Getting payment from Thailand - genuine problem, not a scam Thread poster: Katalin Horváth McClure
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Does anyone have an idea what could be the reason for a Thai company (direct client) to not be able to send a payment to the US? I have a direct client that seems to be unable to send me the payment for the latest project.
It is not that they don't want to pay. They are honest and are trying. The people in accounting have very limited English skills, so it is a bit of a challenge talking to them, but it is very clear that this is not an attempt to avoid payment.
They have, so ... See more Does anyone have an idea what could be the reason for a Thai company (direct client) to not be able to send a payment to the US? I have a direct client that seems to be unable to send me the payment for the latest project.
It is not that they don't want to pay. They are honest and are trying. The people in accounting have very limited English skills, so it is a bit of a challenge talking to them, but it is very clear that this is not an attempt to avoid payment.
They have, so far, tried to send me the money via K+ (seems to be some local online payment system), that failed. Then they initiated payment via SCB, and that failed, too. The last thing they tried was an international wire transfer via TTB 12 days ago, and the payment has not arrived. I just sent them an email notifiyin them of that fact.
They seem to be using the correct SWIFT code, routing and account number, as far as I can deduce from the scanned copies of transfer receipts (in Thai) they sent me.
The last project I did for them was 2 years ago and there was no problem receiving the payment. I don't remember which way they transferred the money back then.
I know that there is a big crackdown on money laundering in Thailand, involving the financial institutions, and that is why PayPal is cutting down on their services there. (They have not tried using PayPal.)
I am wondering if anyone else faced this problem and have an insight into the situation, and some tips on resolving this.
Again, this is a small local company that does not seem to be dealing with international payments a lot. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Mihai Badea (X) 
Luxembourg
Local time: 07:13
English to Romanian
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| Give them a break | Feb 24, 2022 |
They tried, didn't they? It's not their fault.
The right thing to do now, in my opinion, would be for you to propose a suspension of payment (e.g. 30 days).
This would give them some piece of mind and remove the feeling of guilt. You would have plenty of time to study alternatives so that, at the end of the 30 days, you can suggest one that works for sure. That if they don't figure out a way to make a payment that goes through, in the meantime.
Wise might b... See more They tried, didn't they? It's not their fault.
The right thing to do now, in my opinion, would be for you to propose a suspension of payment (e.g. 30 days).
This would give them some piece of mind and remove the feeling of guilt. You would have plenty of time to study alternatives so that, at the end of the 30 days, you can suggest one that works for sure. That if they don't figure out a way to make a payment that goes through, in the meantime.
Wise might be an option to take a look at, and if nothing else works, perhaps even a cash transfer service, though the commission would be, indeed, prohibitive. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Frank Zou
China
Local time: 13:13
Member (2016)
Chinese to English
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| Prepare for a trip in Thailand | Feb 24, 2022 |
Well, I wonder how much they owe you. If it's a lot. I heard Thailand is a beautiful country. Have them buy an air ticket for you so you can enjoy a tourist trip in Thailand. Or, ask them to buy stuff of equivalent value on amazon and ship it to your home address.
| | | | Sadek_A
Local time: 09:13
English to Arabic
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If your bank account is not multi-currency, have you double-checked with them to see if the transferred amount is indeed in the same currency as your bank account. That seems to block the amount from ever entering your account on the banking system's side. Even when the transfer has all your correct account information, automatically FX-ing the wrong currency is not something the banking system is willing to do without proper mechanisms being in place, i.e. the account features do actually suppo... See more If your bank account is not multi-currency, have you double-checked with them to see if the transferred amount is indeed in the same currency as your bank account. That seems to block the amount from ever entering your account on the banking system's side. Even when the transfer has all your correct account information, automatically FX-ing the wrong currency is not something the banking system is willing to do without proper mechanisms being in place, i.e. the account features do actually support that, or the account holder's (your) prior written consent allowing the bank to automatically do so according to certain agreed terms. ▲ Collapse
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Adieu
Ukrainian to English
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| ACH vs Swift confusion? | Feb 24, 2022 |
I've had issues with clients mixing up different methods, filling in the wrong info, and payments not happening from foreign clients due to that before.
| | | | | @Mihai - you misunderstood, I think | Feb 24, 2022 |
Mihai Badea wrote:
They tried, didn't they? It's not their fault.
I think you misunderstand the purpose of my post. I am not blaming them, I am looking for an explanation of what could be the problem, objectively, something that has to do perhaps with Thailand, not this specific client. Once we can find out the problem, perhaps a solution could be found. As it is now, it seems they are shooting in the dark.
