Ordered to come into the bank to show my passport

[AyG]

I've had accounts with Krung Thai bank for a little over 10 years.

I've just received a 'phone call from my local branch telling me to come into the branch to show them my visa (or, I presume, more precisely my extension of stay).

This has never happened to me before - not with Krung Thai, or with any other bank.

Any idea what's going on?

Is this something that all banks have started doing? Or should I just close all my accounts with Krung Thai to avoid the inconvenience?

[attrayant]

Don't passports expire every ten years? Maybe their system has just flagged you as needing to be updated. But I'd probably ignore it if I were in your shoes.

[Jingthing]

Are you American? If so, that would explain it. New rules for Americans.

[AyG]

Not American. A few years before my passport expires.

[Asiantravel]

Don't passports expire every ten years? Maybe their system has just flagged you as needing to be updated. But I'd probably ignore it if I were in your shoes.

But I'd probably ignore it if I were in your shoes.

why ?

[attrayant]

Because, unless the bank issued some kind of ultimatum along with the request, I have no good reason to comply.

[rucus7]

Go in show them your passport and close your account. Tell them to piss up a rope.

Edited August 28, 2014 by rucus7

[attrayant]

The OP reads like the call ended right after the request was made. OP: did you not have a chance to ask the caller why the request is being made, and to point out that your passport is the same today as it was when they photocopied it ten years ago? Without answers to these questions, the bank is just wasting your time.

[AyG]

The OP reads like the call ended right after the request was made. OP: did you not have a chance to ask the caller why the request is being made, and to point out that your passport is the same today as it was when they photocopied it ten years ago? Without answers to these questions, the bank is just wasting your time.

It wasn't a short telephone call. The first two employees didn't speak any English, so I had to ask what exactly they wanted in Thai. (And my Thai is pretty good.) They couldn't explain. The third spoke some English, but again couldn't explain exactly what was required or why. (The major sticking point in both languages was that the staff concerned couldn't actually give the exact name, in Thai or English, of precisely what document they required.) I pointed out that I have lived in Thailand for more than 10 years and never been asked to produce my passport, other than to open an account or make a withdrawal. I also pointed out that no other bank has ever asked me to produce my passport without a good reason. (I'm rather grumpy like that.)

The impression I got was that the branch had received some instruction from Head Office to verify something or other, and the local staff didn't understand. (I don't live in an area with many foreigners, so staff aren't used to dealing with them and their issues.)

[thrilled]

I'm wondering what they would do if you just ignore it?Freeze your account?What gets me is they have A copy of your passport.

It really don't make any sense.But we have to remember we are dealing with Thailand.1st stepped foot in Thailand in 1971,

Nothing surprises me.

[Likener1]

Taxation investigation ?

As it seems the staff are actually unsure it would make any verification checks rather difficult if they don't know what they have to verify.

I would just turn up at the branch and explain that I thought I had received a nuisance call, possibly from con men pretending to be from Khrung Thai, and just wanted to inform you, my bank, that this had happened and what should I do about it as I didn't really understand what they were saying.

Then play it by ear and choose your actions accordingly

[CMSteve]

As your accounts are over 10 yrs old, your passport and passport number have changed. They probably just need to update their records to a valid ID

[givenall]

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I'm wondering what they would do if you just ignore it?Freeze your account?What gets me is they have A copy of your passport.
It really don't make any sense.But we have to remember we are dealing with Thailand.1st stepped foot in Thailand in 1971,
Nothing surprises me.

I have never understood why Thai check their record first. They always want new copies of documents even if they already have them, They are very lazy to do any up front work. They want you to do the work, even doctors never know your case before you see them for a return issues, you always have to tell them why you are there

[NanLaew]

My Bangkok Bank account still has the address of the house I built and sold over 18 years ago. I asked them a few months ago if they needed an updated address and they said they would need to request the change of address form from head office and would let me know. I have heard nothing about it since.

Meanwhile, my Isle of Man based bank that I have been happy with for nigh on 30 years has suddenly requested that I prove who I am and where I live with very arcane and limited ways of providing the evidence they seek.

