International transfers (American Bank to Thai Bank)

[rmicheald 6]

The main branch of Bangkok Bank in Pattaya is on 2nd Rd. across from Soi 6. Open an account there, pick up an atm card, set up online access and cellphone alerts. Let a couple of days go by to allow the account to settle.

 

Then set up a linkage between your American bank and the Bangkok Bank branch in New York. At least with my Fidelity Brokerage account I was able to do this online. When you're ready to move money just "push" the funds from your American account to the Bangkok Bank account. Depending on your American account you should be able to set up automatic "pushes" from one to the other. It takes about 2-3 days for the funds to transfer with a small fee and the current exchange rates. I don't think that you will be able to get an American bank to allow a Thai bank to "pull" money in and to be honest I wouldn't feel comfortable with that option.

So far I have NOT been able to set up a transfer with my US bank. They want a verification of two TEST transactions in USD. By the time I see the transfer it has already been converted to Thai Baht. The ACH setup went fine and money is transferred... I just can't find out exactly how much.

[nkped 1,208]

So far I have NOT been able to set up a transfer with my US bank. They want a verification of two TEST transactions in USD. By the time I see the transfer it has already been converted to Thai Baht. The ACH setup went fine and money is transferred... I just can't find out exactly how much.

Assuming you have online access to you U.S. bank account, get the amounts in USD there.

[Trvlr 50]

So far I have NOT been able to set up a transfer with my US bank. They want a verification of two TEST transactions in USD. By the time I see the transfer it has already been converted to Thai Baht. The ACH setup went fine and money is transferred... I just can't find out exactly how much.

 

I went through the same process a couple of weeks back.

Simply call the Bangkok Bank help line in Thailand. They will tell you exactly how many cents were transferred.

[Trvlr 50]

I use a re-mailer service that gives me a US street address for $200/year and lets me see what's in the box online. I can tell them to throw items away, pack them up and send them to me, or open and scan them. The last two are at an additional charge. I use this address for brokerage accounts, etc. I'll use my Thai address for taxes so I don't get fined for not buying an Obamacare policy.

 

I'm a member of a credit union that doesn't charge for outgoing foreign wire transfers.

 

Can you tell us more about this "re-mailer service" - who they are, where, what they post online, etc.With their web address if possible.

It will be much better to start a new thread with this info - I am sure more than a few people will be interested.

Thanks.

[Trvlr 50]

Assuming you have online access to you U.S. bank account, get the amounts in USD there.

 

No, you cannot. They do not post the ACH test transfers online at the originating bank - that is the whole idea for the procedure.

[JONPAT 222]

 

I went through the same process a couple of weeks back.

Simply call the Bangkok Bank help line in Thailand. They will tell you exactly how many cents were transferred.

Can you walk-in to the Bangkok Bank near Soi 6 and ask in person the amount in cents ? I am not a phone person.

[Trvlr 50]

Can you walk-in to the Bangkok Bank near Soi 6 and ask in person the amount in cents ? I am not a phone person.

 

I do not know. But perhaps you can try it and let us know how it goes.

Keep in mind, though, that in most cases the staff at the call center is better informed and speaks better English. Most employees at the branches do not even know what a routing number is - they will give you the SWIFT code instead. They may not understand why you want to know the amount in cents.

[js007 795]

 

No, you cannot. They do not post the ACH test transfers online at the originating bank - that is the whole idea for the procedure.

 

Are you sure about that? I know I set up wire transfer from Thailand with Chase Bank, and I believe they did a test transfer. Maybe. Anyway, I worked it all out online and I didn't have to call anyone. In fact, I'm sort of sure the test transfers were something I could see online.

[Trvlr 50]

 

Are you sure about that? I know I set up wire transfer from Thailand with Chase Bank, and I believe they did a test transfer. Maybe. Anyway, I worked it all out online and I didn't have to call anyone. In fact, I'm sort of sure the test transfers were something I could see online.

 

Quite sure. This is not a wire transfer we are talking about. This is a procedure some US banks adopt when you want to link one bank account to another account for transfer purposes. The arrangement stays in place until canceled.

If you want to link Bank B to Bank A, Bank A may make two micro deposits into Bank B and ask you to find out how much that was, and type it into its system. They call it verification, and it is a way of establishing ownership of the Bank B account.

It wouldn't make sense for Bank A to post the amount when it is asking you to verify it.

[js007 795]

 

Quite sure. This is not a wire transfer we are talking about. This is a procedure some US banks adopt when you want to link one bank account to another account for transfer purposes. The arrangement stays in place until canceled.

If you want to link Bank B to Bank A, Bank A may make two micro deposits into Bank B and ask you to find out how much that was, and type it into its system. They call it verification, and it is a way of establishing ownership of the Bank B account.

It wouldn't make sense for Bank A to post the amount when it is asking you to verify it.

 

 

Quite sure. This is not a wire transfer we are talking about. This is a procedure some US banks adopt when you want to link one bank account to another account for transfer purposes. The arrangement stays in place until canceled.

If you want to link Bank B to Bank A, Bank A may make two micro deposits into Bank B and ask you to find out how much that was, and type it into its system. They call it verification, and it is a way of establishing ownership of the Bank B account.

