150 Baht Atm Withdrawl Fee.. Does It Matter?

[BigSnake]

Yes indeed a sad day for tourists with a MC or Visa from their home country, not doubt they will still come and will find away around this fee.

[Birdman]

...like withdrawal by CC and passport at the exchange counters.

[TonySoprano]

You could always go back home where there is no ATM conspiracy!

[WinnieTheKhwai]

Maybe the good old Traveller Cheque will make a triumphant return.

[jfchandler]

The result of the new charge has been that I have opened a new (additional) account at Bangkok Bank so as to gain one of their ATM cash cards (which I have not previously held) and have dumped a few tens of thousands of Baht in that new account by way of a working float. So, although my regard for Kasikorn Bank has been improved as a result of the fact that they have chosen not (yet) to implement the charge, it is Bangkok Bank which has gained extra business from me.

That above is a pretty senseless decision. If the poster wanted to do something like that, why not open the new account with Kasikorn and use THEIR ATM card for local withdrawals... Or maybe you'd prefer to send your extra business to banks that choose to rip off farangs.

However, this really is a risible storm in a teacup. Why is it assumed that any bank has any obligation to provide any free or subsidised service to any person who is not their banking customer?

For anybody to suggest that these new charges are a sign that Thailand in general is engaged in some kind of anti-tourist or anti-farang conspiracy is ludicrous and paranoid.

Speaking of ludicrous comments, this one above tops the list. For the poster's info, BKK Bank and all the others who have adopted the new fee ARE charging the 150 baht even to their own customers. Like many others here, I have Thai accounts at various of the fee-charging banks. I AM their customer. But I still would get hit with their fee when I use any of my U.S. cards.

But then again, I'm not stupid and careless with my money. I don't choose to fritter away 150 baht every time I use the ATM. So for now I'll use Kasikorn and the other fee-free Thai banks.

[sanmiguel]

You could always go back home where there is no ATM conspiracy!

So yesterday youre wanting under 35's who dont adhere to the impeccable standards you expect in a nightclub to clear off, today its anyone who doesnt like the 150BHT ATM tax.

Can you call a cartel of every single bank in Thailand getting together a conspiracy? I guess you could!

I think they should raise it to 1000 bht a transaction, as it doesnt really matter ... im sure you'd agree.

[TonySoprano]

You could always go back home where there is no ATM conspiracy!

So yesterday youre wanting under 35's who dont adhere to the impeccable standards you expect in a nightclub to clear off, today its anyone who doesnt like the 150BHT ATM tax.

Can you call a cartel of every single bank in Thailand getting together a conspiracy? I guess you could!

I think they should raise it to 1000 bht a transaction, as it doesnt really matter ... im sure you'd agree.

Hmmm.... commenting, in a light-hearted way, about the goofiness of farang in Thailand is a source of amusement for myself. Similarly, coming on here and complaining without taking any of the simple actions required to fix your problem, appears to be the primary source of entertainment for yourself and others. They could make it 1000 baht a transaction and it would not matter to me as I have already found the very simple, very obvious, very free, work around.

But, yes, I do recommend that anyone who complains about Thailand remember that they could go back home where there is less to complain about. It seems too many here have a strange sense of expectation. Like Thailand or the world owes them something.

Its a conspiracy!!! No, its just called getting yourself paid, which is what you should be focused on doing.

[thaihome]

..I already have an ATM cash card for use in connection with one of my Kasikorn Bank accounts. I also have a Nationwide Flex Account cash card which I have been in the habit of using at any local machine accepting Cirrus cards. Very frequently that has been a machine belonging to or operated by Bangkok Bank. The result of the new charge has been that I have opened a new (additional) account at Bangkok Bank so as to gain one of their ATM cash cards (which I have not previously held) and have dumped a few tens of thousands of Baht in that new account by way of a working float.

Why did you have to open a Bangkok bank account to use their ATM? Your K Bank ATM card would work just fine and no fee would be charged either by Bangkok Bank or K Bank to do so.

I think the reaction of some people to this is absolutely hilarious, especially the ones that say they will be tipping less, so Thailand is going to suffer because of this.