But I digress... the OP should pop into the local branch and speak to the manager about what exactly they require and why. It doesn't sound like much of a hardship unlike my UK offshore bank!

Edited August 28, 2014 by NanLaew

[Pib]

Probably just some records check and they think your passport is expired. Just go show your passport...let them make a copy...update their records, etc. I expect if they took the effort to call you regarding the passport that they could very well freeze your account to force you to comply.

[salavan]

get rid of your phone or dont tell them your number then they would have to come to you, cant see that happening

[attrayant]

The OP reads like the call ended right after the request was made. OP: did you not have a chance to ask the caller why the request is being made, and to point out that your passport is the same today as it was when they photocopied it ten years ago? Without answers to these questions, the bank is just wasting your time.

The impression I got was that the branch had received some instruction from Head Office to verify something or other, and the local staff didn't understand. (I don't live in an area with many foreigners, so staff aren't used to dealing with them and their issues.)

Then I'd probably lodge a complaint. Banks need to be exceedingly clear and concise these days, especially when initiating contact with customers. And it's not like they didn't know they were calling a foreign customer. They should have had their best English speaking customer rep handling this. This is an example of extremely poor customer handling in my opinion.

[ldnguy]

Why not just go to the branch and show them what they need, Seems a bit silly to just ignore them for no good reason. People on this forum seem to get upset very easily by little things like this.

[laowai1960]

I posted the text below back on August 11.

I have had an account with Kasikorn Bank for more than 12 months but was making a change to my account that required me to show proof of I.D.

In my experience, taking a copy of the I.D. page of my passport was routine but taking a copy of my visa page was a surprise.

I suspect that banks have been given an order by the authorities to check the visa validity of all foreign account holders.

The clerk at Kasikorn Pattaya copied both the main, I.D. page of my passport and the page containing my visa..

I asked the clerk why he had copied my visa page. He said that he had copied the main page of my passport to prove my I.D. and he copied the visa page to prove that my visa hasn't expired. He then voluntarily added that the bank is required to notify Immigration Police if they come across any expired visas.

[Gumballl]

Why not just go to the branch and show them what they need, Seems a bit silly to just ignore them for no good reason. People on this forum seem to get upset very easily by little things like this.

It probably has something to do with the summer heat boiling the brain and/or the with the superiority complex issue of the OP.

Frankly, for me, a request like this would offer me an excuse to get away from the BFE village where my wife and I have our house. Passports, from most countries (surprisingly not Thailand) expire every 10 years. Most likely the passport on record at the bank has expired. Why does everything have to be associated with a conspiracy theory about being tracked by "Big Brother"?

Edited August 28, 2014 by Gumballl

[paulissa]

TMB gave me a massive headache last month. Using Internet banking I changed the phone number of my daughter's account to my number for receiving OTP by SMS. As my number is already registered to my bank account they automatically locked my ATM card and blocked all Internet banking transfers without warning.

I called them up and they explained that all I needed to do was visit my branch with a copy of my passport and they would unblock it. I had a rant at the girl on the other end of the phone as I explained that the only problem was that I was working in Colombia at the time with no chance to get back to Thailand for 2 weeks. So the next 2 weeks were spent trying to pay my bills with overseas credit cards and juggling my payments in Thailand.

I had planned to have a rant about the stupidity of them blocking access to my account when I went to the branch to sort it out but once I arrived it would just be a further waste of my time, I haven't closed the account with TMB yet as the branch I use is convenient for me, but I certainly use my SCB account whenever I have the option.

[technologybytes]

The OP reads like the call ended right after the request was made. OP: did you not have a chance to ask the caller why the request is being made, and to point out that your passport is the same today as it was when they photocopied it ten years ago? Without answers to these questions, the bank is just wasting your time.

The OP clearly said they asked to bring in his visa... why is everyone going on about the passport being the same.

Could the confusion be about the use of the word "visa". Could that not also apply to a little card with a Visa logo on it ??

