US Social Security Payments

[wayned]

Just a heads up! I spoke to Bangkok Bank this morning at 1100 and was told that the SSA payments not been transferred to Bangkok Bank New York yet. They normally would be available today since the third is a Sunday.

[wayned]

They lied. Even though I was standing in the bank in front of a bank offical when I called them they said that the SSA payments had no been transferred. My payment was credited to my account at 1457 this afternoon!

[Suradit69]

They lied. Even though I was standing in the bank in front of a bank offical when I called them they said that the SSA payments had no been transferred. My payment was credited to my account at 1457 this afternoon!

So if you asked at 11:00 and the transfer was credited 4 hours after you had asked, how did he lie?

At 11:00 this morning in Thailand, Thursday the 31st was just ending in NY and the money wouldn't be released until Friday.

I got mine in my Chicago bank and they didn't notify me by email until this afternoon Thai time.

[moradave]

I didn't get mine at .Bangkok Bank.

Edited November 1, 2013 by moradave

[wayned]

They lied. Even though I was standing in the bank in front of a bank offical when I called them they said that the SSA payments had no been transferred. My payment was credited to my account at 1457 this afternoon!

So if you asked at 11:00 and the transfer was credited 4 hours after you had asked, how did he lie?

At 11:00 this morning in Thailand, Thursday the 31st was just ending in NY and the money wouldn't be released until Friday.

I got mine in my Chicago bank and they didn't notify me by email until this afternoon Thai time.

The money is deposited in Bangkok Bank in New York in US dollars usually the night before. If you ask them to check they can check the transfer before it is converted to baht here in Thailand. I have periodically done this over the last 6 years as I have to drive 69 kilometers to the closest branch and the money is not accesable through ATM or Internet Banking. The conversion sometime takes a while because there are many transfers especially on the first of the month. The girl specifically said that the payment was not in my account in NY. I have checked before early in the am and it was not credited until after 3pm due to the volume of transfers.It was midnight in NY. She was just to lazy to check. I admit that I could be wrong and profusely apologize if I mistakenly called her a liar. No matter the money's there and will go back to the bank on Monday!

With your Chicago bank it's credited to your account in US dollars and is immediately avaiable. With Bangkok Bank it's deposited in US $ but must be converted to Thai baht before it is available before you can withdraw it. In addition, if you have your funds directly deposited to a Bank in Thailand, Bangkok Bank is the only bank approved to receive the funds and the restrictions on the account are that it must be in your name only, and not ATM or internet access so if you"kick the bucket" no one else can continue to withdraw your payments. Sorry if I ruffled your feathers didn't mean to was just trying to give a heads up to others based on the info that I received!.

[wayned]

Sorry for the double post, I thought that I edited it rather than posting it all over again. I need new "anti-bounce" circuitry installed in my right index finger or the part of my brain that controls many functions.

[Ticketmaster]

I have SS deposit to my "Charles Schwab High Yield Investors Account," then withdraw all or part with a Schwab ATM debit card at my leisure -- free -- no stinking Bangkok Bank fees. The exchange rate is exactly the same as the BBK T/T rate, but zero fees. Any ATM fees are reimbursed by Schwab, but if you use an Aeon machine, there are no fees anyway.

And with the deposit to Schwab, it's available instantly, no "international delays."

Why pay Bangkok Bank? You do not even get added convenience. Going to any ATM is much easier that going inside a bank and standing in a queue, only to be given misinformation.

By the way, Wayned, thanks for the heads up. I thought SS deposited on the 3rd of the month, but I just checked Schwab Online, and the cash is there right now, even though it is still the 1st in the US.

[Genericnic]

I have SS deposit to my "Charles Schwab High Yield Investors Account," then withdraw all or part with a Schwab ATM debit card at my leisure -- free -- no stinking Bangkok Bank fees.  The exchange rate is exactly the same as the BBK T/T rate, but zero fees.  Any ATM fees are reimbursed by Schwab, but if you use an Aeon machine, there are no fees anyway.

 

And with the deposit to Schwab, it's available instantly, no "international delays."

