retirement visa bank account confusion

[chiang mai]

1 hour ago, maoro2013 said:

Still doesn't get around what I conceive as a problem. You could get a bank letter and withdraw all of the funds the next minute.

 

Immigration told me the letter needed to be done the day I applied for the extension. Maybe impossible sometimes. Rules made up separately by each individual office, as appears to be the norm for Thailand.

 

Furthermore a fixed deposit is for a fixed term, at least mine is. I assume it could be broken though, with some penalty attached.

 

It doesn't matter if you do withdraw all the funds immediately afterwards since the bank letter refers to the PAST three months only.

 

As said, BOT rules are that all deposits must be immediately available on demand. What you think you have and what you really have are not the same! What you have is either a fixed rate deposit that is available for a specific term (not a fixed term) or an insurance based product which is fixed for a specific term but is not covered under BOT regs. Yes, if you break your fixed rate deal your interest reverts to the standard savings rate in effect at that time.

Edited September 16, 2016 by chiang mai

[maoro2013]

1 minute ago, chiang mai said:

 

It doesn't matter if you do withdraw all the funds immediately afterwards since the bank letter refers to the PAST three months only.

 

As said, BOT rules are that all deposits must be immediately available on demand. What you have is either a fixed rate deposit that is available for a specific term (not a fixed term) or an insurance based product which is fixed for a specific term but is not covered under BOT regs. Yes, if you break your fixed rate deal your interest reverts to the standard savings rate in effect at that time.

Well why is it so important to have the bank letter the same day as the application? Defies logic.

[chiang mai]

Just now, maoro2013 said:

Well why is it so important to have the bank letter the same day as the application? Defies logic.

 

Because those the rules! And typically one or two days afterwards is OK in most locations, sorry that you've been unlucky in that respect. If it's any consolation, I used to live in Phuket and Bank with HSBC in Bangkok, that meant flying up to Bangkok in the morning, turning around straight away and going to Immigration in the afternoon.

[Liquorice]

The term 'rollover' could confuse some people.

 

I can't speak for other Banks, but with Bangkok bank 'rolling over' a  'Fixed Account' actually means closing the existing matured account manually, and opening a new 'Fixed Account' which will have a new account number.

Your cash may be 'rolled over' but the account isn't.

Do that 2 months before your extension is due and you'll have a big problem.

[Pib]

17 hours ago, yardrunner said:

I use the Bangkok bank in khonkaen and when the fixed deposit account account matures it reverts to an ordinary savings account at a lower rate that is still acceptable to immigration and does not lose the 3 month seeding period, you then have to go in to the bank to start a new fixed deposit account but you have to make sure that it is more than 3 months from the date the account starts to when you need to renew your yearly extension of stay as immigration consider it as a new account

You might want to check again as it rolls over into a 3 month fixed deposit not a regular savings account.  The account number does not change, it's just it under the 3 month fixed deposit rules/interest rate now; not a regular savings account.

 

Review the Terms and Conditions at this Bangkok Bank webpage with partial quote below.  

 

I've had a half dozen or so Bangkok Bank fixed accounts deposit and when each fixed term deposit matured it automatically rolled over to a 3 month fixed account deposit and stay that way until you went in and possibly rolled it over to another fixed term deposit of your choosing like maybe a 6 or 12 month or whatever term fixed term deposit.   At that time your original fixed term account number (and passbook) is cancelled and the new account number/passbook for the new fixed deposit you selected is created.

 

• Quote

  At maturity the bank will automatically roll-over the deposit to a three-month
  fixed term deposit using the interest rate available at that time under the bank’s conditions, provided that a depositor has not withdrawn any money from the account, or has issued a subsequent instruction.

   

[swissbie]

36 minutes ago, Pib said:

You might want to check again as it rolls over into a 3 month fixed deposit not a regular savings account.  The account number does not change, it's just it under the 3 month fixed deposit rules/interest rate now; not a regular savings account.

 

Review the Terms and Conditions at this Bangkok Bank webpage with partial quote below.  

 

I've had a half dozen or so Bangkok Bank fixed accounts deposit and when each fixed term deposit matured it automatically rolled over to a 3 month fixed account deposit and stay that way until you went in and possibly rolled it over to another fixed term deposit of your choosing like maybe a 6 or 12 month or whatever term fixed term deposit.   At that time your original fixed term account number (and passbook) is cancelled and the new account number/passbook for the new fixed deposit you selected is created.

 

•  

Did you have 3 months from the beginning or not? I have 12 months fixed deposit accounts at BKK-Bank and K-Bank, they always roll over for another 12 months. Changing into savings accounts possibly happens with special offers, as 7 and 11 months are.

[KhunBENQ]

Ref to post #35.

Exactly that is what happened multiple times with my accounts or wife's accounts at Bangkok Bank.

Fixed deposit accounts are automatically continued/"rolled over" as described (not depending on the duration of the fixed deposit).

Simply don't touch it during seasoning period and you have no problem!

Do nothing!

(can speak for Bangkok Bank only)

[Pib]

48 minutes ago, swissbie said:

Did you have 3 months from the beginning or not? I have 12 months fixed deposit accounts at BKK-Bank and K-Bank, they always roll over for another 12 months. Changing into savings accounts possibly happens with special offers, as 7 and 11 months are.

