Receiving Overseas Funds Into Kasikorn Savings Account

[Khun Bob]

I'll soon be doing a transfer from UK in GBP to my Kasikorn Bank savings account. There is a possibility that the amount will be slightly over the equivalent of $20K. I'm not in Thailand at the moment and wont be back for a few weeks. I want to do the transfers from the UK.

I've been in touch with Kasikorn Customer Services a few times and here's a consensus of what I've been told with regard to receiving the funds into my KBank savings account :

* If the amount is over $20K then withholding will have to be paid - TV members seem to say that so long as the reason for the transfer is personal use of condo/property purchase then this is not enforced and is avoidable

* Before the money is deposited into the savings account it is typically necessary for me to go to the account opening branch and need to sign for the money. It may be possible to talk to KBank customer service and ask to be put through to the inward funds department where I could talk to someone and have the funds deposited into my account just over the phone. This would be the preferred way as it could be done remotely. This seems to be an issue as I have not done a foreign inward transfer to my KBank account before and some documentation will not exist for this at the account opening branch (not exactly sure what this is). I understand that Kasikorn will not deposit the funds and should (!) keep hold of the funds indefinitely, till I can communicate with them over the transfer or visit the account opening branch. I asked if it would be a problem not going to the branch for several weeks and was told that this shouldn't be the case. This is slightly concerning because after some time, if the funds have not been deposited to my account, they may just disappear. Still I would have the receipt from sending and would attempt to communicate with kasikorn, sending faxes if necessary, that a transfer to my account has take place and stating what the purpose of the transfer is.

If you have sent foreign currency to a Kasikorn bank account, what has your experience been ? Is what I have been told above correct ? Do you have any further information on this topic to add ?

Thanks in advance

[naka]

Perhaps best to keep it simple. If the amount is 'slightly' over 20k then send 19.5

and bring the rest in cash or TC's.

If it is much more than 20k then send as two transactions (double the costs though)

By these methods your funds will go straight into your savings account.

If it is a very large amount e.g. buying condo then don't sent until you are in Thailand, that way

you will be available to go into your bank to clear the funds. You can do this by making pre-arrangements

with your overseas bank while you are there and then sending a confirmation letter/fax after you arrive in Thailand.

Don't worry, it's a simple process.

Naka.

[midas]

Is this only with Kasikorn because when I transfer these amounts from

Australia to Bangkok bank, no one ever asks me to go in a sign anything

- its usually available as an immediately clear amount the day after

- i.e. not just a ledger balance

[asiaexpat]

I'll soon be doing a transfer from UK in GBP to my Kasikorn Bank savings account. There is a possibility that the amount will be slightly over the equivalent of $20K. I'm not in Thailand at the moment and wont be back for a few weeks. I want to do the transfers from the UK.

I've been in touch with Kasikorn Customer Services a few times and here's a consensus of what I've been told with regard to receiving the funds into my KBank savings account :

* If the amount is over $20K then withholding will have to be paid - TV members seem to say that so long as the reason for the transfer is personal use of condo/property purchase then this is not enforced and is avoidable

* Before the money is deposited into the savings account it is typically necessary for me to go to the account opening branch and need to sign for the money. It may be possible to talk to KBank customer service and ask to be put through to the inward funds department where I could talk to someone and have the funds deposited into my account just over the phone. This would be the preferred way as it could be done remotely. This seems to be an issue as I have not done a foreign inward transfer to my KBank account before and some documentation will not exist for this at the account opening branch (not exactly sure what this is). I understand that Kasikorn will not deposit the funds and should (!) keep hold of the funds indefinitely, till I can communicate with them over the transfer or visit the account opening branch. I asked if it would be a problem not going to the branch for several weeks and was told that this shouldn't be the case. This is slightly concerning because after some time, if the funds have not been deposited to my account, they may just disappear. Still I would have the receipt from sending and would attempt to communicate with kasikorn, sending faxes if necessary, that a transfer to my account has take place and stating what the purpose of the transfer is.

If you have sent foreign currency to a Kasikorn bank account, what has your experience been ? Is what I have been told above correct ? Do you have any further information on this topic to add ?

