Transfer From My Usa Account To My Thai Account

[buddhafly]

this is probably a dumb question, but i'm admittedly banking illiterate.

do i need to be physically present in the US to transfer a big amount to thailand,

or can it all be done right here with me in thailand with the thai bank verifying my identity/details?

they are different bank companies.

thanks.

b

[Smokin Joe]

That is up to your US bank and policies differ. I can do it with a fax to my credit union. Sometimes they e-mail me and I have to call to confirm the request, sometimes not.

A signed request will probably be required giving all the details but some small banks may want you to come in person.

Only way to know for sure is to call your US bank and ask.

[Pib]

Agree...depends on the policies of the bank. Transferring large amounts of money require different security/signatory requirements than transferring smaller amounts. Call the bank...write the bank...email them...ask the bank directly as they are the only ones that can give the correct answer. Yeap, all depends on the policies of the bank.

[buddhafly]

well in case anyone else was curious, i found out.

unfortunately due to some new rules set about at the time of the world trade bombings, i cannot simply wire a big sum from my bank in usa to overseas/thailand.

there may be ways around it tho.....

[thaihome]

well in case anyone else was curious, i found out.

unfortunately due to some new rules set about at the time of the world trade bombings, i cannot simply wire a big sum from my bank in usa to overseas/thailand.

there may be ways around it tho.....

Not sure what you consider a “big sum”, but I have not ever heard of any issues with US banks in wiring (using SWIFT) any sum. I know I sent about USD 100K in 2005 without a word being said. Also have continued to send $3-10k every couple of months, including one for $5K last week. If I get the fax off to the bank so it is there on their morning, they send me an e-mail almost immediately to confirm, which is our evening, and the money is in Bangkok Bank by the next afternoon.

I will say that talking to US Bank’s local branch offices, particularly clerks that man the windows or open up new accounts about international wire transfers is pretty much a waste of time. They may have worked there for 20 years and never seen one done. In fact, all US banks are setup to make SWIFT transfers, just everyone working there may not know it.

TH

[Thanyaburi Mac]

this is probably a dumb question, but i'm admittedly banking illiterate.

do i need to be physically present in the US to transfer a big amount to thailand,

or can it all be done right here with me in thailand with the thai bank verifying my identity/details?

they are different bank companies.

thanks.

b

For "small" amounts, I still like the ATM route.

--  at 1106 this morning at an SCB ATM machine at Future Park Rangsit, got baht 32.916 = $1.

--  just checked the SCB www site, they're showing baht 32.88 rate

http://www.scb.co.th/html/exchange/bk-txtexchange.htm

Mac

[Smokin Joe]

well in case anyone else was curious, i found out.

unfortunately due to some new rules set about at the time of the world trade bombings, i cannot simply wire a big sum from my bank in usa to overseas/thailand.

there may be ways around it tho.....

[/quote

We're not curious, we do wire transfers regularly. Sounds like your bank gave you some BS. Possibly you didn't ask the right questions or didn't ask the right person.

It still comes back to your banks policies. If you have a small bank and/or one that doesn't know you well they could require you to come in in person. Bottom line is that they CAN do it but maybe they will make it very difficult.

[lopburi3]

In most cases believe you will have to have signed a wire transfer agreement in your bank branch (basically you absolve them of all responsibility if they act on the agreed instructions but you don't get the money). Once that is done you should be able to transfer by whatever methods they allow. I use phone transfer. Some banks allow online or fax.

[TokyoT]

This will vary from bank to bank.

The bank I use to use would absolutely not allow an international wire transfer of any amount without me physically being in the bank to make the request and sign the paperwork – hence they are the bank I use to use. My current bank will make the international transfer based upon either a fax or a phone call combined with an e-mail. Typically I call them fist and then follow-up with an e-mail. By getting this done in the evenings here in Thailand the funds are typically in my Thai account by noon the next day.

At one time Fidelity investments was offering some kind of cash account (mysmart cash – or something like that) that allowed for free international ATM cash withdrawals but I never followed up to check on the details.

[SNGLIFE]

Open an E*Trade account. Link it to whatever other account you have. From within E*Trade, import your cash (free) and then export it to your Thai account. No fuss. No muss. E*Trade also offers free ATM withdrawals and interest on all accounts.

[Kaojai]

Open an E*Trade account. Link it to whatever other account you have. From within E*Trade, import your cash (free) and then export it to your Thai account. No fuss. No muss. E*Trade also offers free ATM withdrawals and interest on all accounts.

The major Thai banks (and maybe the smaller ones too) have branches in the US.

I have my US bank (or more often my broker) transfer money to Bangkok Bank in New York. As far as my bank is concerned, it's a domestic transfer, not an international transfer, so there are fewer issues and in my case no transfer charge.

As far as Bangkok Bank is concerned, it is a deposit made to my bank account at one of their branches and the money is available to me in 24 to 48 hours in Thailand. The whole process is fairly simple and very fast.

In my case the account names at both banks is the same. If you are transferring to the account of someone else, the sending bank might require further documentation or verification. Also, I think Bangkok Bank accepts electronic transfer with less hassles than other forms.

