Can I open a bank account in US dollars ?

[Isac Szwarc Brasil]

Good morning,I am in Thailand holding a no immigrant O A visa,can I open a saving account in US dollars ?

Which bank can I use at  the SURIN-Cherngtalay area ?

Thank you vey much for helping me.

Isac

[ubonjoe]

All the major banks offer foreign currency accounts denominated in US dollars. You should have not problem opening an account since you are on a OA long stay visa.

Since this is related to specific location I am moving your topic to the Phuket forum.

[Isac Szwarc Brasil]

2 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

All the major banks offer foreign currency accounts denominated in US dollars. You should have not problem opening an account since you are on a OA long stay visa.

Since this is related to specific location I am moving your topic to the Phuket forum.

Thank you Ubonjoe,helpful everytime I need..

 

[new2here]

I have a USD account with BBL.. it's easy to open - with the right papers/visas etc ... the one thing is that unlike simple savings accounts, foreign currency accounts have a much higher minimum starting balance and if you fall below that level, there may be account fees.

My foreign currency account can't be accessed by ATM or cards. Essentially it's just a holding account as opposed to a daily use account. It's nice to have.


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[Isac Szwarc Brasil]

1 minute ago, new2here said:

I have a USD account with BBL.. it's easy to open - with the right papers/visas etc ... the one thing is that unlike simple savings accounts, foreign currency accounts have a much higher minimum starting balance and if you fall below that level, there may be account fees.

My foreign currency account can't be accessed by ATM or cards. Essentially it's just a holding account as opposed to a daily use account. It's nice to have.


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Thank you.Sorry ,what bank is BBL..?

 

[new2here]

Bangkok Bank.. I know Kasikorn Bank has it as well.. I suspect that all the retail banks here will offer foreign currency accounts in USD, EUR, CNY, GBP, JPY and such..


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[Isac Szwarc Brasil]

7 minutes ago, Isac Szwarc Brasil said:

Thank you Ubonjoe,helpful everytime I need..

 

Sorry to ask,but can you tell me wich are the major banks ?

[Isac Szwarc Brasil]

4 minutes ago, new2here said:

Bangkok Bank.. I know Kasikorn Bank has it as well.. I suspect that all the retail banks here will offer foreign currency accounts in USD, EUR, CNY, GBP, JPY and such..


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Thank you

[new2here]

Bangkok Bank, Kasikorn Bank, Siam Commercial Bank, Krungthai Bank, Krungsri, Thai Military Bank .. just off the top of my head.



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[Isac Szwarc Brasil]

3 minutes ago, new2here said:

Bangkok Bank, Kasikorn Bank, Siam Commercial Bank, Krungthai Bank, Krungsri, Thai Military Bank .. just off the top of my head.



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Thank you.

[KarenBravo]

Sorry, not sure if this is true, but I did read that these foreign currency accounts take 1% on deposits and another 1% on withdrawals.

Best ask about this before you open the account.

[madmax2]

20 minutes ago, KarenBravo said:

Sorry, not sure if this is true, but I did read that these foreign currency accounts take 1% on deposits and another 1% on withdrawals.

Best ask about this before you open the account.

Yes there are fees and minimum amounts, its just to hold funds in a foreign currency any local withdrawals from the account have to be in thai baht, basically handy if you bring foreign funds into the country and do not want to convert them at the time of doing it in my case because of exchange rates or want to return funds to your home country with no bank hassles

[theoldgit]

Nonsense post removed.

[new2here]

Yes there are fees and minimum amounts, its just to hold funds in a foreign currency any local withdrawals from the account have to be in thai baht, basically handy if you bring foreign funds into the country and do not want to convert them at the time of doing it in my case because of exchange rates or want to return funds to your home country with no bank hassles

That's very true.. that's why I said and most people I know who have one, use it essentially as a "holding" account for funds that they don't want to or don't plan to exchange (either immediately or in the near future) into THB for short-term needs/use and/or may want repatriate later.

I personally wouldn't use it or view it as an investment vehicle per se, but more of a temporary storage place.


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[catman20]

yes

[JXCutter]

I looked into this too and can verify that the two or three banks I checked with have high fees for a dollar account.  It was cheaper to pay for an international wire to transfer funds from a US bank than to pay the fees and that was before I arranged to get free international wires.

[thurien]

it appears general practice with the major banks to have you bunk  away a minimum USD 500 or equiv. for  your fcd  (if you're below that you either pay fees or the acc. even disappears...). I have fcd in 2 banks with a fee of zero (no interest, though...) as long as the balance is above the requested limit

Edited January 19, 2017 by thurien

[12DrinkMore]

5 hours ago, madmax2 said:

Yes there are fees and minimum amounts, its just to hold funds in a foreign currency any local withdrawals from the account have to be in thai baht, basically handy if you bring foreign funds into the country and do not want to convert them at the time of doing it in my case because of exchange rates or want to return funds to your home country with no bank hassles

 

Misinformation Alert 

 

At least the BBL allow you to withdraw crispy Greenbacks. I have a USD account and I have done it.

