Mee Tae Dai online or branch account for 800k Retirement Visa Funds?

[Barley]

Hello,

I read here about the Mee Tae Dai account, people were saying it gives really good interest rates.

 

So I wanted to open the account through my KrungSri app.

 

Then I saw in the conditions that the online account with the better interest rates does not come with a bank book. So I wonder if I should get the branch account which I assume will have a bank book which I can then present to immigration when it comes time for my extension.

 

The one think I really like about the Mee Tae Dai account as opposed to a straight term deposit account is that I can withdraw money through the app even when overseas, whereas the traditional term account requires a visit to my branch.

 

What are your experiences about the Mee Tae Dai online account and immigration?

 

 

[DrJoy]

34 minutes ago, Barley said:

So I wanted to open the account through my KrungSri app

Online account opening is reserved for Thai citizens only (Any Bank)

 

I have Krungsri s Mee Tae Dai, opened at the branch, comes with a passbook.

 

I recently renewed my extension based on marriage to Thai with this account , not a problem.

 

Interest rates - 1.1 % from 1 to 100k baht,  after that reduces to 0.9%

 

 

Caution : This account allows withdrawal/debit  only 2 times a month, after that a penalty of THB 50/- is charged on every debit.

Deposits are allowed unlimited.

[hughrection]

31 minutes ago, DrJoy said:

Online account opening is reserved for Thai citizens only (Any Bank)

Open to foreigners with work permit.

[Barley]

I just got the the new Krung Sri Boarding Card, a Prepaid Card mainly for international use because no 2.5% currency surcharge, and I did the full process in the app without a work permit.

 

I know it says work permit on the web sitze, but at least for me that wasn't necessary. So I would assume the same applies for the Mee Tae Dai online account.

 

BTW the card is free of charge (I think for 2 years, not sure) if you apply by March. https://www.krungsri.com/en/personal/card/krungsri-boarding-card

 

Anyway, my question remains unanswered:

What are your experiences about the Mee Tae Dai online account and immigration?

[DrJoy]

1 hour ago, hughrection said:

Open to foreigners with work permit

Read properly.

 

Online account opening process is available to Thai citizens only.

 

Offline account opening via branch is available for non Thais.

 

Work permit is not required

[sometimewoodworker]

While the Savings Mee Tae Dai Deposit account opened on line does give a rate of 1.5% for the first 100k and 1% for the next amounts up to 2,000k it is not such a good account

 

A Time Deposit Account; Tenor 48 months pays 1.5% for any amount, (withdrawals at any time with loss of interest) so OK for immigration.

 

For these reasons I have 400k in the 4 year account and our yearly budget in a Mee Tae Dai with a standing monthly transfer to SCB for daily spending 

 

This means that the annual renewal amount (on the spouse extension) is never touched (though I must remember to renew the 4 year term this year)

 

I also do not have any card for the accounts 

 

So for the best interest rates the above works well.

 

I know that @Barley you were looking for online information, but the time deposit is a much better option

[skatewash]

28 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

While the Savings Mee Tae Dai Deposit account opened on line does give a rate of 1.5% for the first 100k and 1% for the next amounts up to 2,000k it is not such a good account

 

A Time Deposit Account; Tenor 48 months pays 1.5% for any amount, (withdrawals at any time with loss of interest) so OK for immigration.

 

For these reasons I have 400k in the 4 year account and our yearly budget in a Mee Tae Dai with a standing monthly transfer to SCB for daily spending 

 

This means that the annual renewal amount (on the spouse extension) is never touched (though I must remember to renew the 4 year term this year)

 

I also do not have any card for the accounts 

 

So for the best interest rates the above works well.

 

I know that @Barley you were looking for online information, but the time deposit is a much better option

 Reasons one may prefer the Mee Tae Dai account:

Open a Mee Tae Dai account once and you never have to do anything with it again.  You would need to renew your fixed account again in 4 years.

The Mee Tae Dai account is not a fixed term account meaning the rate can go up or down although changes in the past have been infrequent.  A fixed term is obviously fixed for the entire term.

The Mee Tae Dai account is not a fixed term account but a regular savings account which means that you can give Krungsri Bank your Thai Tax ID and 15% tax withholding on your interest earned will not be incurred.  It's impossible to avoid the 15% tax withholding on a fixed term account.  This means that you would need to file a PND-90 Thai Income Tax Return every year to get the taxes withheld refunded.

Interest on the MTD account is earned daily so if you do withdrawal you only lose interest from the date of the withdrawal.  All interest is foregone on money withdrawn from a fixed term account.

Money can be withdrawn online with a MTD account.

I've been using my MTD account for a retirement extension at Phuket Immigration for at least 6 years.  Never any problems.  Phuket Immigration requires a passbook so would not want to have the MTD account opened online as that may cause problems with the retirement extension as I would not be able to show a passbook (in addition to the bank letter, bank statement of 12 months, and copies of the relevant pages from my passbook).

Remember any money in a Thai bank account in excess of 1 million baht is not covered by the Thai Insurance Program.

Edited January 16, 2023 by skatewash

[Brick Top]

I have a Mai Thai Dee account but 2 years ago opened an SCB EZ account , interest rate was 2% on the first 2 Million now its 1.5% on the first Million , but no restrictions on withdrawals unlike the Mai Thai Dee were its 2 per month after that pay 50 baht per withdrawal

[sometimewoodworker]

1 hour ago, skatewash said:

Money can be withdrawn online with a MTD account.

This is not restricted to the MTD, the fixed term account has the same access.

1 hour ago, skatewash said:

The Mee Tae Dai account is not a fixed term account meaning the rate can go up or down although changes in the past have been infrequent.  A fixed term is obviously fixed for the entire term.

Absolutely. That is exactly why I have received 2.15% for the last 3 and a half years 

[Barley]

Thank you for all of your comments.

 

An important criteria for my account is the flexibility to take the money out at any time - even while I am out of the country.

 

So therefore I am very interested in the Mee Tae Dai account. The SCB EZ account may also fit the bill.

 

I wish someone could tell me more about his or her experiences with the online no passbook version of these accounts and how immigration reacted to it.

 

I believe I have read some posts in this forum in which people said that IO gave no problems for the SCB EZ online account, but I am not sure about it.

 

It may also depend on the IO office, of course. Mine would be Chiang Mai.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

I opened a Krungsri MTD account at my local branch some years ago, and have used it ever since as the home for my 800,000 baht deposit required for my retirement extension. I've never had a work permit here, and opened the MTD account solely on the basis of having a retirement extension.

 

The account came with both a VISA debit card and a regular passbook. The account and its passbook have always been accepted by BKK Immigration for retirement extension deposit purposes without issue.

 

Krungsri's online banking is reasonably good, and you can online transfer funds between Krungsri and other Thai bank accounts. The limitation on monthly withdrawals in not really an issue for me, since I really only use the account for Immigration deposit purposes, and not other activities.

 

 

 

[Scott]

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