Re-locating to a new province - Banking Questions

[BeefCurtains]

Im moving from the northeast of thailand to the south of thailand and I have questions regarding Bank Accounts and Bank Books

 

Can bank books be updated at any bank branch across the country, or do you have to use your "local" branch (where you opened the account)?

 

I obviously need to be able to do this at my new location for immigration purposes and everything else. 

 

Is it necessary to even change your "local" bank branch for any reason at all? 

 

Bangkok Bank is where my account is. 

[allane]

- you can update your bankbook at any branch of the same bank, either at the update machine outside, or at a teller inside.

- you can continue to use the account you have now.  The only noticeable difference you will see is an out of province service charge.  I pay B 15 per withdrawal on my Bangkok Bank acct.  You can replace a lost or expired ATM card at any branch.

- if you need an annual letter to confirm your bank balance for visa extension purposes, I will refrain from giving an answer on that, as I have always done it at my home branch since I switched to Bangkok Bank.  

Edited June 17, 2021 by allane
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[CharlieH]

As with most things in this Country it will vary by office (sadly). The technical answer is YES all services etc "should" be available via any branch, including the letter.

In practice, you "may" encounter opposition, the only real difference as already pointed out is the out of province charges.

[richard_smith237]

You will receive an ‘out of province charge’ every time you use the ATM. 

Some additional features may not be accessible (I’m not sure though).

 

It would make sense to change your branch to your new location, just to avoid any unknown issues. 

 

If you can’t easily ‘change branch’, just open a new account in your new province.

[allane]

16 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

You will receive an ‘out of province charge’ every time you use the ATM. 

Some additional features may not be accessible (I’m not sure though).

 

It would make sense to change your branch to your new location, just to avoid any unknown issues. 

 

If you can’t easily ‘change branch’, just open a new account in your new province.

In Thailand, you don't "transfer" an account from one branch to another.  You open an account at the new branch, then transfer the money on deposit.  There is no need to do anything with the old account, it will close after one year due to inactivity.  If you have any reason to think that you might need the old account some day, keep the balance above B 2000, including provision for service charges.  and do at least one transaction per year; preferably two, in case you are ever one day late.