BANGKOK, THAILAND – The Bank of Thailand opened a public consultation on new nationwide standards for bank fees aimed at cutting costs and making charges fairer for consumers.
Public consultation and timeline
The Bank of Thailand launched a draft framework for new rules on bank charges and invited public feedback. The consultation period ran from 10 April to 10 May 2026.
Under the plan, the central bank intended to introduce the new standards in June. The measures targeted basic financial services used by customers across the country.
The draft rules were designed to standardise and clarify fees for essential financial services. According to the BoT, the standards aimed to create a more transparent fee structure nationwide.
Reasons for overhauling fee structures
The central bank said the reform was meant to ensure that customers could use financial services at reasonable prices. At the same time, it wanted to raise transparency around costs and charges.
According to the BoT, some existing fees no longer reflected actual costs due to technological advances. Other charges remained excessively high despite falling underlying expenses.
The regulator framed the changes as a move to align fees more closely with real provisioning costs. It also stressed the goal of making pricing easier for customers to understand and compare.
15 service categories under review
The draft envisaged fee adjustments across 15 service categories. This was intended to create a more consistent charge structure for different banking services.
The BoT emphasised that the reforms should be more consumer‑friendly and establish more uniform standards nationwide. Feedback from the consultation was to be incorporated into the final rules.
The central bank signalled that it sought a balance between customer protection and the cost of providing services. It underlined that comments from the public would help fine‑tune the framework.
Account maintenance and cards: new caps
Monthly account maintenance fees were set to fall from 50 baht to a maximum of 20 baht. This would significantly reduce ongoing basic costs for many customers.
Card charges were also to be capped. ATM cards would be limited to 150 baht per year, while debit cards could cost no more than 200 baht annually.
The BoT said the aim was to make standard card products cheaper and easier to compare. Lower ceilings on recurring fees were intended to support everyday account holders.
Statements and certificates: paper and electronic
Paper account statements were to be capped at 100 baht per request. Electronic statements were to be provided free of charge for 12 months.
For older e‑statement data, the draft set a maximum fee of 100 baht. Financial confirmation or certification letters were likewise to cost no more than 100 baht per request.
These limits were intended to curb documentation costs that can add up for regular users. The BoT also highlighted the role of digital channels in cutting banks’ own expenses.
Credit card cash withdrawals: lower fees
Fees for cash withdrawals using credit cards were to be reduced from 3% to a maximum of 2–2.5%. This would make one of the more expensive types of transaction cheaper for cardholders.
The BoT placed this adjustment within its broader push to tie fees more closely to underlying costs. It also sought to make the overall fee structure more comprehensible for customers.
By narrowing the range of charges, the central bank aimed to reduce unexpected costs for users of credit cards. The move was part of an effort to address areas where fees were seen as particularly high.
Cross‑provincial transactions: charges to be scrapped
Fees for deposits, withdrawals and transfers across provincial or clearing zones were to be abolished. This would make interprovincial transactions cost‑neutral nationwide.
In addition, banks would be required to offer basic ATM and branch services without extra “cross‑area” surcharges. The BoT said this was intended to reduce financial burdens for customers in all regions.
The central bank argued that an end to cross‑area fees would support more equal access to services. It also linked the step to the broader objective of nationwide fee harmonisation.
Public feedback invited
The BoT explicitly invited customers to share their views on the proposed fee caps and the removal of charges for transactions across provincial borders. It asked whether the planned measures would noticeably ease day‑to‑day banking in Thailand.
Members of the public were also encouraged to identify fees they currently considered particularly non‑transparent or too high. The central bank signalled it was open to tightening rules further where justified by consumer feedback.