Don't give Thai banks a gift with nothing given in return.

[In Full Agreement]

 

 

 

I occasionally check to see what the actual rate is with Thai ATMs.     For the last couple of years the banks offer to do a currency transaction rather than leaving it u to one's own  bank.

 

At least for the last two times I withdrew 30K THB from the Yellow ATM  the currency conversion was offered fo a price of $60.          That sixty USD for the bank doing absolutely nothing.

 

I suggest carefully clicking on the "continue without conversion" option an

 

d save yourself more than enough Baht to have a nice dinner.

 

 

[Lacessit]

Banks use "Dynamic Currency Conversion" . It's a polite term for daylight robbery.

 

If I want cash, I use my Thai savings passbook. No fees.

 

I would only use a Thai ATM in an emergency.

[Upnotover]

49 minutes ago, In Full Agreement said:

 

 

 

I occasionally check to see what the actual rate is with Thai ATMs.     For the last couple of years the banks offer to do a currency transaction rather than leaving it u to one's own  bank.

 

At least for the last two times I withdrew 30K THB from the Yellow ATM  the currency conversion was offered fo a price of $60.          That sixty USD for the bank doing absolutely nothing.

 

I suggest carefully clicking on the "continue without conversion" option an

 

d save yourself more than enough Baht to have a nice dinner.

 

 

 

Shops and hotels, etc. also attempt this, not only in Thailand.  Never accept it.  

[SAFETY FIRST]

55 minutes ago, In Full Agreement said:

Don't give Thai banks a gift with nothing given in return. 

Every December I get a gift from my Kasikorn bank manager. 

 

Usually, Inside the bag is an umbrella, coffee cup, calendar and many other gifts. 

 

[thesetat]

58 minutes ago, In Full Agreement said:

 

 

 

I occasionally check to see what the actual rate is with Thai ATMs.     For the last couple of years the banks offer to do a currency transaction rather than leaving it u to one's own  bank.

 

At least for the last two times I withdrew 30K THB from the Yellow ATM  the currency conversion was offered fo a price of $60.          That sixty USD for the bank doing absolutely nothing.

 

I suggest carefully clicking on the "continue without conversion" option an

 

d save yourself more than enough Baht to have a nice dinner.

 

 

I agree with your comment to use continue without conversion. The rates are really bad plus there is a fee added to it. I used to use ATM to get my money from overseas. But each time I was losing 3000 - 6000 baht per transaction. That is ridiculous. Now I just use Wise to make a free transfer with no fees and I lose about 500 baht per transaction. 

[bkk6060]

Forget it use ATM for emergencies.

[Ralf001]

10 minutes ago, bkk6060 said:

Forget it use ATM for emergencies.

when there is no emergency how do I get cash ?

 

Cash is king BTW, credit card is for emergencies !

[JohnnyBD]

I get cash from SCB ATM with my foreign bank debit card. I always use the "continue without conversion" button. I check the Visa exchange rate online before I make withdrawals and it's correct every time. SCB charges 220b fee, not 250b fee. My bank refunds the 220b fee. The difference in the Visa rate and spot rate is about .10 THB, not bad. The Visa rate changes around noon BKK time, so I watch the spot rate, and if it drops overnight, I will go get cash before Visa lowers their rate. My Chase debit card uses the Visa rate, not SCB’s rate. I use my foreign bank CC for everyday purchases and I always pay in THB, which means the Visa rate will apply with no conversion fees.

Yes, it's quite expensive to let the Thai banks and the retail stores do the conversions.

[KhunLA]

BBL now showing that option, no thanks, as almost a whole 1 baht less than choosing 'without' conversion.

[Purdey]

If you have a savings account at a Thai bank, you can ask for an ATM card. No fees if you use in the local area.

[GreasyFingers]

So it is not only Thais living month to month. Expats needing to do the same by using foreign cards.

[JohnnyBD]

2 hours ago, GreasyFingers said:

So it is not only Thais living month to month. Expats needing to do the same by using foreign cards.

Just because one uses a foreign card, that doesn't mean the person is living month to month. Many prefer to leave the bulk of their assets abroad earning money compared to leaving it in a Thai bank earning zilch. I find it pretty cost effective to use an ATM since my bank refunds me the 220b fees.

[CygnusX1]

On 7/24/2025 at 2:23 AM, bkk6060 said:

Forget it use ATM for emergencies.

A foreign debit card will still work, you just have to first check the exchange rate your foreign bank will use. For instance, the ‘big 4’ Australian banks use ripoff rates, but there are other banks that use fair rates, not sure if I’m allowed to advertise them here. It’s harder to get the 250 baht charge rebated now, but that’s only small compared to the potential exchange rate ripoff. You then have to be extremely careful to decline the Thai ATM’s ‘helpful’ offer to convert to your local currency. This can be a bit tricky if you’ve never used the particular bank’s ATM before and are under a bit of time pressure with a queue behind you.

 

Dynamic Currency Conversion is a scam on a scale to make Bernie Madoff’s Ponzi scheme look like a chook raffle in comparison.

[treetops]

2 hours ago, CygnusX1 said:

A foreign debit card will still work, you just have to first check the exchange rate your foreign bank will use. For instance, the ‘big 4’ Australian banks use ripoff rates, but there are other banks that use fair rates, not sure if I’m allowed to advertise them here. It’s harder to get the 250 baht charge rebated now, but that’s only small compared to the potential exchange rate ripoff.

 

It's probably bank charges that are costing you dearly rather than exchange rates as these are set by the likes of Visa or Mastercard.

 

I'm sure I've read about Australian banks without these fees.  I know there are UK and USA ones.

