pension provider in uk show up as Bahnet. I did show the bank an example of a letter which was recently posted here but the bank says these are obsolete. help!

You have to request a 12 month statement. There is a 2 page form they complete and you sign and then pay 200 baht fee. It takes about week to get it. They will call you when if comes in. I just requested one a couple of days ago.

You pension is going into a intermediary bank here before it is transferred. You need to ask the bank for credit advice for your transfer to find out which bank it being transferred into.

Did you show them the sample of the letter that lists your transfers and the amount in baht.

With a bank statement some immigration office have accepted the standard letter done to verify your account when using the money in the bank option.

[MeePeeMai]

4 hours ago, ecoscape said:

i no longer have the 400k in my account having bought a house and a car. i rely on my pension income of 40 k per month plus. i am due to renew my extension. bangkok bank only provide 6 months statements also my monthly transfers from my pension provider in uk show up as Bahnet. I did show the bank an example of a letter which was recently posted here but the bank says these are obsolete. help!

 

What UbonJoe said plus... I believe that you must go to the MAIN BRANCH of your bank in order to receive a 12 month statement (last 12 months) regardless of which branch your account was opened and maintained at.  Branches other than the main branch will only go back 6 months.  For Bangkok Bank this would be the main branch located on Silom Road in Bangkok.

[ubonjoe]

15 minutes ago, MeePeeMai said:

What UbonJoe said plus... I believe that you must go to the MAIN BRANCH of your bank in order to receive a 12 month statement (last 12 months) regardless of which branch your account was opened and maintained at. 

I requested a 12 month statement at a small branch of Bangkok Bank here in Ubon 3 days ago. They do a couple of forms you have to sign and it is done at the main office in Bangkok that is then sent to the branch where your requested it in about a week. The fee was 200 baht.

[MeePeeMai]

7 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

I requested a 12 month statement at a small branch of Bangkok Bank here in Ubon 3 days ago. They do a couple of forms you have to sign and it is done at the main office in Bangkok that is then sent to the branch where your requested it in about a week. The fee was 200 baht.

 

My wife asked both small Bangkok Bank branches here in Loei and they said that they could only go back 6 months and if I needed 12 months I would have to personally visit the Main Branch in Bangkok.  I guess I'll have my wife call the main branch and see if they will call the branches here and straighten them out.  Thanks Joe

[JAS21]

On 7/6/2019 at 5:37 PM, MeePeeMai said:

 

My wife asked both small Bangkok Bank branches here in Loei and they said that they could only go back 6 months and if I needed 12 months I would have to personally visit the Main Branch in Bangkok.  I guess I'll have my wife call the main branch and see if they will call the branches here and straighten them out.  Thanks Joe

I am going to get one after 6-months and then another 6-months later

[Pib]

On 7/4/2019 at 5:33 PM, Maestro said:

Seeing that you sent Baht, not foreign currency, isn't it correct that it shows up as a domestic transfer?

No.  A sending bank could send in home country currency or Thai baht....it's still an international transfer...it's just the sending bank did the currency exchange on the sending end.  And the receiving Thai bank international receiving fee of 0.25% (Bt200 min, Bt500 max) will still apply regardless of what currency arrives.

[Pumpuynarak]

 

I've just returned from Korat IO where wifey and i spoke to the Chief IO to inform her that i could'nt evidence that my transfers had come from the UK by way of TW due to the fact they were not coded when credited to my SCB account as FRC (from abroad)

I took all my SCB bank statements (all printed off by me) from Jan this year to July together with the TW PDF's (all printed off by me) she had a good look and said "don't worry" all we want to see is that you are transferring money each month into your SCB account from abroad and she said that i can see from the evidence you have supplied.

I did inform her that in future (August onwards) i will do a swift transfer from my HSBC UK account direct into my SCB account here and that will show as a foreign transaction, she was happy and once again said "don't worry". I'll have to just put up with the higher charges and bad exchange rate from SCB.

 

I think wifey had a good chat to her and said we've been married 13 years and living together here in Thailand and always transferred the money monthly from the UK and she did'nt want to lose her husband lol   

 

[tracy3eyes]

FYI

If you transfer from the Halifax in the UK you will get an FTT code. You can open an account online. I know because I just tested it.

 

Also, from the La Caixa bank in Spain you get a FTT code.

 

 

 

Hope this is helpful.

[oxmermaid]

Tracy, are you transferring funds through TransferWise or SWIFT?

[Nong Khai Man]

19 minutes ago, tracy3eyes said:

FYI

If you transfer from the Halifax in the UK you will get an FTT code. You can open an account online. I know because I just tested it.

 

Also, from the La Caixa bank in Spain you get a FTT code.

 

 

 

Hope this is helpful.

Tracy, Yes I Can CONFIRM That about The Halifax.....

[oxmermaid]

Are you using TransferWise into Kbank???????????

Edited July 9, 2019 by oxmermaid
grammar

[SooKee]

FYI
If you transfer from the Halifax in the UK you will get an FTT code. You can open an account online. I know because I just tested it.
 
Also, from the La Caixa bank in Spain you get a FTT code.
 
 
 
Hope this is helpful.

You can open an account with Halifax online from Thailand? Unless you are in our at least have a valid address in the UK I thought that was pretty much impossible.

[tracy3eyes]

3 hours ago, SooKee said:

16 hours ago, tracy3eyes said:

FYI
If you transfer from the Halifax in the UK you will get an FTT code. You can open an account online. I know because I just tested it.
 
Also, from the La Caixa bank in Spain you get a FTT code.
 
 
 
Hope this is helpful.

You can open an account with Halifax online from Thailand? Unless you are in our at least have a valid address in the UK I thought that was pretty much impossible.

I opened an account online and have a valid uk address.

[dabhand]

15 minutes ago, tracy3eyes said:

I opened an account online and have a valid uk address.

I opened an account with Halifax (CC + bank account) a couple of years back. Done online and with a UK address, but they needed me to do an ID / address verification (passport + UK DL), in person, at any Halifax branch in the UK before they would activate the accounts.

 

Did you need to do a similar verification check in person?

[pontious]

1 hour ago, tracy3eyes said:

I opened an account online and have a valid uk address.

To open a Halifax account you have to be a UK resident. 

[cassde]

I did a SWIFT transfer through HSBC on the 1st July and it was in my Bangkok Bank account on 2nd July and marked as an International transfer. I undertook two further TW transfers on the 8th July, called them in the UK to tag them in favour of Bangkok Bank, with my activity file showing that the money will be in my account after 4pm on the 9th. 4pm came and went and today (10th) after a 9 minute call to the UK, I received an activity entry showing both payments to be made tomorrow evening! I won't hold my breath.

This will be the last time I use TW because their Payments Team  cannot be trusted to follow through what their Customer Service operatives tell the customer, both verbally and in messages. Instead, I shall use SWIFT transfers from my HSBC account, or use a UK firm called REMITLY, whose fees are marginally more expensive than TW's for at £800 by 456 baht; but more importantly Express transfers at a cost of £12.99 using a debit card (free first time of use).

Edited July 10, 2019 by cassde