The tourists will barely notice, though I agree it is a bit steep and the cheapos will be miffed, but anyone that has up to now used a foreign ATM regularly, will need to do there own cost analysis to see if the SWIFT charges into a local bank account come out less the their usual ATM usage. For Americans, they can see if they can do the online ACH transfers into a US branch of a Thai bank that incur very small fees.

TH

[pattaya_girl]

I'm happy the OP likes to carry around "wads" of cash in his wallet. I prefer to carry small amounts and then replenish at a local ATM every couple days...and to keep the bulk of my funds in U.S. insured banks, alongside my Thai bank accounts.

150 baht to use the ATMs here is a rip-off. At least for now, I'm glad that Kasikorn Bank, Government Savings Bank and some others haven't implemented the fee.

As an ex-banker, maybe the OP can remember when ATMs first came out and banks encouraged/pushed customers to use ATMs INSTEAD of going into branches because, of course, ATM transactions are much cheaper for a bank to process than teller-based ones.

By adopting the 150 baht fee, the Thai Bankers Assn. was obviously trying to generate more revenue for the banks. Instead, what they're doing is pushing angry ex-pat customers away from the charging banks to non-fee alternatives or pushing those same customers to switch to in-branch transactions that don't currently have that fee.

The whole thing makes no practical sense.

Just reading the above post - is the Kasikorn Bank (the Green Bank) ?? and are you sure they dont charge the 150 bt fee yet ??

[jfchandler]

Yes, Kasikorn is the "green" bank and they have NOT, by all reports, begun charging the 150 baht fee as yet. My own last fee-free ATM transaction with them was 2 days ago...

[sanmiguel]

They could make it 1000 baht a transaction and it would not matter to me as I have already found the very simple, very obvious, very free, work around.

So it wouldnt matter to you if they charged 1000 bht a transaction as it doesnt affect you, but what if they started charing 2000 bht a transaction for the way you get your money would that matter? please answer as theyve the power to do it in this cartel?

But, yes, I do recommend that anyone who complains about Thailand remember that they could go back home where there is less to complain about.

So when i see the police taking money off some street vendor and compain about it, does this mean i should <deleted> off, should all farangs think everything is perfect in Thailand and if not they should <deleted> off? Should we not wish for thailand to raise its game in anyway as this is what youre implying

It seems too many here have a strange sense of expectation. Like Thailand or the world owes them something.

No farangs i meet think the world owes them a living, everyone over a certain age realises theyve got to make money to survive no matter how they do it, ..... you anymore of those brainless catchphrases?

Its a conspiracy!!! No, its just called getting yourself paid, which is what you should be focused on doing.

Its a cartel, and this cartel is conspiring together to charge tourists for using 100% of the ATM machines. Would you agree with that comment? a simple yes or no answer will do

I made good money in the property boom, i dont need to get a job just yet.

Edited April 30, 2009 by sanmiguel

[Priceless]

Jingthing hit the nail on the head with the relative iniquitousness of it all. 150 baht is disproportionate and unfair. 20/30 Baht could be regarded as fair.

If I suffered the charge for every ATM withdrawal that I make, it would cost me 37,500 baht p.a. - that is nearly 2 flights or the GF's housekeeping/pocket money for 15 weeks OR a year and a quarter's rent. THAT puts it in perspective !

So you're withdrawing money from ATMs 250 times/year, i.e. more than two days out of three? Maybe you should rethink your transaction strategy If you withdraw the (common) maximum amount, i.e. 20,000 baht/withdrawal, the fee turns out to be 0.75% of the withdrawn amount.

Personally, I think that 150 baht is a bit too much, but not to the extent that some posters claim. It appears that some people use ATMs in ways the system was never intended for. E.g. Oberkommando claims to withdraw 400,000-600,000 baht/month in cash from ATMs, using a card from a foreign bank. Have people never heard of Direct Debit or transferring via an Internet bank (e.g. SCB Easy)?

