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Le Creature
Joined: 18 Jan 2006
Posts: 40
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 Posted: Mon Mar 27, 2006 1:13 pm Post subject: Is this true? |
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I've been given some information that I'd like to share...because I'm on a mission to seek the truth! *heroic music plays*
Info: The banking system is dramatically different in Japan than what you are used to. Please bring all your money to Japan in CASH or TRAVELLER'S CHEQUES only.
Credit cards, foreign/overseas automated teller machine cards (ATM) / bank cards, debit cards, personal cheques, bank drafts, money orders, etc, will NOT work in Japan. Do not rely on any of these sources for your money; bring either cash or traveller's cheques only.
- What is the validity of this statement? How does that work in relation to getting paid and withdrawing cash? ...I take it I start up my own bank account over there...*head explodes*
As you can see I'm a lost cause with all this banking talk...and I leave for Japan in less than a week. Any advice would be hugely appreciated, thanks! |
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PAULH
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 4672
Location: Western Japan
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| Posted: Mon Mar 27, 2006 1:18 pm Post subject: Re: Is this true? |
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| Le Creature wrote: |
I've been given some information that I'd like to share...because I'm on a mission to seek the truth! *heroic music plays*
Info: The banking system is dramatically different in Japan than what you are used to. Please bring all your money to Japan in CASH or TRAVELLER'S CHEQUES only.
Credit cards, foreign/overseas automated teller machine cards (ATM) / bank cards, debit cards, personal cheques, bank drafts, money orders, etc, will NOT work in Japan. Do not rely on any of these sources for your money; bring either cash or traveller's cheques only.
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You can use Cirrus cards at Japanese post offices and Citibank also has branches here where you can draw on funds from home.
Money orders can be cashed at post offices and I suspect banks. i had a friend send a $US money order and the post office cashed it. Traveler checks can be cashed at most large banks. Personal checks are not used in japan except bank checks.
Most foreign credit cards are accepted in Japan depending on shop. VISA Mastercard and AMEX to name a few. |
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Gordon
Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 5309
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Mon Mar 27, 2006 2:49 pm Post subject: |
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| ATMs in post offices are great for withdrawing money from int'l bank cards. Much of the info you received is bunk. Personal cheques are pretty much useless, but then why would you need them here? |
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JimDunlop2
Joined: 31 Jan 2003
Posts: 2286
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Tue Mar 28, 2006 12:50 am Post subject: Re: Is this true? |
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| Le Creature wrote: |
| The banking system is dramatically different in Japan than what you are used to. Please bring all your money to Japan in CASH or TRAVELLER'S CHEQUES only. |
Yes, it is. And that is good advice. In fact, I personally think that traveller's cheques aren't worth the paper they're printed with and I wouldn't buy any unless I were forced to do so. (I know that some people disagree with me on this one, -- it is my personal opinion). But if you bring traveller's cheques, the first thing you're going to have to do, regardless of whether the cheques' currency is in dollars OR yen, is take them to a bank to get exchanged for cash.
Regardless of what anyone may tell you, Japan is still largerly a cash-based society, so don't EXPECT to rely on debit cards, credit cards, cheques or any electronic forms of payment working. Especially if they are foreign issued. I STILL have problems paying with my Canadian Amex card at many gas stations for inexplicable reasons. It's a bonus if they do accept these payments, but don't rely on it.
| Le Creature wrote: |
Credit cards, |
SHOULD be OK, but once again, that's not a 100% rule. You CANNOT do cash advances on a foreign credit card at a standard Japanese bank machine, for instance. You will proably have to go to a postal savings ATM. As for paying by credit card in stores -- probably OK with some exceptions. But a fair number of smaller businesses don't accept credit cards at all.
| Le Creature wrote: |
foreign/overseas automated teller machine cards (ATM) / bank cards, debit cards, |
ONLY at a postal ATM machine or Citibank ATM machine. I also have a sneaky suspicion that Shinsei bank may be able to do it too if your card has a VISA PLUS symbol.
| Le Creature wrote: |
personal cheques, bank drafts, money orders, etc, will NOT work in Japan. Do not rely on any of these sources for your money; bring either cash or traveller's cheques only. |
Pretty much correct. Those forms of payment are virtually unknown in this country. If you RECEIVED a cheque from overseas, I've been told by a Japanese friend who spent some time living in the U.S. that you could technically cash cheques at a Japanese bank, but the time factor and costs involved in doing so are astronomical! As for money orders or bank drafts.... I wouldn't count on it. I read what Paul wrote, but something tells me that you'd have problems... At least if you were anywhere in rural Japan. Around here where I live, I've had troubles with post offices offering certain LOCAL services, let alone international ones.
| Le Creature wrote: |
- What is the validity of this statement? How does that work in relation to getting paid and withdrawing cash? ...I take it I start up my own bank account over there...*head explodes*
As you can see I'm a lost cause with all this banking talk...and I leave for Japan in less than a week. Any advice would be hugely appreciated, thanks! |
If you do not have a bank account set up, you employer will pay you in cash. This is actually fairly common in this country... My co-workers at the BoE actually INSIST on being paid in cash, and do not have a bank account, nor do they want one. I think that's dumb -- but everyone has a strategy I guess.
Starting up a bank account is fairly easy. The following requirements vary from bank to bank, but IN GENERAL: You will need a proof of residence (e.g. a utility bill that has been mailed to your name at your address, and your alien registration card (gaikokujin touroku). You will also need a hanko (inkan) -- a personal seal or stamp that you get made at a hanko shop. That usually costs about 1000 yen... Prices vary widely.
Shinsei Bank offers all its services in English. My wife and I are currently in the process of firing our current Japanese bank and switching to Shinsei. (I will post a message if I have any problems....) http://www.shinseibank.com/english/ Another option is Citibank but they are only located in major centres (like Tokyo) and require a minimum balance of 30,000 yen to be maintained in your account. (This was the case when we moved to Japan so this requirement may have changed since then). http://www.citibank.co.jp/en/index.html
If you do a search on Dave's on banking or ATM topics, you will find that it has been discussed a fair amount. Here is a link to some threads discussing which debit/credit cards work at postal ATMs.
http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/job/viewtopic.php?t=20771
http://www.eslcafe.com/forums/job/viewtopic.php?p=295255
Hope that helps... |
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shikushiku-boy
Joined: 09 Mar 2006
Posts: 49
Location: Melbourne
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| Posted: Tue Mar 28, 2006 9:47 am Post subject: banking |
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Last time I was in Japan (about 6 months ago) I used
an Australian ATM card (Maestro) to get money
out of Japanese Post Office cash machine. My first
time...it took about 2 hours to get the grin off my face.
I usually approach a Japanese bank ATM full of
trepidation.
Travelers� cheques: I once spent half a day slogging
around Osaka trying to find a bank that would cash
American Express (yen) travelers� cheques. What
the hell they had against them I do not know! If anybody
knows I�d be interested to find out.
A few days before, at a regional bank, in a medium sized
city, they were cashed with the minimum of fuss.
I�ve found that one of the best places to cash travelers�
cheques is the big Yodobashi Camera stores.
But, as has been said, when in doubt, take cash.
PS: I think, international banking has become a lot more
problematic because many countries have signed
anti-money laundering agreements. This means governments
have tightened up their control of money entering and leaving
their jurisdiction. |
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