[CygnusX1]

2 hours ago, treetops said:

It's probably bank charges that are costing you dearly rather than exchange rates as these are set by the likes of Visa or Mastercard.

It’s both - fixed charges for international withdrawals and exchange rates that are worse than the ones set by Visa and Mastercard. Check the international exchange rates page for one of the big 4 Oz banks.

[In Full Agreement]

10 hours ago, GreasyFingers said:

So it is not only Thais living month to month. Expats needing to do the same by using foreign cards.

 

 

WHAT???

[In Full Agreement]

On 7/24/2025 at 7:23 AM, bkk6060 said:

Forget it use ATM for emergencies.

 

 

I think some posters misunderstood the point of my post.

 

I'm merely waning that it's expensive and useless to click on the option to have the APM's bank do any currency conversion.  Let your home country bank do any converting.

 

I use ATM's frequently and have no issues.

[chuang]

Banks need to eat too...

[In Full Agreement]

1 hour ago, chuang said:

Banks need to eat too...

 

It's fine with me if you choose to spend your 2,000 THB on a thankless Thai bank but I'd rather spend that money as I choose to do.

[GreasyFingers]

5 hours ago, CygnusX1 said:

It’s both - fixed charges for international withdrawals and exchange rates that are worse than the ones set by Visa and Mastercard. Check the international exchange rates page for one of the big 4 Oz banks.

Not with the CBA. Their THB exchange rate is better than the forex dealers with no fees either end.

[GreasyFingers]

13 hours ago, JohnnyBD said:

Just because one uses a foreign card, that doesn't mean the person is living month to month. Many prefer to leave the bulk of their assets abroad earning money compared to leaving it in a Thai bank earning zilch. I find it pretty cost effective to use an ATM since my bank refunds me the 220b fees.

That is fine if you are getting a good exchange rate or you do not care. I prefer to hold my money at home and bring it over when the exchange rate is better (very subjective).

[treetops]

7 hours ago, CygnusX1 said:

It’s both - fixed charges for international withdrawals and exchange rates that are worse than the ones set by Visa and Mastercard. Check the international exchange rates page for one of the big 4 Oz banks.

 

1 hour ago, GreasyFingers said:

Not with the CBA. Their THB exchange rate is better than the forex dealers with no fees either end.

 

Unless Australian banks have rules all to themselves the exchange rates you see on their websites are nothing to do with ATM withdrawals, they're for sending money overseas (Swift or the likes) or sending to their Foreign Currency Accounts etc.  ATM withdrawals worldwide, AFAIK use the processing company rates (mainly Visa or Mastercard) unless you select otherwise at the machine, as per the OP.

[JohnnyBD]

4 hours ago, GreasyFingers said:

That is fine if you are getting a good exchange rate or you do not care. I prefer to hold my money at home and bring it over when the exchange rate is better (very subjective).

I'm not sure what your point is. If you are not bringing money over for your monthly living expenses, then, you must be spending money that you have in a Thai bank, which is most likely earning very little interest. Sooner or later that money will run out, and you will need to bring more money over at whatever the rates are at that time. That's no different than what many people do, including me.

 

For the past 18 months, I've been spending money I brought over when exchange rates were much better, so I wouldn't have to pay Thai income taxes on my remittances. Now that I have a LTR-WP visa, I am not worried about the tax man. I prefer holding larger amounts of cash in my home country earning higher interest rates, and then bring it over when exchange rates are better. In the meantime, I use my CC and get cash at the ATM (220b fee reimbursed by my bank) for cash spending needs. That works well for me.

[Explorator en Actione]

On 7/23/2025 at 3:12 PM, JohnnyBD said:

I get cash from SCB ATM with my foreign bank debit card. I always use the "continue without conversion" button. I check the Visa exchange rate online before I make withdrawals and it's correct every time. SCB charges 220b fee, not 250b fee. My bank refunds the 220b fee. The difference in the Visa rate and spot rate is about .10 THB, not bad. The Visa rate changes around noon BKK time, so I watch the spot rate, and if it drops overnight, I will go get cash before Visa lowers their rate. My Chase debit card uses the Visa rate, not SCB’s rate. I use my foreign bank CC for everyday purchases and I always pay in THB, which means the Visa rate will apply with no conversion fees.

Yes, it's quite expensive to let the Thai banks and the retail stores do the conversions.

Charles Schwab does the same every month with my Visa Platinum

[CygnusX1]

2 hours ago, treetops said:

Unless Australian banks have rules all to themselves the exchange rates you see on their websites are nothing to do with ATM withdrawals, they're for sending money overseas (Swift or the likes) or sending to their Foreign Currency Accounts etc.  ATM withdrawals worldwide, AFAIK use the processing company rates (mainly Visa or Mastercard) unless you select otherwise at the machine, as per the OP

Yes, you seem to be correct there. However from a google query, ‘ANZ charges a 1.3% fee on all foreign currency transactions, including ATM withdrawals, when using your ANZ Visa Debit or EFTPOS card.’ So this really amounts to the same thing as a ripoff exchange rate - it’s not a fixed charge such as the 250 baht that the Thai bank charges for using the ATM, but it’s 1.3% on the entire amount. Anyway, you’ve made me feel less stressed about using my ANZ card if my ING card doesn’t work, as 1.3% isn’t nearly as bad as I thought.

 

 

[Captain Flack]

Troll post removed @Asean Tiger

[In Full Agreement]

On 7/26/2025 at 12:38 PM, Explorator en Actione said:

Charles Schwab does the same every month with my Visa Platinum

 

 

You don't need a Visa Platinum to have that feature.