800K THB seasoning money for Non-Immigrant O (Retirement Visa)!?

[flexomike]

On 8/23/2023 at 2:44 PM, grain said:

I've been doing these annual retirement extensions for the past 25 years, never has there been any questions about the money co minog from abroad. Just as long as I have 800K THB sitting in a Thai bank account for the required period. In my case I just leave that money in the bank year after year. So I've never had any issues or any questions regarding the source of my bank balance.

First in country visa or extension has to show that it is a foreign transaction, after that it makes no difference

[flexomike]

On 8/23/2023 at 3:07 PM, Ook said:

But that's for the actual extension (proof of sufficient funds in account should be enough). But for the first time application of Non-Immigrant O, i believe there's the requirement to show it comes from abroad, right?

yes

[BritTim]

2 hours ago, Brick Top said:

Yes , your correct , for the very first one , there is now a requirement to provide proof the funds came from overseas .

That is an official rule. However, if the funds have lain undisturbed in your account for at least a few months, most immigration offices will waive the proof that the money originated abroad.

[glegolo18]

On 8/23/2023 at 3:05 PM, dick turpin said:

For future reference always make a transfer

in local currency  euro/£ etc and let the Thai

bank make the conversion.... you will get a far 

better exchange rate.

This is NOT always correct mind you.. At least when transferring from Sweden, our banks there in Sweden gives better currency rate of exchange than the thai bank does.... So we swedes who knows about this, we always send thai baht from Sweden to Thailand...

[TimF]

I did a SWIFT transfer from UK and it showed as local bank transfer in Thailand and not acceptable by Nong Khai immigration. When I contacted my UK bank they said they use intermediary banks and it won't show as foreign transfer. I used Wise and that worked into Bangkok Bank account

[BritTim]

12 minutes ago, glegolo18 said:

This is NOT always correct mind you.. At least when transferring from Sweden, our banks there in Sweden gives better currency rate of exchange than the thai bank does.... So we swedes who knows about this, we always send thai baht from Sweden to Thailand...

As I am sure you know, you are still charged an extra 0.25% by the Thai bank when transferring in baht. I have never heard a valid justification for this.

[BritTim]

3 minutes ago, TimF said:

I did a SWIFT transfer from UK and it showed as local bank transfer in Thailand and not acceptable by Nong Khai immigration. When I contacted my UK bank they said they use intermediary banks and it won't show as foreign transfer. I used Wise and that worked into Bangkok Bank account

When banks use that "correspondent bank" excuse for an indirect transfer, it enrages me. It is almost always totally unnecessary, adds to the cost, creates delay and (as here) makes tracking the transfer much more difficult. When a bank does that, insist on them giving you the MT103 document, a detailed SWIFT document describing how the transfer was done, and giving what you need to satisfy Immigration.

[DrJack54]

2 hours ago, flexomike said:

First in country visa or extension has to show that it is a foreign transaction, after that it makes no difference

Not in my book.

Extension first or otherwise does not require to demonstrate funds from abroad.

For Non O retirement applied for in Thailand then yes funds need to be from abroad.

For Non O retirement obtained outside of Thailand then that is not required.

[donmuang37]

On 8/23/2023 at 4:46 PM, DrJack54 said:

It's best to use a money transfer company.

Never to bank to bank transfers 

I've used US bank to Thai bank transfer for 20 years.  Send US dollars and get a better exchange rate here.  Never had a problem.

Cheers, Don

[DrJack54]

8 minutes ago, donmuang37 said:

I've used US bank to Thai bank transfer for 20 years.  Send US dollars and get a better exchange rate here.  Never had a problem.

Cheers, Don

Please post this in "banking finance " forum..

Why do vast majority of USA guys use WISE. 

[AjarnMartin]

On 8/23/2023 at 3:02 PM, Felton Jarvis said:

Use an agent.  “Seasoning” is something you do to enhance the flavour of food. Only the Thais use it to mean parking your money in a bank for a predetermined period of time. Agents solve all problems, unfortunately they usually charge too much so they can bribe Immigration.

Felton Jarvis, this piece of useless advice is not going to help someone to understand the process of using the 800,000 ThB to meet the requirements of a Retirement Visa. If you’ve got nothing constructive to say, why not just desist from your inanity?

[Felton Jarvis]

1 hour ago, AjarnMartin said:

Felton Jarvis, this piece of useless advice is not going to help someone to understand the process of using the 800,000 ThB to meet the requirements of a Retirement Visa. If you’ve got nothing constructive to say, why not just desist from your inanity?

I would encourage you to assume room temperature, but I have already put you on ignore, which will solve my harrassment problem for the immediate future. Bye, loser.

[soisanuk]

10 hours ago, BritTim said:

As I am sure you know, you are still charged an extra 0.25% by the Thai bank when transferring in baht. I have never heard a valid justification for this.

