Summary of Bank of Thailand’s Major Fee Reduction Measures: 19 Items Thai People and SMEs Must Know, Effective July

This marks a major milestone for the financial and banking sectors, as well as a benefit for the public and business community, following the Bank of Thailand’s (BOT) announcement of a historic restructuring and reduction of bank fees to protect consumers and concretely reduce economic costs.

This significant move by the BOT focuses on lowering service fees to reflect actual costs, establishing a nationwide Single Standard. It mandates the cancellation of fees for 10 key services, making them free, and strictly caps fees on other items. Financial institutions are also prohibited from charging hidden fees to compensate for lost income.

All these measures will automatically apply to the public and businesses without requiring any applications or registrations, with legal enforcement phased in from July to October 2026.

Thairath Money summarizes the key regulations that all Thai people should know, divided into four main categories as follows.

1. Deposit Account Category (Effective 1 Jul 2026)

To protect and provide access to basic services for individuals and SMEs.

• Statement requests (up to 12 months retroactive): E-Statements (online) are free; paper statements may be charged up to 100 baht per account per request.
• Financial status certification fee: capped at 100 baht per set per request.
• Account maintenance fee (for dormant accounts with no activity): free, except for accounts with balances below 2,000 baht and inactive for over one year, where banks may charge up to 20 baht per month.

2. Electronic Card Category (Effective July to September 2026)

Caps on fees for cards essential to daily life.

• Basic ATM/Debit cards (from 1 Sep 2026): Entry fees plus annual fees are capped at 150 baht per year for ATM cards and 200 baht per year for debit cards.
• Cash withdrawal fees from credit cards (from 1 Jul 2026): capped at a maximum of 2.5% of the withdrawn amount, reduced from previous rates.

3. Payment Transaction Category (Effective July to October 2026)

Reducing costs of inter-area transfers and payments for individuals and organizations.

• Inter-area service fees and correspondent bank fees (from 1 Sep 2026 / some items from 1 Jul 2026): Free for deposits, withdrawals, and transfers at ATMs, CDMs, CRMs, check deposits, and bill payment services—except cash deposits/withdrawals over counters across areas, where banks may charge up to 0.05% of transaction value.
• Bulk same-day payments (from 1 Sep 2026): capped at 20 baht per transaction.
• BAHTNET transfers (from 1 Oct 2026): electronic channel transfers capped at 100 baht per transaction.
• Foreign exchange commission fees (Commission in Lieu) (from 1 Jul to 1 Oct 2026): capped at 0.125% of the amount for individuals and SMEs, with minimum fees of 300 baht and maximum fees not exceeding 2,000 baht; no fees charged for transfers within the same bank.

4. SME Loan Category (Effective 1 Sep 2026)

Removing business constraints for small entrepreneurs.

• Loan management fees (Front-end fees): capped at 2.5% of the loan amount; for loans under 15 million baht, fees cannot exceed 250,000 baht.
• Loan disbursement extensions (Term Loans) and revolving credit renewals: free of charge, unless the borrower requests an increase in the credit limit, in which case fees apply only to the additional amount.
• Prepayment fees for Term Loans: capped at 3% of the outstanding balance but waived if more than half the principal has been repaid and more than half the contract period has passed.
• Loan cancellation fees: free, and cannot be charged if a commitment fee has already been paid or if the borrower has already used part of the credit.

The BOT clearly states that financial service providers are strictly prohibited from charging any additional fees to offset or compensate for the reduced fees under this measure.

Source: Bank of Thailand.

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