Transfer 28k Uk Sterling To Thailand

[sheeptest]

Hi, a similar question's probably been answered already but I seem to be googling round and round in circles without being able to find a straight answer sorry.

I need to transfer 28,000 UK pounds sterling from my UK bank account to my Thai bank account. I'm not in any rush to do it. What's the best method to use to minimise my losses from fees and exchange rates?

Most posts seem to be recommending a SWIFT transfer, specifying that the money should be sent in sterling and then converted to baht at the Thai end. Is that what I should do or would another method be better? Hand carrying it is not feasible as I'm not in the UK.

Thanks very much for any advice, I really appreciate it.

[zorro1]

In short, Yes

[Langsuan Man]

In short, Yes

Correct. Long answer, is that if you want the money for a property purchase you should include a statement that it is for a property purchase on your request for a wire (SWIFT) transfer. This will insure that you will receive a Currency Exchange Certificate to be presented to the land office when and if you "record" your purchase.

The only other advice I could give is that go to your Thai Bank and request the SWIFT routing and code number from them. Most want you to use their head branch address for International wires.

[GuestHouse]

Two more points: You'll be asked how you want to pay the transfer fees -Select "Split Fees"

And I would advise that you make an initial test transfer - a small amount to test the system works.

I'd add a third point but I'm assuming you are not so dumb as to be sending this money to someone else's account.

[Naam]

Hi, a similar question's probably been answered already but I seem to be googling round and round in circles without being able to find a straight answer sorry.

I need to transfer 28,000 UK pounds sterling from my UK bank account to my Thai bank account. I'm not in any rush to do it. What's the best method to use to minimise my losses from fees and exchange rates?

Most posts seem to be recommending a SWIFT transfer, specifying that the money should be sent in sterling and then converted to baht at the Thai end. Is that what I should do or would another method be better? Hand carrying it is not feasible as I'm not in the UK.

Thanks very much for any advice, I really appreciate it.

the fees on GBP 28k are negligible. what matters is the exchange rate. "most posts recommend" something that does not necessarily apply anymore nowadays. check with your UK bank and ask for rates (buying and transferring THB ) and do the same with your bank in Thailand. compare and make up your mind fast because the rates are changing fast. recommending SWIFT as transfer method is of course OK.

[johnwills]

Always specify that you want to send Sterling and let them do the conversion this side, I always got a better rate this way.

[Naam]

Always specify that you want to send Sterling and let them do the conversion this side, I always got a better rate this way.

irresponsible advice!

Edited October 16, 2008 by Naam

[binnsy]

I used SWIFT via Nationwide and was charged 20 pound I sent it over to my Bangkok Bank no problem also sent it in Sterling.

[hyperdimension]

You should firstly look at the GBP-to-THB rates at the Thai banks. Right now, based on the bankexchangerates site, the best rate is 59.09 at Thanachart Bank, and the worst is 58.85 at Bank Thai.

You should then look at the GBP-to-THB rates at the UK banks. This will then determine whether it's better to convert to THB in UK or in Thailand.

If you are going to convert in the UK, then which bank you transfer to wouldn't make much difference.

However if you are going to convert in Thailand, you should consider opening an account with the bank that gives you the best rate. For 28K GBP, that's a saving of 6720 baht, or 114 GBP. 6720 baht can buy a lot of things here (it's a month's salary for a lot of Thai people), so I think it's worth the 30 minutes or so that it takes to open a new account. Note though that it may not always be the same bank each day that will give you the best GBP-to-THB rate, so you may need to keep watch and see which banks usually give you the best rate, and not long before you intend to execute the transfer, open the appropriate account.

Bangkok Bank and Siam Commercial Bank, both of which are popular amongst foreigners, currently give the second and third worst rates respectively.

Edited October 16, 2008 by hyperdimension

[sumrit]

Always specify that you want to send Sterling and let them do the conversion this side, I always got a better rate this way.

irresponsible advice!

Firstly the OP should check the exchange rates himself before transfering any money, but the exchange rate in the UK at the moment is 53.5 baht/£ while the onshore rate here in Thailand is currently 58.6 baht/£ (Thai visa's rate). The onshore rate has always been 5-6 baht better than the offshore rate so it's NOT irresponsible to suggest sending in sterling. At todays rate by sending sterling he would save about 142000 baht or £2436 on the exchange rate, this on top of the saving he would make by using the Thai bank that gives him the best rate.

