How does my thai wife transfer funds out of Thailand?

[wontok]

We moved back to Australia about three years ago, and have just sold our house in Thailand. It was in my Thai wife's name (of course), and we now want to transfer the funds (several million Baht) to Australia. They did not originally come from Australia and are my wife's own assets. It seems from the Bank of Thailand website that it is possible for her to do this, but I'm sure it won't be as simple a process as it sounds. Has anyone experience of this? Any advice re which bank to use, or not use, paperwork required etc, would be very welcome. Thanks in advance to everyone....

Wontok

[samran]

It is a little bit of paperwork but not too much. Basically you need an acceptable reason for the transfer. The bank will let you know what they are. Educational, living expenses for family members overseas, etc etc.

I think I (as the Thai citizen) used supporting my wife as a reason. It then gets set up and via Internet banking you can transfer away.

Probably need to do it in person at the bank however.

[dbrenn]

It's easy.

All she does is go to her branch with her Thai ID card and the details of her Aussie bank, and they'll set her Internet banking up for international transfers. Get her to print and fill out the forms from the Internet banking portal first. Reasons for the transfer listed on the website include "Gift", "Personal Expenses", "Loan Payment", "Repatriation of funds for Thai residing abroad", etc.

I regularly do outward international transfers online using BBL and SCB Internet Banking. BBL is the best, because once you have set up one international bank account then you can add others with no need to visit BBL branch. SCB requires that you visit a branch for each new added account.

The fees are 300 Baht for the transfer and the rate is the standard TT sell rate. You can pay 1000 Baht and not have to pay any charges to the receiving bank, so it depends on your Oz bank as to which works out cheaper. Commonwealth Bank charges me AU$ 22, Ubank only AU$ 10, so shop around at the Aussie end.

There is a limit for Thai citizens of USD 500,000 per year before you need to declare it to the Bank of Thailand

The kicker for you is that they may be no way of setting up the international transfer facility remotely from Oz. One visit to her bank branch in Thailand to identify herself and sign a form in front of a bank employee is required (for BBL/SCB, and likely the rest as is probably a Bank of Thailand requirement).

Edited January 17, 2015 by dbrenn

[CharlieH]

WRONG FORUM

MOVED TO BANKING

[meatboy]

i would think she would have to prove where the money came from in the first place to buy the house you just sold.

what assets she had before marrying you.

[wontok]

i would think she would have to prove where the money came from in the first place to buy the house you just sold.

what assets she had before marrying you.

Thanks for your input - can you point me to whre you found this information?

cheers, Wontok

[wontok]

It is a little bit of paperwork but not too much. Basically you need an acceptable reason for the transfer. The bank will let you know what they are. Educational, living expenses for family members overseas, etc etc.

I think I (as the Thai citizen) used supporting my wife as a reason. It then gets set up and via Internet banking you can transfer away.

Probably need to do it in person at the bank however.

Thanks - very usueful

[wontok]

It's easy.

All she does is go to her branch with her Thai ID card and the details of her Aussie bank, and they'll set her Internet banking up for international transfers. Get her to print and fill out the forms from the Internet banking portal first. Reasons for the transfer listed on the website include "Gift", "Personal Expenses", "Loan Payment", "Repatriation of funds for Thai residing abroad", etc.

I regularly do outward international transfers online using BBL and SCB Internet Banking. BBL is the best, because once you have set up one international bank account then you can add others with no need to visit BBL branch. SCB requires that you visit a branch for each new added account.

The fees are 300 Baht for the transfer and the rate is the standard TT sell rate. You can pay 1000 Baht and not have to pay any charges to the receiving bank, so it depends on your Oz bank as to which works out cheaper. Commonwealth Bank charges me AU$ 22, Ubank only AU$ 10, so shop around at the Aussie end.

There is a limit for Thai citizens of USD 500,000 per year before you need to declare it to the Bank of Thailand

The kicker for you is that they may be no way of setting up the international transfer facility remotely from Oz. One visit to her bank branch in Thailand to identify herself and sign a form in front of a bank employee is required (for BBL/SCB, and likely the rest as is probably a Bank of Thailand requirement).

Great reply - we'll ge on to it asap

[meatboy]

i would think she would have to prove where the money came from in the first place to buy the house you just sold.

what assets she had before marrying you.

