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What should expats in Thailand know about opening bank accounts after recent arrests related to a scam?

Bank Accounts Visa Regulations DTV Visa Scams in Thailand Pattaya Foreigners in Thailand Thai Banking System

May 21, 2025

3 days ago

Fitfac *****************

ORIGINAL POSTER

Thai police have arrested 11 individuals, including four bank employees in Pattaya, for assisting 15 Chinese nationals in opening bank accounts with forged documents. Over 118 million baht was laundered through these accounts before the suspects left Thailand. Authorities have since frozen the accounts and linked the case to a larger scam network responsible for over 2.2 billion baht in damages.

According to our government sources, DTV visa holders may face increased difficulty opening bank accounts in the future.

Furthermore, accounts opened at the Bangkok Bank Pattaya branch are likely to come under scrutiny, and any foreigners found using accounts opened through agents connected to the arrested individuals may be subject to police interrogation.

At this time, we strongly advise individuals seeking to open a bank account in Thailand to use only trustworthy agents with no business ties to Chinese nationals.

Such agents are likely to be involved with Chinese criminals and scammers. When choosing someone to help you, make sure it’s an agent you can truly trust—not just a random person who DMs you on the internet.

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TLDR : Answer Summary

Recent arrests of 11 individuals, including bank employees in Pattaya, for aiding Chinese nationals in opening bank accounts with forged documents, have raised concerns about the difficulties foreigners, particularly DTV visa holders, may face in opening bank accounts in Thailand. It is advised to use only trustworthy agents without ties to Chinese nationals, as many are involved in scams. Foreigners opening accounts at the Bangkok Bank Pattaya branch may also be scrutinized, leading to potential police interrogations. The community has highlighted the need for legitimate methods of account opening without relying on agents, emphasizing that navigating the banking landscape in Thailand is becoming increasingly challenging.

DTV VISA RESOURCES / SERVICES

Take the basic DTV Qualification Test to see if you're eligible for the Destination Thailand Visa (DTV).
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> use only trustworthy agents with no business ties to Chinese nationals

Good luck with that.

a day ago

Abas ******

thailand laws for foreigners is like they compell foreigners to go to agents and then those agents pay some money to the immigration officers and then everything is done quickly. but they never solve the issue that why on dtv a foreigner can not open bank account. they don't look to it so that foreigners open it by themselves in bank in genuine way

2 days ago

Lachlan **********

🫠

2 days ago

Anonymous ******************

A lot of people still don’t understand that using an agent often means there’s something shady going on, it’s never a long-term solution. When two, three, or even four banks say no, that’s a definite NO. There’s always a valid reason behind it, even if they’re not always clear about it. Welcome to Thailand! Yes, you can definitely hold your crystal ball to choose the "safest of the safest" agents... Until someone decides to crackdown on it as well.

2 days ago

Jonas *************

How about you write an article about how does a foreigner open a bank account to get the retirement extension which requires the transfer of 800k?

As of this moment only Bank of Bank seems to be able to do it but with all the new rules they seem to be refusing it?

The problem in the first place seems to be able to use an agent to open accounts which otherwise shouldn't be open by the bank?

But implies the corrupt system already. Maybe start in that end?