 

Why pay Bangkok Bank?  You do not even get added convenience.  Going to any ATM is much easier that going inside a bank and standing in a queue, only to be given misinformation.

 

By the way, Wayned, thanks for the heads up.  I thought SS deposited on the 3rd of the month, but I just checked Schwab Online, and the cash is there right now, even though it is still the 1st in the US.

Agreed. Schwab is the way to go. I travel a lot and love the convenience and their level of service.

If you want to open an account, you need a US address. I use my best friend's address. Also, if you open an account, I would suggest you also open a savings account too. You get a separate ATM card which you can use as a backup in case the primary one is lost/stole/damaged, etc.

David

Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[IMA_FARANG]

My Social Security arrived in my U.S. bank on 1 November, and is being processed right now.

The 2nd and 3rd are weekend days so I expect it will not be available for transfer to Bangkok until Monday 4 November.

My U.S,. bank isn't open weekends and all they have to do is hit a couple of computer keys to make the transfer, but there is no one working there until Monday to hit those keys.

I checked my bank on-line at Saturday about 5 a.m. Thai time and the money was there, but as I said it won't be transferred until Monday evening our time here in Bangkok..

There is a 12 hour time difference between Bangkok and Boston Mass ... where my bank is.... so it's only Friday night there now.

Direct deposits for Social Security are batch processed from Baltimore and for overseas recipients are expected to be available on the 3rd of each month.

Unfortunately the 3rd is a Sunday this month.

From my previous experience here in Bangkok, I would certainly expect to have my money in my Bangkok Bank account on 5 November by 10 a.m. Bangkok time.

P.S.. It does NOT cost me anything to transfer funds from my U.S. bank to Bangkok bank through Bangkok Bank New York, But my U.S. Bank in Boston DOES charge an "international transfer fee" as they call it.

Edited November 2, 2013 by IMA_FARANG

[wayned]

I have lived in Thailand since 1997 and do not have a US address so it's very difficult, but not impossible (USAA), to open a bank account in the US without a US address but I have no reason to do that. The fees, $5 that Bangkok Bank NY charges and the 200 baht that Bangkok Bank here charges are minimal and there are no other charges as I transfer my funds directly into an account that has ATM and internet access. I seldom use the ATM that is not in my banking area so there is no charge and the transfer fees for paying bills and transferring money are acceptable since I can do everything from my living room rather than travel all over to do the transactions in person. Is Bangkok bank my first choice, NO, but since it's the only game in town I can live with it!

I only called them since I was in the bank conducting other business and thought that it would be easier to do then rather than come back on Monday. I've done it in the past and they broke in the que and transferred the funds while I waited, although they requested to speak to a bank officer to confirm that I wasn't just feeding then BS, which is Okay by me!

[CaptHaddock]

Sounds like you still have to go to an ATM to transfer the money from your BKK Bank SS account to your regular account for which you can then use ATM and iBanking. But why bother? If you have the SS pay into your USAA account, you could then transfer to your regular BKK Bank account for the same fees, but never have to go in person or use an Atm. Wouldn't that be more convenient? You don't need to have a US address to receive the funds in to a US bank, just an account.

I don't see the advantage of having the SSA send the money directly to this restricted BKK Bank account.

I have lived in Thailand since 1997 and do not have a US address so it's very difficult, but not impossible (USAA), to open a bank account in the US without a US address but I have no reason to do that. The fees, $5 that Bangkok Bank NY charges and the 200 baht that Bangkok Bank here charges are minimal and there are no other charges as I transfer my funds directly into an account that has ATM and internet access. I seldom use the ATM that is not in my banking area so there is no charge and the transfer fees for paying bills and transferring money are acceptable since I can do everything from my living room rather than travel all over to do the transactions in person. Is Bangkok bank my first choice, NO, but since it's the only game in town I can live with it!

I only called them since I was in the bank conducting other business and thought that it would be easier to do then rather than come back on Monday. I've done it in the past and they broke in the que and transferred the funds while I waited, although they requested to speak to a bank officer to confirm that I wasn't just feeding then BS, which is Okay by me!

