mojaco

OK, I found out from my Thai friend just exactly what Bangkok Bank does. They create a new savings account with just one name on the face page like a single owner. But when you sign the last page of the bank book, it creates an invisible signature which can only be seen under their "black light", which is how they verify your withdrawals at the bank. A second (or more) people can register using their Tabien Baan and ID Card and also sign that last page of the bank book. They then have the right AT ANY TIME to take that bank book, their ID Card and Tabien Baan to the bank and withdraw funds from that account. So safeguarding the Bank Book is all important. It is not like a death beneficiary. It almost seems like a fake "single owner" bank book to me, but obviously it is legal. I somehow doubt Immigration will accept that system, but tomorrow I am going to ask my local Immigration office about this. I'll report back what they say.

Good advice.

My close Thai friend of 25 years asked yesterday and the local Bangkok Bank in our town said he could become like a "beneficiary" กรรมสิทธิ์ Kammasit (ownership in Thai), which would give him rights to the account upon the death of the owner without his name being on the account as a joint owner. Maybe this is something only available to a Thai, or perhaps it depends on the particular branch decision? It sounds "iffy" though to me since you were told "no" in your area. I will avoid this possibility.

No

Thank all of you for your replies and advice. But right now my 800,000 is in a Fixed Deposit and that wouldn't be instantly accessible via ATM card. So I guess it would be best to get her on her own "retirement extension" ahead of time to avoid any probably-illegal overstay problems. Or if she would prefer my having the 800,000 in my normal single-owner savings account with her as the death beneficiary registered on that account, maybe that would work timely enough for her to access my 800,000 to use for herself. But that last option wouldn't meet the pre-extension two month criteria would it?

She's over 50 and if she had 800,000 already in her own name in a Thai bank for 3 months could she immediately get retirement extension without needing to leave Thailand?

I cannot find an answer using search. But if a foreign couple (both foreigners) are retired with the husband as the primary retiree (800,000 in the bank) and the wife as his dependent (free), and he dies, what are her options to stay, and how long does she have to make a new option?