Edited August 29, 2014 by technologybytes

[alant]

It looks like some changes in banking for foreigners may have been introduced. I recently went for my letter to include with my extension to immigration. I keep a deposit account which also is security for my Thai "credit" card. For the 1st time in 6 years they would not use the deposit account as it was reserved to guarantee the credit card. The best I could get was a small inclusion that there really was the full sum in the account but the bank reserved it for the credit card. I await the decision on my extension but in either case my banking is under review.

[taiping]

Some years ago one of the major Thai banks here, without informing me, changed my savings account status to a foreign owned account earning very low interest. I found out about it by a rough calculation of the interest due over the previous 6-months. Since I have lived here for many years I objected and requested they reinstate the account so that I get the same interest as a Thai. They hummed and haad about it so I went next door to another bank and opened an account paying the local interest, no problem. When I went back to the first bank they told me they would revert my account but they could not refund the previous interest. I immediately closed my account and removed the funds to the bank next door.

IMO, do not stand for any nonsense - ask them to get someone at Head Office who speaks English to phone you to explain exactly why they want to see your passport.

Incidentally, I have just recently opened a new savings account with another local bank. They only took a photocopy of the main page in my passport, not the visa page, and a copy of the Tabian Bahn. 2.6% pa interest, withdrawals 4 times a month.

[attrayant]

The OP clearly said they asked to bring in his visa... why is everyone going on about the passport being the same.

The OP has clearly said that the bank wasn't clear at all about what they wanted.

And why is a bank playing immigration police all of a sudden? If there are any questions about my current state of immigration legality, why doesn't immigration pick up the phone and call me?

What's next? CAT Telecom wants me to come in and show my work permit? Major cineplex needs to see my departure slip?

Edited August 29, 2014 by attrayant

[AyG]

As your accounts are over 10 yrs old, your passport and passport number have changed. They probably just need to update their records to a valid ID

I don't think it's as simple as this, otherwise they would have asked me directly to bring in my passport. I'm pretty sure, on reflection, that it's visa-related. I was the one who first used the word "passport" in the conversation.

What seems odd to me is that nobody else has reported receiving a similar 'phone call.

[Estrada]

Not American. A few years before my passport expires.

The problem is with the American Government IRS. I also was nearly refused a new time deposit account at my Bangkok Bank branch that I have had for 20 years. The reason was the new reporting details for Americans is also being applied to every nationality. The basis for the American's wanting the information is to catch US Citizens not declaring income for tax purposes as well as money laundering. I had to fill out 3 forms for US Government reporting purposes and submit my passport with original Visa and extension of stay, for which I strongly object to.

Big Brother is Watching You!

[brimacthai]

Our passports are our only form of ID for Thailand that can be used for legal things. I got upset with my bank (I had one account with them of 7 years) and I needed to open another account. They didn't want to see a copy of my passport but they needed to see the original.

Returning with my passport and showing it to the clerk... I noticed the Thai person sitting next to me opening a new account too... he was required to show his Thai ID card and his family card.

When I asked about this the bank told me that the new policy is they have to see the originals and make the copies for the bank to keep.

Thai people have to show their ID and family cards for many things... we're asked to show our Thai ID if we have and our passport... don't make a mountain out of nothing... just help them update their records, be friendly and smile... the next time you need something from them they will remember the
"nice" foreigner that is helpful and friendly.

[adammike]

a few years ago almost everybody here in the netherlands had to go to there bank and show there passport/drivers

licence to verify that they were indeed the account holder.

Also all aliens were summoned to the immigration service

to show that they were kosher,the banks were after whitewashing money,the immigration was for the introduction

of ID cards,the threat was the bank account would be frozen

if they did not see some sort of ID,

[Minnehaha]

Not American. A few years before my passport expires.

AyG, pls do update this thread with how you handled this and what their explanation was if you talk to them.

As an American, I wonder if any other TV folks heard of / know of their Thai banks reporting details to the USG. As we know, the USG is forcing banks around the world to report on the accounts of US citizens.