Edited November 2, 2013 by CaptHaddock

[Ticketmaster]

And then there is Schwab: One step, no fees. Simple; no headaches.

[wayned]

And then there is Schwab: One step, no fees. Simple; no headaches.

But you must have a US address which I don't!

[wayned]

Sounds like you still have to go to an ATM to transfer the money from your BKK Bank SS account to your regular account for which you can then use ATM and iBanking. But why bother? If you have the SS pay into your USAA account, you could then transfer to your regular BKK Bank account for the same fees, but never have to go in person or use an Atm. Wouldn't that be more convenient? You don't need to have a US address to receive the funds in to a US bank, just an account.

I don't see the advantage of having the SSA send the money directly to this restricted BKK Bank account.

I have lived in Thailand since 1997 and do not have a US address so it's very difficult, but not impossible (USAA), to open a bank account in the US without a US address but I have no reason to do that. The fees, $5 that Bangkok Bank NY charges and the 200 baht that Bangkok Bank here charges are minimal and there are no other charges as I transfer my funds directly into an account that has ATM and internet access. I seldom use the ATM that is not in my banking area so there is no charge and the transfer fees for paying bills and transferring money are acceptable since I can do everything from my living room rather than travel all over to do the transactions in person. Is Bangkok bank my first choice, NO, but since it's the only game in town I can live with it!

I only called them since I was in the bank conducting other business and thought that it would be easier to do then rather than come back on Monday. I've done it in the past and they broke in the que and transferred the funds while I waited, although they requested to speak to a bank officer to confirm that I wasn't just feeding then BS, which is Okay by me!

Hindsight is 20.20 so maybe I would have done it iI knew that it was available back when my SSA started. But what I have is working and has worked for years and there's and old saying "never try to fix something that works".

Edited November 2, 2013 by wayned

[Pib]

My Social Security arrived in my U.S. bank on 1 November, and is being processed right now.

The 2nd and 3rd are weekend days so I expect it will not be available for transfer to Bangkok until Monday 4 November.

My U.S,. bank isn't open weekends and all they have to do is hit a couple of computer keys to make the transfer, but there is no one working there until Monday to hit those keys.

I checked my bank on-line at Saturday about 5 a.m. Thai time and the money was there, but as I said it won't be transferred until Monday evening our time here in Bangkok..

There is a 12 hour time difference between Bangkok and Boston Mass ... where my bank is.... so it's only Friday night there now.

Direct deposits for Social Security are batch processed from Baltimore and for overseas recipients are expected to be available on the 3rd of each month.

Unfortunately the 3rd is a Sunday this month.

From my previous experience here in Bangkok, I would certainly expect to have my money in my Bangkok Bank account on 5 November by 10 a.m. Bangkok time.

P.S.. It does NOT cost me anything to transfer funds from my U.S. bank to Bangkok bank through Bangkok Bank New York, But my U.S. Bank in Boston DOES charge an "international transfer fee" as they call it.

I'm a little confused on your post. You are not saying your ACH transfers to Bangkok Bank, either transfers your originate from your bank or via Social Security Administration Direct Deposit, do not incur "Bangkok Bank" fees are you? If so, that is incorrect as the Bangkok Bank "NY" branch applies a fee as the funds flow through them...varies by amount but $5 or $10 for the most commonly transfer amounts like SS/military pensions...they slice off this fee and allow the rest to continue on to your in-Thailand Bangkok Bank account number where the local 0.25% (Bt200 min, Bt500 max) fee is applied. Neither of these fees will appear anywhere on your Bangkok Bank account/passbook as they are applied before the funds are posted to your account. Since the fees don't appear maybe that is why you thought no Bangkok Bank fees were applied unless you just mean your "sending bank" don't charge you any fee since many banks don't charge any ACH sending fee transfers...but many banks do like the one your identified. If you have the SMS Remittance SMS option setup for your account when the funds are posted to your account you will get an SMS which shows the amount arriving (you will notice here it's $5 to $10 lite due to the NY branch slicing off its fee), the exchange rate being given, the local fee is applied, and then the remaining amount is posted to your account. And as mentioned earlier, neither of these fees will appear on your account statement/passbook.

