Sending money from the United Kingdom to Thailand: the payments stack
Sending GBP 120 from the United Kingdom to Thailand cost 5.04% of the amount on average in Q3 2025, across 25 services in the World Bank's Remittance Prices Worldwide survey. Payouts in Thailand typically run over PromptPay, BAHTNET; between now and the end of 2027 there are 8 weekdays when banks in the United Kingdom are closed but Thailand keeps paying out, so the payout balance has to be funded before them.
| Average cost to send | 5.04% of GBP 120 (Q3 2025, World Bank RPW) source |
| Money transfer operators | 4.64% across 24 services |
| Banks | 14.57% across 1 services |
| Collect in United Kingdom | Faster Payments, CHAPS, Bacs (Direct Credit and Direct Debit) |
| Pay out in Thailand | PromptPay, BAHTNET |
What it costs to send GBP 120
The World Bank surveyed 25 services sending from the United Kingdom to Thailand from 8 August 2025 to 22 August 2025. The average total cost, fees plus the FX margin, was 5.04% of the amount sent; money transfer operators averaged 4.64% and banks 14.57%. source
Bank and operator averages are worked out from the survey's provider types.
The send side: the United Kingdom
- Money remittance and the execution of credit transfers and direct debits are payment services under the Payment Services Regulations 2017; a firm providing them must be an authorised payment institution or a small payment institution unless it is already another type of payment service provider or is exempt. Issuing e-money requires authorisation or registration under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011. source
- Initial capital for an authorised payment institution is 20,000 euros for money remittance only, 50,000 euros for payment initiation and 125,000 euros for the services in paragraphs 1(a) to (e) of Schedule 1, such as executing payment transactions (PSRs 2017, Schedule 3). source
- An authorised e-money institution needs initial capital of at least 350,000 euros; a small e-money institution with average outstanding e-money of 500,000 euros or more holds at least 2% of that amount (EMRs 2011, Schedule 2). source
Licences, sponsor banks, collections, ramps and KYC providers: sending from the United Kingdom.
The payout side: Thailand
| Payout partner | What it does in Thailand | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Nium · our guide | Pays out THB to bank accounts in real time at PromptPay International enabled banks (including Bangkok Bank, Kasikorn Bank, Krung Thai Bank and Siam Commercial Bank) and same day to other banks through BAHTNET with a 14.30 local cut-off, up to THB 1,999,999 per transaction at Kasikorn Bank, Siam Commercial Bank, CIMB Thai and Bangkok Bank and below THB 500,000 elsewhere. | source |
| Airwallex | Local THB payouts over PromptPay with a flight time of 0 to 1 business days and a THB 500,000 transaction limit (THB 1,500,000 to KBank), plus SWIFT payouts in THB and 21 other currencies. | source |
| dLocal · our guide | Payouts V3 sends bank transfers in THB or USD for B2C, B2B and P2P flows, and instant wallet transfers to TrueMoney wallets by mobile number. | source |
| Thunes · our guide | Its pay network lists Thailand for bank account payouts. | source |
| TerraPay · our guide | Its network page lists Thailand among its Asia Pacific payout markets. | source |
Licensing, local banks, stablecoin ramps, FX and KYC in Thailand: launching payments in Thailand.
Payout rails in Thailand
| Rail | Operator | What matters for payouts | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| PromptPay | National ITMX, overseen by the Bank of Thailand | Thailand's fast payment system, operating 24 hours a day every day including weekends and public holidays, with commercial banks as the main service providers. | source |
| BAHTNET | Bank of Thailand | Real-time gross settlement system for high-value baht transfers, with operating hours of 8.30 to 17.30 on every working day of financial institutions. | source |
Holiday gaps to plan for, to December 2027
Weekdays when one side of the corridor is closed. On the 8 dates when the United Kingdom is closed and Thailand is open, the payout balance has to already hold enough to cover them. On the 19 dates when Thailand is closed, instant rails may still pay out.
