Is it safe and easy to transfer $30k to my Thai bank account using Wise as a US citizen?

Same as i do, no problems

Just transfer from your US bank don’t need wise I do it all the time FYI

Getting a bank account

Don’t expect to get something for nothing. Each office is an independent business. Each office makes their own criteria.

You certainly will pay a fee for transferring USD from USA to Thailand. The amount depends on the bank and the transfer service.

Banking is an essential service if you plan to spend time here. It’s not FREE.

I prepared ahead of time by getting a bank account set up 6 months ago.

I treated this as an important business transaction, not just a casual activity.

My Thai friend made an appointment for me at the Bangkok Bank branch across from Astra in CM. He also translated for me.

I am a middle aged physician and dressed as such. Yes I did do the whole business card ceremony.

I told the banker that I plan to retire soon and buy a condominium at Astra.

I was asked to purchase a life insurance policy for about $100. Presumably the banker gets a commission. Whatever, it’s the price of doing business at the bank.

They wanted to copy my passport and see my credit card from Wells Fargo. I think I showed them how much was in my account also to make the point that I’m a serious customer.

I also showed them $500 in perfect $100 bills that was to be the initial deposit.

Nothing else was required.

Act like a serious customer and you will be treated as such.

Present yourself properly and you should be fine.

If not, thank them for their time and visit another office.

Best wishes on your adventure to Thailand!

I was able to get an account with Bangkok Bank two years ago.

Since then I have been able to transfer money from my Chase account to BB NY branch as a domestic transaction costing $35. It is easy to do and posts to the Thai BB account within 24 hours automatically. The transaction registers as a foreign transaction.

The exchange rate is about 2 baht less than the best posted rate.

It is not the cheapest way to make large international transactions but it certainly has been convenient!

I did that a couple of times in the past six months. No problems. There can always be delays as much as two weeks but it's unusual.

Wise sucks!

Use RIA

Which agency did u used? My fam needs one

When I visit Thailand (no visa), I just use my Revolut card. I keep it topped up via my funds outside of Thailand, exchange “as and when” and draw from an ATM. I have the added bonus of topping up via Apple Pay which is linked to my credit card which in turn provides a lot of air miles! And there are no bank charges for international transactions… Not sure this would work for those retirees there (I might find out one day!) but it avoids a lot of hassle for me at least.

I was told thar your transfer is best done direct from your home bank account into your Bangkok Bank account if donr though Wise it does not show on the account with the correct international transfer prefix.

Please, someone enlighten me, we have been here since January and we are here until June. I keep seeing post about people opening bank account? Do we have to or can we just continue to use our bank card from USA? What is the difference?

Chase banks would do brother!

If you transfer $10,000.00 or more on any given day you will be shining a big spotlight on yourself as a possible drug dealer. The bank/Wise or any other financial institution are required to report such transfers to the US government promptly.

If you transfer $9,000 or less on any given day, your transaction will go unnoticed by all. Recommend transferring $9k every week.

I made the mistake of going over $10k. I’ll never do that again. Since then, I’m flagged by TSA for extra scrutiny.

 set up a business account on Wise and you can send large amounts 

Samuel, and don't forget to register Wise full ! So with copy pasport and photo of y'r face, holding y'r pasport near y'r face. Otherwise bigger amounts most of the time getting refused and you first have to register full anyway.

36 years now with Bangkok Bank and never one failure.

If you use Wise don't forget to use the correct reason, which is something like "long term stay in Thailand" (someone will correct me with the correct wording), it was the last one on the list when I used it a while ago.

You've got a Chase account. They should have very cheap SWIFT transfer fees. With that much it is better to use a SWIFT transfers so there is no question of exactly where the money came from, especially if you want to take it out of Thailand in the future.

Over 50,000 baht takes 4 days to clear

It's simple.

But here's the thing with Wise to Bangkok Bank at least.

Any transfer under about baht shows up as Transfer from Other Bank. Only bigger transfers say International Transfer...

Since you have a new Wise account there may be some delays. Also make sure you get either a Bangkok Bank, Kasikorn or SCB account as those are the only banks that can receive transfers over 50,000 baht from Wise.