Thai Banks Asked To Cut Foreigners Atm Transaction Fees

[iang]

As recently as this past weekend, I can confirm that both Bangkok Bank and Bank of Ayuthaya are NOT charging any fees for foreign card ATM withdrawals, so best to use these - at least for the time being.

Nonsense, they were the ones who started with it !

I repeat that I have used both these banks over the past few days and neither charged me any fee whatsoever. Verified by also viewing my online bank account.

All I can think of is that here up north, many ATM machines are not exactly the most modern & latest types and perhaps these old ATM machines are incapable of displaying any warning message about a Baht 150 fee (as did the Siam Commercial Bank ATM I tried - which was a modern one) and thus the bank doesn't levy a charge?

[Bengt]

This is a worrying sign that many banks in Thailand are on their way to a big collapse and not only farangs have to pay 150 THB every local bank also charge but whit less fee....just look whats goin on in the rest of this world...its the people that have to pay for the banks misstakes to loan out money to people that cannot pay back their loans!

[MickA]

I just go in the bank once a month a get 50k on my Visa debit card cost 4.95 pounds

[cent1]

In other countries when using a foriegn ATM card, are there charges incurred? In my experience there is

[SurfRider]

Friendlyguy,

You reported:

"You can do this if you have a Thai bank account. I have a Siam Commercial Bank account. I setup a Paypal account noting the country as Thailand during the setup. I added my Siam Commercial Bank account to it. It was listed as a bank in the drop down. I also have an American Paypal so what I do is transfer money from my Paypal American account to my Paypal Thailand account. If i do over 5000 baht there is no fee otherwise it's 50 baht."

If you could post the US$ amount that was debited from your US account and the amount of Baht that was credited to your SBC account - as well as the date of the transaction - We could calculate the Exchange Rate that you received vs. the rate that you would have received from a Debit Card transaction at a local ATM.

You may have discovered the best kept secret in international money transfer, or - as someone suggested, PayPal may be giving you a very unfavorable rate that may be costing far more than the confiscatory 150 Baht ATM fee.

.

[friendlyguy01]

Here is what I do to cut all that crap out. You can do this if you have a Thai bank account. I have a Siam Commercial Bank account. I setup a Paypal account noting the country as Thailand during the setup. I added my Siam Commercial Bank account to it. It was listed as a bank in the drop down. I also have an American Paypal so what I do is transfer money from my Paypal American account to my Paypal Thailand account. If i do over 5000 baht there is no fee otherwise it's 50 baht. It takes about 7 days to transfer the money but I pay NOTHING. Even when I paypal myself to the Thailand Paypal, they take nothing. Then the money hits my SCB account. I know it might seem like a lot of steps but honestly it takes me 1 minute to do the transfer and I just wait. This is how I pay my rent and get my money here in Thailand because Wells Fargo in America charges a ATM fee, International Currency Fee and some other crap. So, i don't get charged all the fees. The only drawback could be the exchange rate on the baht but it's fairly decent right now.

You should compare the exchange rate you get with PayPal against the international rate. You might be in for a shock...

Live rates at 2009.05.04 06:37:38 UTC Notice: The THB rate shown below is the international rate. Rates used within Thailand may vary. <h2 class="XE">1.00 USD</h2> <h2 class="XE">=</h2> <h2 class="XE">35.1772 THB</h2> United States Dollars Thailand Baht 1 USD = 35.1772 THB 1 THB = 0.0284275 USD

You will find that PayPal is making a tidy profit by gouging you on the exchange rate... Remember PayPal is owned by GreedBay!

The last transfer was at 34.5 baht to the dollar. So, i don't see the prob...

[mangostays]

wooohoooo - :-))))))

Is it true that some banks still don't charge now? ??

The 'yellow bank' in ThongSala, Koh Phangan, gives a message at the end of a withdrawl with a UK visa card say thay there has been no charge for this transaction.