/ Priceless

[pattaya_girl]

Yes, Kasikorn is the "green" bank and they have NOT, by all reports, begun charging the 150 baht fee as yet. My own last fee-free ATM transaction with them was 2 days ago...

Thankyou jf - if and when they do start to charge, it would be nice if someone could let us know on Thai Visa.

[Priceless]

Yes, Kasikorn is the "green" bank and they have NOT, by all reports, begun charging the 150 baht fee as yet. My own last fee-free ATM transaction with them was 2 days ago...

Which foreign bank had issued the card you were using?

/ Priceless

[TonySoprano]

They could make it 1000 baht a transaction and it would not matter to me as I have already found the very simple, very obvious, very free, work around.

So it wouldnt matter to you if they charged 1000 bht a transaction as it doesnt affect you, but what if they started charing 2000 bht a transaction for the way you get your money would that matter? please answer as theyve the power to do it in this cartel?

But, yes, I do recommend that anyone who complains about Thailand remember that they could go back home where there is less to complain about.

So when i see the police taking money off some street vendor and compain about it, does this mean i should <deleted> off, should all farangs think everything is perfect in Thailand and if not they should <deleted> off? Should we not wish for thailand to raise its game in anyway as this is what youre implying

It seems too many here have a strange sense of expectation. Like Thailand or the world owes them something.

No farangs i meet think the world owes them a living, everyone over a certain age realises theyve got to make money to survive no matter how they do it, ..... you anymore of those brainless catchphrases?

....

Its a cartel, and this cartel is conspiring together to charge tourists for using 100% of the ATM machines. Would you agree with that comment? a simple yes or no answer will do

I made good money in the property boom, i dont need to get a job just yet.

Feel better?

[Heng]

Obercommando , i'm sure anyone reading this would love to have a clue as to why you need so much money virtually every day. I'm not expecting you to reveal too much personal detail , but it is a huge sum you are spending , just a hint as to how would be of interest to us all i'm sure. I spend around 4-5000 baht a day for half the month on average (but some days almost nothing ) and i have always thought i was a big spender but you are something else.

I have a couple of cars, and some other stuff I am paying for on a monthly basis, as well as some business expenses, which makes up the most of it.

I'm earning more than I spend, and the business expenses are obviously recouped with profits.

If this is true you should be depositing money in the Bank, not withdrawing it?

I don't know if this is the case for Ober, but withdrawing funds from a heavy tax liability country to a low tax liability country country makes sense (and it doesn't mean your expenditures are more than your revenues). Not to mention that there could be hundreds of other reasons why funds need to be transferred.

This thread is no different than the 'how much does one need to live in Thailand' threads. For some it'll be one amount or one reason, for others it'll be another set of circumstances entirely. 150 Baht sounds "rough" if you're withdrawing 20,000 Baht of which say only 4,000 Baht of that is net income. But if most of it is low cost net income (say if it's mostly interest income or revenues from an offshore online casino or sportsbook), then it's easier to care less about that 150 Baht fee.

[jfchandler]

To Pattaya_Girl above, you're welcome!... I'm sure if Kasikorn does adopt the 150 baht ATM fee (and I'm certainly hoping they don't), we'll hear plenty about it here... If a month or two passes and they're still fee-free, then they'll probably stay that way. Right now, it's too soon after the change to know the future with them.

By the way, reportedly, Government Savings Bank (the one with the PINK signs and gold seal) supposedly also remain fee-free, though I can't vouch for that personally. They have 500+ branch offices across the country, including in all the cities outside BKK, and who knows how many ATMs.

In that regard, can anyone update on Government Savings Bank and Bank of Ayudhya, which also was fee-free last time I heard????

To Priceless, re your question, at the Kasikorn end of things, it shouldn't matter what foreign ATM/debit card you are using with them, as long as it belongs to one of the banking networks they accept (like Cirrus, Plus, Star, etc...). Right now, as long as their ATMs accept your foreign ATM/debit card, you won't get a Kasikorn fee.

That's not the same, of course, at your home/foreign bank's end of things. Some (probably most) home country banks charge their customers a fee when you use their ATM/debit cards in a foreign country.

