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Personal Bank Account in SE Asia as a Non-Resident

#2
Singapore and Hong Kong if you can deposit at least 100,000 USD/equivalent (more may be required depending on your profile). You might get a UnionPay card instead of Visa or Mastercard with some banks so check closely.

Some Taiwanese banks accept non-residents, although they seem to prefer business accounts, which come with the usual requirements of connections to the country or region.

Malaysia: the major banks will sometimes open personal accounts for non-resident, usually for VIP banking (100,000+ USD) or if you have a company in Malaysia or Labuan.

Maldives: see https://www.mib.com.mv/personal-deposits/non-resident-foreign-account

Cambodia: several options, see for example https://www.offshorecorptalk.com/threads/cambodia-banks.40625/

Bangladesh: see https://www.offshorecorptalk.com/threads/bangladesh-offshore-banking-units.45419/

Philippines: reports vary but it has historically been easy to open a personal account, although you may now need to register for a tax ID first which may or may not require some sort of non-tourist visa. The situation seems unclear and reports vary between banks, people, and locations. It's not the easiest option but it's not impossible.
 
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#3
Sols said:
Singapore and Hong Kong if you can deposit at least 100,000 USD/equivalent (more may be required depending on your profile). You might get a UnionPay card instead of Visa or Mastercard with some banks so check closely.

Some Taiwanese banks accept non-residents, although they seem to prefer business accounts, which come with the usual requirements of connections to the country or region.

Malaysia: the major banks will sometimes open personal accounts for non-resident, usually for VIP banking (100,000+ USD) or if you have a company in Malaysia or Labuan.

Maldives: see https://www.mib.com.mv/personal-deposits/non-resident-foreign-account

Cambodia: several options, see for example https://www.offshorecorptalk.com/threads/cambodia-banks.40625/

Bangladesh: see https://www.offshorecorptalk.com/threads/bangladesh-offshore-banking-units.45419/

Philippines: reports vary but it has historically been easy to open a personal account, although you may now need to register for a tax ID first which may or may not require some sort of non-tourist visa. The situation seems unclear and reports vary between banks, people, and locations. It's not the easiest option but it's not impossible.
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Thank you for your reply. It would only be used for debit card transactions for day to day spending, so only like $3-4k deposited/spent per month. No big lump sum.
 
#4
Sols said:
Singapore and Hong Kong if you can deposit at least 100,000 USD/equivalent (more may be required depending on your profile). You might get a UnionPay card instead of Visa or Mastercard with some banks so check closely.

Some Taiwanese banks accept non-residents, although they seem to prefer business accounts, which come with the usual requirements of connections to the country or region.

Malaysia: the major banks will sometimes open personal accounts for non-resident, usually for VIP banking (100,000+ USD) or if you have a company in Malaysia or Labuan.

Maldives: see https://www.mib.com.mv/personal-deposits/non-resident-foreign-account

Cambodia: several options, see for example https://www.offshorecorptalk.com/threads/cambodia-banks.40625/

Bangladesh: see https://www.offshorecorptalk.com/threads/bangladesh-offshore-banking-units.45419/

Philippines: reports vary but it has historically been easy to open a personal account, although you may now need to register for a tax ID first which may or may not require some sort of non-tourist visa. The situation seems unclear and reports vary between banks, people, and locations. It's not the easiest option but it's not impossible.
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Do you have an idea of the minimum required deposit for the MIB bank in the Maldives ?
 
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#10
Nacho said:
ABA Bank in Cambodia. USD transaction account. Need to visit but easy to open, great customer service, easy to use banking app, Visa debit card for overseas spending. I’ve had an account with them for 6 years now, highly recommended!
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Thank you. I've looked at Cambodia the only issue is that many people say a minimum 6-month visa is required by the banks?

I understand anyone can get the business visa easily but my understanding is it can take several days, meaning I'd need to wait in Cambodia until the passport is returned?
 
#14
financiallearner said:
Thank you. I've looked at Cambodia the only issue is that many people say a minimum 6-month visa is required by the banks?

I understand anyone can get the business visa easily but my understanding is it can take several days, meaning I'd need to wait in Cambodia until the passport is returned?
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Yes I think that’s right, although that wasn’t the case when I opened the account 6 years ago. Suggest to double check with ABA bank what are their current a/c opening requirements.
 
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#16
financiallearner said:
Thank you. I've looked at Cambodia the only issue is that many people say a minimum 6-month visa is required by the banks?

I understand anyone can get the business visa easily but my understanding is it can take several days, meaning I'd need to wait in Cambodia until the passport is returned?
Click to expand...

Many agents offer express service for an additional fee, which might reduce this waiting time to a minimum 24-48 hours. Best to avoid weekends and holidays.
 
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#17
toums said:
Can you share some experiences / process with Laos (as a TH resident) ?
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Haven't done it myself yet but did inquire. The 'official' way is to pay an agent for a Business Visa with work permit. With that you can open a bank account at every bank. The downside is you have to spend 10-14 days in Laos until you get your passport and permit back.
 
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