[friendlyguy01]

Friendlyguy,

You reported:

"You can do this if you have a Thai bank account. I have a Siam Commercial Bank account. I setup a Paypal account noting the country as Thailand during the setup. I added my Siam Commercial Bank account to it. It was listed as a bank in the drop down. I also have an American Paypal so what I do is transfer money from my Paypal American account to my Paypal Thailand account. If i do over 5000 baht there is no fee otherwise it's 50 baht."

If you could post the US$ amount that was debited from your US account and the amount of Baht that was credited to your SBC account - as well as the date of the transaction - We could calculate the Exchange Rate that you received vs. the rate that you would have received from a Debit Card transaction at a local ATM.

You may have discovered the best kept secret in international money transfer, or - as someone suggested, PayPal may be giving you a very unfavorable rate that may be costing far more than the confiscatory 150 Baht ATM fee.

.

The Paypal way saves me money in the end because I can transfer a large amount and not get hit. I am limited to daily atm withdrawls and hit for each one. This way I don't get hit each time for those fees and because I used to hit the atm every 7 days or so it just made sense.

[mortenaa]

Here is what I do to cut all that crap out. You can do this if you have a Thai bank account. I have a Siam Commercial Bank account. I setup a Paypal account noting the country as Thailand during the setup. I added my Siam Commercial Bank account to it. It was listed as a bank in the drop down. I also have an American Paypal so what I do is transfer money from my Paypal American account to my Paypal Thailand account. If i do over 5000 baht there is no fee otherwise it's 50 baht. It takes about 7 days to transfer the money but I pay NOTHING. Even when I paypal myself to the Thailand Paypal, they take nothing. Then the money hits my SCB account. I know it might seem like a lot of steps but honestly it takes me 1 minute to do the transfer and I just wait. This is how I pay my rent and get my money here in Thailand because Wells Fargo in America charges a ATM fee, International Currency Fee and some other crap. So, i don't get charged all the fees. The only drawback could be the exchange rate on the baht but it's fairly decent right now.

PayPal is not your Pal dude. They have hidden costs. In this case its the exchange rate. PayPal is NOT the way to transfer money. The best way is:

1. Use your abroad e-banking system to wire the money into your Thai account. Make sure you transfer in your foreign currency, USD/EUR/NOK or so on. That way the transaction is exchanged in Thailand for a competitive rate. Usually takes 2 days.

2. All banks have counter Visa card machine. Withdraw (for my case) up to 250,000 Baht per transaction. And deposit to your Thai account. You will get Visas exchange rate plus your local banks markup (usually 1.5%) if any. Fastest way!

[mortenaa]

The Paypal way saves me money in the end because I can transfer a large amount and not get hit. I am limited to daily atm withdrawls and hit for each one. This way I don't get hit each time for those fees and because I used to hit the atm every 7 days or so it just made sense.

No they don't. The rip you off. Search online about PayPal's exchange rates

Today I've bought an item from U.K., 780 GBP including shipment.

Paypal charges 3.4 % plus 35 cents for an international non-Euro deal.

This is what the seller has to pay.

On top of that the exchange rate is quite bad.

According to XE.com 780 GBP are equivalent to 1.144,07 EUR today.Paypal charges 1.174,70 EUR.

&lt;deleted&gt;?

In the end there are about 6% transaction costs for a simple money transfer from Germany to the U.K.

The problem isn't what they are asking for their service (although it's ridiculously steep).

The problem is they should tell me from the beginning that it costs 6%.

That's cheating.They are treating me like an idiot.

[SurfRider]

"The last transfer was at 34.5 baht to the dollar. So, i don't see the prob..."

It depends when you did the transaction -- recently an ATM Debit Card withdrawal Exchange Rate was around 35.50

Since you got 34.50 -- the amount you were "charged" on a 20,000 Baht transaction would have been US$16.33 due to the difference in the PayPal rate and the ATM rate.

[montereyjp]

I used SCB ATM last week and got the you want to pay 150 baht? yes, no, I said yes and proceeded to withdraw from my credit union account in the US. I have checked my account twice since then and I was not charged the 150baht fee, I was charged 1.00 USD as usually... Not sure if my credit union absorb this fee or it was simple not deducted...

[JustinCredible]

As a result of this additional charge I have started using a company in London to send money out to me.