Edited November 2, 2013 by Pib

[CaptHaddock]

Sounds like you still have to go to an ATM to transfer the money from your BKK Bank SS account to your regular account for which you can then use ATM and iBanking. But why bother? If you have the SS pay into your USAA account, you could then transfer to your regular BKK Bank account for the same fees, but never have to go in person or use an Atm. Wouldn't that be more convenient? You don't need to have a US address to receive the funds in to a US bank, just an account.

I don't see the advantage of having the SSA send the money directly to this restricted BKK Bank account.

I have lived in Thailand since 1997 and do not have a US address so it's very difficult, but not impossible (USAA), to open a bank account in the US without a US address but I have no reason to do that. The fees, $5 that Bangkok Bank NY charges and the 200 baht that Bangkok Bank here charges are minimal and there are no other charges as I transfer my funds directly into an account that has ATM and internet access. I seldom use the ATM that is not in my banking area so there is no charge and the transfer fees for paying bills and transferring money are acceptable since I can do everything from my living room rather than travel all over to do the transactions in person. Is Bangkok bank my first choice, NO, but since it's the only game in town I can live with it!

I only called them since I was in the bank conducting other business and thought that it would be easier to do then rather than come back on Monday. I've done it in the past and they broke in the que and transferred the funds while I waited, although they requested to speak to a bank officer to confirm that I wasn't just feeding then BS, which is Okay by me!

Hindsight is 20.20 so maybe I would have done it iI knew that it was available back when my SSA started. But what I have is working and has worked for years and there's and old saying "never try to fix something that works".

You're just being hidebound. You're getting older here in Thailand. What happens if you can't get out to get to the ATM for a while or for a long while? Think ahead.

[Pinot]

And then there is Schwab: One step, no fees. Simple; no headaches.

But you must have a US address which I don't!

Do you have a family member who would allow you to use their address? That's what I do. No correspondance or participation required. The family doesn't have to do anything except let you use their address and phone number for verification purposes.

I'm a big Charles Schwab fan. I do all my investing there. I believe you can become an International customer. There are some restrictions. I don't know what they are except I know you can't own mutual funds. You may be able to have all the advantages (no ATM fees). Call them using Skype. 800-435-4000

[JimGant]

I have SS deposit to my "Charles Schwab High Yield Investors Account," then withdraw all or part with a Schwab ATM debit card at my leisure -- free -- no stinking Bangkok Bank fees. The exchange rate is exactly the same as the BBK T/T rate,

Close enough for practical purposes -- but only exactly the same by happenstance.

Each Thai bank establishes its own buying TT rate. Bangkok Bank's TT rate for Nov 1st was 31.04 all day long (but during volatile times, this can change several times during the day). This is the rate (before fees) you would have gotten if the dollars sent by wire, ACH, or direct deposit had arrived at Bangkok Bank during business hours, Nov 1st.

Your Schwab card is Visa, and had you swiped an ATM before 11:00AM Nov 1st, you would have gotten the daily Visa rate for Oct 31, which was 31.00. An afternoon ATM swipe, however, would have gotten you the Visa Nov 1st rate of 31.03. Pretty close to the TT rate -- but if FX had been more volatile, you would have seen a bigger spread.

But, as you pointed out, it's the stinking Bangkok Bank fees that git ya. If you ACHed $1500 (or had an SS direct deposit of $1500), the effective rate you would have received would have been only 30.80. So, yeah, Chuck is golden in comparison. But if fees ever get thrown in in the future, it's a whole different scenario. Also, large sums help absorb the fixed fees. Had you ACHed $20k, the effective rate would have been equal to Chuck's 31.00. And if the dollar was headed south, you would have locked in a better rate than recurring Schwab pulls would have gotten you (this works both ways, of course).

Anyway, convenience trumps all this number crunching, IMO. However, direct deposit doesn't sound convenient, in any scenario -- particularly if you're in a coma somewhere other than Bangkok Bank's lobby......

