Say Bye-Bye to PayPal in Thailand

Many expats in Thailand have used PayPal for years to easily transfer money back and forth to foreign countries. They could send money to family members and receive payments from suppliers and employers. But recently, the end of an era is coming for expats when PayPal no longer becomes an option for expats to use in transferring money. 

The reason that expats are soon to be shut out is because of new Thai banking regulations. The government will soon require everyone using the platform to submit a thirteen-digit business identification number. There are other requirements that need to be submitted as well, but the business ID number effectively prevents all foreigners from using the platform, as no private foreigners are regarded as businesses in Thailand or can register as such. 

What’s the Real Reason?

The details remain a bit murky, with the Thai government claiming that it’s a result of new banking laws aimed at weeding out money laundering and helping Thailand to increase transparency in finance. But curiously, none of the other popular money-transferring platforms are affected by the new laws. You can use:

• Amazon Pay
• Apple Pay
• Google Pay Send
• Payoneer
• QuickBooks Go Payments
• Shopify Payments
• Skrill
• Venmo
• Wise

These and many other transfer platforms still work in Thailand. This seems to put the ball firmly in PayPal’s court to explain further why they are unable to comply with the new laws. 

If you need to find an alternative to PayPal, please note that not every platform has the same requirements. Some charge higher or lower fees, some only work with debit or credit cards from specific Thai banks, and some aren’t active in the country you may want to send money to. The good news is that “nature abhors a vacuum.” This means that there will certainly be a rush of new services set up to replace PayPal in Thailand.