 

I've never initially signed up for a 3 month fixed account...interest too low compared to other fixed length which may not be that much longer.  I've always signed up for the best/special promotional fixed rate in effect at the time when my current fixed account matured.  

 

I always went with Bangkok Bank promotional fixed deposit because they were always so much better "interest rate wise" that their fixed deposit lengths not on promotion.   I've had various lengths, ranging from 4 months to 13 months....around a half dozen different fixed deposits.  Each and everyone when matured automatically rolled over into a 3 month fixed deposit not a regular savings account.  Just like the Terms and Conditions in the Bangkok Bank website given earlier.  

 

And for an example, from pulling out my last fixed term account passbook I had with Bangkok Bank, it was  a "Term 11 month rate 2.8%" (quote from the passbook entry) account which matured on 17 Nov 15.   On 17 Nov when it matured it automatically rolled over to a "Term 3 month rate 1.0%" fixed term deposit (quote form the passbook entry).

 

Assuming you have kept your passbook up to date by visits to the branch/Passbook Update Machines and/or entries on your ibanking, those entries  will confirm how and what your Bangkok Bank fixed account rolls over into.

 

However, but, if you have been selecting fixed deposits accounts not on promotion "and" carrying the standard rollover policy, it is suppose to roll over again to the same term length and whatever the going interest rate is in effect for that term length.  See below Bangkok Bank webpage for the general provision covering saving accounts and fixed deposit accounts...look at para 9.1 which is also quoted below.

http://www.bangkokbank.com/BangkokBankThai/Documents/Site Documents/Other/Condition_SavingFixed.pdf

 

 

 

P.S.  After doing fixed accounts with Bangkok Bank for several years, after the last one matured in Nov 15 I did not roll over the funds to another fixed account at Bangkok Bank or any Thai bank fixed account since interest rates had dropped some much.  Instead I moved the funds to a Krungsri Bank Mee Tai Dai Savings account that was paying better/equal to Bangkok Bank fixed accounts without the restrictions that come with a fixed account...with the Mee Tai Dai account I got a debit card and ibanking and could withdraw/transfer funds at anytime without penalty/interest lose with interest paid monthly.  Like right now the Mee Tai Dai account is paying 1.35% for amounts between Bt100K to Bt10M while the best Bangkok Bank fixed account promotion rate which is their 11 month fixed deposit is paying 1.375% for Bt100K to Bt100M.    Basically with Krungsri I have a regular, high interest paying saving account with full funds access anytime without penalty in comparison to having a fixed account paying basically the same but with all the restrictions of  fixed savings account.   And with the Krungsri Mee Tai Dai account there is no automatic 15% tax withholding unless exceeding Bt20K interest per year in comparison to the automatic 15% tax withholding for a fixed account regardless of amount of interest earned....to get that 15% back you need to file for a refund with the Thai Revenue Dept which I did every year.   Going to be hard to ever get me back into fixed accounts with Krungsri Mee Tai Dai type accounts around.   And the two Krungsri branches I've been dealing with have been an absolute pleasure to deal with.

https://www.krungsri.com/bank/en/PersonalBanking/DepositProducts/SavingsDeposit/MeeTaeDaiSavings.html

 

 

 

Edited September 16, 2016 by Pib

[Liquorice]

Thanks for the info Pib, I've actually learned something new that my BKK bank did not fully explain.

The verbally told me in the past that a fixed term account would revert to 0.5%, same as my standard Savings account if I didn't manually renew it.

 

Just 2 hours ago I visited my branch as my last fixed term account of 10 months at a rate of 1.625% matured on 2/9/16.

They did indeed automatically roll it over to a 3 month term @ 1.0%from 2/9/16.

(As printed at the bottom of the page).

 

However I closed the account and opted for a new 12 month fixed term @ 1.5% (my, how rates have dropped in the last 2 years!).

They had no promotional offers available, that was the best deal available.

[phuketjock]

On 15/09/2016 at 8:48 PM, Estrada said:

Wrong Info. The Non "O" VISA for retirement (as stamped in Thai above the VISA explaining that it is issued for retirement purposes) is the only visa routinely issued in Thailand by Changwattana Immigration. If you think about it logically you will realize that Thai Immigration can only issue a Non "O' Visa in Country providing they stamp above it that it is for retirement purposes only. They cannot issue a Non "O" in Country currently for any other purpose than for retirement. I have posted screen shots of the stamps in my passport several times before to prove this point. 

 

You are the one issuing wrong info as a non "O" visa issued for retirement is NOT a retirement VISA it merely gives

you the right at sometime during the period of that non "O" visa to apply for an extension of permission to stay in the

Kingdom on the grounds of retirement, your non "O" visa does not garantee that your application for an extension of

stay will be successful. 

As correctly stated by DogNo1.

Edited September 16, 2016 by phuketjock

[wgdanson]

On 9/15/2016 at 5:36 PM, ubonjoe said:

Yes you can but not all immigration offices will accept them. You should contact you local office to find out if they will accept them.

You would need a letter from the bank stating your balance in baht on the date the letter is written.

Phitsanulok say that they WILL accept Foreign Currency Account for retirement, but the balance must be confirmed by the bank. I wonder how much my pounds will be worth by December if it keeps going down the way it is at the moment.