[Ticketmaster]

And then there is Schwab: One step, no fees. Simple; no headaches.

But you must have a US address which I don't!

Do you have a family member who would allow you to use their address? That's what I do. No correspondance or participation required. The family doesn't have to do anything except let you use their address and phone number for verification purposes.

I'm a big Charles Schwab fan. I do all my investing there. I believe you can become an International customer. There are some restrictions. I don't know what they are except I know you can't own mutual funds. You may be able to have all the advantages (no ATM fees). Call them using Skype. 800-435-4000

As said above, Schwab has "international" accounts. Because of the euphemistically name "Patriot Act," you cannot use the billpay service with an international account (because you mght try to launder money), but I think you can do everything else.

I can call Schwab 24/7 on my DTAC mobile phone and get a live person, toll free, at 001-800-1165-6066-8. Won't cost you a thing to call and ask what might be available to you.

Also, as mentioned above, I use my sister's address in the US. Because I elected "electronic paper," she does not get any mail from Schwab. It is painless.

Schwab also has British offices.

[Pib]

Yeap when using your debit/credit card you get the Visa/Mastercard exchange rate minus any foriegn transaction fee the card issuing bank may apply; not the Thai bank TT Buying Rate although the two rates will be very close to each other. Just because you use a particular bank's ATM does not mean you get their rate unless the ATM offers a bank/DCC rate

that will surely be several percent lower than the Visa/Mastercard and TT Buying Rates. Probably adding to the misconception the TT Buying Rate is what you get at ATMs is a couple of exchange rate web sites that state/imply that...these web sites are wrong and probably only say that to keep people coming to their websites and since the TT Buying Rate does happen to be close.

Sent from my Samsung S4 (GT-I9500)

[Suradit69]

They lied. Even though I was standing in the bank in front of a bank offical when I called them they said that the SSA payments had no been transferred. My payment was credited to my account at 1457 this afternoon!

So if you asked at 11:00 and the transfer was credited 4 hours after you had asked, how did he lie?

At 11:00 this morning in Thailand, Thursday the 31st was just ending in NY and the money wouldn't be released until Friday.

I got mine in my Chicago bank and they didn't notify me by email until this afternoon Thai time.

The money is deposited in Bangkok Bank in New York in US dollars usually the night before. If you ask them to check they can check the transfer before it is converted to baht here in Thailand. I have periodically done this over the last 6 years as I have to drive 69 kilometers to the closest branch and the money is not accesable through ATM or Internet Banking. The conversion sometime takes a while because there are many transfers especially on the first of the month. The girl specifically said that the payment was not in my account in NY. I have checked before early in the am and it was not credited until after 3pm due to the volume of transfers.It was midnight in NY. She was just to lazy to check. I admit that I could be wrong and profusely apologize if I mistakenly called her a liar. No matter the money's there and will go back to the bank on Monday!

With your Chicago bank it's credited to your account in US dollars and is immediately avaiable. With Bangkok Bank it's deposited in US $ but must be converted to Thai baht before it is available before you can withdraw it. In addition, if you have your funds directly deposited to a Bank in Thailand, Bangkok Bank is the only bank approved to receive the funds and the restrictions on the account are that it must be in your name only, and not ATM or internet access so if you"kick the bucket" no one else can continue to withdraw your payments. Sorry if I ruffled your feathers didn't mean to was just trying to give a heads up to others based on the info that I received!.

"The money is deposited in Bangkok Bank in New York in US dollars usually the night before."

I understand how deposits to Bangkok Bank in NY work. I make deposits there regularly and have done so for many years. They can't credit your account with the dollar deposit before they've been instructed to release the payments by the government even though they received the money earlier or it's been on deposit with them for longer periods of time. Release times are set by the US government in this case and are not left to the discretion of the banks.

Actually the Federal gov't has accounts in most major US banks, including "correspondent banks" for smaller institutions like Bangkok Bank. The government does not make deposits for every fresh payment they make, they simply instruct the banks to release the money at a certain time to payee accounts. If the payments are meant to be made on the 1st, for example, the amounts will not be released until the first even though they are most likely already on deposit with the receiving banks.