It wouldn't make sense for Bank A to post the amount when it is asking you to verify it.

 

Ok. I guess that makes sense. I never set of an ACH transfer overseas, just here in the states. The deal I set up in Thailand was a wire transfer deal.

[Paul3456 1]

There are several mail forwarding services in the US. Pick a state with no state income tax, such as Florida, Texas or Nevada.

 

I use a company named St. Brendan's Isle in Florida and have been very pleased with their service.

 

See: http://www.sbimailservice.com

[Trvlr 50]

 

 

Ok. I guess that makes sense. I never set of an ACH transfer overseas, just here in the states. The deal I set up in Thailand was a wire transfer deal.

 

In the interests of accuracy, ACH transfers take place within the US - that I know of. They work with Bangkok Bank because the bank has a branch in New York with a US routing number. As has been explained above by people who knew more than me about the Bangkok Bank procedure, when you transfer dollars into their New York branch, the amount is automatically converted to baht and appears in the Thai bank account number that you used for the transfer.

[Trvlr 50]

There are several mail forwarding services in the US. Pick a state with no state income tax, such as Florida, Texas or Nevada.

 

I use a company named St. Brendan's Isle in Florida and have been very pleased with their service.

 

See: http://www.sbimailservice.com

 

Thanks...pretty fascinating stuff. They even offer advice on state residency!

I wonder if this can be posted as a separate thread...it should be of interest to many US citizens. And maybe someone will comment on the pros and cons.

[Shilo 371]

 

In the interests of accuracy, ACH transfers take place within the US - that I know of. They work with Bangkok Bank because the bank has a branch in New York with a US routing number. As has been explained above by people who knew more than me about the Bangkok Bank procedure, when you transfer dollars into their New York branch, the amount is automatically converted to baht and appears in the Thai bank account number that you used for the transfer.

 

This is how it worked for me when I linked my Fidelity account to the New York branch of Bangkok Bank. I didn't need to give any info to Fidelity or to the Bangkok Bank about the size of the test transfers. They just went through and everything was in place...

 

One other thing that I did do that might help.. Once I set up the linkage between the two accounts I applied online over the Bangkok Bank website to have email alerts set to my cell phone each time a transfer went through. So I got the email alerts when the "test" transfers happened (with amounts) and each time I have used the system since then.

[MM 6,562]

 

Quite sure. This is not a wire transfer we are talking about. This is a procedure some US banks adopt when you want to link one bank account to another account for transfer purposes. The arrangement stays in place until canceled.

If you want to link Bank B to Bank A, Bank A may make two micro deposits into Bank B and ask you to find out how much that was, and type it into its system. They call it verification, and it is a way of establishing ownership of the Bank B account.

It wouldn't make sense for Bank A to post the amount when it is asking you to verify it.

 

I find this subject quite apt for my situation too. I just opened a Bangkok Bank account (thanks to info from this and perhaps another thread).

 

I just yesterday added my BB account as an external account for two financial institutions in the USA. They are both sending test deposits in the next day or two.

 

I'll be struggling with this very issue by Wednesday, I think.

 

So, if someone comes up with an answer, I'll appreciate it greatly. It has to be possible or few would be able to use the ACH system for transfers.

 

If I can figure it out, I will come back and explain what I had to do.

 

The branch personnel are pretty much hopeless at the WS/Pattaya Tai branch, btw. They didn't even know about ACH..kept telling me to use a SWIFT code.

[Trvlr 50]

 

I find this subject quite apt for my situation too. I just opened a Bangkok Bank account (thanks to info from this and perhaps another thread).

 

I just yesterday added my BB account as an external account for two financial institutions in the USA. They are both sending test deposits in the next day or two.

 

I'll be struggling with this very issue by Wednesday, I think.

 

So, if someone comes up with an answer, I'll appreciate it greatly. It has to be possible or few would be able to use the ACH system for transfers.

 

If I can figure it out, I will come back and explain what I had to do.

 

The branch personnel are pretty much hopeless at the WS/Pattaya Tai branch, btw. They didn't even know about ACH..kept telling me to use a SWIFT code.

 

All the answers are above.

One phone call and about 5-7 minutes is all it took for me to get all the information I needed from Bangkok Bank. All you need to know is the exact amount of the test transfers in cents. Since you have linked to two banks in the US (I did too) make sure to find out the transfer amounts from each bank.

I talked twice with Bangkok Bank - once before and once after the transfers. Both times I got knowledgeable people who knew what was going on.

 

(Adding steps)

1. WHen you see the test transfer amounts in your account (I hope you have online access), they will be in baht.

2. Call Bangkok Bank and explain you need to know the exact amount transferred in US cents.

3. They will ask a few questions to establish your identity and provide the information.

4. Go into your US bank website and follow their procedure. Usually this involves going to a specific page where there are spaces to type in the test transfer amounts.

5. Most banks will tell you immediately that the account linkage has been successful.

 

You are ready to transfer amounts. One member gave the fee schedule above.

Edited July 28, 2014 by Trvlr

[MM 6,562]

[ .

Thanks for the summary.

