Can A Thai National Get A Loan From A Thai Bank If They Live Abroad

[meme]

Hi,

My husband is a Thai National and is living in Canada as a landed immigrant. Now that he is making Cdn dollars he would like to build a house in his village on his land. We do not plan to move back for another 5 years but he wants to build now so his mom could live there and so we have somewhere to stay when we are visiting. He will have about 150,000 baht to put down, land to build and has a steady job in Canada that he can prove with pay stubs etc. Would a Thai bank let a Thai National borrow money to build based on the salary they earn abroad?

Thanks.

[floridaguy]

Sorry, double post

Edited September 24, 2010 by floridaguy

[floridaguy]

I also am a Thai national, with US citizenship as well. I live and work here in Bangkok. I believe the answer is yes to your question. Earlier this year I went to Siam Commercial Bank and applied for a Beyond Platinum card. My income consists of US dollars paid to me in the US to a US bank, and Thai baht paid to me here. It was necessary to use both incomes to qualify for the higher income requirement of that card. The bank did not have any problems including my US based income to my income calculation. They approved me for the card. Because of this, I would assume that your husband could do so. He may need to give his mother power of attorney to do so, but I am not sure.

To add further evidence to support this, my brother, also a dual US/Thai citizen, earns all his income in US dollars as a retiree of the US military. He receives some of the money in the US on a US bank account, and some of his income is mailed here in check form with he deposits into a Thai bank. He used both incomes to receive a loan to build a house from a Thai bank. He was required to show proof of both incomes, at least 6 months worth of income before he could qualify for the loan. As I understood, they didn't have a problem with his actual income, they just couldn't understand how a Thai could earn money while doing nothing! They don't really have a pension system here.

So I believe he can.

[meme]

I also am a Thai national, with US citizenship as well. I live and work here in Bangkok. I believe the answer is yes to your question. Earlier this year I went to Siam Commercial Bank and applied for a Beyond Platinum card. My income consists of US dollars paid to me in the US to a US bank, and Thai baht paid to me here. It was necessary to use both incomes to qualify for the higher income requirement of that card. The bank did not have any problems including my US based income to my income calculation. They approved me for the card. Because of this, I would assume that your husband could do so. He may need to give his mother power of attorney to do so, but I am not sure.

To add further evidence to support this, my brother, also a dual US/Thai citizen, earns all his income in US dollars as a retiree of the US military. He receives some of the money in the US on a US bank account, and some of his income is mailed here in check form with he deposits into a Thai bank. He used both incomes to receive a loan to build a house from a Thai bank. He was required to show proof of both incomes, at least 6 months worth of income before he could qualify for the loan. As I understood, they didn't have a problem with his actual income, they just couldn't understand how a Thai could earn money while doing nothing! They don't really have a pension system here.

So I believe he can.

Thanks FG,

That is very helpful. My only worry is that you and your brother seem to have income in Thailand or at least regular deposits into a Thai bank account. Seeing as we have been living in Canada for the past year, we have not used our Thai account. But it is good to know that they consider your income abroad as well. What did you show them as proof? A bank statement from the US or your pay stubs or...?

[floridaguy]

Thanks FG,

That is very helpful. My only worry is that you and your brother seem to have income in Thailand or at least regular deposits into a Thai bank account. Seeing as we have been living in Canada for the past year, we have not used our Thai account. But it is good to know that they consider your income abroad as well. What did you show them as proof? A bank statement from the US or your pay stubs or...?

I spoke to him on your behalf. As for my brother's income, although he was depositing a portion of it here, the banks still considered it foreign earned income. For proof of income, we both used both pay stubs and bank statements. They were mostly interested in the bank statements. I hope the your husband has deposited the majority of his income in this account to prove the income. Also, they may want to see both your and his paystub to separate what income is yours and what is his. They may use your income if you request. Siam Commercial, Bangkok Bank, UOB and Thai Military Bank offer loans to non-Thai citizens who have a Thai spouse.

My brother did have a little trouble with the local bank. They are a small town bank, with no foreigners in the area. It took alot of work to get them to wrap their head around the idea of give a mortgage to a Thai foreigner with foreign income. To make things easier, I would deal with large bank in Bangkok, regardless of where the property is. They will have more experience in dual citizens. Be persistent, it can be done, but it will take some work.

Keep me posted how it goes.

Good luck.

[meme]

Thanks FG,

That is very helpful. My only worry is that you and your brother seem to have income in Thailand or at least regular deposits into a Thai bank account. Seeing as we have been living in Canada for the past year, we have not used our Thai account. But it is good to know that they consider your income abroad as well. What did you show them as proof? A bank statement from the US or your pay stubs or...?

I spoke to him on your behalf. As for my brother's income, although he was depositing a portion of it here, the banks still considered it foreign earned income. For proof of income, we both used both pay stubs and bank statements. They were mostly interested in the bank statements. I hope the your husband has deposited the majority of his income in this account to prove the income. Also, they may want to see both your and his paystub to separate what income is yours and what is his. They may use your income if you request. Siam Commercial, Bangkok Bank, UOB and Thai Military Bank offer loans to non-Thai citizens who have a Thai spouse.

My brother did have a little trouble with the local bank. They are a small town bank, with no foreigners in the area. It took alot of work to get them to wrap their head around the idea of give a mortgage to a Thai foreigner with foreign income. To make things easier, I would deal with large bank in Bangkok, regardless of where the property is. They will have more experience in dual citizens. Be persistent, it can be done, but it will take some work.

Keep me posted how it goes.

Good luck.

Thanks again FG!

He is from a small town so he may run into this problem.

We will let you know how it goes and thanks again!

[samran]

As a dual citizen myself, if I were you, I wouldn't bring up the topic of dual citizenship at the Bank. Just tell them he is a Thai citizen working overseas. That is all they need to know.

While there is absolutely nothing wrong with a Thai having another citizenship, don't given them any ammo that is going to make the loan application more difficult.

[meme]

As a dual citizen myself, if I were you, I wouldn't bring up the topic of dual citizenship at the Bank. Just tell them he is a Thai citizen working overseas. That is all they need to know.

While there is absolutely nothing wrong with a Thai having another citizenship, don't given them any ammo that is going to make the loan application more difficult.

Thanks Samran,

Actually he is not a dual citizen only a landed immigrant which means he does not have a Canadian Passport but he can work and have health care in Canada. But thanks for the tip, any info helps.