VISA Card From Bangkok Bank - Denied

[STUDMEYER]

Hey All,

I've been a loyal BBK customer for 4 years now. I've read about opening a deposit account and then being able to get a VISA CREDIT card.

I went to the bank earlier this wee and was told it would take 2 weeks to get a Visa credit card after I opened the deposit account. Only thing needed was my passport and money for the account.

Long story short, i returned the next day with passport and asked to open the account. Was told flat out due to a change in policy, only foreigners with a work permit can get a visa.

Conclusion:

Now you need a deposit account, a work permit, and a letter from your embassy to get a visa credit card from BBK.

Why do i need a work permit if the VISA is secured against a fixed deposit?

Can anyone confirm? I will try again on a different day, but this seemed pretty official to me.

Thanks

SM

Edited September 19, 2015 by STUDMEYER

[Seligne2]

I have banked with BB since 2011.

I am on a retirement visa.

About, one year ago I went to the Tha Phae branch of BB and asked for a credit card. I secured the account with a 100k baht deposit.

Fifteen minutes later I was approved.

A week later I was sent a Visa card and, to my surprise, a MasterCard.

[laislica]

Try Kasikorn. Get online banking with them and you can create a virtual Visa card online. It's good for one year and great for online buying. They will let you have a direct debit card.

Good luck

[ezzra]

Yes, without WP it is hard to get a credit card, what is possible to do is deposit a sum of money in an

interests baring account to act as a guarantee against you using the card, say you deposit 100 k and that's

going to be the limit of your spending on that card,,,,

[fang37]

I am very surprised.

I have been with BKK Bank for 13 years.

In a similar fashion to another member, a time deposit of B100k=B100k credit.

Not really a credit card given the above but very convenient.

[akampa]

Yes, without WP it is hard to get a credit card, what is possible to do is deposit a sum of money in an

interests baring account to act as a guarantee against you using the card, say you deposit 100 k and that's

going to be the limit of your spending on that card,,,,

sorry to disagree but your spending allowance will only be 50k on a 100k deposit.

[STUDMEYER]

I feel as though no one read the post. Yes, you need to make a deposit and the card is secured against that deposit.

But...

Due to a change in policy, you cannot get a Visa without a work permit, AND a letter from your embassy.

Rgs,

SM

[macahoom]

Yes, without WP it is hard to get a credit card, what is possible to do is deposit a sum of money in an

interests baring account to act as a guarantee against you using the card, say you deposit 100 k and that's

going to be the limit of your spending on that card,,,,

sorry to disagree but your spending allowance will only be 50k on a 100k deposit.

Sorry to disagree, but I think you'll find that different banks have different percentages of the amount locked in a deposit account as a credit limit (spending allowance.)

Krungsri, for example, allow 90% of the amount locked in a deposit account. (At least that is the case with my card.)

SCB is a joke: They will allow only 50%.

[Pib]

To get a "unsecured" credit card from a Thai bank a person needs a WP and adequate salary history. No change in that policy.

Sure there are a few who got an unsecured card without WP and salary but they are the exceptions.

Otherwise a person must go the "secured" card route which requires a locked deposit as collateral...no WP required. No change in that policy either unless you get unlucky and apply at a branch that don't follow or fully understand the company rules...unfortunately you have these branches here and there...and some branches just seem to not want farang customers.

And there is always the Thai-English/etc miscommunications that occur.

Edited September 21, 2015 by Pib

[maewang99]

huh? a card secured by cash is not a "credit card"... sounds like an ATM debit card... with Visa authorized transactions.. but that's not a credit card.

and for a credit card you must be employed under BOT rules, that should not be a surprise to anyone so how could a non-Asian not have to have a work permit to get it, those are bank rules for every bank???

Edited September 21, 2015 by maewang99

[macahoom]

huh? a card secured by cash is not a "credit card"... sounds like an ATM debit card... with Visa authorized transactions.. but that's not a credit card.

and for a credit card you must be employed under BOT rules, that should not be a surprise to anyone so how could a non-Asian not have to have a work permit to get it, those are bank rules for every bank???

Just about everything you say is completely wrong:

"a card secured by cash is not a "credit card" Wrong. I've got two.

"sounds like an ATM debit card... with Visa authorized transactions.. but that's not a credit card". Wrong. Yes it is; I've got two.

"and for a credit card you must be employed under BOT rules" Wrong. I am non-Asian and have been retired for many years. Never have been employed or had a work permit in Thailand.

Edited September 21, 2015 by macahoom

[Pib]

huh? a card secured by cash is not a "credit card"... sounds like an ATM debit card... with Visa authorized transactions.. but that's not a credit card.

and for a credit card you must be employed under BOT rules, that should not be a surprise to anyone so how could a non-Asian not have to have a work permit to get it, those are bank rules for every bank???

