# U.S. banking while living in Thailand



## mhall.1776

I'm visiting/moving to Thailand for an extended stay in June or July. Plan on staying more than a year. Many banks have an issue with me not having a permanent address in America. Are there any expats that have run into this situation and found a bank that can help.


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## Thai Bigfoot

*Banks*



mhall.1776 said:


> I'm visiting/moving to Thailand for an extended stay in June or July. Plan on staying more than a year. Many banks have an issue with me not having a permanent address in America. Are there any expats that have run into this situation and found a bank that can help.


Open an account at a major bank using your current address. I used BoA, but, most are fine. Get an ATM card (and a 2nd if you can). Sign up to do everything electronically. Direct deposits, transfers, communication, bill pay ... everything. If you do this, the bank will have no reason to use a snail mail address.

Most banks will charge a 3% on any ATM withdrawal. The Thai ATM you use will charge $5-10. Usually, the max you can withdraw at a time is 30,000 baht. I use Krunsri and Siam banks. You should open an account at a Thai bank and get their ATM card. This will save some of their fees.

Writing a check on an American bank for depositing here is a real headache. The charge is more than an ATM withdrawal and it take around two weeks for the check to clear.

International money transfers between banks, while fast, is also more expensive than the ATM 3%.

Good luck.


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## Asian Spirit

mhall.1776 said:


> I'm visiting/moving to Thailand for an extended stay in June or July. Plan on staying more than a year. Many banks have an issue with me not having a permanent address in America. Are there any expats that have run into this situation and found a bank that can help.


Hope you get some solid info on the banking issues. Many countries have laws and or policies that make banking and life in general difficult. I live in the Philippines and legal status is an issue here for banking or bank accounts. If you don't get the needed info here, Email or call the US embassy in Thailand as they should have some idea as to banking requirements.


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## Thai Bigfoot

Here's another tip.
You will probably be riding a scooter or motorcycle during your stay.
If you have no experience on one, start practicing now in the U.S. Don't try to learn here. It's a no man's land. 

Bring a good helmet. You can't get good ones here. Most are $15-30. They'll do nothing in a head impact. That's why they're called "Brain Buckets." A basic, pretty good helmet can be had in the states for $200-300. That's about 1/3rd less than a comparable helmet here. Plus, Thai heads are small so a good helmet that fits is difficult to find.
Any more questions, let me know.
Again, good luck.


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## mhall.1776

Thank you for the great information!


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## Thai Bigfoot

*Where are you going?*

I live in Phuket. Where are you going?


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## mhall.1776

Chaing Mai - To the fruit festival and cycling


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## Thai Bigfoot

I haven't been there. While I drove around Issan, Chang Mai is much further away.


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## loupow

Why don't you apply for a Charles Schwab High Yield checking account that comes with the Charles Schwab Debit/ATM card. This Debit/ATM card reimburses all atm fees like the 200 baht fees that the Thai banks charge. Once you get the cash from atm machine you can just deposit it into a Thai bank there, therefore eliminating any type of transfer fees. I have done this and it works great...


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## Emigrow

A handy tip for taking money out of Thai ATMs: 

Most ATMs in Thailand charge a 200 baht fee when you take out money with a foreign credit/debit card. However, if you go into a Bangkok Bank branch and get them to make the withdrawal in person, they won't charge this fee.


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## Xynoplas2

loupow said:


> Why don't you apply for a Charles Schwab High Yield checking account that comes with the Charles Schwab Debit/ATM card. This Debit/ATM card reimburses all atm fees like the 200 baht fees that the Thai banks charge. Once you get the cash from atm machine you can just deposit it into a Thai bank there, therefore eliminating any type of transfer fees. I have done this and it works great...


Thanks, Loupow! I'm already with Schwab; this will make life easier.


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## seans

the Bangkok Bank have a bank in New York
so if you needed to get money transferred from the USA to Thailand
this is an easy solution if you open an account with their New York branch


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## Pigman58

RE. currency transfers, I always use a broker. There are quite a few around, but I've found Transferwise the best. They charge a small fee, but the rates are better so you get more THB.

