LTR holders applying for credit cards

[Desmond77]

Hi,

 

I have just gotten my LTR visa under the Work-From-Thailand-Professional scheme. I am wondering if it is possible for me to apply for a credit card please?

 

The reason why I am asking is because I am in the midst of renovating and furnishing my house here and places like Homepro and Boontharvorn are giving away alot of perks for customers with credit cards from banks like Krunsri Bank or Kasikorn Bank. I have tried with Krungsri Bank but they said that I will either need to deposit a crazy amount of THB2,000,000 into a Fixed Deposit account for at least a year or I will need to have a Thai work permit with a salary of at least THB70,000. It does not make any sense. My monthly income is more than 4 times of that minimum requirement set by the bank. If I want to run away with any credit card debt, with or without a Thai work permit, I can still run. I have explained that I could get car financing without any Thai guarantor and I have finished paying my car financing within a year. So where is the logic?

 

Any LTR holders here have any experience in applying a local Thai credit card?

[Ralf001]

The info you have is correct.

 

work permit (with 6 months of salary slips) or a fixed deposit are the only options.

[Desmond77]

42 minutes ago, Ralf001 said:

The info you have is correct.

 

work permit (with 6 months of salary slips) or a fixed deposit are the only options.

In that case, I will just stick back to that one principle of all expats here in Thailand and that is "Cash is king"! Lol 

[Ralf001]

Just now, Desmond77 said:

In that case, I will just stick back to that one principle of all expats here in Thailand and that is "Cash is king"! Lol 

 

not all... many of us do have credit cards.

[Desmond77]

2 minutes ago, Ralf001 said:

 

not all... many of us do have credit cards.

Mm.. While you are holding the LTR? So you placed a fortune into the FD account?

[Ralf001]

Just now, Desmond77 said:

Mm.. While you are holding the LTR? So you placed a fortune into the FD account?

 

I have work permit... Un-secured credit cards with K-Bank and BKK Bank.

[Desmond77]

Just now, Ralf001 said:

 

I have work permit... Un-secured credit cards with K-Bank and BKK Bank.

Appreciate the clarification. 

[Desmond77]

2 minutes ago, Ralf001 said:

 

I have work permit... Un-secured credit cards with K-Bank and BKK Bank.

Excluding the dependents, only the Highly Skilled Professional under the LTR visa will be given a work permit by default. So the remaining categories will still pretty much have not much options then. 

[Presnock]

5 minutes ago, Desmond77 said:

Excluding the dependents, only the Highly Skilled Professional under the LTR visa will be given a work permit by default. So the remaining categories will still pretty much have not much options then. 

he says he has a work permit! from the BOI LTR scheme!

[Ralf001]

6 minutes ago, Desmond77 said:

Excluding the dependents, only the Highly Skilled Professional under the LTR visa will be given a work permit by default. So the remaining categories will still pretty much have not much options then. 

I do not have an LTR visa.

[Desmond77]

2 minutes ago, Ralf001 said:

I do not have an LTR visa.

With all due respect Sir, my subject header was LTR holders applying for a credit card. That was something which I have been trying to understand.

 

But I do appreciate your response and clarification. Thank you. 

[Ralf001]

Just now, Desmond77 said:

With all due respect Sir, my subject header was LTR holders applying for a credit card. That was something which I have been trying to understand.

 

But I do appreciate your response and clarification. Thank you. 

 

The information you received is correct... Regardless of the visa held.

[Desmond77]

2 minutes ago, Ralf001 said:

 

The information you received is correct... Regardless of the visa held.

So, either you throw in a tonne of cash as FD, or you have a work permit. There is no other way for any LTR holder (Except Highly Skilled Professionals) to apply for a credit card. So it will still goes back to the basic "Cash is king" 

 

BUT, if there are any LTR holders out there who, miraculously, have been able to get a credit card without locking up your entire fortune here in a FD account, I would be really grateful if you can kindly share your experience.

 

Thank you in advance. 

[oldcpu]

I have an LTR visa, with both Bangkok bank and Krungsri credit cards. I do have > 2 million baht equivalent in each bank, but note this can be a mix of Thai baht,  foreign currency accounts with the bank,  mutual fund run by bank, and bonds offered by the bank.

 

I can't recall being told I needed 2 million THB, but perhaps since I already had such in those banks this question never came up.

 

I do recall having to set aside 100k THB in a separate account with each bank to guarantee the credit card transactions. 

 

With Krungsri I have the Krungsri exclusive account/card, and if at month end I forget to pay my credit card bill, Krungsri will phone me and politely remind me. I prefer not to have automatic credit card amount owing payment. 

 

I also note, this is far from my entire fortune. Like most expats I keep most my money overseas. I suspect this true for many long term visa holders in Thailand