Thanks in advance

I spend most of my time outside Thailand but transfer funds regularly to my Kasikorn Bank account without any drama. I simply wire transfer in USD and it goes directly into my account. I can attest from personal experience that any transfer over 20K USD will create teh need to go to the bank in person to release the funds. There are douments that must be signed in front of the bank officer before they can release the funds into your account due to banking rules. I learned to keep all transfers below 20 K USD to avoid problems.

[Patriciachas]

I'll soon be doing a transfer from UK in GBP to my Kasikorn Bank savings account. There is a possibility that the amount will be slightly over the equivalent of $20K. I'm not in Thailand at the moment and wont be back for a few weeks. I want to do the transfers from the UK.

I've been in touch with Kasikorn Customer Services a few times and here's a consensus of what I've been told with regard to receiving the funds into my KBank savings account :

* If the amount is over $20K then withholding will have to be paid - TV members seem to say that so long as the reason for the transfer is personal use of condo/property purchase then this is not enforced and is avoidable

* Before the money is deposited into the savings account it is typically necessary for me to go to the account opening branch and need to sign for the money. It may be possible to talk to KBank customer service and ask to be put through to the inward funds department where I could talk to someone and have the funds deposited into my account just over the phone. This would be the preferred way as it could be done remotely. This seems to be an issue as I have not done a foreign inward transfer to my KBank account before and some documentation will not exist for this at the account opening branch (not exactly sure what this is). I understand that Kasikorn will not deposit the funds and should (!) keep hold of the funds indefinitely, till I can communicate with them over the transfer or visit the account opening branch. I asked if it would be a problem not going to the branch for several weeks and was told that this shouldn't be the case. This is slightly concerning because after some time, if the funds have not been deposited to my account, they may just disappear. Still I would have the receipt from sending and would attempt to communicate with kasikorn, sending faxes if necessary, that a transfer to my account has take place and stating what the purpose of the transfer is.

If you have sent foreign currency to a Kasikorn bank account, what has your experience been ? Is what I have been told above correct ? Do you have any further information on this topic to add ?

Thanks in advance

I spend most of my time outside Thailand but transfer funds regularly to my Kasikorn Bank account without any drama. I simply wire transfer in USD and it goes directly into my account. I can attest from personal experience that any transfer over 20K USD will create teh need to go to the bank in person to release the funds. There are douments that must be signed in front of the bank officer before they can release the funds into your account due to banking rules. I learned to keep all transfers below 20 K USD to avoid problems.

I have just sent some funds to K Bank when i arrive in January i will go to the branch in chiang mai will funds be in my account or will i have to sign forms for it to be released to my account amount sent 5,000 gdp

[naka]

Patriciachas.

For GBP 5,000 transfer the money will go straight into your account,

no need to sign anything.

Naka.

[PattayaParent]

I tranferred money from overseas to Kasikorn in January to buy a condo and had nothing but problems with them (Pattaya Klang Branch).

They wanted to see proof of what the money was to be used for (Purchase Agreement for condo) and I even had to answer questions from my overseas bank as to why I was sending the money!

If you don't need the FET (TT3) for condo purchase I suggest you send less than the 600.00 baht threshold and have a better chance of avoiding any problemns.

Don't worry about thrm sending the money back or losing it, they'll put it in a short term interest bearing account money market until somone claims it. Of course THEY'LL be the ones keeping the interest.

[rainman]

Just send 2 transfers. I had around GBP 16,000 ($30,000~) sent recently from a bank in the UK and I split it in 2 transfers of $15,000 each, on the same day. Arrived fine at Bangkok Bank and showed up on my statement 2 days later.

[Khun Bob]

Well I did the transfer today and it will be slightly over $20K - Llloyds TSB in the UK are a correspondent bank of Kasikorns in the UK and for transfers less than £10K there is a charge of £20 - which isnt too bad for the UK. The money is for a condo purchase and I would like to get a FET form - hence doing just over $20K.

I havent had many problems so far with KBank and I have a good contact in my branch who has been helpful. He also speaks reasonable english. I will be calling the foreign inward funds dept of Kasikorn to ask if the money has been received, explain what it is for and ask what I need to do as well. If they "look after" the money for me for a few weeks then thats not so bad - I'm more concerned about a sudden change in the GBPTHB exchange rate - to a detriment of what it is at the moment.

Well thanks for the feedback so far and will update this when I get some more news.

If anyone has advice or actual experience, please do share !