From memory, the manager at Bangkok Bank at Kad Suan Kaew speaks very good English, but ask the CM Expats Club - BKK Bank are one of their sponsors.

Excellent advice about the motorcycle helmet. Chiang Mai is the Thai capital of motorbikes and a nightmare for driving. If you are confident driving on the "wrong" side of the road, consider buying a cheap secondhand car. Bikes are easier in the traffic, but you'll feel much safer in a car!


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## Xynoplas2

Now if you are living in some part of Thailand other than Bangkok, do you think you need a bank with a branch in your area? (Say Chiang Mai or Phuket.)

BTW, I have a UnionBank in my neighborhood, and they are part of the Bank of Tokyo (MUFG) which has a branch in Bangkok. I'll see if they can help.


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## JRB__NW

Pigman58 said:


> Excellent advice about the motorcycle helmet. Chiang Mai is the Thai capital of motorbikes and a nightmare for driving. If you are confident driving on the "wrong" side of the road, consider buying a cheap secondhand car. Bikes are easier in the traffic, but you'll feel much safer in a car!


Actually I don't find Chiang Mai nearly as dangerous as Philippines traffic (espec Cebu), where vehicles and pedestrians are walking and driving on all sides of the road at all times, including the center line. Although speeds there are lower. But watch the intersections here in CM, I was almost taken out by an SUV that ran a red light. It was really close and only my defensive riding skills saved my ass. And yes the left side driving takes practice.

The other note I wanted to make is you mentioned cycling. Do you mean bicycling? I bike a lot in rural Philippines and find the air quality here in CM to be horrible. It's already starting to get really hazy the past couple of weeks (no wind) and will only get worse up through April/May as the burning season gets going. Just an FYI.

EDIT - just saw you're not coming until June, should be better then.


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## loupow

You are welcome! Doing this eliminates all the little fees that come with getting money in Thailand, even the little currency conversion fee that most don't see.


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## dancebert

Get bank accounts and credit cards from 2 different sources before leaving the US. Losing one could be a major PITA if bank or credit card company says you must be a US resident, or some such.

Leaving the US for good, or at least a long while? The state you're leaving will expect you to continue paying state income tax. To prevent that, live 2 months in a different state to establish residence, get a drivers license, register to vote, a physical mailing address at someplace like https://www.sbimailservice.com/ (not for the mail, but for the address), etc. Pick one with no income taxes and no tax on pensions. Know the difference between residence and domicile - because the state tax boards do. Florida, Texas and South Dakota make this easy, though it's not as easy as it was 10 years ago.


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## Xynoplas2

JRB__NW said:


> Actually I don't find Chiang Mai nearly as dangerous as Philippines traffic (espec Cebu), where vehicles and pedestrians are walking and driving on all sides of the road at all times, including the center line. Although speeds there are lower. But watch the intersections here in CM, I was almost taken out by an SUV that ran a red light. It was really close and only my defensive riding skills saved my ass. And yes the left side driving takes practice.
> 
> The other note I wanted to make is you mentioned cycling. Do you mean bicycling? I bike a lot in rural Philippines and find the air quality here in CM to be horrible. It's already starting to get really hazy the past couple of weeks (no wind) and will only get worse up through April/May as the burning season gets going. Just an FYI.
> 
> EDIT - just saw you're not coming until June, should be better then.


The AQI in Chiang Mai is only 95 ("moderate") right now, isn't it? Better than downtown Bangkok anyway...


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## NorthForty

@xynoplas2, Saw your post. I am a native Californian living in Thailand. I live up North in Thailand.


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## Robzx9

Pick a relative and use that address. Adjust your banking communication to email only. Be sure to see if you need to file a travel plan for the duration of travel. Some banks will suspend your account if they see activity in another country. This is due to security and no prior notice or your travel plans going to travel.


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