I am trying to help them, not blame them. Yes, they tried, but since they are not doing this often, they may be missing something, hence my post to ask advice from those who may be more familiar with the situation.
The right thing to do now, in my opinion, would be for you to propose a suspension of payment (e.g. 30 days).
I don't see how that would be of any help. FYI, the attempts for payment have been going on for a month now.
This would give them some piece of mind and remove the feeling of guilt.
I am sorry, I just don't see how this would be any helpful. Just waiting for 30 days would not change anything, they would still owe me the payment. Again, see my reply above regarding guilt and blame. This post, and this issue is not about that.
You would have plenty of time to study alternatives so that, at the end of the 30 days, you can suggest one that works for sure. That if they don't figure out a way to make a payment that goes through, in the meantime.
This post is part of my efforts to find useful information. As I said in my original post, they have successfully sent me payments in the past, presumably using one of the methods they are trying now. So I am looking for info on what ELSE might be the problem, perhaps something that changed in the past year in Thailand's regulations about payments to overseas.
Wise might be an option to take a look at, and if nothing else works, perhaps even a cash transfer service, though the commission would be, indeed, prohibitive.
They are a company, and as such, I assume the payment should be executed in a way that is compatible with the local fiscal and accounting rules. I am not sure cash transfer services would fulfill those requirements.
Again, I am looking for replies from people who reside in the US and have recent experience with getting paid from Thailand.
Thanks.
[Edited at 2022-02-24 04:48 GMT]
| | | | | Possible legal consequences | Feb 24, 2022 |
Frank Zou wrote:
Well, I wonder how much they owe you. If it's a lot. I heard Thailand is a beautiful country. Have them buy an air ticket for you so you can enjoy a tourist trip in Thailand. Or, ask them to buy stuff of equivalent value on amazon and ship it to your home address.
Recently the Thai government is focusing on anti-corruption and anti-money-laundering regulations. I don't think the options you suggested would be acceptable and legal in that context. Again, the client is not a private person, this is a company.
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I am sure some US banks have branches in Thailand, so maybe finding out who they are and ask them what to do. With any luck your bank is one of them…
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| How about trying western union? | Feb 24, 2022 |
They work with Thailand
Just an idea
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Sadek_A wrote:
If your bank account is not multi-currency, have you double-checked with them to see if the transferred amount is indeed in the same currency as your bank account.
I have a USD account, and yes, they tried to send US Dollars. The copies of their order slips all show the currency as USD, and separately list the THB equivalent, so I don't think that is the problem, but I will reiterate this to them one more time.
Thank you.
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Adieu wrote:
I've had issues with clients mixing up different methods, filling in the wrong info, and payments not happening from foreign clients due to that before.
This may have been the problem with their first attempt via the K+ system (not sure, the slip lists the SWIFT code but it may be an ACH-based service).
However, it seems that the last transfer attempt was via the traditional banking system, using SWIFT, with the correct SWIFT code of my bank, yet still no sign of the money in my account after two weeks.
But thanks for the tip, I will reiterate this to the client.
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Angie Garbarino wrote:
They work with Thailand
Just an idea
I am looking into it, thanks.
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Mihai Badea (X)
Luxembourg
Local time: 07:13
English to Romanian
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| I misunderstood | Feb 25, 2022 |
Katalin Horváth McClure wrote:
Again, I am looking for replies from people who reside in the US and have recent experience with getting paid from Thailand.
Thanks.
[Edited at 2022-02-24 04:48 GMT]
Possibly. Sorry about that.
Good luck!
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See PM
| | | | | Resolved, but not sure how | Mar 7, 2022 |
So the client was able to finally wire the money through the bank system, using SWIFT from KASIKORNBANK PUBLIC CO LTD.
I asked the client in Thailand what they did differently, but I received no reply. As I said, it is very difficult to communicate with their administrative people. One thing I noticed is that in the field for the purpose of the payment it says "Goods", vs. the previously failed transfer(s) showed "Service". This may be the issue, as I read somewhere that Thailand has some ... See more So the client was able to finally wire the money through the bank system, using SWIFT from KASIKORNBANK PUBLIC CO LTD.
I asked the client in Thailand what they did differently, but I received no reply. As I said, it is very difficult to communicate with their administrative people. One thing I noticed is that in the field for the purpose of the payment it says "Goods", vs. the previously failed transfer(s) showed "Service". This may be the issue, as I read somewhere that Thailand has some restrictions on services provided by foreign companies.
Thank you for all your input. Hopefully they will remember the correct way to transfer the money next time.(I am saving the documentation for sure.)
[Edited at 2022-03-07 23:12 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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