Transferring monies from Australia to Thai bank account , using western union or other similar company .

[Baht bus]

I have been using western union to transfer regular payments from my ANZ or Commbank til my Kasikorn bank here in Thailand for over 2

years and now I've encountered problems and both banks are not accepting any WesternUnion . The banks tell WesternUnion is renkown for fraudulent transactions..  I have even asked to have special requests to continue with my WesternUnion transactions but without any luck . 

 

I an lookng at other companies to transfer for my money as ATM withdrawals are far to expensive and an international transfer with any bank in Australia is literally robbery .

Has anyone used Companies like " Xe.com " ,' FXHi ' , ' Ozforex' , 

( OFX ) , or " worldfirst.com " just to name a few . 

 

All Of these offer a much more competitive Rate and the two Australian companies HIFX and OFX are heavily regulated in Australia . I know it takes around 4 business days once it leaves account in Australia before it lands here in thai . 

 

Would appreciate any input or experiences people may have encountered transferring money this way . 

 

 

Edited November 12, 2016 by Baht bus

[glenn88]

I use bahtsmart for small amounts ($500 to $5000) no fee,and use OFX for larger amounts over $10,000 no fee. 3 to 4 days to arrive at my Bangkok Bank acc no problems at all :)


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

[vincent13]

I use internet banking to transfer money from Australian bank to K Bank. Costs $20 for each transfer which usually takes 1 business day. Transfer as Australian dollars and let Thai bank do the conversion to get the best exchange rate.

[MalandLee]

Been sending amounts of 5000 several times this year the last two times ANZ sent the money (AUD) VIA one of the worlds worst corporate vermin "citybank" - I have lost 0.42 Satang per dollar due to this. In the process of asking why they have changed the policy of sending direct. I will never be answered of course.

 

Be careful with your ANZ account and ask the question is it a DIRECT TRANSFER (To whatever bank you use in Thailand). They WILL lie to you.

[uglybob]

I have been using worldfirst for the past 10 months sending from Aus to Thailand and it's been great. What usually happens is you need to provide ID when you signup (usually done through an email or phone call). You get your own dealer or you can use the app. 

 

It's a pretty simple process, you make a booking and you receive an email with instructions on how to transfer your money. You do a bank to bank transfer, it takes 24 hrs to receive your money. Then the money is sent to their business in Thailand. You get an email telling you that the money has been sent. The next business day it turns up into your account in the afternoon. 

 

 

[KhunBENQ]

I am surprised to read that bank transfer is more expensive than Western Union.

Normally Western Union is by way the most expensive transfer.

But as I have no idea about Australian Banking system I can not judge.

 

ATM withdraw:

in other countries (USA, Germany e.g.) there are banks offering debit cards without own/additional fees.

So the only fee is the Thai bangsters 200 Baht ATM fee.

Max. withdrawal at specific Thai ATMs is 30'000 Baht.

200/30000 = 0.67%. Close to currency market rates are applied (for VISA based cards).

Beat that with another method.

 

Again it's for the Australia experts to tell whether such option/card exists.

 

When comparing methods do not simply fall into the "no fee" trap but look at the exchange rates and compare with market rates.

 

Edited November 13, 2016 by KhunBENQ

[KhunBENQ]

19 hours ago, glenn88 said:

use OFX for larger amounts over $10,000

That's a good one. Very good rate (26.6 today), no fee.

Guess the Thai bank will deduct 500 Baht as usual (0.25%, max. 500).

Edited November 13, 2016 by KhunBENQ

[maoro2013]

I have used XE for years, no problems, rate far better than ANZ and delivery to Kasikorn very prompt, a day or two.

[Saan]

I use Transferwise and even with the fee it has proven to be a better deal than others I've explored. I only transfer comparatively minor amounts and it is quick, usually the next day.