Thanks for your input - can you point me to whre you found this information?

cheers, Wontok

its only what we experianced but that was 25yrs.ago.

the last time the wife deposited a large amount [proceeds from a house sale uk] they gave her an international transfer

certificate as proof of where it came from,in case she wanted to take it out of thailand.

so i am just sumising that they might ask her where she got it from.

[chiang mai]

I believe she may need to need to show the blue receipt from the Land Office showing that tax was paid on the sale.

[dbrenn]

i would think she would have to prove where the money came from in the first place to buy the house you just sold.

what assets she had before marrying you.

Thanks for your input - can you point me to whre you found this information?

cheers, Wontok

its only what we experianced but that was 25yrs.ago.

the last time the wife deposited a large amount [proceeds from a house sale uk] they gave her an international transfer

certificate as proof of where it came from,in case she wanted to take it out of thailand.

so i am just sumising that they might ask her where she got it from.

The OP case is different. His wife's funds originated in Thailand, as Thai Baht, and were not exchanged into Thai Baht from a foreign currency. I think that there were more restrictions on Thai citizens buying foreign currency 25 years ago than there are now, and Internet Banking didn't exist then either.

All the OP's wife needs to do is deposit the proceeds form her Thai house sale into her savings account, set up international transfers in her Internet Banking, then she can transfer up to USD 500,000 annually to her nominated overseas bank.

Once set up, it's as easy as logging on and transferring cash with a few mouse clicks - just like any other Internet bank money transfer. The only difference is that you are reminded of the USD 500,000 yearly limit every time you make a transaction.

Depending on the relationship between the sending and receiving bank, the money takes one or two days to arrive at its destination.

[chiang mai]

I may be out of date on this but the last I heard on this subject was that a Thai citizen who wished to transfer funds overseas, could only do so for a number of specific purposes which had to be stated at the time, a previous poster has described some of these reasons.

[dbrenn]

I may be out of date on this but the last I heard on this subject was that a Thai citizen who wished to transfer funds overseas, could only do so for a number of specific purposes which had to be stated at the time, a previous poster has described some of these reasons.

As I've already said, I'm a Thai citizen, and I transfer money out regularly using BBL and SCB Internet banking.

The BBL Internet bank allows you to set up foreign bank accounts online, choosing from a list of reasons for the transfer. When you then select to pay money to that beneficiary at any time in the future, the reason that you chose during the registration process appears on the remittance.

Using the online form, you can set up as many beneficiaries, each with their own reason, as you like. You can choose from a list of reasons, and there is no verification process to check whether the reason you chose was the actual reason. Once a beneficiary is set up, you can transfer money to it as often as you wish, so long as you stay within your USD 500,000 annual limit.

It really is that easy.

[kian246]

I may be out of date on this but the last I heard on this subject was that a Thai citizen who wished to transfer funds overseas, could only do so for a number of specific purposes which had to be stated at the time, a previous poster has described some of these reasons.

As I've already said, I'm a Thai citizen, and I transfer money out regularly using BBL and SCB Internet banking.

The BBL Internet bank allows you to set up foreign bank accounts online, choosing from a list of reasons for the transfer. When you then select to pay money to that beneficiary at any time in the future, the reason that you chose during the registration process appears on the remittance.

Using the online form, you can set up as many beneficiaries, each with their own reason, as you like. You can choose from a list of reasons, and there is no verification process to check whether the reason you chose was the actual reason. Once a beneficiary is set up, you can transfer money to it as often as you wish, so long as you stay within your USD 500,000 annual limit.

It really is that easy.

It is allowed to bring cash to Laos. A moneychanger there converts your Baht into USD. Cheaper than banks.

[chiang mai]

I may be out of date on this but the last I heard on this subject was that a Thai citizen who wished to transfer funds overseas, could only do so for a number of specific purposes which had to be stated at the time, a previous poster has described some of these reasons.

As I've already said, I'm a Thai citizen, and I transfer money out regularly using BBL and SCB Internet banking.

The BBL Internet bank allows you to set up foreign bank accounts online, choosing from a list of reasons for the transfer. When you then select to pay money to that beneficiary at any time in the future, the reason that you chose during the registration process appears on the remittance.