So whether you are a tourist or an expat living here, you want to aim for two things:

1. a home country bank that doesn't themselves charge you any fees for using a foreign ATM.

2. a Thai bank that doesn't charge you any ATM fees for using a foreign card, or alternatively, a home country bank that fully reimburses you for any foreign ATM fees that you incur.

PS - To all the many U.S. BofA "fans" out there (and I count myself at the top of the list), they've just announced a change to begin charging much higher monthly maintenance fees on their standard checking and MyAccess checking accounts, effective June 5, 2009.

For MyAccess checking accounts, the monthly fee will be $8.95 unless you maintain an average daily balance of at least $1,500 or have a qualifying direct deposit. For their Standard checking accounts, the monthly fee will be $9.95 unless you maintain a $1,500 daily balance (no break for direct deposits).

At least, however, they appear to be honoring one prior commitment. Many folks in the last couple of years have been able to open MyAccess checking accounts with them through an ONLINE promotion in which they promised the accounts to be FREE of monthly fees. It appears from their announcement that if you already have an absolutely free MyAccess account with them now (meaning regardless of direct deposit or minimum balance) then you won't be hit with the new fee.

I had a prior branch-opened MyAccess account with BofA that I'd never paid any monthly fees for, because I'd always avoided what then was a $4.95 or $5.95 fee by virtue of direct depositing my U.S. paycheck. But that stopped when I moved to Thailand. Yet at that time, they were offering the FREE MyAccess checking for new accounts opened online. I asked them if they could simply change over my old account to the new status. They said absolutely NO. So I ended up having to close the old branch-opened BofA account to avoid the monthly fee, and then opening the new FREE checking account with them online, which I still have today. I'm so fed up with them, I may eventually end up canceling the FREE account as well....

In case anyone was wondering, guess who is really paying for all the trouble the big banks got themselves into??? Ultimately, it's the everyday folks who have accounts with them... and more broadly... the U.S. taxpayers.

[MKAsok]

Yes, Kasikorn is the "green" bank and they have NOT, by all reports, begun charging the 150 baht fee as yet. My own last fee-free ATM transaction with them was 2 days ago...

Withdrew 15,000 from a Kasikorn ATM last night using a UK Visa debit card. No charge.

[Chaimai]

Yes, Kasikorn is the "green" bank and they have NOT, by all reports, begun charging the 150 baht fee as yet. My own last fee-free ATM transaction with them was 2 days ago...

Withdrew 15,000 from a Kasikorn ATM last night using a UK Visa debit card. No charge.

Me too, 5 minutes ago. Bless them

[Oberkommando]

whom are you trying to bullshit?

The World needs ditch diggers too Naam, so chin up.

I'll shout the beers if we meet up though, so don't get too disconcerted.

If this is true you should be depositing money in the Bank, not withdrawing it?

I don't keep large amounts of money in Thailand. I don't particularly want to start transferring money by t/t although it is certainly an option.

So I read this as your blaming the fatcat bankers but punishing those who live on their tips ? A warped sense of values indeed.

I'm not punishing anybody, I am recouping this outrageous fee by being more frugal with my money.

By your rationale I am being punished by the Thai banks for using their ATMs.

[Langsuan Man]

I already have an ATM cash card for use in connection with one of my Kasikorn Bank accounts. I also have a Nationwide Flex Account cash card which I have been in the habit of using at any local machine accepting Cirrus cards. Very frequently that has been a machine belonging to or operated by Bangkok Bank. The result of the new charge has been that I have opened a new (additional) account at Bangkok Bank so as to gain one of their ATM cash cards (which I have not previously held) and have dumped a few tens of thousands of Baht in that new account by way of a working float.

So, although my regard for Kasikorn Bank has been improved as a result of the fact that they have chosen not (yet) to implement the charge, it is Bangkok Bank which has gained extra business from me.