My bank (RBoS) currently charges 5 pounds per ATM transaction, PLUS a Rate of Exchange Charge based on withdrawal amount. 20,000 Baht costs me about 8.37 Pounds. Now the 3 pound charge from Thai banks is just taking the p*%&.

The company that I now use advertise in the Pattaya Mail. They charge a flat fee of 10 pounds per transaction to Thailand, up to 3000 pounds. Above 3k it is FREE.

I have set up a DD from my UK account to the company and it takes 3 (THREE) days for the money to reach my account in Thailand. Dependant on the current RoE I might have the use an ATM 3 times per month in ordert to transfer my total Pension, costing me 16+ pounds per transaction, over a 3 day period (48 pounds per month total). I am now getting the money in one hit for the cost of 10 pounds.

I should add that the RoE from this company is a littlr BETTER than my Bank.

If anyone would like details of the company and facility please PM me and I will gladly forward all that I have.

Edited May 4, 2009 by JustinCredible

[Briggsy]

Difficult to see who is telling the truth here.

I wonder if this has anything to do with a lack of unity in the cartel. Are they trying to bring the 3 maverick banks in? I hope not.

[Fore Man]

I can certify that today BKK Bank assessed the THB 150 fee...someone said on an earlier post that this bank had ceased the surcharge. NOT TRUE.

[Boater]

Bangkok Bank and Bank of Ayuthaya

i got charged at BKK bank on saturday

[fauxie]

I don't get this. I withdraw from my Lloyds TSB account from ATMs out here in Thailand. A year or two back the maximum fees went up from 3 GBP to 4.50 GBP on my maximum withdrawal of 300 GBP a day - this I knew about. I also know the rate I get is usually about 1.8 baht to the pound less than the genuine rate, to put it crudely (I'm know it's a percentage but I forget the number). However, I wasn't even aware the banks in Thailand had been charging 150 baht on ATM transactions. Are there any other Lloyds TSB customers on here who also have not experienced these charges?

I was already pissed off about the fee charged by my UK bank going up, but is this now going to affect me too?

I'm interested in the idea of going in with my card and passport and taking out say 60k and paying just one or two times a month. This is possible, right? My card is a visa debit card.

[khunjake]

Actually you are being charged something, a shitty exchange rate!

Did you bother to look at the rate they gave you at the bank when you did that transaction?

ATM withdrawals from ATMs give you the cash spot rate while OTC withdrawals at the counter DO NOT.

wooohoooo - :-))))))

I tried going into the bank and withdrawing money using my card and producing my passport and withdrew 50,000 baht and was not charged anything from the Siam bank and HSBC so from now on I will just go into the bank as it will save money.

Hope this helps someone.

[khaowong1]

what really makes me hot is, when the banks started with the ATM thing, their reasoning was, it would be less costly to the customer, because these atm's would be handled by machines and not paid employees, therefore not costing the banks any money and not costing the customers any money.. savings all around... well, that crap didn't last long, did it? In my estimation, banks are only one rung down the ladder from lawyers.. who are one rung the ladder down from used car salesman.

[12346]

As a foreigner it,s not possible to have a internetbankaccount but for Thai people there are. I don´t understand this. When I am outside Thailand I can not look at my account on internet. I can´t make payment to people or company from my bankaccount when I am abroad. This is bad service from Thai Banks.

[ballbreaker]

Here is what I do to cut all that crap out. You can do this if you have a Thai bank account. I have a Siam Commercial Bank account. I setup a Paypal account noting the country as Thailand during the setup. I added my Siam Commercial Bank account to it. It was listed as a bank in the drop down. I also have an American Paypal so what I do is transfer money from my Paypal American account to my Paypal Thailand account. If i do over 5000 baht there is no fee otherwise it's 50 baht. It takes about 7 days to transfer the money but I pay NOTHING. Even when I paypal myself to the Thailand Paypal, they take nothing. Then the money hits my SCB account. I know it might seem like a lot of steps but honestly it takes me 1 minute to do the transfer and I just wait. This is how I pay my rent and get my money here in Thailand because Wells Fargo in America charges a ATM fee, International Currency Fee and some other crap. So, i don't get charged all the fees. The only drawback could be the exchange rate on the baht but it's fairly decent right now.

