800k in Bank Acct - any with ATM access?

[curtklay]

Thailand...land of ambiguity.

I asked at my bank if I could fill out a beneficiary form so my wife could access the funds in my retirement extension account in the event of my demise. They said there is no such thing. However similar to what Nancy said, they told us since they know us, there would be no problem. We also have a joint account at the same branch. I also have a US will that specifies my wife as the beneficiary to all bank accounts. The "Ask A Lawyer" service here on TVF stated to me that an additional Thai will would not be necessary. Just in case, she also has access to my ATM card and PIN.

Craig: My thoughts are with you during your struggle. You are one of the good guys.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

I also have a US will that specifies my wife as the beneficiary to all bank accounts. The "Ask A Lawyer" service here on TVF stated to me that an additional Thai will would not be necessary.

I'm a bit surprised to hear that advice.

Generally, from everything I've been able to gather on this subject over time, the prevailing legal advice on wills seems to be:

Best to do one will for assets in your home country in your home country's language and complying with its legal requirements, and then do a separate will in Thai language with English translation only pertaining to your assets in Thailand.

In the U.S., different states, based on your last state of residency, can have different requirements for wills in terms of how they must be prepared and witnessed. Whereas on the Thai side, there's one national law governing wills, but the governing document in any legal matter will need to be in Thai language, AFAIK.

Whether it's possible to merge all those details and requirements from two countries into a single English language will document that suffices for all purposes seems to me to be a potentially perilous proposition.

Edited November 13, 2014 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[craigt3365]

Thailand...land of ambiguity.

I asked at my bank if I could fill out a beneficiary form so my wife could access the funds in my retirement extension account in the event of my demise. They said there is no such thing. However similar to what Nancy said, they told us since they know us, there would be no problem. We also have a joint account at the same branch. I also have a US will that specifies my wife as the beneficiary to all bank accounts. The "Ask A Lawyer" service here on TVF stated to me that an additional Thai will would not be necessary. Just in case, she also has access to my ATM card and PIN.

Craig: My thoughts are with you during your struggle. You are one of the good guys.

Thanks, man. I appreciate that. It's been real difficult. We've screwed shut all the drawers and cabinet doors in her room (she use to like to crawl into the closet, take everything out, take her clothes off and hang them up...plus, she likes to put poop into the drawers), we've screwed shut the windows (she's tried climbing out a few times), we've covered up the mirrors (she would crawl up on the cabinet and have hours long conversations with the reflection in the mirror), we've turned off the water to the shower and sink (she'd take the bedding off and try to wash it at 2am), screens have already been ripped off, electrical sockets disconnected as she loves to pull the covers off and try to pull the boxes out, etc, etc, etc. We've got NO glass ornaments anywhere in the house that's accessible to her (toooooo many broken things already).

It really is a nightmare at times. She has sundowners. Sometime in the afternoon, you never know exactly when, a monster appears. Wifey and the maid have had bruises from encounters with her. All this from a lady who was absolutely wonderful, smart and would never hurt a fly. A real gem.

What keeps me going? First, a promise I made my father. Second, every so often, she'll come to me in the morning and thank me for taking care of her. I'm leery at first, not knowing if I'll get hit, bit, kicked, etc. But every once in a while, I'll get a kiss and a kind word. Alzheimer's sucks.

[Naam]

A notarized signature should do the trick.

An even better option is a notarized power of attorney registered with the bank.

power of attorney attached to the usual account not possible with a Thai bank.

[craigt3365]

OK. Got off my lazy butt and checked into some of this today.

TMB: recommendation from asst manager was to have a lawyer prepare a will and bring it back to them for review. When Mom passes, it will be in effect and I can get the money. But we've had issues with this bank before. Getting different stories from different people. So I have little trust in what I'm being told. And nobody in the Jomtien branch speaks English.

A huge THANKS to TallGuyJohninBKK!!!!!!!!!!!! Went to Krungsri in Central Festival Pattaya. The clerk at the first desk spoke perfect English and explained the whole procedure to me. That Mee Tae Dai savings account is paying 2.37%, you can access the money via ATM for no fee 2 times per month. No taxes are paid unless you go over 20,000B in interest. If you do, you just close the account and open a new one with the same rate.

He said a power of attorney was fine for me to access mom's account and that they can do it right there! With only mom's thumb print. Wow...couldn't be easier. I can even close out her old accounts and open new ones on her behalf.

Mom's TMB account finishes at the end of December. We'll go in just after that, close it, and walk down the hall to Krungsri.

I'll do an update in January also. This all sounds too easy! LOL

[bangmai]

TMB seems to be the most unwelcoming to foreigners......they had a real rough time understanding that it would be very unlikely for me to produce a work permit, with the words "Employment Prohibited" on my long stay visa. I've gone the Krungsri route, too....however their recent PDF says 2.3%, but the website says 2.35%, and this poster says 2.37%....KTB is paying 4.0% on 60 month time deposits, or 3.5% for 15 months.....YMMV.

Edited December 9, 2014 by bangmai