| Date | United Kingdom | Thailand | What it means |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon 7 Dec 2026 | Open | Substitution for 5 December (King Bhumibol's Birthday, National Day and Father's Day) | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Thu 10 Dec 2026 | Open | Constitution Day | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Fri 25 Dec 2026 | Christmas Day | Open | Prefund Thailand the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Mon 28 Dec 2026 | Boxing Day (substitute day) | Open | Prefund Thailand the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Thu 31 Dec 2026 | Open | New Year's Eve | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Fri 1 Jan 2027 | New Year's Day | New Year's Day | Both closed |
| Mon 22 Feb 2027 | Open | Substitution for Makha Bucha Day | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Fri 26 Mar 2027 | Good Friday | Open | Prefund Thailand the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Mon 29 Mar 2027 | Easter Monday | Open | Prefund Thailand the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Tue 6 Apr 2027 | Open | Chakri Memorial Day | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Tue 13 Apr 2027 | Open | Songkran Festival | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Wed 14 Apr 2027 | Open | Songkran Festival | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Thu 15 Apr 2027 | Open | Songkran Festival | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Mon 3 May 2027 | Early May bank holiday | Substitution for National Labour Day | Both closed |
| Tue 4 May 2027 | Open | Coronation Day | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Thu 20 May 2027 | Open | Visakha Bucha Day | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Mon 31 May 2027 | Spring bank holiday | Open | Prefund Thailand the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Thu 3 Jun 2027 | Open | HM Queen Suthida's Birthday | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Mon 19 Jul 2027 | Open | Substitution for Asarnha Bucha Day | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Wed 28 Jul 2027 | Open | HM King Maha Vajiralongkorn's Birthday | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Thu 12 Aug 2027 | Open | Birthday of HM Queen Sirikit The Queen Mother and Mother's Day | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Mon 30 Aug 2027 | Summer bank holiday | Open | Prefund Thailand the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Wed 13 Oct 2027 | Open | King Bhumibol Adulyadej Memorial Day (Navamindra Maharaj Day) | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Mon 25 Oct 2027 | Open | Substitution for Chulalongkorn Day | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Mon 6 Dec 2027 | Open | Substitution for 5 December (King Bhumibol's Birthday, National Day and Father's Day) | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Fri 10 Dec 2027 | Open | Constitution Day | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
| Mon 27 Dec 2027 | Christmas Day (substitute day) | Open | Prefund Thailand the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Tue 28 Dec 2027 | Boxing Day (substitute day) | Open | Prefund Thailand the day before: no funding from the United Kingdom, payouts continue |
| Fri 31 Dec 2027 | Open | New Year's Eve | Thailand banks closed: only always-on rails pay out |
Full calendars: United Kingdom and Thailand. Size the buffer with the corridor runway calculator.
Funding the corridor
- Faster Payments is available to customers 24/7, but net settlement between participants takes place in the Bank of England RTGS system three times each business day. source
- CHAPS does not run on weekends or England and Wales bank holidays, and the customer payment deadline is 17:40, so any same-day sterling funding of an overseas account must be instructed before then. source
- Onshore banks must keep each non-resident's end-of-day balance at no more than THB 200 million across all its NRBAs (and separately its NRBSs) at onshore banks, and do not pay interest except on fixed NRBAs of six months or more, under rules effective 1 December 2025. source
- Non-residents providing cross-border payment services can join the NRQC scheme, which lifts the NRBA end-of-day limit and removes per-transaction supporting documents for baht transactions with onshore banks. source
- BAHTNET runs 9 hours a day, 5 days a week, so PromptPay obligations that clear after its window sit unsettled overnight, which the BOT puts at roughly THB 7.8 billion of settlement risk per night. The BOT plans a staged extension of BAHTNET hours towards 24/7. source
Running the corridor
Polynopsis shows every balance on both sides of this corridor in one live position: the collection accounts in United Kingdom, the payout partners and banks in Thailand and any stablecoin in between. It warns before the Thailand balance runs dry, holidays included. See how it works.
Frequently asked questions
How much does it cost to send money from the United Kingdom to Thailand?
The World Bank's survey put the average total cost of sending GBP 120 at 5.04% in Q3 2025, across 25 services. Money transfer operators averaged 4.64%.
Which rails pay out in Thailand?
Local payouts run over PromptPay, BAHTNET.
When do I need to prefund Thailand payouts ahead of holidays?
Between now and December 2027 there are 8 weekdays when the United Kingdom is closed and Thailand is open, the first on Fri 25 Dec 2026. The payout balance has to cover those days before they start.
Related corridors
Sources
- World Bank, Remittance Prices Worldwide dataset · World Bank
- UK bank holidays (JSON feed) · GOV.UK
- UK bank holidays · GOV.UK
- Financial Institutions Holiday · Bank of Thailand
- Notification of the Bank of Thailand No. 31/2568: financial institutions' holidays for 2026 · Bank of Thailand
Know where all your money is.
Polynopsis gives cross-border payment teams one live position across every bank, payout partner, exchange and wallet, including money in flight, and warns before a corridor runs dry.
About Polynopsis
Polynopsis is liquidity management software for cross-border payment companies. The name joins poly, many, and synopsis, a seeing together: one live view of money spread across many banks, payout partners, exchanges and stablecoin wallets, including money in flight, with a warning before any corridor runs dry.
Why it is called Polynopsis · About Polynopsis · Glossary · Corridor runway calculator