[senor123]

I also use OFX. As the amounts I usually transfer are under $AU2000.00 I pay a $AU15.00 at this end but the rates are very competitive. At the Thai end the receiving bank appears to deduct up to 500 baht .  They also have a good tracking system and send me tracking SMSs. They also send an SMS to the recipient when the money is sent to her account.

[johnno2]

i live in Bangkok so this only applies to Bangkok people, I opened a Citibank account in Australia and set up a high daily withdrawal limit so i can withdraw large amounts if i need it, I don't get any interest on amounts in this account. so when I want money here, i transfer from my Westpac to my Citibank account. i can then go to any Citibank atm here and withdraw for NO transaction or foreign exchange fees, which is why i don't get interest on amounts in my Citibank account. you can also send funds to your Thailand bank account but this involves fees. i have also used www.worldremit.com to transfer to my UOB account. the fees are wayyyyyyyyy less than western union. you have to set up a worldremit account first.

[Simons3]

I too have used transfer wise  and am really happy with them. they asked me a few questions the first time around until i explained that the account i was sending to was my wife's, then they've been good ever since ( i think the  coming from the USA the  government checks are quite stringent).

what i've found is.... you will not get a better exchange rate! It can take a week for the transfer to complete( but some of that I think is a hold up at the Thai bank end). Up to $5K US you can have the money automatically withdrawn from your bank account and wired to the receiving bank account, very convenient!.

 

I just checked TransferWise site and sending $1000 AU today would cost $14.95 AU in Fees and the recipient would receive  26,328.32 Baht

 

cheers

 

[coaster]

A friend sends money in AUD to his Bangkok Bank and gets the TT rate when converting, costs are $18 only and usually same day transfer. I looked into it and it appeared the best way to go for small amounts, but got burnt by ANZ who claim they cannot guarantee money  will not be converted. So ANZ got there cut City Bank gave a poor exchange rate and Bangkok Bank rang to tell me I cannot have THB in an AUD account. Perhaps Comm Bank can assure you money can be sent in AUD. Meanwhile I'm back  with OFX but appreciate the info. others have posted

[Spock]

Correct me if I am wrong, but if you use OFX, World first etc you can only send money in Thai baht, converted in Australia. Transferwise uses a money swapping system - not sure that money can be sent in $A but their rate seems the best. Only with the banks can you send money in Australian dollars, but the fees are heavy at both ends. If banks allow conversion at the Thai end, why are they not more economical than the private money transfer companies?

[Cynical Sailor]

I use Baht Smart. Cheaper and faster than Ozforex. No complaints.

[Laza 45]

22 hours ago, KhunBENQ said:

I am surprised to read that bank transfer is more expensive than Western Union.

Normally Western Union is by way the most expensive transfer.

But as I have no idea about Australian Banking system I can not judge.

 

ATM withdraw:

in other countries (USA, Germany e.g.) there are banks offering debit cards without own/additional fees.

So the only fee is the Thai bangsters 200 Baht ATM fee.

Max. withdrawal at specific Thai ATMs is 30'000 Baht.

200/30000 = 0.67%. Close to currency market rates are applied (for VISA based cards).

Beat that with another method.

 

Again it's for the Australia experts to tell whether such option/card exists.

 

When comparing methods do not simply fall into the "no fee" trap but look at the exchange rates and compare with market rates.

 

If you use Western Union through your bank.. both charge you.. my Bank charges $20.. then uses WU who charge $30 as well...  I usually just use my Visa card over the counter at my local bank here.. 20 or 25k at a time.. I don't think I'd do much better elsewhere.. but have heard Batsmart are good..

[Spock]

6 minutes ago, Cynical Sailor said:

I use Baht Smart. Cheaper and faster than Ozforex. No complaints.

Do you have to reside in Thailand to use it?

[Laza 45]

1 minute ago, Spock said:

Do you have to reside in Thailand to use it?