Just about everything you say is completely wrong:

"a card secured by cash is not a "credit card" Wrong. I've got two.

"sounds like an ATM debit card... with Visa authorized transactions.. but that's not a credit card". Wrong. Yes it is; I've got two.

"and for a credit card you must be employed under BOT rules" Wrong. I am non-Asian and have been retired for many years. Never have been employed or had a work permit in Thailand.

There are secured and unsecured credit cards; they are not debit cards.

Just because a person has a debit card and can make purchases does not make it just like a credit card. There will be cases/some merchants which will not accept a debit card (especially some online merchants or some hotel online reservations or some rent-a-car reservations, etc), but gladly accept a credit card (secured or unsecured) because of how the system handles/pays the merchant---less possible headaches with a credit card I guess since there are difference in protections for the merchant and card-owner between a debit and credit card. I also expect some merchants who may think that if a person don't have a credit card they must have credit issues...could be a payment risk.

The merchant don't know (or care) whether a credit card is secured or unsecured; only the customer and card-issuing bank knows. And if it's a secured credit card it's going to have a line of credit possibly up to the amount of "locked" deposit" (depends on the card-issuing bank's policy) that secures (i.e., provides collateral) for that secured credit card line of credit.

A unsecured credit card, which is typical in western countries, does not have a locked deposit backing it up....its line of credit was purely based on the customer's credit rating. There are secured credit cards in western countries usually focused towards folks who have had major credit worthiness issues in the past. But in some countries, like here in Thailand, secured credit cards are common and many farangs who need a credit card but don't have a Work Permit/job, but say have retired and have good pension money/saving, "usually" have to go the route of getting a secured credit card. Based on ThaiVisa posts there are exceptions where apparently folks without a Work Permit and job in Thailand get unsecured credit cards....there are always exceptions...the lucky ones.

As far as I know the BOT does not set the rules for credit card issue....it has simply developed into the rule-of-thumb policy used by Thai banks over the years Thailand...maybe it's based on their experience with (or trust of) farangs. I really don't think Thai banks trust many farangs much farther than they can see them since it's so easy for them just to leave Thailand pretty much on a whim...and possibly leave a large unpaid balance on a credit card...and never pay it...never come back to Thailand...hard for the Thai bank to reach outside of Thailand to chase the person for payment. Much harder for a Thai's to do that unless maybe they are a dual citizen. I guess the banks have stats which show farangs with Work Permits & jobs in Thailand are much less likely to skip out.

Heck, Thai banks love to issue secured credit cards...it takes non-payment risks off them and puts a locked deposit in their bank...awesome deal for the bank.

[Seligne2]

huh? a card secured by cash is not a "credit card"... sounds like an ATM debit card... with Visa authorized transactions.. but that's not a credit card.

and for a credit card you must be employed under BOT rules, that should not be a surprise to anyone so how could a non-Asian not have to have a work permit to get it, those are bank rules for every bank???

Just about everything you say is completely wrong:

"a card secured by cash is not a "credit card" Wrong. I've got two.

"sounds like an ATM debit card... with Visa authorized transactions.. but that's not a credit card". Wrong. Yes it is; I've got two.

"and for a credit card you must be employed under BOT rules" Wrong. I am non-Asian and have been retired for many years. Never have been employed or had a work permit in Thailand.

There are secured and unsecured credit cards; they are not debit cards.

Just because a person has a debit card and can make purchases does not make it just like a credit card. There will be cases/some merchants which will not accept a debit card (especially some online merchants or some hotel online reservations or some rent-a-car reservations, etc), but gladly accept a credit card (secured or unsecured) because of how the system handles/pays the merchant---less possible headaches with a credit card I guess since there are difference in protections for the merchant and card-owner between a debit and credit card. I also expect some merchants who may think that if a person don't have a credit card they must have credit issues...could be a payment risk.

The merchant don't know (or care) whether a credit card is secured or unsecured; only the customer and card-issuing bank knows. And if it's a secured credit card it's going to have a line of credit possibly up to the amount of "locked" deposit" (depends on the card-issuing bank's policy) that secures (i.e., provides collateral) for that secured credit card line of credit.

A unsecured credit card, which is typical in western countries, does not have a locked deposit backing it up....its line of credit was purely based on the customer's credit rating. There are secured credit cards in western countries usually focused towards folks who have had major credit worthiness issues in the past. But in some countries, like here in Thailand, secured credit cards are common and many farangs who need a credit card but don't have a Work Permit/job, but say have retired and have good pension money/saving, "usually" have to go the route of getting a secured credit card. Based on ThaiVisa posts there are exceptions where apparently folks without a Work Permit and job in Thailand get unsecured credit cards....there are always exceptions...the lucky ones.