Bangkok bank charges the 0.0025% as a conversion fee, but it has a minimum of 200 baht and maximum of 500 baht for this fee.  It is not charged if funds are received in Thai baht.

 

10 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

Please post this in "banking finance " forum..

Why do vast majority of USA guys use WISE. 

Because it is usually cheaper than using their US bank to do the transfer. Some banks do not offer international wire transfers as part of their online banking. My US bank charges US$45 for international wire transfers in US dollars.  Wise's fees are much less. My bank's online system will do international transfers for a fee of US$5, BUT require the funds be converted to Thai baht at a very lousy exchange rate - when they introduced that service, I did a comparison with Wise using US$2,500 as the transfer amount. The result was while my bank's fee was US$5 they deposited 1,600 baht less baht into my account than that provided by Wise.  

 

 

[flexomike]

11 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

Not in my book.

Extension first or otherwise does not require to demonstrate funds from abroad.

For Non O retirement applied for in Thailand then yes funds need to be from abroad.

For Non O retirement obtained outside of Thailand then that is not required.

sorry for the misunderstanding, I was referring to an extension from an O obtained within Thailand, maybe not required at all Immigration

[bigt3116]

On 8/23/2023 at 4:43 PM, DrJack54 said:

(unless the funds have been in Thai bank for some time) 

Wrong

 

Check out Para 5.3

 

https://www.immigration.go.th/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/9.FOR-RETIREMENT-PURPOSES-50-YEARS-OLD-NON-O.pdf

[Lite Beer]

12 minutes ago, bigt3116 said:

Wrong

 

Check out Para 5.3

 

https://www.immigration.go.th/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/9.FOR-RETIREMENT-PURPOSES-50-YEARS-OLD-NON-O.pdf

He is not wrong.

You maybe in Thailand for a long time with the cash transferred into Thailand years ago.

You wont have evidence of this now.

[DrJack54]

9 minutes ago, bigt3116 said:

Wrong

I already have you on ignore for good reason.

 

In this thread alone you have gone sideways re "joint account" and corrected by 2 mods and myself.

 

Now re funds need to be shown being transferred from abroad.

For application for a non O retirement in Thailand that is the case... HOWEVER

 

If the funds have been in Thai bank account for some time then proof funds came from abroad in most cases is not required.

 

Please ignore my posts as you are boring me

[bigt3116]

5 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

If the funds have been in Thai bank account for some time then proof funds came from abroad in most cases is not required.

Show me where that is written, then I will become as knowledgable as you  ????

 

6 minutes ago, Lite Beer said:

He is not wrong.

You maybe in Thailand for a long time with the cash transferred into Thailand years ago.

You wont have evidence of this now.

The application form quite clearly states "Evidence of foreign currency fund transferred to Thailand", it makes no mention of how long it might have sat in a Thai bank account.

 

I just post the facts as written by Thai Immigration themselves

 

8 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

In this thread alone you have gone sideways re "joint account" and corrected by 2 mods and myself.

Actually it was conceded that some offices will accept that, so hush a little, you have not corrected me ????

[DrJack54]

3 minutes ago, bigt3116 said:

Show me where that is written, then I will become as knowledgable as you 

Doesn't need to be written.

Needs to be what immigration accept.

First post in this thread by BritTim.

Have similar posts from ubonjoe.

 

https://aseannow.com/topic/1297092-non-o-visa-retirement-purpose/

[OJAS]

18 hours ago, khunPer said:

If using the income method, the monthly amounts shall be be foreign transfers.

Unless the OP is American, Australian or British (and his references to Europe and the EUR currency would appear to indicate that he is none of these 3 nationalities), he might be able to obtain a suitable income confirmation letter/affidavit from his home country embassy in Bangkok in lieu of making physical monthly transfers.

 

EDIT: But that said, however, his clear preference is to go down the 800k/400k route instead.

 

[OJAS]

On 8/23/2023 at 3:02 PM, Felton Jarvis said:

“Seasoning” is something you do to enhance the flavour of food. Only the Thais use it to mean parking your money in a bank for a predetermined period of time.

If I were you I would be far more concerned about the OP's initial use of incorrect terminology through referring to a "Non-Immigrant O (Retirement Visa)" for his dad, bearing in mind that, in the case of retirement, immigration offices issue fresh non-O visas (based on conversions of recent entries into Thailand) as well as fresh annual extensions of stay.

 

[Negita43]

23 hours ago, Negita43 said:

https://wise.com/help/articles/2932335/guide-to-thb-transfers

This link explains which banks issue "certificates" about the transfer here is an extract:

1. Set transfer amount and currency to THB

2. Add recipient details

3. Choose Kasikorn Bank or Bangkok Bank Public Company as the recipient bank

4. Enter account number

5. On Transfer Purpose: select Funds for long term stay in Thailand or Purchase of Property

6. Review transfer details and Confirm

7. Select pay-in method, and pay for your transfer

8. You’re all set! 

Your transfer should be marked as International Transfer in your recipient bank’s app, website, or passbook.*

If you followed these steps but your transfer was not marked as International Transfer, please contact our respective bank partners to get an FET form. See instructions below for Bangkok Bank, Kasikorn bank, and Deemoney.