I would also suggest that you have the Thai banks charges paid from your account in Thailand and NOT from your UK account. The maximum charge from a Thai bank is 500 baht but a UK bank can charge £20 or more. When sending money via Lloyds bank in the UK my ex-wife was being charged £15 for the UK charges and £20+ for the Thai charges, and this on a £3-400 transfer. She thought she was saving her family some money by paying the charges herself.

Edited October 17, 2008 by sumrit

[hyperdimension]

the onshore rate here in Thailand is currently 58.6 baht/£

All the Thai banks have rates higher than 58.6, with Krung Thai giving the highest at 59.0875 (from the bankexchangerates web site).

Edited October 17, 2008 by hyperdimension

[Patriciachas]

Always transfer in STERLING the rates are always get 8-9% more for your pound here than what you will get from a UK Bank.

[Naam]

Always transfer in STERLING the rates are always get 8-9% more for your pound here than what you will get from a UK Bank.

=bullshit²!

[Naam]

Always specify that you want to send Sterling and let them do the conversion this side, I always got a better rate this way.

irresponsible advice!

Firstly the OP should check the exchange rates himself before transfering any money, but the exchange rate in the UK at the moment is 53.5 baht/£ while the onshore rate here in Thailand is currently 58.6 baht/£ (Thai visa's rate). The onshore rate has always been 5-6 baht better than the offshore rate so it's NOT irresponsible to suggest sending in sterling. At todays rate by sending sterling he would save about 142000 baht or £2436 on the exchange rate, this on top of the saving he would make by using the Thai bank that gives him the best rate.

I would also suggest that you have the Thai banks charges paid from your account in Thailand and NOT from your UK account. The maximum charge from a Thai bank is 500 baht but a UK bank can charge £20 or more. When sending money via Lloyds bank in the UK my ex-wife was being charged £15 for the UK charges and £20+ for the Thai charges, and this on a £3-400 transfer. She thought she was saving her family some money by paying the charges herself.

= rubbish sucked from the thumb!

[torrenova]

There is some utter nonsense in this thread and potentially financially dangerous advice from people who obviously know nothing.

[whatsoever]

Always specify that you want to send Sterling and let them do the conversion this side, I always got a better rate this way.

irresponsible advice!

No it is not. If it is converted before sending (UK side) you would be ripped off big style. Where does this Nam guy come from

[whatsoever]

Always transfer in STERLING the rates are always get 8-9% more for your pound here than what you will get from a UK Bank.

=bullshit²!

I would say 3 to 4% but take no notice e of Naam he is a *************

[Naam]

Always specify that you want to send Sterling and let them do the conversion this side, I always got a better rate this way.

irresponsible advice!

No it is not. If it is converted before sending (UK side) you would be ripped off big style. Where does this Nam guy come from

Naam hails from planet Klingon. and he has in his left pinky finger more knowledge about transferring various currencies (and amounts) to Thailand than you will ever acquire in your whole life. Naam has however one shortcoming. he is too gentle with those who don't do their homework and post false information like percentages/differences of offshore and onshore exchange rates which ceased to exist MONTHS ago.

[Naam]

Always transfer in STERLING the rates are always get 8-9% more for your pound here than what you will get from a UK Bank.

=bullshit²!

I would say 3 to 4% but take no notice e of Naam he is a *************

i would say = i know nothing and i guess.

[Naam]

There is some utter nonsense in this thread and potentially financially dangerous advice from people who obviously know nothing.

i fully agree Torrenova. but you should elaborate a bit more, otherwise interested parties could get a wrong impression.

on a side note. i think it is the duty of each TV-member to render correct advice based on prevailing facts and not on hearsay, guessing or "it was always like this".

[johnsurin]

One small snag everybody seems to have overlooked.

The OP stated he is not in the UK.

To send money via SWIFT from a UK bank to Thailand you have to go to the bank to fill in the forms.

John.....

[GuestHouse]

To send money via SWIFT from a UK bank to Thailand you have to go to the bank to fill in the forms.

Odd that because it has been some time since I lived in the UK and I always send top up my Thai bank account before a holiday in Thailand via a SWIFT transfer - I simply call my bank and do the transfer over the phone.

The only issue I've ever had is making sure that the person on the other end of the line gets the spelling correct.

So using the international phonetic alphabet helps.

Sierra Echo November Delta - Mike Echo - Tango Hotel Echo - Mike Oscar November Echo Yankee.

[pkrv]

One small snag everybody seems to have overlooked.

The OP stated he is not in the UK.

To send money via SWIFT from a UK bank to Thailand you have to go to the bank to fill in the forms.

John.....

IMO That was a great post - Mind you there were some great responses to some really crap posts!

