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Use UK debit card to get cash in Thailand, UK or higher rate?


wybers

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I don't want to carry a load of cash with me from UK, bank suggested I draw it out at ATM in Thailand.  But what rate would I get?  The 'UK' rate (36 baht to £ today) or the 'local' higher rate, 40 ish?  Bank didn't know.  Do any BM's know?  Thanks in advance.

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Cash is the king.

Try to carry cash 50 sterling denominations, for exchange use Vasu Exchange/Super rich in BKK their exchange rates are good almost near to VISA exchange rates or if you are in pattaya use TT exchange, if you wanna carry card then Chase uk has a debit card but with a £500 sterling per day cap that roughly equivalent to 20000 bhat. The monthly cap for withdrawal on this card id £1500 if I am not wrong. Also note that ATM in Thailand levy 220 bhat for withdrawals.

Effectively you will lose about less than 1%(considering Google rates) going through either ways.

TT site https://ttexchange.com/ you will get nearby rates at all the above mentioned exchanges give or take few Sarang up or down.

 

Edited by markhaenses
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11 minutes ago, wybers said:

But what rate would I get?  The 'UK' rate (36 baht to £ today) or the 'local' higher rate, 40 ish?  

UK. I have a Nationwide Flex Plus account. £13 monthly.   I get withdrawals, each costing 220bht for using the Thai atm, but no bank charges from the UK.  The exchange rate is usually better than TT.  The Plus account also gives other benefits, the main one being Holiday Insurance.   As I come to Pattaya 3 times a year, this makes paying for an account a reasonable option.

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Just used my Halifax clarity credit card to withdraw 20000 baht over the counter at krungsi bank cost £ 500 with no added fees the same rate as changing cash.

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42 minutes ago, wybers said:

I don't want to carry a load of cash with me from UK, bank suggested I draw it out at ATM in Thailand.  But what rate would I get?  The 'UK' rate (36 baht to £ today) or the 'local' higher rate, 40 ish?  Bank didn't know.  Do any BM's know?  Thanks in advance.

you will deffo get a shit rate uk. do not do it.

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42 minutes ago, markhaenses said:

Cash is the king.

Try to carry cash 50 sterling denominations, for exchange use Vasu Exchange/Super rich in BKK their exchange rates are good almost near to VISA exchange rates or if you are in pattaya use TT exchange, if you wanna carry card then Chase uk has a debit card but with a £500 sterling per day cap that roughly equivalent to 20000 bhat. The monthly cap for withdrawal on this card id £1500 if I am not wrong. Also note that ATM in Thailand levy 220 bhat for withdrawals.

Effectively you will lose about less than 1%(considering Google rates) going through either ways.

TT site https://ttexchange.com/ you will get nearby rates at all the above mentioned exchanges give or take few Sarang up or down.

 

Ah, hadn't thought of cash in £50 notes, which would be a lot easier to carry than £20s or £10s. - sounds like they can be changed at the currency kiosks?  However, I've never tried this, always stuck to £20 notes.  As UK BMs will know £50 notes very unpopular in UK, and many places won't accept them. 

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3 minutes ago, wybers said:

Ah, hadn't thought of cash in £50 notes, which would be a lot easier to carry than £20s or £10s. - sounds like they can be changed at the currency kiosks?  However, I've never tried this, always stuck to £20 notes.  As UK BMs will know £50 notes very unpopular in UK, and many places won't accept them. 

whichever uk note value you bring make sure no writing on them /good condition or you will have trouble changing them

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6 hours ago, ngmassive said:

Just used my Halifax clarity credit card to withdraw 20000 baht over the counter at krungsi bank cost £ 500 with no added fees the same rate as changing cash.

Are the rates for over the counter withdrawal different than the ones they post online? According to their website:  https://www.krungsri.com/en/exchangerate/todayrates , you should have been charged 506 gbp from the exchange alone, even if your card is fee free. Does it go through your bank’s exchange rate instead?

 

Also would you happen to know if the transaction is classified as a purchase or cash advance for you? I’m asking because my debit card got deactivated and I can’t replace it. I have a fx free credit card but the cash advance limit per month is only $1000 (normal credit limit is $10000). I’ve heard you can bypass this cash advance limit by going to the counter though. Thanks in advance.

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Not sure the exact details with regards to what rate they use, but it is always a competitive rate and better than https://www.krungsri.com/en/exchangerate/todayrates

I believe its classed as a cash advance, I don't seem to have any limit and have taken £1000s out recently, as a cash advance I believe interest is incurred immediately on the transaction so I usually pay the balance off to avoid interest.

Been using this method for years and have always got the rate that is very close to the yellow tt money exchanges sometimes its even slightly better.

Edited by ngmassive
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Yes you’re paying extra to use a debit card…… but I think of that as a “security charge “ I don’t want to risk carrying loads to cash on the flights and taxi rides when arriving. Every time you change cash you’re supposed to show your passport, I don’t like carrying it around more than I have to.

As a kid I was mugged in Amsterdam just after changing loads of cash….. so probably for me a lifetime of caution since

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Just load up with new B of E £50 notes and keep them in a money belt or one of those wallets that hang from round your neck until you get to the hotel,then put it in the room safe. 

 

Just take out what you need to exchange as and when required. (Bring your passport,or copy of your passport with you to the FX booth)

If you're  bothered about having  too much bhat on your person whilst out and about round town, just exhange what you'll need for a couple of days and repeat every other day till it's time to go home.

Edited by Baddave
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Only used my Natwest debit card once in 29 trips and it was many years ago (I recommend you check with your bank for current terms as things have changed), at that time the rate was way lower than the TT booth rate, I got charged a fee for drawing cash and the ATM charged me 150bht.