 

It costs 1%.

[buick]

krungthai bank uses the 1% in/1% out fee structure for USD accounts.  bangkok bank is a better option.  the max fee for 'in' is 500thb.  1% fee for 'out'.  so it doesn't cost all that much to transfer the money in.  and if you have an emergency, the 1% out fee will not be a problem.  as others have noted, i just use it as a holding account.  i did have a semi emergency and had to take out $1,500 and didn't feel too bad with the $15 fee.

 

to open my account i had to have the US embassy certify that my passport was real and i had to have my apartment manager write a letter saying my rental agreement was real.  i opened mine on a tourist visa.  again, i was in bangkok and what is required in phuket may be different.  just preparing OP for possible addtl items he/she may need.

[Jimi007]

An alternative to a USD account, Bangkok Bank has a branch in New York, so they are part of the ACH banking system. It's a bit of a pain to set up, but once it is, it's great. I now just go online to Bank of America where my checks are directly deposited and then put in a out of bank transfer to Bangkok Bank. It depends on how fast you want the funds to arrive. The cheapest takes about a week to get from my account in California to my account in Phuket. B of A charges $3, depending on the amount transferred Bangkok Bank charges more. See the New York Bangkok Bank link here: http://www.bangkokbank.com/BangkokBank/PersonalBanking/DailyBanking/TransferingFunds/TransferringIntoThailand/ReceivingFundsfromUSA/Pages/ReceivingFundsfromUSA.aspx

[SiSePuede419]

Where exactly are these "US Dollars" coming from?

 

Your mattress?  Just fell off the back of a truck?

 

C'mon.  You already have a US Dollar bank account.  

 

And you trust Thai banks more than your current bank? ?

[phuketjock]

9 hours ago, Isac Szwarc Brasil said:

Thank you.

 

I am not sure of the situation these days but when I opened my FCD account only

designated branches had the facilities to handle FCD accounts, that was with most banks,

so make sure the branch you are seeking has such a service.

[LivinginKata]

1 hour ago, SiSePuede419 said:

Where exactly are these "US Dollars" coming from?

 

Your mattress?  Just fell off the back of a truck?

 

C'mon.  You already have a US Dollar bank account.  

 

And you trust Thai banks more than your current bank? ?

 

The UK government sends my pension in pounds to my Thai bank. No cost to me for international transfers into my Thai bank. I can hold the funds there in pounds until the exchange rate suits me. Sure I have a UK bank account but if I transfer to Thailand I would have to pay for the transfer. Works well for me.  Sure there is a minimum balance requirement to save any extra fees, but that's no problem for me.

 

I'have multiple Thai bank accounts over 20+ years.  I have no reason to distrust Thai banks. Ok .. I once got my ATM card skimmed ... I blame myself for that. 

[timendres]

5 hours ago, JXCutter said:

I looked into this too and can verify that the two or three banks I checked with have high fees for a dollar account.  It was cheaper to pay for an international wire to transfer funds from a US bank than to pay the fees and that was before I arranged to get free international wires.

 

Free international wires?! Do tell...

[madmax2]

18 hours ago, 12DrinkMore said:

 

Misinformation Alert 

 

At least the BBL allow you to withdraw crispy Greenbacks. I have a USD account and I have done it.

 

It costs 1%.

Only going on what the bank manager told me sport

I filled out all the necessary forms for a FCA and was then told i needed a letter from the Aust consulate before they would open a account for me, even though i already have 2 bank accounts and a credit card with the bank and they had also offered me a free check book which i refused as people do not like excepting personal checks here even if they know you, they take forever and a day to clear.

The manager offered me a higher exchange rate which i excepted so a FCA was not needed even though the manager offered to get around the consulate letter for me  but i no longer needed it

Edited January 20, 2017 by madmax2

[12DrinkMore]

18 hours ago, buick said:

krungthai bank uses the 1% in/1% out fee structure for USD accounts.  bangkok bank is a better option.  the max fee for 'in' is 500thb.  1% fee for 'out'.  so it doesn't cost all that much to transfer the money in.  and if you have an emergency, the 1% out fee will not be a problem.  as others have noted, i just use it as a holding account.  i did have a semi emergency and had to take out $1,500 and didn't feel too bad with the $15 fee.

 

The BBL fees are here

 

http://www.bangkokbank.com/BangkokBankThai/Documents/Site Documents/Interest Rates/FeesFCD_Table5_151116_En.pdf

 

With BBL the maximum "input" fee for SWIFT is 500 Baht.

 

Output fee is 0.25%.

 

There are no fees associated with a withdrawal and converting immediately to THB, the 1% only applies to USD notes.

 

 

[phuketrichard]

I have  a built in safe in the house for my $$,

why put it somewhere that gets little, if any interest and cost you to deposit and withdraw??

if not comfortable with ur own safe, open a safety deposit box