As far as I know the BOT does not set the rules for credit card issue....it has simply developed into the rule-of-thumb policy used by Thai banks over the years Thailand...maybe it's based on their experience with (or trust of) farangs. I really don't think Thai banks trust many farangs much farther than they can see them since it's so easy for them just to leave Thailand pretty much on a whim...and possibly leave a large unpaid balance on a credit card...and never pay it...never come back to Thailand...hard for the Thai bank to reach outside of Thailand to chase the person for payment. Much harder for a Thai's to do that unless maybe they are a dual citizen. I guess the banks have stats which show farangs with Work Permits & jobs in Thailand are much less likely to skip out.

Heck, Thai banks love to issue secured credit cards...it takes non-payment risks off them and puts a locked deposit in their bank...awesome deal for the bank.

Wow! Pib that is a great post and I thank you for it. Like macahoom, I am retired, have never had a work permit, and have two secured Bangkok Bank credit cards (MC and Visa). So, unless the rules have changed recently (which may be the case), a work permit is not needed to get a credit card.

I recall that when I moved to Canada to take a job after years of living in the US and Europe, I had no credit history there. They did not acknowledge US credit history. HSBC required me to put in escrow CAD10K in order to get a credit card with a limit of CAD3K. (After a couple of months I changed banks). This kind of arrangement is not Thailand-specific.

[uptheos]

Yes, without WP it is hard to get a credit card, what is possible to do is deposit a sum of money in an

interests baring account to act as a guarantee against you using the card, say you deposit 100 k and that's

going to be the limit of your spending on that card,,,,

sorry to disagree but your spending allowance will only be 50k on a 100k deposit.

Used to be like that

Not any more, now it's even par on Bangkok Bank credit cards.

[hound]

I have banked with BB since 2011.

I am on a retirement visa.

About, one year ago I went to the Tha Phae branch of BB and asked for a credit card. I secured the account with a 100k baht deposit.

Fifteen minutes later I was approved.

A week later I was sent a Visa card and, to my surprise, a MasterCard.

Yes, and soon (if you haven't used the cards) you will be charged about 3000 and 4500 baht service charge. SURPRISE!

[STUDMEYER]

To those who DONT HAVE A BBK CREDIT CARD/ACCOUNT ALREADY and aren't part of the pointless mental masturbation taking place above this post - I received some more clarification from a different bank manager at the same branch today.

Because of problems with Money Laundering and fraud (mostly Africans it was intimated to me) BBK's new policy is that you must have your Passport Certified at your Embassy before opening a new account.

You need to do this for opening the deposit account, or any new account. This is a NEW POLICY. I suppose if you already had the correct deposit account opened, you could just get a VISA without doing anything.

I asked several times again about the work permit and the manager explained this was not necessary - BUT - to open the deposit account I must now have my passport certified at my embassy or consulate in Thailand. Unfortunately for me that means a trip to BKK.

Hope this helps someone.

Rgs,

SM

To

[Naam]

Yes, without WP it is hard to get a credit card, what is possible to do is deposit a sum of money in an

interests baring account to act as a guarantee against you using the card, say you deposit 100 k and that's

going to be the limit of your spending on that card,,,,

actually the limit of credit cards issued via Thai banks is only 50% of the deposit (Kasikorn policy).

Edited September 23, 2015 by Naam

[Naam]

To those who DONT HAVE A BBK CREDIT CARD/ACCOUNT ALREADY and aren't part of the pointless mental masturbation taking place above this post - I received some more clarification from a different bank manager at the same branch today.

Because of problems with Money Laundering and fraud (mostly Africans it was intimated to me) BBK's new policy is that you must have your Passport Certified at your Embassy before opening a new account.

You need to do this for opening the deposit account, or any new account. This is a NEW POLICY. I suppose if you already had the correct deposit account opened, you could just get a VISA without doing anything.

I asked several times again about the work permit and the manager explained this was not necessary - BUT - to open the deposit account I must now have my passport certified at my embassy or consulate in Thailand. Unfortunately for me that means a trip to BKK.

Hope this helps someone.

Rgs,

SM

To

pointless masturbation is the expression (certified passport). passports cannot be certified. copies of passports can be certified. a bank with stupid requirements (preferring a copy to an original) should be avoided.

[dageurreotype]

Try Kasikorn. Get online banking with them and you can create a virtual Visa card online. It's good for one year and great for online buying. They will let you have a direct debit card.

Good luck

I popped into Kasikorn just yesterday to open an account and was told I must pay 800 for the ATM card (other banks between 3-5 hundred), 2000 for insurance (told them I didn't want it) AND if I didn't have a work permit an extra 2,500. For what? Cheating bastards, I told them to shove it.

[fang37]

The only thing/s that piss me off with c/c in LOS are -

the guarantee deposit. I have been with BKK Bank for 13 years. As yet, I am not a safe bet?

I get free gifts; courteous service.