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On 03/02/2023 at 19:04, mirrorrim said:

Are the rates for over the counter withdrawal different than the ones they post online? According to their website:  https://www.krungsri.com/en/exchangerate/todayrates , you should have been charged 506 gbp from the exchange alone, even if your card is fee free. Does it go through your bank’s exchange rate instead?

 

Also would you happen to know if the transaction is classified as a purchase or cash advance for you? I’m asking because my debit card got deactivated and I can’t replace it. I have a fx free credit card but the cash advance limit per month is only $1000 (normal credit limit is $10000). I’ve heard you can bypass this cash advance limit by going to the counter though. Thanks in advance.

The Mastercard exchange rate. https://www.mastercard.co.uk/en-gb/personal/get-support/convert-currency.html

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Visa and Mastercard both publish there exchange rates. You oughta be able to search google for visa, mastercard:

1 hour ago, Hollander said:

Find the additional fee the bank will charge, should be published by the bank. Might very depending on account type.

Expect the ATM to charge at least another 220 baht.

And most US bank will charge some kinda "out of network ATM fee" of several dollars, assume UK banks are similar.

Being from the US, I use a bank (schwab) that has no fees (either exchange or out of network ATM) and actually refunds the ATM terminal owners fees, and know there are other US banks with similar accounts. So ATMs are the best option for me, using that bank. But know nothing of UK retail banking or if there is similar options.

Cash avoids all this and you just have the exchange rate published by the booth / vendor. Get new clean large bills. Booths are all over any tourist area, including at the airport before getting a taxi. Differences is rates are usually small enough that a small change won't matter, while there airport booths might have a worse rate it won't be so bad to cause grief exchanging enough for you first day or so.

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On 03/02/2023 at 12:30, wybers said:

Ah, hadn't thought of cash in £50 notes, which would be a lot easier to carry than £20s or £10s. - sounds like they can be changed at the currency kiosks?  However, I've never tried this, always stuck to £20 notes.  As UK BMs will know £50 notes very unpopular in UK, and many places won't accept them. 

Bring a mixture of 50's and 20's, using your debit card will cost you,  five or six quid to use an ATM then your bank charges on top :o, dont do it, cash all the way with cards only brought out if you run out of cash or in an emergency.

Dont worry too much about travelling with lots of cash, nobody will mug you and i very strongly doubt you'll lose it cos you'll be acutely aware of it.

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I’m coming over with some cash but I’m also bringing a wise Visa card; I’m depositing gbp into the account and then converting when I think the rate is right( that’ll be pure guesswork) . Once I have tbh in the account I believe I can use it without charges at hotels and restaurants and minimal charges at atms.

I will have my Uk cards with me in case but hope not to use them.

I will monitor all cards online as I spend

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On 04/02/2023 at 02:14, ngmassive said:

Not sure the exact details with regards to what rate they use, but it is always a competitive rate and better than https://www.krungsri.com/en/exchangerate/todayrates

I believe its classed as a cash advance, I don't seem to have any limit and have taken £1000s out recently, as a cash advance I believe interest is incurred immediately on the transaction so I usually pay the balance off to avoid interest.

Been using this method for years and have always got the rate that is very close to the yellow tt money exchanges sometimes its even slightly better.

It's a cash advance, same as taking money out of an ATM, but over the counter you save the ATM fee. Halifax will charge you interest from the day you withdraw so to avoid any interest charges pay off the balance online the same day. You are not supposed to top up the card in advance so I've not tried adding several £k before going to Thailand.  Also note that any payments will go towards last month balance first so if you want to minimise interest on cash withdrawals you need to have no balance on the card.

The limit is £500 a day at least for an ATM up to your credit limit, but if you pay off the balance online then there is no limit.

The other thing to mention when withdrawing cash in Thailand, or anywhere abroad, is to let your home bank do the currency conversion and not the local shop/bank/ATM convert back to your local currency. In 99% of cases the ATM/shop/local bank will charge you more / give you a worse exchange rate than your home bank.

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I think it is surprising that 'in this day and age', the best deal is given to a person who brings paper money from his country on a plane, and gives it to an exchange booth in Pattaya.

I think: surely the overheads involved by say TT exchange in running many booths around town, collecting up, holding and transporting different currencies etc, must be quite high.

Banks ATM networks, linked by networks would seem to have lower overheads.  But are surprisingly more expensive than booths.

Maybe the banks regard using an ATM as an improved service, that they can demand a premium for.

Or maybe booths are so low tech, that the costs of 400 baht a day salary, and some rent money allow profits to be made.

Maybe cash allows creative accounting to occur. 555.

Not sure.

 

 

Edited by rog555
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20 minutes ago, rog555 said:

I think it is surprising that 'in this day and age', the best deal is given to a person who brings paper money from his country on a plane, and gives it to an exchange booth in Pattaya.

It's not the best deal for many people.   The Visa exchange rate can often be better than exchange booths,   and if you choose a bank with no fees,  you come out in front.  Plus you don't have to paint a big target on your back by carrying a massive wad of cash. 

I only brought $1000 in cash with me last time,  and ended up taking it all home with me again because ATMs were so much more convenient than currency booths.

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The only Card Brits should be using is Halifax Clarity assuming that you insist on using ATM's

Far better to have a Thai bank account and then use Transfer(wise) to wire in your monies at full interbank rate albeit you still have slight fees obviously via the sending charge

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HSBC current account customers who use the mobile app can get a Global Money Account, £0 fees on spending any money in there.  Just transfer an amount that you think you will spend into this account and then withdraw or use card to pay for anything.  There are no fees and you get the standard exchange rates.

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