The short answer

Inside Thailand, transfers are free in bank apps and by PromptPay. Money arriving from abroad usually costs 0.25% at the Thai end, between ฿200 and ฿500 (about £4.50 to £11.30) at the banks we checked. Sending money out of Thailand costs from about ฿300 in a bank app, more at the counter or if you pay the overseas bank's charges too.

The fee that matters most is the one that isn't called a fee: the exchange rate. A UK bank that converts your pounds 3% below the mid-market rate takes £30 of every £1,000 — far more than any Thai bank charge. A specialist provider such as Wise or Xe usually costs a fraction of that, and pays the baht straight into your Thai account.

Every kind of transfer, and what it costs

The four ways money moves for most British expats in Thailand, and the typical cost of each in 2026.

Thai receiving fees from Bangkok Bank, SCB and Krungsri published tariffs; outward fee from Bangkok Bank's mobile transfer page. At ฿44.38 = £1. Fees vary by bank and change — check the current tariff before a large transfer.

Moving money within Thailand: free, with limits

Thai banks stopped charging for transfers through their apps and internet banking in 2018, and PromptPay — the national instant-payment system — made it possible to send money to a phone number or ID number at any bank. Today it's simply how Thailand pays: rent, school fees, a plumber, a dinner bill split between friends.

• App transfers are free between accounts at any Thai bank, and arrive in seconds, day or night.
• PromptPay and Thai QR payments are free for customers paying shops, landlords and each other.
• Branch transfers can cost a little — counter transfers to another bank, cashier's cheques and some ATM transfers carry small fees.
• Bill payments are usually free in the app; paying at 7-Eleven costs a small service fee.
• Daily limits apply. Each bank sets limits on app transfers, which you can usually raise — with a face scan.

The catch for foreigners is the security checks the Bank of Thailand has rolled out against scams. At SCB, for example, from 20 June 2026 foreign customers are asked for face recognition on transfers of ฿50,000 or more, each time daily transfers reach ฿200,000, when installing the app on a new phone and when raising transfer limits. If your face isn't registered, you'll need to visit a branch with your passport and passbook before you can move larger sums — so do it before you need to pay a deposit or a car.

What Thai banks charge to receive money from abroad

When an international SWIFT transfer arrives, the Thai bank deducts a fee before crediting your account. The structure is similar across the major banks: a percentage, with a minimum and a cap.

Bangkok Bank London branch page; SCB SWIFT inward page; Krungsri individual remittance tariff effective 1 July 2026. At ฿44.38 = £1. Money paid in by a specialist provider usually arrives as a local transfer, without this fee.

How the receiving fee works in practice

Because of the minimum and the cap, the receiving fee hits small transfers hardest and barely registers on large ones.

That's why sending lots of small SWIFT transfers is the costliest way to move money into Thailand. If you use your UK bank, it's cheaper to send fewer, larger transfers — though with the exchange-rate margin, the bigger saving usually comes from changing provider.

Two other Thai charges are worth knowing about:

• Re-transfers. If money arrives at one Thai bank and is passed on to another, there can be an extra fee — ฿150 on Bangkok Bank's London route, and a separate commission at some banks for SWIFT re-transfers.
• Enquiries and corrections. If a transfer is stuck or the details are wrong, tracing or amending it costs money — Krungsri lists ฿500 per case. Getting the name, account number and SWIFT code right first time avoids it.
• Foreign-currency accounts. Money credited to a foreign-currency deposit (FCD) account avoids conversion on arrival, but withdrawals from it can carry a commission — check before you choose one.

Our guide to what to do when an international transfer is delayed explains how to trace a payment without paying for more enquiries than you need.

The hidden fee: the exchange rate

Every time pounds become baht, someone sets the rate. The mid-market rate — the one on Google and Reuters — is the midpoint between buying and selling prices on the currency markets. Banks and money services convert at their own rate, and the gap is a charge, even when the transfer is advertised as "free".

A comparison published by Wise in August 2026 listed reported margins of up to 3.55% at Lloyds, 2.2% at Nationwide, 1%–3% at Santander and 4% at the Co-operative Bank, alongside payment fees from £0 to £25. On a £1,000 transfer, a 3% margin is £30 — more than six times the ฿200 Thai receiving fee.

The other question is who converts the money:

Bangkok Bank's London branch offers both: the baht option at £15 converts in London at the branch's rate, and the sterling option at £20 converts in Thailand at the daily TT buying rate. For most people, a specialist provider that converts at or near the mid-market rate and pays baht locally beats both.

SHA, OUR and BEN: who pays the charges

Every SWIFT transfer has a charging option, often hidden in a drop-down menu. It decides who pays the fees along the way:

Sending from Thailand, "OUR" costs real money: Bangkok Bank's app charges ฿1,050 (about £23.66) with the overseas charges included, against ฿300 (about £6.76) without, and Krungsri's tariff adds ฿1,200 for a "Charge Our" transfer in pounds. Even then, Thai banks warn that some foreign banks may still deduct a fee.