[glegolo18]

23 hours ago, BritTim said:

As I am sure you know, you are still charged an extra 0.25% by the Thai bank when transferring in baht. I have never heard a valid justification for this.

Yes I know that, I also know, which not many does, that EACH bank charge this 0,25%.. So if you are sitting on a Kasikorn-account you will be debited 2 x 0,25%,m as BKK bank is the monopoly bank in Thailand where all transfers goes through..

[BritTim]

6 minutes ago, glegolo18 said:

Yes I know that, I also know, which not many does, that EACH bank charge this 0,25%.. So if you are sitting on a Kasikorn-account you will be debited 2 x 0,25%,m as BKK bank is the monopoly bank in Thailand where all transfers goes through..

Interesting. I thought that often happened because Bangkok Bank is used as a correspondent bank for transfers to your Kasikorn account (a choice by your overseas bank), However, most large overseas banks are able to transfer direct to Kasikorn through SWIFT. In that situation, I thought only Kasikorn would impose that charge.

[glegolo18]

23 hours ago, BritTim said:

Interesting. I thought that often happened because Bangkok Bank is used as a correspondent bank for transfers to your Kasikorn account (a choice by your overseas bank), However, most large overseas banks are able to transfer direct to Kasikorn through SWIFT. In that situation, I thought only Kasikorn would impose that charge.

No Sir, have done swift a long long time, and money always ends up first at BKK Bank who charge 0,25%, and then being forwarded to i.e. Kasikorn, who also charge 0,25%..

[BritTim]

14 minutes ago, glegolo18 said:

No Sir, have done swift a long long time, and money always ends up first at BKK Bank who charge 0,25%, and then being forwarded to i.e. Kasikorn, who also charge 0,25%..

I will need to look back at my records. I have done SWIFT transfers to Kasikorn in the distant past, but not recently. My recollection is that NatWest in the UK could send direct to either Bangkok Bank or Kasikorn.

 

When you send to Kasikorn, is the transfer subject to delays? My recollection is that the transfer through a correspondent bank tended to take about a week as opposed to the normal three days when transfer was direct.

[glegolo18]

On 8/26/2023 at 7:26 PM, BritTim said:

I will need to look back at my records. I have done SWIFT transfers to Kasikorn in the distant past, but not recently. My recollection is that NatWest in the UK could send direct to either Bangkok Bank or Kasikorn.

 

When you send to Kasikorn, is the transfer subject to delays? My recollection is that the transfer through a correspondent bank tended to take about a week as opposed to the normal three days when transfer was direct.

No No Tim, no delay at all, from Sweden to Thailand always takes 2,5 day. i.e. sent on monday always comes here just before lunchtime wednesday.. No matter like me using Khrung Thai or Siam bank.... No delay to talk about.

 

However, I have no clou what is going on with you guys from Great Britain, USA or Australia.... Your banks in your countries seems to me to be quite nasty from time to time, and seems to obstruct you guys quite often.

[DrJack54]

42 minutes ago, glegolo18 said:

However, I have no clou what is going on with you guys from Great Britain, USA or Australia.... Your banks in your countries seems to me to be quite nasty from time to time, and seems to obstruct you guys quite often.

No idea what you on about.

I use WISE.

If I do a transfer using WISE in the early morning from Oz. Then the amount lands my Kasikorn at 2pm.

If I do transfer pm then funds land am next day.

Your Point? Nonsense post

[BritTim]

4 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

No idea what you on about.

I use WISE.

If I do a transfer using WISE in the early morning from Oz. Then the amount lands my Kasikorn at 2pm.

If I do transfer pm then funds land am next day.

Your Point? Nonsense post

Our discussion is only about SWIFT transfers which seem to work well, with good exchange rates when sending from Sweden with the currency conversion done before the transfer. Obviously, as we are well aware, using WISE is a better idea from most countries. I guess it is not a complete shock that bank charges and exchange rates vary by country.

[glegolo18]

22 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

No idea what you on about.

I use WISE.

If I do a transfer using WISE in the early morning from Oz. Then the amount lands my Kasikorn at 2pm.

If I do transfer pm then funds land am next day.

Your Point? Nonsense post

I think you shall settle down a bit, you are completely and utterly out of line here. If you like to have a decent reply then give decent answers.... But I shall answer you nevertheless... We are talking about Swift transfers me and Brit Tim, capice???? BTW if I use Wise it takes for me about 2-3 seconds and then I have the money directly into my bank account whatever bank I have, because Wise have bankaccounts in all banks..... OK?? You understand... an apology is in place here from you...