If large US banks like Bank America do not release the money to their account holders before the date they were instructed to use, I doubt very much that Bangkok Bank will start doling out the money ahead of time. The release date for November SS payment was the 1st of November, probably EDT. That would, therefore, be 11 hours later in Thailand.

Even if you're that desperate to get the cash, I don't think Bangkok Bank is going to put you ahead of everyone else who has to wait until November 1st. I still contend the person you spoke to was not prevaricating.

Edited November 3, 2013 by Suradit69

[HappyinNE]

And then there is Schwab: One step, no fees. Simple; no headaches.

But you must have a US address which I don't!

I have a Schwab Account (3 of them) one with a Debit Card. I am using my Thai address. Just go to Schwab International or you can always call them and go from there. Problem is I had to send them a signed application. Mail takes a while.

[Jeffrey346]

If you do not a US address and want you SS payment sent to a Bangkok Bank account with ATM access you can do the following.

SS has an option bank called Direct Express where you can have your SS payments deposited. Direct Express will issue you a Debit Card that can be used anywhere in the world.

Direct Express will have your funds available at 1am eastern time on the 3rd of each month. If the 3rd falls on a weekend it will be there the Friday before. IE funds for Nov 3 were deposited on Nov1.

Now you can use Direct Express online banking and transfer your funds to Bangkok Bank in NY.

The downside is it takes 3 working days for the transfer and Direct Express will charge you $1.50 fee.

The upside, you have your funds in a Bangkok Bank account that allows ATM access and need never to go to the bank.

In addition, you can use you Debit Card online and pay in US funds... a win win....

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

If I'm recalling this right, one of the differences between having a SS payment go to a foreign bank account vs a U.S. one is....

With a U.S. account, it can be direct deposited and you'd never have to physically go to the branch.

But with a foreign account like BKK Bank, the U.S. govt requires the SS recipient to go to the branch in person every month.

I don't receive SS... But when the day comes (hopefully) that I will, I'm pretty sure I'll want to be going the U.S. account deposit route.

Oh ya... and... avoiding those bank international transaction fees.

[wayned]

I went to the Schwab website and found the following statement: "A minimum of US$10,000 is required to open a Schwab One International account. You can fund your new Schwab account through one of following methods:". I'm not really prepared to deposit that amount to avoid the transaction fees. I was in the hospital twice when I had to access funds from the account and sending my wife with a proxy and doctors certificate worked fine. If I'm in a comma it wouldn't matter if I was in The lobby of the Bank or not, I wouldn't be able to use my ATM anyway. I only made the post as a heads up so if you guys think I'm stupid by having my SSA deposited directly, I, and the over 10000(according to Bangkok Bank) must be! Let's stop now.

[little mary sunshine]

Oh, chill out !!!!! It will be there in a day or two....You're not going to die if it's not there today.

[little mary sunshine]

Am I missing something? I have had the same checking account in the same bank in the States

for the past 25 years. My Social Security and two other pension checks are directly deposited each

month. It is on the PLUS system, each month I withdraw 60K baht, costs me $10 each month. Why

all the BKK and other Banks??? ( I have done this for the past 4 years in Thailand ($120/year)

[Ticketmaster]

I went to the Schwab website and found the following statement: "A minimum of US$10,000 is required to open a Schwab One International account. You can fund your new Schwab account through one of following methods:". I'm not really prepared to deposit that amount to avoid the transaction fees. I was in the hospital twice when I had to access funds from the account and sending my wife with a proxy and doctors certificate worked fine. If I'm in a comma it wouldn't matter if I was in The lobby of the Bank or not, I wouldn't be able to use my ATM anyway. I only made the post as a heads up so if you guys think I'm stupid by having my SSA deposited directly, I, and the over 10000(according to Bangkok Bank) must be! Let's stop now.

They may require that to open an international account, but there is no maintenance minimum, so you can take it back out. Also with Schwab, since BKK Bank's New York branch is a US bank with a ABA number, you can link your Schwab account and transfer money from you Schwab account to you BKK Bank account, as a domestic transfer, with no transfer fees from Schwab. All done at your computer. Of course BKK Bank will nick you for the $10 fee in New York and another 200 baht here in Thailand.

