Do they close your account after 12 months?

[finy]

I have 3 bank accounts in Thailand, but they've probably been sitting empty for more than a year now.

I read BB requires you to have 1k in bank for card fees.

I'm about to move back next week and can replenish accounts, but just wondering if they'll still be operational.

Cheers

[mickjn]

I forgot about an account I had at K Bank had nothing in it for 2 years.Went to the bank,spoke to the lady,she said they would have closed it when the card ran out.The card must have a 5 year life because this one doesn't expire until 7/17.Maybe other banks are different

[Pib]

If no owner activity (ie.., deposit, withdrawal) "after" 12 months "and" "less than" a Bt2K balance (must meet both criteria) Bangkok Bank will start charging a Bt50 month maintenance fee until the balance reaches zero and then the account is closed. Other Thai banks have very similar policies. Use it or lose it if maintaining a low balance.

If there was zero balance then there would be no balance to slowly pull down to zero via the monthly maintenance fee so it would have probably been closed after 12 months. Or say you did leave just few hundred baht in the balance but had a debit card with the account...well, the annual debt card fee of Bt200-Bt300 (or whatever it is) would have pulled the balance down to zero. Or if the debt card fee didn't immediately pull the balance to zero it may have pulled it below the Bt2K level triggering the Bt50/month maintenance fee starting that count down till the balance reaches zero. Various scenarios where the balance could have been pulled to zero if leaving a relatively small balance in the account and then not using it.

Call the bank to confirm whether the account is still open or not.

[Brit_Doggie]

Closed but open on records strangely enough for thailand lol.

[Pib]

Closed but open on records strangely enough for thailand lol.

What exactly do you mean by that?

Maybe something like the following which I see on my Bangkok Bank ibanking screen. On my ibanking say I had a "fixed" savings account that matured, I rolled the money over to a new fixed account, the old account is closed, that old account will still show on my Bangkok Bank ibanking screen at the bottom of the active accounts but they are under a heading named "Temporarily Unavailable Account" where it only lists the account numbers with no other info although the accounts have been closed with a big CLOSED stamp in their associated passbooks. I've got 3 such old/closed fixed savings accounts and 1 closed joint savings account with the wife showing that way on my ibanking screen. I guess the bank just still shows you the old account numbers just as info only although they are closed.

[thailandforumaddict]

Keep few thousand on each account and they won't close.

[nithisa78]

Why don't you contact the bank?

[peterb17]

Banks are not charities- there is no such thing as a free lunch- so keep a few thousand in one account- why three?

[thrilled]

I have had A bank account in Thailand.I believe I have used it 1 time in 5 years.I do have some money in it.

[TheFishman1]

If you keep over 2000bht no worry

[fang37]

This is not an uncommon strategy by banks worldwide.

In Australia, my experience is that the account will be reinstated upon request.

As suggested above, retain a modest balance & all is good - B2000?

[mihalis]

Had a K bank account with very little, opened it up 2013, forgot it, till this year.. Went to atm, and found i owed bank 800 baht.... let it at that..