OP What Uk accounts can you access - Nationwide is the key one you can exceed the Thai bank rates but you have to check (by phone or visit Nationwide) or check on line at 'the less sophisticated Thai banks' at:

http://www.bangkokbank.com/Bangkok+Bank/We...es/FX+Rates.htm

or

http://www.cb.ktb.co.th/prod/bishis.nsf/(Current)?OpenAgent

Tricky stuff - IMO keep your eye on the ball.

[LaoPo]

To send money via SWIFT from a UK bank to Thailand you have to go to the bank to fill in the forms.

Never heard of internet banking ?

LaoPo

[Naam]

To send money via SWIFT from a UK bank to Thailand you have to go to the bank to fill in the forms.

Odd that because it has been some time since I lived in the UK and I always send top up my Thai bank account before a holiday in Thailand via a SWIFT transfer - I simply call my bank and do the transfer over the phone.

The only issue I've ever had is making sure that the person on the other end of the line gets the spelling correct.

So using the international phonetic alphabet helps.

Sierra Echo November Delta - Mike Echo - Tango Hotel Echo - Mike Oscar November Echo Yankee.

bank answers:

bravo alpha lima alpha november charly echo tango oscar oscar lima oscar whisky

[SeanPhuket]

Hi, a similar question's probably been answered already but I seem to be googling round and round in circles without being able to find a straight answer sorry.

I need to transfer 28,000 UK pounds sterling from my UK bank account to my Thai bank account. I'm not in any rush to do it. What's the best method to use to minimise my losses from fees and exchange rates?

Most posts seem to be recommending a SWIFT transfer, specifying that the money should be sent in sterling and then converted to baht at the Thai end. Is that what I should do or would another method be better? Hand carrying it is not feasible as I'm not in the UK.

Thanks very much for any advice, I really appreciate it.

Try These sheeptest ...

http://www.torfx.com/

How TorFX rates compare to the UK's high street banks

Provider Rate Cost of €50,000

TorFX 1.3375 £37,383

Barclays 1.326 £37,707

Nationwide 1.298 £38,521

HSBC 1.2887 £38,799

Lloyds TSB 1.2826 £38,983

NatWest 1.27 £39,370

They give a good rate. Please quote SeanPhuket if you do so too

Sean

[johnsurin]

To send money via SWIFT from a UK bank to Thailand you have to go to the bank to fill in the forms.

Never heard of internet banking ?

LaoPo

Yes, I have but Nationwide do not have an option on theirs/my internet banking to do this.

You can print out the form, fill it in, and take it to the bank for them to process it, hence you have to go the the bank.

Guesthouse.

Perhaps this can be done by telephone banking, that is something I don't no, although it seems to defeat the object of not being able to do the same by internet banking, on the grounds of fraud and money laundering (Nationwides answer to me, not mine).

John.....

[LaoPo]

To send money via SWIFT from a UK bank to Thailand you have to go to the bank to fill in the forms.

Never heard of internet banking ?

LaoPo

Yes, I have but Nationwide do not have an option on theirs/my internet banking to do this.

You can print out the form, fill it in, and take it to the bank for them to process it, hence you have to go the the bank.

Guesthouse.

Perhaps this can be done by telephone banking, that is something I don't no, although it seems to defeat the object of not being able to do the same by internet banking, on the grounds of fraud and money laundering (Nationwides answer to me, not mine).

John.....

I consider a bank that doesn't have the possibility of internet banking as old fashioned and antique and the answer by your NATIONWIDE Bank is scandalous. Scandalous because they're hiding behind their own failure of not having Internet banking installed for their customers. I wonder why anybody -not offering internet banking- would stay with such a bank.

I pay from everywhere in the world, any day/night, 24/7 to whatever country via internet, since many years.

LaoPo

[Langsuan Man]

Most banks want a signature for a SWIFT wire transfer. My bank allows me to fax them their form with all the details. I would bet a beer that even with Internet banking most banks want a signature or some other way of verifying the wire.

For instance, I used to send Citibank wires regularly to Germany from my US based Citibank account and they had a code which was emailed to me, and I had to use their code to complete the wire transfer process.

[Naam]

I pay from everywhere in the world, any day/night, 24/7 to whatever country via internet, since many years.

LaoPo

same here, except that i prefer a simple phone call and confirm by accessing my relevant account via internet and my SecurId™ by simply typing "confirmation of transfer". that does of course not work when a transfer to an account is made for which no information exists in the bank's database. in this case i have to send the details via internet (not by e-mail but by accessing my account via internet as described above).