There are a lot of silly comments on this thread but this one is the kicker for me......Why in the world would the poster reward Bangkok Bank by opening another account with Bangkok Bank which is going to charge him to use his Nationwide Flex Account to fund his Bangkok Bank account. I at least am rewarding Kasikorn Bank by putting my money with them and using their ATM card

For those of you who have a hard time remembering names. Let's use colors. These three banks are not charging 150 THB for the use of your foreign ATM card

Government Savings Bank (Pink)

Kasikorn Bank (Green)

Bank of Ayudhya (Yellow)

[TonySoprano]

lol. words are too difficult for the Thai Visa population. Here are some photos!

[Aachen]

most citizens and foreign residents here will have local debit/credit cards. no charges.

tourists might use the ATM a couple of times before they go home, a minor charge relative to the overall cost of their holiday.

I think you asre little bit crazy... If you go to an ATM in Germany other than your own bank you will be charged 7 EURO ... Can you please fifure out yourself how much Bt that is??? And then Stop quarreling about nonsense!

Or live a better oive at home.

[G54]

£3 is a rip off.

[Kitsch22]

I already have an ATM cash card for use in connection with one of my Kasikorn Bank accounts. I also have a Nationwide Flex Account cash card which I have been in the habit of using at any local machine accepting Cirrus cards. Very frequently that has been a machine belonging to or operated by Bangkok Bank. The result of the new charge has been that I have opened a new (additional) account at Bangkok Bank so as to gain one of their ATM cash cards (which I have not previously held) and have dumped a few tens of thousands of Baht in that new account by way of a working float.

So, although my regard for Kasikorn Bank has been improved as a result of the fact that they have chosen not (yet) to implement the charge, it is Bangkok Bank which has gained extra business from me.

There are a lot of silly comments on this thread but this one is the kicker for me......Why in the world would the poster reward Bangkok Bank by opening another account with Bangkok Bank which is going to charge him to use his Nationwide Flex Account to fund his Bangkok Bank account. I at least am rewarding Kasikorn Bank by putting my money with them and using their ATM card

Sorry to learn of your comprehension difficulty. To help you - it is all about convenience. I need to be able to use ATMs at both Kasikorn and Bangkok Banks. I already have my Nationwide card for use at Kasikorn. But I needed a Bangkok Bank card in order to avoid the 150 baht charge on those occasions when the available ATM is a Bangkok Bank machine. Hence a new account at Bangkok Bank.

Just keep reading that paragraph until it sinks in.

[kiakaha]

most citizens and foreign residents here will have local debit/credit cards. no charges.

tourists might use the ATM a couple of times before they go home, a minor charge relative to the overall cost of their holiday.

I think you asre little bit crazy... If you go to an ATM in Germany other than your own bank you will be charged 7 EURO ... Can you please fifure out yourself how much Bt that is??? And then Stop quarreling about nonsense!

Or live a better oive at home.

crazy ? .. i am a foriegner , i live/work in thailand , i use a local debit card in thailand from my thai bank , no charges at ATM for cash withdrawls.

most people who live in thailand WILL have thai bank accounts and debit cards , therefore no 150 baht charge for them in Thailand,

[LivinginKata]

A number of posts have been removed as they are far removed from the OP and break many forum rules.

[bonobo]

I had previously thought it was all banks which were charging the 150 baht fee.  However, thanks to this thread, I chose the Kasikorn bank ATM machine and was not charged the extra amount.

They even had a message on their ATM screen which said "We welcome all foreign bank cards."

[kez172]

i used kasikorn again today with no charge. the green atms

Edited May 1, 2009 by kez172

[jfchandler]

crazy ? .. i am a foriegner , i live/work in thailand , i use a local debit card in thailand from my thai bank , no charges at ATM for cash withdrawls.

most people who live in thailand WILL have thai bank accounts and debit cards , therefore no 150 baht charge for them in Thailand,

crazy ? .. i am a foriegner , i live/work in thailand , i use a local debit card in Thailand from my Thai bank , no charges at ATM for cash withdrawals.

most people who live in thailand WILL have Thai bank accounts and debit cards , therefore no 150 baht charge for them in Thailand.

But, most non-Thais who live in Thailand also will have ATM cards from their home countries, and would be foolish to spend 150 baht on every withdrawal when they don't have to...