Using the online form, you can set up as many beneficiaries, each with their own reason, as you like. You can choose from a list of reasons, and there is no verification process to check whether the reason you chose was the actual reason. Once a beneficiary is set up, you can transfer money to it as often as you wish, so long as you stay within your USD 500,000 annual limit.

It really is that easy.

It is allowed to bring cash to Laos. A moneychanger there converts your Baht into USD. Cheaper than banks.

A maximum of THB 50k I believe.

[dbrenn]

I may be out of date on this but the last I heard on this subject was that a Thai citizen who wished to transfer funds overseas, could only do so for a number of specific purposes which had to be stated at the time, a previous poster has described some of these reasons.

As I've already said, I'm a Thai citizen, and I transfer money out regularly using BBL and SCB Internet banking.

The BBL Internet bank allows you to set up foreign bank accounts online, choosing from a list of reasons for the transfer. When you then select to pay money to that beneficiary at any time in the future, the reason that you chose during the registration process appears on the remittance.

Using the online form, you can set up as many beneficiaries, each with their own reason, as you like. You can choose from a list of reasons, and there is no verification process to check whether the reason you chose was the actual reason. Once a beneficiary is set up, you can transfer money to it as often as you wish, so long as you stay within your USD 500,000 annual limit.

It really is that easy.

It is allowed to bring cash to Laos. A moneychanger there converts your Baht into USD. Cheaper than banks.

A maximum of THB 50k I believe.

And only good for people who feel safe carrying wads of cash around and who are sure that the money changer is an honest one. Regards taking cash in the form of bank notes, out of Thailand, the Bank of Thailand regulations are as follows:

A person traveling to Vietnam, the People's Republic of China (only Yunnan province) and Thailand's bordering countries is allowed to take out up to THB 2,000,000. Taking out Thai Baht bank notes in an amount exceeding THB 450,000 requires declaration to a Customs Officer.

A person traveling to other countries is allowed up to THB 50,000.

As regards bank rates, the cash rate is always inferior to the TT rate. For example, if I were to buy USD with Thai Baht in cash, the bank would sell USD to me at 32.88 Baht per 1 USD. If on the other hand I were to buy USD with Thai Baht via TT, wiring the money into a foreign bank account, the bank would sell them to me at 32.72 Baht per 1 USD.

The OP was selling a house, so let's say it was worth a modest 2,000,000 Baht (the cash limit to take to Laos). Comparing prices:

2,000,000 Baht cash gets me USD 60,827.25

2,000,000 Baht sent to my foreign bank account gets me USD 61,124.69

Transferring by TT the same 2,000,000 Baht gets me USD 297.44 more, minus the $10 to $20 transaction charge. Added bonuses are that TT is risk free - I won't get ripped off by a dodgy money changer, and I won't get robbed carrying wads of cash around, and there is no need to travel to Laos and back again.

[dbrenn]

For those who are interested, the Bank of Thailand regulations on foreign exchange are here:

http://www.bot.or.th/English/ForeignExchangeRegulations/FXRegulation/Pages/ExchangeControlLaw.aspx

I've highlighted the Internet Banking method (with no specific reason or obligation) that I described to the OP below:

II. BANK DEPOSITS

a. Foreign Currency Account of Thai Residents

Thai residents are allowed to maintain foreign currency accounts with authorized banks, and deposit or withdraw funds from such accounts under the following conditions:

1. Deposit

(1) Foreign currencies originating from abroad (foreign-source) can be deposited into foreign currency accounts without limit.

(2) Foreign currencies purchased or borrowed from authorized banks (domestic-source) can be deposited into 2 types of foreign currency accounts:

(i) Foreign currency accounts with future obligations: deposits can be made in an amount not exceeding future obligations to pay in foreign currencies to entities abroad. Such obligations include loan repayment to authorized banks.

(ii) Foreign currency accounts without future obligations: the total outstanding balance shall not exceed USD 500,000 for both a natural person and a juristic person.

(3) Deposit of foreign currency notes and coins must not exceed USD 10,000 per person per day.

[kian246]

They are starting to print money like crazy all around the world. It may be wise to convert cash into more durable assets, rather than just transferring it.