Banking & money

Can a foreigner open a Thai account?

Kasikorn Bank's official page: foreigners need a passport plus a Non-Immigrant visa (any type) plus documents matching their purpose (work permit, school certificate, and so on). Accounts are not opened for tourist visa, Visa on Arrival, visa-exempt or DTV holders.

PromptPay

Thailand's national QR and phone-number payment system. It is how street food, markets and a lot of rent get paid once you have a Thai account linked to it. Scheme details: Bank of Thailand: PromptPay.

TAGTHAi Easy Pay (PromptPay QR for visitors)

TAGTHAi Easy Pay is a tourist e-wallet inside the TAGTHAi app, run with KASIKORNBANK. It lets foreign visitors scan and pay Thai PromptPay QR codes without a Thai bank account (TAGTHAi Easy Pay).

• Who: foreign tourists (non-Thai nationals), aged 20 or older, one e-wallet per person, with a passport (TAGTHAi terms).
• Sign up: in the app, open Easy Pay, enter your passport details, tap Pre-Register, add your personal details, then add a credit or debit card. TAGTHAi suggests adding the card before you arrive. You can also link an e-wallet opened at a KASIKORNBANK foreign exchange booth (Wallet ID plus a 6-digit PIN).
• Pay: Scan & Pay, scan the shop's QR, enter the amount, confirm with your PIN.
• Fees: TAGTHAi says there are no application or card fees, and cash withdrawals at KASIKORNBANK ATMs are free. Your own card may still add foreign transaction or conversion fees; check your card terms.
• Since August 2026 a physical prepaid card is no longer needed (TAGTHAi).

Limits published for the original prepaid e-wallet: 25,000 THB per transaction, 50,000 THB per month, KBank ATM withdrawals up to 10,000 THB. Whether the same limits apply to the card-linked version, and which card networks are accepted, is not stated clearly.

⚠ To verify — check the official source before relying on this.

Terms: KBank Tourist Wallet terms (PDF).

Without a Thai account

Wise (multi-currency card), cash, and regular cards. A Wise account registered outside Thailand can only scan Thai QR codes that show the Alipay+ mark, from supported countries; a plain PromptPay QR does not work (Wise help).

See Wise

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Thai banks compared: can a foreigner open an account?

All of these need you in person at a Thai branch with your passport. None of them accept tourist stamps for a normal savings account. Rules below are what each bank's own pages say (checked Oct 2026); branches can ask for more.

All of these banks have their own mobile banking app for QR (PromptPay) payments, transfers and bills; you register for it after opening the account (ttb asks foreign customers to register their face at a branch first).

In short: with a work permit, most banks are open to you. With a retirement or other Non-Immigrant visa and no work permit, KBank and Krungsri say yes, Bangkok Bank reportedly yes, SCB and ttb list a work permit. Tourists and DTV holders: no.