Helpful Bank Branches in Central BKK for Immigration Letters?

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Looking for suggestions of any particular Thai bank branches (bank company and location specific) in Central or downtown BKK that have been particularly helpful / cooperative in producing the annual deposit letters required by Immigration for extensions of stays?

I've got some funds coming free that I want to deposit for the Immigration purpose. But a lot of the Thai bank staff I've encountered over time seem particularly clueless. And my original plan to use one of the branches in the basement of the Chaengwattana Government Complex now seems to be unworkable for the foreseeable future due to the "protest" there and CW Immigration's continuing closure.

Ideally, a helpful branch belonging to Bangkok Bank, Siam Commercial or Standard Chartered would make things easiest. But I could deal with other bank company branches as well, if they really made getting the Immigration letter relatively hassle free.

Thanks in advance for any helpful suggestions.

[ubonjoe]

Go to Bangkok Banks main office on Silom and I am sure you will get what you want done.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

I should have added, I'm on a retirement extension, so a branch that doesn't hassle you for a work permit in order to open an account would be an added plus.

Surely someone's having a passable experience with getting Immigration bank letters at some branch in/around the Sukhumvit area???

[Cuchulainn]

Do NOT use Standard Chartered bank for a bank letter (หนังสือรับรองฐานะการเงิน). First, you have to apply for the letter using a form which can only be obtained at a branch (not online). Then you have to wait a day until it's done!! It's a headache, even with "Priority Banking" privilege.

I still bank with SCBTH but use my Kasikorn Bank a/c to get the letter. Any main KTB branch will supply you with a letter on the spot.

If you are applying at Imperial World Lad Prao, the KTB nearly opposite (corner of soi L/P 90) will do one on the spot for B100. No questions asked; only passport & bank book. I did mine a few days ago and it took about 10 mins.

Opening a bank a/c with regards to work permits etc is another matter, though! My extensions are Thai wife (Non "O").

Hope this helps.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

First, you have to apply for the letter using a form which can only be obtained at a branch (not online).

Thanks Cuchulainn...

Is Standard Chartered any different in that regard?

I wasn't aware that any of the Thai banks had online forms for requesting/obtaining bank deposit letters for Immigration.

BTW, I'm sure at SOME point in the future the CW Immigration office will re-open and the bank branches in the basement there will be back in the Immigration letter writing business. But that's not helping anyone right now.

[Cuchulainn]

John

SCBTH is the only bank I know that wants you to apply for the letter in writing (form) and then pick it up the next day (ie 2 trips to the bank).

I did this a few years back and after all the hassle of applying and going back the next day, the letter wasn't ready (and I'm a Priority Banking member). A blazing row followed and I lodged a complaint with the bank. Shit service. I still use them but only for money transferring purposes.

https://www.sc.com/th/en/ways-to-bank/inperson-certified-bank-statement.html

"The client has to submit Bank Statement Application Form and have a financial business with the Bank."

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Thanks for the link and the added info!!!

[davejones23]

I'm on retirement extension and have a Bangkok Bank account. Silom head office have a special counter for immigration letters. Takes a few minutes.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

A bit of an update on this re bank Immigration letters:

Went to the Standard Chartered head office on Sathorn Road today near the Chong Nonsi BTS station, and they were great. Not only did I get an English speaking teller at the main counter when I started there, but she passed me off to a new accounts officer who spoke great English and was very familiar with Immigration letters. The officer I spoke with said they will issue Immigration letters on demand within 10-20 minutes, once you fill out and submit their paper request form.

She also said the head branch will issue Immigration letters for SCBT customers who may have their accounts at other branches of the bank. Apparently, they have a couple of English speaking officers at the main Sathorn branch who specialize in dealing with farang customers and they sit at the desks #21 and #22 beyond the main teller counter. The Sathorn main branch is open M-F starting at 8:30 am, so you can get an earlier start compared to the mall branch hours.

My experience there was night and day different from my earlier visit to Standard Chartered's small Central World branch. They used to have some English speaking staff there, but apparently no longer do. So my Thai wife ended up translating with the Thai CSR/new accounts officer we spoke with there. She seemed pretty unfamiliar with Immigration letters. And after checking with some back office staff, she returned to tell us that they could issue the Immigration letter, but it would take them 5 business days from submitting the request because, she claimed, the requests and resulting letters are routed/issued through Standard Chartered's Sathorn HQ branch. Fee was going to be 200 baht.

Meanwhile, I had a much better experience at the BKK Bank Branch in the basement of Siam Paragon. They have a foreign remittance desk separate from the tellers where the staff speak good English. In chatting with them the other day, they said they regularly handle Immigration letters. Said bring in their completed bank request form before 3 pm one day, and pick up the letter the next day after they open, which is later because they're a mall branch, I believe 10 am or so. They said the fee is 100 baht.

