Money transfer Tor Tor sam

I recently transfered some money from my bank to Thailand (via SWIFT) and the Thai bank phoned my BF saying I would have to sign a Tor Tor Sam before the money could be transferred into my account.

Has anyone else encountered this? Didn't happen last time I transferred money. (The money was transferred in GB Pounds).

Yes, it is just a formality -- part of the Anti-Money Laundering precautions in place for the past couple of years.

You just have to sign the form and say what it is for -- "personal expenses" is fine.

[Bob]

Found this on Thai Visa:

"A Tor Tor Sam (3) is an official bank document issued by the receiving bank upon the receipt of foreign currency into your bank account in Thailand. You must request a Tor Tor Sam from your bank when you are remitting funds to Thailand for the purpose of purchasing a condominium, and the Tor Tor Sam must specify that the remittance is solely for the purpose of purchasing a property - Code 5.22."

Another Thai Visa posting said that the Tor Tor Sam is required if the amount is big enough - and that particular poster said it was anything over $20,000.00 US; however, I transferred (international wire transfer using the swift code) a larger amount than that to my SCB account earlier this year and nobody asked me to sign anything (nor have I had to sign anything the 8-10 prior times I've wired funds to either my Thai bank account or to Thai bank accounts of others).

Thanks for this - I might have guessed.

Do you, or anyone else, happen to know whether the money is exchanged into baht when it is received by the Thai bank or when the Tor Tor Sam is signed? I'm not in Thailand yet, so there will be some delay in my being able to sign the (totally pointless) forms

[Bob]

Do you, or anyone else, happen to know whether the money is exchanged into baht when it is received by the Thai bank or when the Tor Tor Sam is signed? I'm not in Thailand yet, so there will be some delay in my being able to sign the (totally pointless) forms

I don't have a clue there. All I know is I request my wire transfers to be in US Dollars so the conversion to baht takes place in Thailand (I do that because the rate here in the US is always 5-10% lower than what I get within Thailand).

Bob - you replied while I was composing my reply to Beach Bunny. I didn't specify when sending the money that it was for purchasing a condo - in fact, it isn't. I too have transferred money in the past without problem, but on those occasions sent the money in thai baht rather than pounds. I wondered if this was the cause of the problem. If anyone knows, this would be useful info for others transferring money. The exchange rate now seems to be the same in the UK as in Thailand (I mean the rate applied by banks for wire transfers not bureau de change rates which are a rip off in the UK).

[mahjongguy]

- The exchange rate for that transaction has been set. The amount of baht due will not change.

- Be sure that the wire desk is aware that you are unavailable and holds it for you. Otherwise they might return the transfer.

- It was my understanding that signature was only required for amounts of US$20,000 or more. If your transfer was less than that, call the bank and insist that they release the funds.

Thanks Mahjongguy

The amount was over the USD20,000 limit, but I will follow your advice about phoning the bank. Just over a week till I get to Thailand, though - so I hope it won't be a problem.

[Bob]

Bob - you replied while I was composing my reply to Beach Bunny. I didn't specify when sending the money that it was for purchasing a condo - in fact, it isn't. I too have transferred money in the past without problem, but on those occasions sent the money in thai baht rather than pounds. I wondered if this was the cause of the problem. If anyone knows, this would be useful info for others transferring money. The exchange rate now seems to be the same in the UK as in Thailand (I mean the rate applied by banks for wire transfers not bureau de change rates which are a rip off in the UK).

Justin, if the exchange rate in your home country is about the same as the exchange rate in Thailand, it probably doesn't make any difference if you transfer the funds in pounds/euros/baht. But every time I've checked here in the US, they offer about 90% of what I can get in Thailand (and I'm guessing it is because our banks don't deal with Thai baht that often so it's a bit more expensive for them to move it around).