If you pull the money out of your Schwab account with a debit card at any ATM in the world, this is the rate your get: http://corporate.visa.com/pd/consumer_services/consumer_ex_rates.jsp I have checked it, and this is the EXACT exchange rate you will get. If there is an ATM fee, they refund it to you account at the end of the month. With no minimum required balances, that is pretty generous.

I know everybody doesn't have the luxury, but my wife and I share everything, I trust her completely, she has her own income, and we have each other's PIN's. So if one of us is disabled, the other can use either card to get cash instantly. I do virtually everything except getting cash in my hands from my computer.

The Thi bank fees may not be that much, but, really, there shouldn't be any fees. Most Western banks have dropped most of their fees as a product of competition. Thai banks charge some of the highest interest rates in the world on the money they loan, but pay minimal interest to their depositors. They make a killing on the use of their customer's money, then they make another killing on fees. With a fee for practically everything, I can't even imagine how much they must rake in annually on fees alone. I just do not like participating in that, so I avoid it.

Nobody thinks you are stupid, Wayned; everybody has their preferred method. We are only trying to share the information we have gleaned over the years of living here. It took me a while to figure out how to avoid the bank fees, have speed and convenience, and get the best possible exchange rate. I am so happy with the way it works, I just try to share it whenever possible. And, I also am not trying to sell you on it. Other people are watching this thread and somebody may find it useful. Thanks for starting it.

As to Schwab, I don't recommend very many companies, but they have always been wonderful. I can call them toll free and get a live person 24/7, they seldom ever say "no," opting instead for, "Let's see what we can do." That level of service is too rare these days. I cannot sing high enough praises.

[Pib]

If I'm recalling this right, one of the differences between having a SS payment go to a foreign bank account vs a U.S. one is....

With a U.S. account, it can be direct deposited and you'd never have to physically go to the branch.

But with a foreign account like BKK Bank, the U.S. govt requires the SS recipient to go to the branch in person every month.

I don't receive SS... But when the day comes (hopefully) that I will, I'm pretty sure I'll want to be going the U.S. account deposit route.

Oh ya... and... avoiding those bank international transaction fees.

I don't think it's the "U.S. govt" requiring a person to personally show up to accomplish withdrawals, it's just the way Bangkok Bank implements their Direct Deposit accounts for U.S. Govt pensions to ensue it's "really the pensioner" and to stay on the good side of U.S. law since they do business in the U.S. And I expect (but I'm guessing) the majority of Americans in Thailand have Bangkok Bank accounts...yea, I know there are a lot of Americans using K-Bank and SCB in certain locations but I'm still guessing Bangkok Bank gets the majority of Americans banking business primarily based on the number of ThaiVisa posts I've read over the years.

Anyway, in the U.S. when someone dies, their death is reported by multiple civilian and local govt agencies plus next of kin and news of the death reaches the U.S. govt agency providing the monthly pension like the Social Security Agency, DFAS for military pensions, OPM for civil service pensions, or some other U.S. govt pension agency pretty fast. They get the word within a few weeks or a few months even if the pensioner's next of kin didn't quickly report the death to the pension agency which would have immediately stopped the pension payment...and even if an extra month or two pensions payments flowed-out it's easy for that U.S. govt agency to recover the money under U.S. laws in the U.S.

However, but, when a pension is flowing to a foreign bank it can be much harder for the U.S. govt to find out about a pensioner died and then stop the monthly payments unless the U.S. Embassy reports the death or the next of kin reports the death. And if the next of kin is a foreign spouse who "knowingly or unknowingly" does not report the death to the pension agency "and also has access to the direct deposit account" then that spouse could withdraw the pension funds as the pension continues to flow in monthly until Uncle Sam finds out the pensioner has croaked and no one told him. Then Uncle Sam stops the monthly payment and tries to recover the unauthorized payments but he's now also dealing with the laws of another country and probably foreign next of kin citizens which makes it very hard to recover any money; unless, the Thai bank the pension payment is going to has policies in place which meet the intend of the U.S. law to stop any fraudulent/unauthorized payments and allow easy U.S. govt recovery of the money.