What is the exchange rate difference you get between doing as you describe vs ATM withdraw or wire transfer?

[MaiDong]

Here is what I do to cut all that crap out. You can do this if you have a Thai bank account. I have a Siam Commercial Bank account. I setup a Paypal account noting the country as Thailand during the setup. I added my Siam Commercial Bank account to it. It was listed as a bank in the drop down. I also have an American Paypal so what I do is transfer money from my Paypal American account to my Paypal Thailand account. If i do over 5000 baht there is no fee otherwise it's 50 baht. It takes about 7 days to transfer the money but I pay NOTHING. Even when I paypal myself to the Thailand Paypal, they take nothing. Then the money hits my SCB account. I know it might seem like a lot of steps but honestly it takes me 1 minute to do the transfer and I just wait. This is how I pay my rent and get my money here in Thailand because Wells Fargo in America charges a ATM fee, International Currency Fee and some other crap. So, i don't get charged all the fees. The only drawback could be the exchange rate on the baht but it's fairly decent right now.

This option is viable as long as you only use the paypal account for this and don't have to upgrade because of the amount of money going through it, if you transfer a certain amount over the 'regular' user as opposed to the 'premier' user then you will start to be charged 3.4% which on £100, for example, is more than the ATM charges here...

[womble]

As a foreigner it,s not possible to have a internetbankaccount but for Thai people there are. I don´t understand this. When I am outside Thailand I can not look at my account on internet. I can´t make payment to people or company from my bankaccount when I am abroad. This is bad service from Thai Banks.

not true, I have internet banking at SCB and Kasikorn......

Kasikorn is better. I also have an online card (no tangible card, but all the details and no's to do online transactions), very handy.

[MaiDong]

Here is what I do to cut all that crap out. You can do this if you have a Thai bank account. I have a Siam Commercial Bank account. I setup a Paypal account noting the country as Thailand during the setup. I added my Siam Commercial Bank account to it. It was listed as a bank in the drop down. I also have an American Paypal so what I do is transfer money from my Paypal American account to my Paypal Thailand account. If i do over 5000 baht there is no fee otherwise it's 50 baht. It takes about 7 days to transfer the money but I pay NOTHING. Even when I paypal myself to the Thailand Paypal, they take nothing. Then the money hits my SCB account. I know it might seem like a lot of steps but honestly it takes me 1 minute to do the transfer and I just wait. This is how I pay my rent and get my money here in Thailand because Wells Fargo in America charges a ATM fee, International Currency Fee and some other crap. So, i don't get charged all the fees. The only drawback could be the exchange rate on the baht but it's fairly decent right now.

What is the exchange rate difference you get between doing as you describe vs ATM withdraw or wire transfer?

This is another point - the exchange rate from $'s/£'s to Baht is &lt;deleted&gt; with paypal, usually a few baht difference so it may work out more expensive again...

[SurfRider]

"I tried going into the bank and withdrawing money using my card and producing my passport and withdrew 50,000 baht and was not charged anything from the Siam bank and HSBC so from now on I will just go into the bank as it will save money."

( apologies for this cross-posting to those reading the other threads, but hopefully more information will eventually lead to more enlightenment )

From an example in another TV thread on this subject, SCB quoted a lower exchange rate for doing an over-the-counter transaction vs. using their ATM -- whether or not other Thai banks have the same variance in their rates is unclear -- below is an example and a summary of the pertinent issues as they currently stand:

1) If you go to SCB's ATM and use a Debit Card to withdraw 20,000 Baht from a foreign account, your account will be charged a 150 Baht fee ( US $4.25 )

2) If you go to the counter in the same bank and ask for 20,000 Baht, you'll be charged an additional US $21.65 due to the difference in the Exchange Rate between the ATM and the counter.

3) If you go to a Kasikorn or Ayudhya or GSB ATM and use the same Debit Card, there won't be ANY additional charge.