My big whinge is that I have not used the credit card facility for a couple of months. I receive a letter (in Thai). Do you require credit card services? Trying to convince them is difficult.

Email/telephone service with any branch - forget it.

[STUDMEYER]

To those who DONT HAVE A BBK CREDIT CARD/ACCOUNT ALREADY and aren't part of the pointless mental masturbation taking place above this post - I received some more clarification from a different bank manager at the same branch today.

Because of problems with Money Laundering and fraud (mostly Africans it was intimated to me) BBK's new policy is that you must have your Passport Certified at your Embassy before opening a new account.

You need to do this for opening the deposit account, or any new account. This is a NEW POLICY. I suppose if you already had the correct deposit account opened, you could just get a VISA without doing anything.

I asked several times again about the work permit and the manager explained this was not necessary - BUT - to open the deposit account I must now have my passport certified at my embassy or consulate in Thailand. Unfortunately for me that means a trip to BKK.

Hope this helps someone.

Rgs,

SM

To

pointless masturbation is the expression (certified passport). passports cannot be certified. copies of passports can be certified. a bank with stupid requirements (preferring a copy to an original) should be avoided.

You're right, I much prefer dealing with banks that accept original fake passports on sight with no questions asked. No, really.

Rgs

SM

[Naam]

To those who DONT HAVE A BBK CREDIT CARD/ACCOUNT ALREADY and aren't part of the pointless mental masturbation taking place above this post - I received some more clarification from a different bank manager at the same branch today.

Because of problems with Money Laundering and fraud (mostly Africans it was intimated to me) BBK's new policy is that you must have your Passport Certified at your Embassy before opening a new account.

You need to do this for opening the deposit account, or any new account. This is a NEW POLICY. I suppose if you already had the correct deposit account opened, you could just get a VISA without doing anything.

I asked several times again about the work permit and the manager explained this was not necessary - BUT - to open the deposit account I must now have my passport certified at my embassy or consulate in Thailand. Unfortunately for me that means a trip to BKK.

Hope this helps someone.

Rgs,

SM

To

pointless masturbation is the expression (certified passport). passports cannot be certified. copies of passports can be certified. a bank with stupid requirements (preferring a copy to an original) should be avoided.

You're right, I much prefer dealing with banks that accept original fake passports on sight with no questions asked. No, really.

Rgs

SM

original fake passports from civilised countries are as rare as sabre-toothed hens or 25 year old virgins in Pattaya's walking street. therefore i repeat that any bank that rejects a passport which is issued e.g. in Europe (not Somalia or Central African Republic) should be avoided.

but you have my blessing. please feel free and enjoy the fun travelling to Bangkok to comply with a nonsensical request.

[STUDMEYER]

To those who DONT HAVE A BBK CREDIT CARD/ACCOUNT ALREADY and aren't part of the pointless mental masturbation taking place above this post - I received some more clarification from a different bank manager at the same branch today.

Because of problems with Money Laundering and fraud (mostly Africans it was intimated to me) BBK's new policy is that you must have your Passport Certified at your Embassy before opening a new account.

You need to do this for opening the deposit account, or any new account. This is a NEW POLICY. I suppose if you already had the correct deposit account opened, you could just get a VISA without doing anything.

I asked several times again about the work permit and the manager explained this was not necessary - BUT - to open the deposit account I must now have my passport certified at my embassy or consulate in Thailand. Unfortunately for me that means a trip to BKK.

Hope this helps someone.

Rgs,

SM

To

pointless masturbation is the expression (certified passport). passports cannot be certified. copies of passports can be certified. a bank with stupid requirements (preferring a copy to an original) should be avoided.

You're right, I much prefer dealing with banks that accept original fake passports on sight with no questions asked. No, really.

Rgs

SM

original fake passports from civilised countries are as rare as sabre-toothed hens or 25 year old virgins in Pattaya's walking street. therefore i repeat that any bank that rejects a passport which is issued e.g. in Europe (not Somalia or Central African Republic) should be avoided.

but you have my blessing. please feel free and enjoy the fun travelling to Bangkok to comply with a nonsensical request.

I agreed with you. Why are you trying to pick a fight with me? Why all this drama?

You speak from a position of complete confidence in your knowledge of passport fraud. I can't do that. I'll just take your word for it, OK?

Peace.

SM

[khunphil]

Hi

I was surprised when they asked me me also a garantee deposit of 20,000 thb to get 20,000 thb credit ... OK It gaves me bad mood. But after many years using it, I understand that :

- as there is no secret code for payment, just signature, I feel much more confortable that my card is blocked at 20,000 thb.

- I can pay anything at any price with it, I just need to credit my card of the right amount 48h before.(bought a 50,000Bht plane ticket)

All in one, quite happy with BKK Bank. ;-). But I am working in Thailand for information...

Phil.