Thanks all

[asiaexpat]

Well I did the transfer today and it will be slightly over $20K - Llloyds TSB in the UK are a correspondent bank of Kasikorns in the UK and for transfers less than £10K there is a charge of £20 - which isnt too bad for the UK. The money is for a condo purchase and I would like to get a FET form - hence doing just over $20K.

I havent had many problems so far with KBank and I have a good contact in my branch who has been helpful. He also speaks reasonable english. I will be calling the foreign inward funds dept of Kasikorn to ask if the money has been received, explain what it is for and ask what I need to do as well. If they "look after" the money for me for a few weeks then thats not so bad - I'm more concerned about a sudden change in the GBPTHB exchange rate - to a detriment of what it is at the moment.

Well thanks for the feedback so far and will update this when I get some more news.

If anyone has advice or actual experience, please do share !

Thanks all

It took a day for my funds to clear last June when I transfered over the 20K limit. I went to the bank and completed the forms showing the funds will be used for a house and was told to come back the next day. The next day when I returned the bank had the FET and deposit ready. The money was in my account the same day.

[A_Traveller]

Just send 2 transfers. I had around GBP 16,000 ($30,000~) sent recently from a bank in the UK and I split it in 2 transfers of $15,000 each, on the same day. Arrived fine at Bangkok Bank and showed up on my statement 2 days later.

Note, such transactions and accounts are often flagged. It's called smurfing {yes after the French blue cartoon characters [it's a very long story]} and whilst not likely to be an immediate cause for concern, if the practice is regularly observed, the banks will ask questions.

Regards

[Khun Bob]

Thanks for your reply...

Just a few questions on this...

Did kasikorn bank ask for some evidence that you were going to use the money to buy a house or was just turning up and signing the forms sufficient ?

When was the money actually converted to Thai baht - was it at the time of sending or when the money was deposited into your account after you went along to the bank ?

Did you have to specifically ask for the FET document or was this offered as its assumed that you want it ?

Thanks in advance

Well I did the transfer today and it will be slightly over $20K - Llloyds TSB in the UK are a correspondent bank of Kasikorns in the UK and for transfers less than £10K there is a charge of £20 - which isnt too bad for the UK. The money is for a condo purchase and I would like to get a FET form - hence doing just over $20K.

I havent had many problems so far with KBank and I have a good contact in my branch who has been helpful. He also speaks reasonable english. I will be calling the foreign inward funds dept of Kasikorn to ask if the money has been received, explain what it is for and ask what I need to do as well. If they "look after" the money for me for a few weeks then thats not so bad - I'm more concerned about a sudden change in the GBPTHB exchange rate - to a detriment of what it is at the moment.

Well thanks for the feedback so far and will update this when I get some more news.

If anyone has advice or actual experience, please do share !

Thanks all

It took a day for my funds to clear last June when I transfered over the 20K limit. I went to the bank and completed the forms showing the funds will be used for a house and was told to come back the next day. The next day when I returned the bank had the FET and deposit ready. The money was in my account the same day.

Edited October 20, 2007 by Khun Bob

[johnnyk]

I transferred sterling from LloydsTSB to K-Bank last year and dollars from a Canadian bank earlier this year.

I simply instructed each bank to mark clearly on the form "Funds for house purchase" which they did.

Money was deposited upon receipt and K-Bank had the proper form (Tor Tor Sam?) all ready for me to take home and put into my files.

This was HuaHin branch of K-Bank.

[Khun Bob]

Thanks for the replies.

Can anyone answer the following from their experience :

Did kasikorn bank ask for some evidence that you were going to use the money to buy a house or was just turning up and signing the forms sufficient ?

When was the money actually converted to Thai baht - was it at the time of sending or when the money was deposited into your account after you went along to the bank ?

Cheers

[johnnyk]

Exchange rate is the net amount in THB that you see in your account. Best of my knowledge it is the rate in effect when the money is received, unless there is a large time gap (ie. days) between actual receipt and deposit any differences will be in microns of pussy hairs. With my last transfer in the spring the net in put into my account was nicely more than the rough calculation I had made when sending.

See my last post above for evidence re: money for house purchase.

It is your stated reason and if, years later, the authorities found out you did not buy a house with the funds then they might take issue at that time.

Edited October 21, 2007 by johnnyk