Sending money international - only with work permit

[Hamma]

I should pay the bill for my german health insurance and tried to transform money via i-banking from my Bangkok Bank account. That showed not to be possible why I sent the money from my account in Denmark instead of. 

Now I have talked to Bangkok Bank in Udon about what was wrong. It took me 2 hours and to talk to 7 ladies to find out, that I am not able to send money abroad directly from i-banking.  To actually be able to send your own money from your thai account to your account abroad you are supposed to have a working permit. No working permit - no possibility for the bank to activate the international part of i-banking.

I have a Non-O, and I have to come every time I have to transform money abroad, fill out a form with reason, receiver and so on. The bank will then transfer the money in a week.

What a hopeless old fashioned way to do banking business! If the government wants to control what money goes out of the country, they better get an IT-pro to change the banks IT-systems so they get the information they want without being in the way.

Does anybody have the same experiences?

 

Regards, Hamma

[patman30]

never heard that before
i have transferred £20,000 out from Krungsri FCD account (in-bank)
and smaller amounts from normal SCB Thai account
no work permit ever needed or visa status etc.

[NanLaew]

I transfer money from my Thai bank account to my wife's Thai bank account then send the money internationally from her account.

[dabhand]

I have used DeeMoney a number of times recently to transfer funds from my SCB account to my UK bank (THB to GBP). 

 

The DM application process was simple and completed via online / mobile actions with no Work Permit requirements or need for any branch visit. The transfers are completed via the banking app and are credited next working day. Thus far, no problems at all with competitive exchange rates and low charges.

[topt]

On 10/20/2020 at 6:23 PM, patman30 said:

never heard that before

Then you haven't been listening very closely as often mentioned.

 

On 10/20/2020 at 6:23 PM, patman30 said:

i have transferred £20,000 out from Krungsri FCD account (in-bank)

In bank - so not online as the OP asked and it is a FCD account not a baht account.........

 

On 10/20/2020 at 6:23 PM, patman30 said:

and smaller amounts from normal SCB Thai account

this is relevant if you were able to do it online - or did you have to go to the branch? 

[brianp0803]

Although for a foreigner transferring money out of Thailand, it makes sense that they want to know where that money came from. If you have a work permit, then it’s obvious you earn the money legally in  Thailand. If there was evidence that your transfer the money into Thailand, and was now sending the back, that should also be easy.

Otherwise, I would understand if they were suspicious of large sums of money being transferred outside the country with no evidence of where the money came from

[weedywhaoo]

2 days ago I sent 8000 us dollars to hong kong from my bank online service, Bank of Ayuttaya and I don't have a work permit. The only strange thing was that I had to change my address into English letters to do the swift transfer. With thai letters you cant send money with swift.

[balo]

I just use Western Union online if I want to transfer money to a foreign bank account, and charge the debit/credit card connected to the account.

There are some fees involved but it's a quick solution.   

[jasonsamui55]

Easy. Create a Bitkub account. But bitcoin on Bitkub by relationships time transfer from your SCB account. Send the bitcoin instantly anywhere you want it. No restrictions. I’ve done it many times without issue, and rates are fX or better rather than getting screwed by banks and their excessive fees.

[Scott Tracy]

I use Western Union online. A pain to register, but successful every time. In my view, fees are not exorbitant.

[Pib]

Delete...duplicate

Edited October 22, 2020 by Pib

[Pib]

Yeap, Bangkok Bank online banking requires a person to have a work permit to send money internationally.   You can see and use the option on ibanking but at the very last step it will tell you that you must provide them a copy of your work permit and passport for them to finalize approval of the transfer.  If you can do this then for future transfers you will not be asked for a work permit.

 

From Krungsri Bank you can do a SWIFT up to $10K per day...no work permit required....I've done it.

 

A person can register for/use DeeMoney online to many countries....I've done it several times.

 

And a person can register/use Western Union - Thailand online...I've done it several times.

Edited October 22, 2020 by Pib

[Mak25]

I recommend Skrill for sending money internationally from my credit/debit card.

[Morty T]

On 10/20/2020 at 7:12 AM, Hamma said:

 

Does anybody have the same experiences?

 

Regards, Hamma

Money coming into Thailand easy enough, money going out, beaucratic hassle. I just used WU, of course it costs more, but your are in control. We just used our home country bank accounts to make payments on our insurance policies, safer. Our Thai accounts were just there to show the required amount needed for our visa and cash for daily use. Krungthai offered all the options you're looking for, in our case and with previous experiences with thai banking institutions, I think its better that you maintain control over your own finances.

[Kenchamp]

1 hour ago, Pib said:

.

 

From Krungsri Bank you can do a SWIFT up to $10K per day...no work permit required....I've done it.

 

 

What were the charges and exchange rates you got please.

I'm thinking of sending about 400k baht shortly?

[Pib]

5 minutes ago, Kenchamp said:

What were the charges and exchange rates you got please.

I'm thinking of sending about 400k baht shortly?

You get Krungsri's  TT Selling Rate posted on their exchange rate webpage.   Thai banks use their TT Selling Rate when you are sending funds.  

 

And the sending fee was approx Bt350 total if not wanting them to also cover any intermediary/correspondent bank fees along the way....OR, if wanting them to cover such intermediary fees then approx Bt1,100 total.  The funds posted to my US bank within hours.

[Kenchamp]

18 minutes ago, Pib said:

You get Krungsri's  TT Selling Rate posted on their exchange rate webpage.   Thai banks use their TT Selling Rate when you are sending funds.  

 

And the sending fee was approx Bt350 total if not wanting them to also cover any intermediary/correspondent bank fees along the way....OR, if wanting them to cover such intermediary fees then approx Bt1,100 total.  The funds posted to my US bank within hours.

Thanks for that info. Did you get robbed at the other end from the recieving bank with the exchange rate they gave you or did you send in dollars?

[Pib]

5 minutes ago, Kenchamp said:

Thanks for that info. Did you get robbed at the other end from the recieving bank with the exchange rate they gave you or did you send in dollars?

The Thai bank sends foreign currency like USD, GBP, whatever foreign currency you choose.  Basically you are using THB to buy the foreign currency to send....and the Thai bank sells & sends that foreign currency using their TT Selling Rate.

 

No receiving fee on my US bank end, but that's only because my bank don't charge a fee to receive incoming funds.   But some of the fee-evil US banks do charge a receiving fee for incoming international transfers so you will need to check your home country bank fee schedule to see if they charge a receiving fee.

[timendres]

I have a Bangkok Bank account, and setting up an international recipient of transfers required that I have a work permit. I had to file forms in person at my branch. I had to wait a day or two for the approval process to complete. It was ridiculous.

 

I also have a Kasikorn Bank account (KBank), and I use the KBank mobile app on my phone. With the KBank mobile app, all I did was enter the account information for my bank account in the US, and hit go. Not forms, no permissions, no work permit required. The only limitation is that the transfer must be done during normal business hours (8am -- 6pm). The money arrived in the US in two days, and the exchange rate was excellent. KBank charged me a 250THB fee for the transfer. You are allowed to transfer up to 50,000THB within a single day. Frankly, I believe KBank has the best banking technology of all of the Thai banks at this time. The others are playing catch up.

[Hamma]

Thanks for the valuable comments. I will look at getting a second account at KBank.

Hamma