Mobile banking limited for all foreigners livingin Thailand?

[Srikcir]

On 6/10/2025 at 10:42 AM, Dasekel said:

I will not be able to transfer more than 50.000 THB per day with my mobile App due to new regulations.

My daily transaction limit on K Plus is 140,000 baht.

Fund purchase and transfer to own account are not under this limit.

 

[chilly07]

On 6/10/2025 at 11:19 AM, couchpotato said:

This is their base limit for all accounts. But do you realise that you can change your daily transaction limits yourself (either as a 'one time' payment or forever in some of the the Bank apps. I do it regularly my for BBL and Kasikorn accounts.

Does facial recognition work for you re BBL. It doesn't work for me?

[chilly07]

3 hours ago, bluemoon58 said:

Correct, very simple to do and zero hassle. Don't know what all the fuss is about. My UK bank has a similar system and the limit is set lower than 50,000thb.

How do you set up facial recognition in the UK when you live in Thailand and run the risk of the UK bank closing, your account because you live in Thailand?

[BritManToo]

2 minutes ago, chilly07 said:

How do you set up facial recognition in the UK when you live in Thailand and run the risk of the UK bank closing, your account because you live in Thailand?

The UK banks have a website to do that online, not instant, 3-7 days to process.

I had to go through it last year.

[markus]

I don't understand all the fuss. I've been a Bangkok Bank customer for many years, and every time I'm told that phone transfers can't exceed 50,000 per day!

And this has been going on for many years...

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

10 hours ago, sandyf said:

Banks world wide are changing their ways and have been for some years. Some changes seem to bother some more than others.

Getting hot under the collar over transfer limitations seem a bit petty compared to things like FATCA and CRS.

 

FATCA is a policy only pertinent to Americans, and likely is irrelevant and not applicable to most U.S. retirees in Thailand...

 

Meaning, it would only apply to the very richest folks who would have to have hundreds of thousands of U.S. dollars kept in foreign bank accounts.

 

Considering the Thai FDIC-type insurance on deposit accounts here is now 1 Million THB per accountholder, per banking company -- a bit over $30,000 USD -- I'd be surprised if many Americans are keeping hundreds of thousands of USD on deposit here.

 

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

6 hours ago, NanLaew said:

It is quite strange that SCB chose to not implement the facial recognition feature in their app for everyone, like most other banks were instructed to do by the government.

 

My friend has personal and business accounts with SCB and was hamstrung by this 50,000 baht limitation, especially on that latter account. He visited a branch and asked how he could get around this. They called 'head office' and the person he spoke with said he could get a waiver on his account as long as he "fully understood it was less secure, and he should think hard about it."

 

He waited half-a-second and told them he was willing to assume the risk. Since he's had no restrictions placed on subsequent transactions, he assumes that they flagged his account in their system as being 'compliant'. 

 

SCB, AFAIK, just posted the other day that their prior opt-out waivers for facial recognition involving foreigners had now expired and were no longer in effect.

 

[jaywalker2]

On 6/10/2025 at 1:35 PM, Phulublub said:

 

If some banks but not others are doing this, then it is cleary NOT the Government.  

Are these restrictions for foreigners only, or bank policy for all customers?

 

The foreign income remited here applies to ALL.  Thais are more likely to be remitting money on which they have not paid tax, unlike most foreigners, and will ceratinly not have any DTA, unlike many foreigners. 

 

Global income taxed?  Like the Good 'ol USA then?  Maybe that's where they go the idea, if it is even an idea in Government as poososed to come internet conspiracy drummed up to foster ill- feeling towards the Thais, or their Government, or both.

 

PH

The reason for this is that the BOJ decided that banks would be liable for scams that their customers fall prey to. As a result, banks instituted this rule in order to limit their own liability. It applies to both Thais and foreigners (although the system was set up with Thais in mind so figuring out how to include foreigners has evidently  been a problem for some banks)

[couchpotato]

4 hours ago, chilly07 said:

Does facial recognition work for you re BBL. It doesn't work for me?

Yes works fine...might have to reposition your face in the circle sometimes.