Depending on the purpose for which you are transferring money it's better to have the transfer made in dollars and allow the Thai bank change it into baht rather than requesting your US bank to make a baht transfer.

[jfchandler]

There's a couple of layers to this, including the good advice that Lopburi gave above.

At the sending end in the U.S., whether and how you can send a "large amount" international wire transfer of U.S. funds to Thailand (while you are not physically there in the U.S.) depends on the policies of your individual bank.

Some will allow you to fill out paperwork in advance (while on a visit to the U.S.) making the general authorization, and then initiate the actual transfer by telephone call and using some pre-established password. Some also will do it without pre-arrangement, but require you to send a signed faxed or mailed request to them with all your personal account info and all the details of the recipient account. Some require you to be physically present in the U.S.

Among the examples I've encountered, Washington Mutual supposedly will only do an international wire when you physically initiate it in their U.S. branch. BofA largely follows the same policy, though they supposedly have an advance authorization form you can use, provided you tell them ahead of time what single account you'll always be sending to. I did that paperwork on my last U.S.visit, but haven't tried to exercise that method yet. A couple of my other banks want signed mailed or faxed letters.

Although I don't have either of these accounts so I can't vouch for the details, other posters on TV have previously reported that CitiBank accounts in the U.S. have the ability to initiate online international wire transfers, and some have said the same thing about Fidelity brokerage accounts.

Then, there's the issue of international (more expensive) vs. domestic (less expensive) wire transfers. One advantage to having a Thai account with Bangkok Bank is that, unlike the other Thai banks, they have a U.S.branch with a U.S. ABA number. So, as others have alluded, if you have a Thai BKK Bank account, you can save a bit by doing a domestic wire transfer to the ABA number of their New York office, and then they automatically credit it to your corresponding BKK Bank account at your branch here.

[thaihome]

First Internet Bank (FIB) allows me to fax a SWIFT request, they send an e-mail which I answer for confirmation. It is 50 bucks a pop, so I make the transfers worthwhile. Have sent over 50k at one time (before Dec-06).

BofA required you request in person. Was $45 a pop. Don't use them anymore.

Both BofA and FIB froze my ACH transfer to Thailand, referred to above as using Bangkok Banks US ABA number, ability even though both had passed the verification process. Other posters have not had that problem. I suspect that both my banks use the same ACH provider that is run by a woman whose husband ran off to Thailand.

TH

Edited January 30, 2008 by thaihome

[jfchandler]

Thaihome... re BofA, where I also have accounts, be careful to distinguish between two different and separate ways of sending money:

What I was mainly talking about, was sending international wire transfers via BofA or other U.S. banks while residing in Thailand. That's what the OP had asked about. In the case of wire transfers, there is no freezing of accounts issue.

What I think you're talking about, is a separate issue with BofA and some other banks. And that is not international wire transfers, but instead doing online linking of a BofA account to the BKK Bank ABA in New York, and then using an ACH transfer to send money to Thailand. That is not a wire transfer, but rather an ACH transfer.

Indeed, posters have reported problems with the ACH links at BofA and elsewhere at times getting frozen or deleted. It seems to be particularly a problem when someone tries to send more than $5000 via that means. Under that amount seems to go OK, from various reports.

But those issues are separate and distinct from remotely requesting an international wire transfer to Thailand. And, likewise, there's no account freezing issue about doing a domestic wire transfer from a U.S. bank to BKK Bank's New York branch, and then having it credited onward to the sender's BKK Bank account local in Thailand.

Hope that clarifies it a bit. --John.

[thaihome]

I now notice that you are indeed talking about making domestic wire transfers and not the ACH. To be honest I had never thought about doing that. FIB charges $10 for a domestic transfer, will have to give it a try next time.

thanks,

TH

[IMA_FARANG]

this is probably a dumb question, but i'm admittedly banking illiterate.

do i need to be physically present in the US to transfer a big amount to thailand,

or can it all be done right here with me in thailand with the thai bank verifying my identity/details?

they are different bank companies.

thanks.

b

It is possible to have money transferred to Thailand from your U.S. bank to an account in Thailand. Bangkok Bank, as an example, will allow you to transfer money into your existing Bangkok Bank account. You can start the process from Thailand. It would be advisable to go to a large city bank, rather than a small or local branch of the bank. The Thai bank will charge you a fee for the initial telex to your U.S. bank which you must pay irregardless of whether or not the U.S. bank does transfer the money. (Think of it as a service fee for the Thai bank to initiate the transfer request.). Your U.S. bank may also charge a service fee to transfer the money. Just be aware that you may have to pay service fees at both ends.

I transfer money on a monthly basis to my Thai family for their living expenses in BKK. I have established a monthly repetitive wire transfer fund. I have a set limit that I can not go beyond on a monthly basis. This was set up (in writing) with my U.S. bank in the U.S. Now all I need to do to make a monthly transfer is to email my bank with my monthly reference number and a request for money to be transferred to ny BKK account.

For large amounts (over a preset high end limit) you may have to call your bank and talks to a teller or person you know there. They usually require a PIN number or code to verify your idenity. You may need to send a signed fax to the bank also for large amounts (above any pre-set limit) to be transferred.

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