After commenting on this post I went back to my mail and this was in my box...  

https://www.bahtsmart.com/

[Pepper1959]

I use International Money Transfer thru Bankwest, fee is $35.00 regardless of the amount sent. I leave the money in Dollars and they are changed to baht at the Bangkok Bank Exchange rate. Bank says it can take up to five days for funds to arrive. This year, most times it has been in the same day.

Quote

 

 

[bitcoinforever]

BAHTSMART.com only way to send money from Australia to thailand

[tails]

I normally do commbank to bangkok bank, $22 fee... wasn't aware of bahtsmart, thanks guys/gals! will check that out also

[electric]

Hi Bahtbus. I experienced your exact same scenario about 4 years ago with Westpac. When I tried to use my WPac card for a Western Union online fund transfer to Thailand, WPac simply put a block on the transaction. 

 

"Western Union is often used by money launderers" was the response from my local Westpac branch manager.   555.  Whatever.

 

Tried to establish an account with XE.com. Hopeless to the point of being ridiculous. Registration process was overly complicated and EXTREMELY intrusive privacy wise. Gave up in the end. They wanted too much info.

 

Set up an account with Ozforex (now OFX). Real Australian Sydney based company , AFX listed, ATO registered, ABN, etc etc. Registration was detailed, yet simple process. Might be easier to register your OFX account from within Oz, as they will ring you once to confirm some details. 

 

No set up fee. $15AUD fee for transfers under $10,000AUD   No transfer fee for $10,000+

 

OFX certainly works for me. Extremely competitive exchange rate. Usually takes 3 days to receive money into my Thai bank account. Highly recommended, but I do acknowledge that all expats have their own favourite FX company.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited November 14, 2016 by electric

[Cynical Sailor]

Do you have to reside in Thailand to use it?

No. I set it up in Aus before I moved here. If you have any questions contact them: their customer service is fantastic.

[Spock]

7 minutes ago, Cynical Sailor said:

 

No. I set it up in Aus before I moved here. If you have any questions contact them: their customer service is fantastic.

 

I will check them out. I also signed up with WorldFirst which seemed to offer the best rate of the FX company and waived the $10 fee for transfers under $10000 if you found them through finder.com. Only needed my medicare card to register - very easy. Have not yet used them so will check out bahtsmart first.  

[thsxtreme]

I Use Transferwise but I am not from AUS. I sent money 3 times to myself from USA with no problems last month

[Lazybones]

I use CBA to SCB. $22 transfer fee plus bht200 this end. Get SCB TT rate. Next day transfer. 20 years no problems.

[Spock]

On 11/13/2016 at 1:31 AM, vincent13 said:

I use internet banking to transfer money from Australian bank to K Bank. Costs $20 for each transfer which usually takes 1 business day. Transfer as Australian dollars and let Thai bank do the conversion to get the best exchange rate.

And do you also get hit with a fee at the Thai end? 300 - 500 baht? When I send money from my NAB account, I am asked about a fee that can be taken from the money I send at the Thai end or from my account. I have always nominated the money I send without realising how much I lost in fees to the Thai bank (money not sent to me). Are these extra fees avoided if using an FX company to transfer to a Thai bank account? 

[Cynical Sailor]

Bahtsmart has no fees. You'll get a better rate than bank to bank transfers. You BPay from your AU account to them and they deposit into your Thai account. No bank fees at either end.

[Surasak]

I see a few saying western union are expensive, but I have found them to be very cheap. My first card transaction was for their max amount of 800GBP. I can confirm this was originally refused by my bank. A call soon cleared this. I have since tranferred 4000GBP on three occasions with no problem, the transfer fee has been 2:90GBP on each occasion. The amount sent has matched the posted KTB exchange rate.  A bank to bank TT transfer would cost 20GBP, so I'm happy to continue with western union.

[Spock]

23 minutes ago, Cynical Sailor said:

Bahtsmart has no fees. You'll get a better rate than bank to bank transfers. You BPay from your AU account to them and they deposit into your Thai account. No bank fees at either end.

Can you transfer in $A or must convert to baht in Australia?