[LukKrueng]

On 6/10/2025 at 12:07 PM, Dasekel said:

They should develop the face recognition BEFORE changing the rules. I do not want to ask the bank for permission if I want to make a larger transaction. I consider this very bad customer service and bad management and will move my money to a bank that enables me to do what I want to do.

I guess the face recognition systems of all banks are connected to the government national ID system and that's how it's kept updated as all Thai nationals have digital id cards, and that would also be the problem with non Thai accounts. If that's the case then banks need a major overhaul of their systems to include foreigners accounts.

[Nicco]

Probably will be like this or become more onerous.

 

Thai ID probably have face biometric data - it's simply matched on bank side with their biometric face shot + all personal details bank has on file including Thai ID.

 

IF that were sort of the case they'd need info on you to be in a system and match with your face and to bank details. They could also do it , but another way. This is never gonna happen imo.

 

Limited to 50k or call. Seems reasonable in this day and age of lack of privacy

 

You can thank the Chinese

[topt]

1 hour ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

SCB, AFAIK, just posted the other day that their prior opt-out waivers for facial recognition involving foreigners had now expired and were no longer in effect.

 

Received a message today when I opened the SCB app saying that the waiver, for me,  was void from the 16th - so 4 days time.

Been a few different dates mentioned which is a little strange.

[818Pilot]

I rarely make transactions greater than 50k, but it is a bit frustrating that if I want to walk into a store, buy a large TV as an example I can no longer do it with my SCB or Kbank accounts. While I understand UOB and BB don't have these restrictions, the question is , is it just a matter of time before they do?!

 

I've seen many say "What's the Fuss", the fuss is the point it's my money and if I'm willing to sign a waiver, like I did before, to make "large" transactions, then I accept the risk. 

[Crossy]

12 hours ago, topt said:

Received a message today when I opened the SCB app saying that the waiver, for me,  was void from the 16th - so 4 days time.

Been a few different dates mentioned which is a little strange.

 

Mine was yesterday the 12th.

One assumes they staggered dates to avoid being over-run with people trying to activate the face thingy.

[Lorry]

On 6/10/2025 at 10:42 AM, Dasekel said:

I am living in Thailand for more than 20 years and have a bank account with SCB. Now I am informed that after 12.06.2025 I will not be able to transfer more than 50.000 THB per day with my mobile App due to new regulations. Is that the same with all banks in Thailand now? Having an account in my name, but being no longer able to do transaction as I want?

Kbank just informed me that they have the same limit of 50000 per day for all foreign customers who apply for Kplus (that's their app) starting this June.

Old customers are treated on a case-by-case basis (I guess, if you are Chinese and transfer 50,000,000, that's ok, just write "proceeds from honest scamming", if you are Laotian, 50 Baht is way over the limit).

 

BTW Kbank also says, they have no age limits, neither for the app nor for the account nor for the amounts you transfer, but you must be over 12 y.o.  (I guess most esteemed members meet this requirement easily).

[NanLaew]

15 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

SCB, AFAIK, just posted the other day that their prior opt-out waivers for facial recognition involving foreigners had now expired and were no longer in effect.

 

 

I will let my friend know and if I remember, report back if it looks like a 'universal' waiver expiration, or otherwise.

 

1 hour ago, Crossy said:

 

Mine was yesterday the 12th.

One assumes they staggered dates to avoid being over-run with people trying to activate the face thingy.

 

Do you know if they have updated their app so that foreigners can do the 'face thingy'?

[Lorry]

1 hour ago, 818Pilot said:

the fuss is the point it's my money

'nuff said

[Crossy]

Just now, NanLaew said:

Do you know if they have updated their app so that foreigners can do the 'face thingy'?

 

I believe not at this time, I'm going to give it a go probably next week, maybe try with pink ID which has a Thai ID compliant 13 digit number.

[Lorry]

2 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

 

I will let my friend know and if I remember, report back if it looks like a 'universal' waiver expiration, or otherwise.

 

 

Do you know if they have updated their app so that foreigners can do the 'face thingy'?

Of course not. The 'face thingy' works only with humans. 

[NanLaew]

14 hours ago, couchpotato said:

19 hours ago, chilly07 said:

Does facial recognition work for you re BBL. It doesn't work for me?

Yes works fine...might have to reposition your face in the circle sometimes.