How long Kasikorn and Ayudhya will continue to NOT charge the 150 Baht fee is unknown, but there is reason to suspect that GSB will remain free of the 150 Baht charge because they don't appear to be a member of the cabal that is imposing the new fee. Additionally, GSB's ATM transaction limit is 30,000 Baht -- at Kasikorn and Ayudhya the limit is 20,000

.

[gdhm]

As recently as this past weekend, I can confirm that both Bangkok Bank and Bank of Ayuthaya are NOT charging any fees for foreign card ATM withdrawals, so best to use these - at least for the time being.

Nonsense, they were the ones who started with it !

I agree. I used my usual Bangkok Bank ATM over a week ago and was warned I was to be charded 150 Baht and asked if I wanted to proceed. I said no and tried a Kasikorn ATM and was not charged. SO there IS value in a warning as at present there is a choice to avoid.

The Kasikorn receipt said Zero fee and my online UK banking confirmed this (when checked 30 mins later).

Shame for me that whilst distracted with this new unexpected charge and checking my Kasikorn receipt for fees I forgot to remove my card. (now I'm in my second week of waiting for a new one -so no fees OR MONEY for two weeks

The Thai Banking spokesperson blaming Mastercard and VISA I believe is misleading.

Nationwide advised its users recently that VISA has increased their currency conversion charge from 1st June and from that time NW will no longer continue with its previous subsidy of Visa's old rate. We will pay the full Visa 1% currency conversion charge which I understand will be deducted from card holders bank account, NOT the Thai Bank ATM. It is my opinion the spokesperson is referring to this charge and trying to suggest the Thai bank has to pay it. Double charging essentially. Additionally the 150 Baht is fixed whether 15,000 Baht or 200 Baht is withdrawn via ATM (nothing to do with 1%)

Maybe the way to "help" Thai banks think twice is where it is "not problematical" is to close savings and deposit accounts held with those banks who charge an ATM fee, and open new ones with those Banks who do not intend doing so.

Money talks as they say and certainly it does in Thailand. Banks with better client operations deserve our funds being with them, rather than with banks charging us more. Basic business and finiancial sense.

Question: When people are referring to using non charging banks (do they all use the same Exchange rates as each other for the same tiem in the day. If not this may be false economy (or not as great as people think).

[Penkoprod]

"Marginal" isnt likely to be anywhere NEAR a third of the total charge though. Perhaps five baht reduction is nearer the mark

Penkoprod

[BigBikeBKK]

As a foreigner it,s not possible to have a internetbankaccount but for Thai people there are. I don´t understand this. When I am outside Thailand I can not look at my account on internet. I can´t make payment to people or company from my bankaccount when I am abroad. This is bad service from Thai Banks.

^ Huh? I'm not Thai but I have online banking accounts with Bangkok Bank and Siam Commercial... Can access them online from anywhere in the world that has internet access...

[selftaopath]

LOL - Truth, contracts, honesty, doing what you say/said you would, Thailand???? LOLOLOL

Why do I have difficutly connecting all the words. Which on might be eliminated?

[Minsamui]

Here is what I do to cut all that crap out. You can do this if you have a Thai bank account. I have a Siam Commercial Bank account. I setup a Paypal account noting the country as Thailand during the setup. I added my Siam Commercial Bank account to it. It was listed as a bank in the drop down. I also have an American Paypal so what I do is transfer money from my Paypal American account to my Paypal Thailand account. If i do over 5000 baht there is no fee otherwise it's 50 baht. It takes about 7 days to transfer the money but I pay NOTHING. Even when I paypal myself to the Thailand Paypal, they take nothing. Then the money hits my SCB account. I know it might seem like a lot of steps but honestly it takes me 1 minute to do the transfer and I just wait. This is how I pay my rent and get my money here in Thailand because Wells Fargo in America charges a ATM fee, International Currency Fee and some other crap. So, i don't get charged all the fees. The only drawback could be the exchange rate on the baht but it's fairly decent right now.

Check the exchange rate that paypal give compared to a normal TT. You'll be surprised. Its outrageously bad.