The cheapest ways to move money between the UK and Thailand

For regular transfers into Thailand, two quotes from specialist providers will almost always beat a UK bank. For money leaving Thailand, your Thai bank's app is usually simplest.

Sending money out of Thailand

Sooner or later most expats need to send money the other way: to a UK credit card, to family, to pay a UK bill or to move savings home. Thailand has exchange controls, so the rules are a little stricter than in the UK, but for ordinary purposes it's straightforward.

Bangkok Bank lets foreigners send money abroad from its mobile app without applying in advance or registering the recipient. Permitted purposes for foreigners include repatriating income, education, travel, personal use, goods, services and gifts, and the bank says no supporting documents are needed to declare the purpose — though it may ask for more information. The fee is ฿300 per transfer (normally ฿400) if you pay only Bangkok Bank's charge, or ฿1,050 (normally ฿1,150) to cover the foreign bank's fees too. Transfers run from 08:30 to 17:00 on business days, up to ฿2,000,000 a day across its channels.

Krungsri's tariff from 1 July 2026 lists ฿350 per outward transfer through its app or online banking and ฿500 at the counter, with separate SWIFT and "Charge Our" fees and a ฿500 charge for amendments or cancellations. Other banks publish similar tariffs; check the total on the confirmation screen before you approve.

Because baht leaving Thailand is converted at the bank's selling rate, the exchange-rate margin applies on the way out too. For regular transfers back to the UK, compare your Thai bank against a specialist provider. Wise accounts registered to a Thai address are moving to Wise's Thai entity during 2026; they can send baht abroad but have daily limits, so check what applies to your account.

The cost of sending ฿50,000 to the UK

About £1,127 — a typical one-off transfer home. Bank fees only; the exchange-rate margin comes on top.

Bangkok Bank international funds transfer via mobile banking; Krungsri individual remittance tariff effective 1 July 2026. At ฿44.38 = £1. Your UK bank may also charge to receive an international payment.

Large transfers: property, visas and the FET form

For a condo purchase, a retirement-visa deposit or a big move of savings, the percentages matter less and the paperwork matters more.

1. Tell your Thai bank before the money leaves. Ask what rate it will apply and whether it can improve it for the amount.
2. Send in the right form. For a condo, the money must arrive from abroad in foreign currency — check with your lawyer and the bank how they need it sent.
3. State the purpose clearly. Use a reference such as "purchase of condominium unit" so the bank can classify the transfer correctly.
4. Expect questions from USD 50,000. SCB asks for supporting documents for the purpose and a Foreign Currency Transaction Form on inward transfers from USD 50,000 or equivalent, in line with Bank of Thailand rules.
5. Ask for the FET form or credit advice. It proves the money came from abroad — essential for registering a condo and useful if you ever send the money home.
6. Get two quotes. On £100,000, a 1% better rate is £1,000; specialist providers often offer dedicated help for larger transfers.

Our guide to Thai bank accounts for property buyers covers the condo rules in detail, and Thai bank accounts for retirees explains how to move a visa deposit.

Four real-life examples

All examples are illustrations at ฿44.38 = £1 on 12 October 2026. Your bank's exact fees and rate on the day will differ.

Eight ways to pay less

• Compare the baht that arrive, not the fee. It's the only number that captures the rate.
• Use a provider that pays locally in Thailand, avoiding the Thai SWIFT receiving fee.
• Send fewer, larger transfers if you use a bank, so the minimum fee is spread over more money.
• Get the details right first time — name exactly as on the account, account number and SWIFT code. Corrections cost ฿500 at some banks.
• Use the app, not the counter, for outward transfers from Thailand.
• Choose SHA unless you need an exact amount — "OUR" can cost three times as much.
• Keep money in baht for spending in Thailand so you're not converting back and forth.
• Register your face at the branch so large transfers don't get stuck behind security checks.

One other cost is worth planning for: if you're tax resident in Thailand, foreign income you bring into the country may be taxable under the rules in force since 2024. It doesn't change the transfer fee, but it can change how and when you move money — worth discussing before you set up regular transfers.

Protecting the money once it's here

Once your money is in Thailand, the bigger risks are scams and the unexpected. Scammers posing as bank staff, police or couriers target foreigners, and a few minutes' pressure can empty an account that free instant transfers make easy to drain. Never move money because someone on the phone tells you to, and never install an app a caller sends you. Our guide to protecting yourself from payment scams covers the warning signs.

The unexpected is usually a hospital bill. Treatment at Thailand's private hospitals is excellent but not cheap, and needing to wire money from the UK in a hurry is the most expensive way to pay for it. Good health or travel insurance means the money question is settled before the emergency.

How we researched this guide

We took the Thai receiving and sending fees from the banks' own published pages and tariffs: Bangkok Bank's London branch and mobile international transfer pages, SCB's SWIFT inward page and Krungsri's individual remittance tariff effective 1 July 2026. UK bank fees and margins come from Wise's August 2026 comparison, Wise's delivery limits from its Thailand page and SCB's face recognition rules from its published page. Fees change, and banks run promotions; always check the current tariff before a large transfer. Checked 13 October 2026. This guide is general information, not financial advice.