 

Yes it works, but it is best done with lighting that creates NO facial shading and a clean and clear background. Also make sure that the Wi-Fi access is fast, especially when you get to the winking/smiling/head-turning exercises.

 

My friend was trying to enable his at the bank and after failed attempts at the customer service desk, the bank staff took him over to a better lit corner. Unfortunately, it also had a bank advertising placard in the background that had other people's faces on it, so was even worse. Eventually managed with a clear background.

[Lorry]

3 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

 

Yes it works, but it is best done with lighting that creates NO facial shading and a clean and clear background. Also make sure that the Wi-Fi access is fast, especially when you get to the winking/smiling/head-turning exercises.

 

My friend was trying to enable his at the bank and after failed attempts at the customer service desk, the bank staff took him over to a better lit corner. Unfortunately, it also had a bank advertising placard in the background that had other people's faces on it, so was even worse. Eventually managed with a clear background.

Correct.

After 30 minutes of useless trials inside the branch, my friend did it in the nearby bathroom.

[NanLaew]

3 minutes ago, Crossy said:

 

I believe not at this time, I'm going to give it a go probably next week, maybe try with pink ID which has a Thai ID compliant 13 digit number.

 

That will be interesting as foreigner's ID's have a different number sequence; either the start number, or the next batch of four digits flag you as estrangeiro. I recall trying to use my Thai ID number to register a DTAC SIM online, and it was rejected because it wasn't a Thai ID number.

[NanLaew]

Just now, Lorry said:

Correct.

After 30 minutes of useless trials inside the branch, my friend did it in the nearby bathroom.

 

Did he also get the facial recognition thing working?

[Lorry]

2 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

 

Did he also get the facial recognition thing working?

Yes, but he is Thai.

But as you said,  best place to take pics are not really the branches. 

[Lorry]

4 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

 

That will be interesting as foreigner's ID's have a different number sequence; either the start number, or the next batch of four digits flag you as estrangeiro. I recall trying to use my Thai ID number to register a DTAC SIM online, and it was rejected because it wasn't a Thai ID number.

You can easily register a DTAC SIM with pink ID (maybe it doesn't work online, though).

But staff, wherever you go, will be very reluctant to do it and have all sorts of excuses. I mean, a soi dog, ok... a dirty foreigner?? No way!

[Lorry]

15 hours ago, jaywalker2 said:

The reason for this is that the BOJ decided that banks would be liable for scams that their customers fall prey to. As a result, banks instituted this rule in order to limit their own liability. It applies to both Thais and foreigners (although the system was set up with Thais in mind so figuring out how to include foreigners has evidently  been a problem for some banks)

BOT, not BOJ = Bank of Japan

 

There has never been and will never be a foreign customer reimbursed by a Thai bank for any kind of liability. 

From your reasoning,  they could raise transaction limits for foreigners to 1 quadrizillion per second,  and limit it for Thais to 1 satang per year.

[sandyf]

19 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

FATCA is a policy only pertinent to Americans, and likely is irrelevant and not applicable to most U.S. retirees in Thailand...

You say that but I have had a message on my phone app for a while saying i had to visit the branch and update my FATCA status by June 10th, never went so have to wait and see what happens.

 

FATCA is not only pertinent to Americans, filled in a few W-8BENs a few years back.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

14 minutes ago, sandyf said:

You say that but I have had a message on my phone app for a while saying i had to visit the branch and update my FATCA status by June 10th, never went so have to wait and see what happens.

 

FATCA is not only pertinent to Americans, filled in a few W-8BENs a few years back.

  

If you are a non-American who's paid taxes in the U.S. due to past or current U.S. earnings, I guess FATCA might apply also... But it's predominantly affecting U.S. citizens.

 

[Mutt Daeng]

18 hours ago, NanLaew said:

 

That will be interesting as foreigner's ID's have a different number sequence; either the start number, or the next batch of four digits flag you as estrangeiro. I recall trying to use my Thai ID number to register a DTAC SIM online, and it was rejected because it wasn't a Thai ID number.

Just for info, I was able to register a DTAC sim with my pink ID/YTB number using the DTAC phone app. I recently changed the registration of the sim to use my passport number as I was concerned it would cause a problem with my bank accounts which I opened using my passport.