 

Composed on a mobile phone.

 

 

[tko 219]

 

Can you tell us more about this "re-mailer service" - who they are, where, what they post online, etc.With their web address if possible.

It will be much better to start a new thread with this info - I am sure more than a few people will be interested.

Thanks.

 

There are several in the Houston area. I use USGlobalMail, but I considered USA2Me. Add .com to either of those. Texas also has no income tax.

Edited July 28, 2014 by tko

[MM 6,562]

Can you walk-in to the Bangkok Bank near Soi 6 and ask in person the amount in cents ? I am not a phone person.

 

Yes you can. They actually have a desk there called "International Remittances" where the whole USA bank test deposit issue is well understood.

 

I explained what I needed, and she was immediately printing out a 1 page report for each test transfer. The report included sending bank's name, sending bank transfer description, and sending bank amount in USD.

 

I did that yesterday for one of the banks that I had signed up for transfers in the USA. I needed to know which bank it was so that I could go verify on the correct bank website. I don't recommend doing two transfer setups at once for this very reason.

 

Today, I received the second of the test deposits from the other bank. Since I knew who the "other" bank was, I didn't need to go into the branch.

 

Instead, I used Bangkok Bank's published TT exchange rate for USD/THB for this morning, divided that into each of the trial deposit amounts, and came up with the amount in cents.

 

You have to use the rate on the day the transfer is deposited. This exchange rate page has a calendar where you can select the date for which you want the rates. Go to the column labelled BUYING RATE:TT, row USD50. That is your divisor. Divide that into each of your trial deposit amounts and round the result to the nearest penny.

 

Anyway, that worked for me.

 

I should mention that I had been trying to turn on SMS OTP (One Time Password) via their phone support number (1333) and spent over an hour on hold for one call, and no less than 15 minutes on subsequent calls on hold. I never did get through to them, so I have not been at all impressed with the phone support. I actually had the bank staff at 2nd Road Soi 4 (across from Soi 6/1) on the phone and they were getting frustrated as well. They did finally get through, however, so there was somebody working at the other end.

 

So as it stands, I now have 2 USA bank accounts that will allow me to do simple bank to bank transfers without all the rigmarole and hoops that my regular bank keeps throwing my way when I do an international wire transfer.

 

Thank you to everyone who contributed to this thread and added information or prompted for more information..it's been my road map to getting this done!

[DP Gumbypgh 97]

Martin if you use the BB exchange rate you have to check the time of the transfer and use the rate for that time as it is updated three or four times per day. It may not make much difference but if could makes the cents round up or down incorrectly.

I have the same problem with OTP and still have not managed it, i tried at a branch and they couldn't even understand what a OTP was. I will try at that branch.

[MM 6,562]

Martin if you use the BB exchange rate you have to check the time of the transfer and use the rate for that time as it is updated three or four times per day. It may not make much difference but if could makes the cents round up or down incorrectly.

I have the same problem with OTP and still have not managed it, i tried at a branch and they couldn't even understand what a OTP was. I will try at that branch.

 

Tom, I used the morning rate because the transaction arrived overnight and was posted in the mornin.

The printout confirmed that was the correct rate as well.

Yes, that branch is ideally set up for handling these issues..It's close to your stomping grounds, so it shouldn't be out of your way at all .

 

Composed on a mobile phone.

 

 

[JONPAT 222]

MM, do the financial institutions in USA charge for the ACH ? My Bank of America charges $3 for sending up to $1000. I can not send more at one time unless I signup for their OTP.

 

Schwab bank doesn't charge anything.

 

Social Security goes right to Bangkok Bamk New York branch and credited to my account next day.

[nkped 1,208]

Seems to depend on the bank. If I tell Wells Fargo to do an ACH transfer to USAA there is a fee. If I tell USAA to initiate an ACH transfer from Wells Fargo, there is no fee. Brilliant!

[MM 6,562]

MM, do the financial institutions in USA charge for the ACH ? My Bank of America charges $3 for sending up to $1000. I can not send more at one time unless I signup for their OTP.

 

Schwab bank doesn't charge anything.

 

Social Security goes right to Bangkok Bamk New York branch and credited to my account next day.

USA banks are getting as bad as Thai banks (or is it the other way around) at charging fees for accessing or manipulating your money, so yes, my consumer bank also charges $3 for a transfer, has a limit of $2000 baht per transfer, and a $6000 baht/month limit.

 

Luckily, that bank is also accessible by my Schwab account, and as nkped mentions below about his USAA account, and if I initiate a transfer from Schwab from gouging bank to my Schwab account, no fees are charged.

 

 

Seems to depend on the bank. If I tell Wells Fargo to do an ACH transfer to USAA there is a fee. If I tell USAA to initiate an ACH transfer from Wells Fargo, there is no fee. Brilliant!

 

Yep..

[forcebwithu 4,856]

MM, do the financial institutions in USA charge for the ACH ? My Bank of America charges $3 for sending up to $1000. I can not send more at one time unless I signup for their OTP.

 

Schwab bank doesn't charge anything.

 

Social Security goes right to Bangkok Bamk New York branch and credited to my account next day.

Chase doesn't charge for the transfer.