I guess the Bangkok Bank Direct Deposits accounts meet this intent by allowing only the pensioner to accomplish withdrawals "in person" along with no ATM or ibanking withdrawal access. You can still view the Direct Deposit account on ibanking (I do) and maybe even add funds to it but you can't transfer funds from it via ibanking. Basically, the pensioner needs to prove he is still alive/breathing by accomplishing withdrawals/transfers in person...if he can't do that then he just may be dead. Yes, yes, he may be unable to get to the bank, then the pensioner would have to work out something to satisfy the bank's "in-person" requirement....maybe a Bangkok Bank rep would visit him in the hospital to allow him to sign a withdrawal slip and show his passport...I don't know. I think I remember one post where a hospitalized pensioner and his local Bangkok Bank had worked out such an arrangement.

But I guess the bottom line is Bangkok Bank tries to comply with the intent of the U.S. law since they do business in the U.S. also and don't want to run afoul of any laws. And it's probably a good thing for us Americans living in Thailand even if the Direct Deposit account comes with restrictions (i.e., no ATM access, must show up in person to withdraw/transfer funds, etc). And for those who are now thinking well just send the money to a regular Bangkok Bank saving account....well, you can "until Bangkok Bank" catches on that it's a U.S. govt pension payment and then will block the posting of the funds to the account until you come in and open a Direct Deposit account for the funds to flow into. I've seen several posts of U.S. govt pensioners who say their pension flows to their regular Bangkok Bank saving accounts with no problem...and others who say Bangkok Bank required them to setup a direct deposit account. There is coding in the transfers that identify the funds transfer as coming from a U.S. govt agency which makes it easy for the bank to spot such reoccurring transfers but based on posts I've seen it seems to be hit or miss if they catch you.

This happened to me around 5 years ago when I first moved/retired to Thailand, was still struggling with the way I wanted to send over funds (i.e, via ACH transfer every X-month or X-months, use debit cards, use Direct Deposit, etc). At one point before I got several no foreign transaction fee debit cards I had my military retirement pension going to my Bangkok Bank regular savings account but after 2 or 3 months of the monthly pension payment flowing into the account no problem, one month it didn't show up in my account on time and about a week after the first of the month I got a letter from Bangkok Bank saying I needed to come in and setup a Direct Deposit account in order to continue to receive the U.S. govt pension payment to Bangkok Bank and receive the one payment that was on-hold otherwise they would send that one payment back. I did go setup a Direct Deposit account and allow the month pension to continue to flow to it for a few more months with no problems and then stopped that method as I switched to periodic ACH transfers and also got some no foreign transaction debit cards, with the later being my sole method of getting funds over the last two years or so since getting the cards although I sill have ACH transfer links setup when I need to use such a transfer for a BIG money transfer or on that dreaded day when the cards may change from no foreign transaction fee cards to cards with fees...then it would probably be cheaper to switch back to using periodic ACH transfers to my regular Bangkok Bank saving account. But I'm still keeping my Direct Deposit account just in case some out of the blue policy change makes it beneficial for me to use again...plus, it don't cost me anything to keep it open since I keep a little more that 2,000 baht in it to avoid any low balance/non-use fees. .

I don't receive a SS pension either, but that day is getting close to when I could start drawing the early retirement amount, but I think I will wait to apply until I get closer to the full retirement age in order to get a little more each month...buy hey, I may change my mind about that tomorrow. Plus my method of only having birthdays every other year seems to have slowed down the aging process.

[Ticketmaster]

Rather than having a big shindig at the temple, with roast farang, when I die, I suggested to my wife that she should quietly bury me in the back yard and continue withdrawing my SS from Schwab with the debit card. She wouldn't have any part of it. I guess one of us has some integrity!

As for waiting to withdraw the SS until you reach "full retirement," allowing for the time value of money, you'll have to live past 80 just to break even. I did the calculations, once, but have forgotten the exact break even age.