[hyperdimension]

I have over 400k THB in a high-interest account (called "eSaver") at Standard Chartered for my first extension of stay application. A passbook is not provided for this type of account. I also cannot withdraw funds directly from this account using an ATM, therefore cannot obtain an ATM slip that shows the current balance. Would the letter that is provided by Standard Chartered at their head office at Sathorn be enough to qualify at Chaeng Wattana immigration?

[ubonjoe]

I have over 400k THB in a high-interest account (called "eSaver") at Standard Chartered for my first extension of stay application. A passbook is not provided for this type of account. I also cannot withdraw funds directly from this account using an ATM, therefore cannot obtain an ATM slip that shows the current balance. Would the letter that is provided by Standard Chartered at their head office at Sathorn be enough to qualify at Chaeng Wattana immigration?

I hope for your sake immigration will accept your account. Can you withdraw funds at any time without penalty other than loss of interest? If not you will have a problem.

You will need a bank letter and printouts of your account before going to immigration. On the day you apply for the extension you will have to ask the bank for a updated printout of your account.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

I have over 400k THB in a high-interest account (called "eSaver") at Standard Chartered for my first extension of stay application. A passbook is not provided for this type of account. I also cannot withdraw funds directly from this account using an ATM, therefore cannot obtain an ATM slip that shows the current balance. Would the letter that is provided by Standard Chartered at their head office at Sathorn be enough to qualify at Chaeng Wattana immigration?

[Mario2008]

Normally it is a bankbook plus a bank letter, so probably not accepted. But you could ask the bank what their experience is with their account.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

I have over 400k THB in a high-interest account (called "eSaver") at Standard Chartered for my first extension of stay application. A passbook is not provided for this type of account. I also cannot withdraw funds directly from this account using an ATM, therefore cannot obtain an ATM slip that shows the current balance. Would the letter that is provided by Standard Chartered at their head office at Sathorn be enough to qualify at Chaeng Wattana immigration?

Glad you asked that question. I had an experience on this a few months back at Chaengwattana Immigration.

I renewed my retirement extension via consulate income letter. But just for test purposes, I brought along what I thought I needed in case I ever wanted to use my Standard Chartered account for a combo-method extension application. So, I got the bank letter from Standard Chartered's main Sathorn branch the day before my Immigration visit, no problem, along with updating my passbook as of that day.

I have a slightly different account from yours, in that mine also a} doesn't have an ATM card and b} does allow up to two withdrawals per month, but c) DOES have a SC passbook.

Here's what happened when I ran my bank stuff by the Immigration supervisor who gave the final sign off on my retirement extension (using my consulate income letter, but asking about the bank documents for the future):

She said, the account type was fine, the bank income letter was fine, and the passbook I brought along was fine. BUT, apparently because the income letter and/or the passbook update were dated the DAY BEFORE my trip to Immigration, the supervisor said I'd also need to bring along an ATM receipt showing the balance in my account as of the same day I was at Immigration. Which would have been a problem, since my SC has no ATM card.

The supervisor's English was minimal, so I didn't/couldn't get a clear answer from her of IF my SC income letter and passbook update would have been dated the SAME day as my Immigration visit, would the issue about the ATM receipt then have become unnecessary.

But, AFAIK, SC doesn't have a branch within the CW government complex, and their closest one I believe is down the road at the CW Mall, and it doesn't open until mid-morning (mall hours). So if I had relied on that on the day of my Immigration visit, it probably would have meant not actually arriving at Immigration until around lunchtime.

In the alternative, I suppose I could have gone to the Sathorn HQ at their 8:30 am opening time, updated my passbook and waited for the letter, and then headed off to Immigration, which probably would have put me to Immigration perhaps by 11 am. Either way, not optimal compared to being able to obtain a bank letter within the CW complex or at least get an ATM update slip from one of the banks with a branch there.

In your case, without a passbook and without the ability to obtain an ATM receipt, I'm not sure how you could satisfy Immigration. I don't think they'd accept a SC income letter alone, even if it was dated the day of your visit, without seeing either a passbook or ATM receipt.

And, even if it was done on the same day as your Immigration visit, I don't know if Immigration would accept bank-issued printout copies of your account activity, instead of seeing and/or having photocopies of an actual bank passbook.

But it's something probably best to run by Immigration directly, as I did on my recent visit. I'm sure glad I did a test run on my bank letter, otherwise, I would have been denied and have to come back again.

SC does have a Just One savings acount that does come with a passbook and an ATM card that pays around 2.3% interest right now, which probably would be easier for Immigration purposes. And the Bank of Ayudhya likewise has a Mee Tai Dee account that also pays a similar rate, and they have a branch within the Government Complex with ATMs.