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nonsmoker
Joined: 20 Apr 2007
Posts: 352
Location: Exactly here and now.
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 Posted: Fri May 04, 2007 8:20 pm Post subject: Money matters |
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| Realistically, how much money should someone bring with them to survive until their first paycheck in Japan. I'm talking someone who gets a visa sponsorship and doesn't hit the pavement. I heard that It usually takes up to 6 weeks for the first pay to arrive. So, minus the plane ticket, how much money does a teacher need from the moment he gets the job until the moment he gets the first pay? |
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canuck
Joined: 11 May 2003
Posts: 1921
Location: Japan
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| Posted: Fri May 04, 2007 9:08 pm Post subject: Re: Money matters |
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| nonsmoker wrote: |
| Realistically, how much money should someone bring with them to survive until their first paycheck in Japan. I'm talking someone who gets a visa sponsorship and doesn't hit the pavement. I heard that It usually takes up to 6 weeks for the first pay to arrive. So, minus the plane ticket, how much money does a teacher need from the moment he gets the job until the moment he gets the first pay? |
As much as you can. To be specific, $3438.47. |
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nonsmoker
Joined: 20 Apr 2007
Posts: 352
Location: Exactly here and now.
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| Posted: Fri May 04, 2007 11:53 pm Post subject: Re: Money matters |
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| canuck wrote: |
As much as you can. To be specific, $3438.47. |
Are you serious or are you pulling my leg? If you are serious, can u please share with me how you came up with that figure? |
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markle
Joined: 17 Jan 2003
Posts: 1316
Location: Out of Japan
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| Posted: Sat May 05, 2007 1:33 am Post subject: |
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Well in his own unique style canuck has a point, how much you'll need is going to fluctuate wildly from person to person. Your biggest expense will be accomodation so find out from your employer how much of that burden you will bear. After that take the average salary 250K (do your own conversion) and bring the equivalent, if you can't live on your salary then you better reconsider staying in Japan.
On actually bringing money, don't bring cash or travellers cheques. The most efficent method is using your home bank ATM card or a credit card to transfer the money over. Find out which system your bank uses and see if it is the same as the Japanese Post Office one. |
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gaijinalways
Joined: 29 Nov 2005
Posts: 2279
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| Posted: Sat May 05, 2007 4:57 am Post subject: |
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I would suggest the travler's checks instead. I t can take some time to pin down banks that will allow that kind of transfer, and those kinds of transfers take time. You don't want to be stuck without money while you're waiting for your bank to transfer money to the post office or other account. many of the post offices are not on that many systems, and even their ATM access is not the best. A Citibank account would probably be your best bet.
And my next question would be Canuck, did you do it? I would say it takes a bit of money to pull it off, especially if you arrive with no job in hand. You should also try to get out to get some info, but tht costs a bit too, the costs of getting info. if you're lucky and land a job quickly, you could get by with a couple of grand (American). But don't count on it, luck that is. |
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markle
Joined: 17 Jan 2003
Posts: 1316
Location: Out of Japan
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| Posted: Sat May 05, 2007 8:19 am Post subject: |
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| gaijinalways wrote: |
| I would suggest the travler's checks instead. I t can take some time to pin down banks that will allow that kind of transfer, and those kinds of transfers take time. You don't want to be stuck without money while you're waiting for your bank to transfer money to the post office or other account. many of the post offices are not on that many systems, and even their ATM access is not the best. A Citibank account would probably be your best bet. |
That is patently bad advice. Why? 1. travellers cheks cost money and you get the worst rate of exchange. 2. Finding a bank that will deal with them will be problematic. 3. An ATM transfer is virtually instantaneous since it is linked to your home bank. 4. The Post Office ATMs is linked to the main international transfer systems namely Cirrus and Maestro. 5. What advantages exactly would opening a Citibank account offer if the OP's home bank is linked to the systems offered by the Post Office (which by the way are present in throughout Japan in most towns try finding a Citibank in outide a major city)
http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=46468&highlight=travellers+checks
http://forums.eslcafe.com/job/viewtopic.php?t=36900&highlight=travellers+cheques
| Quote: |
| And my next question would be Canuck, did you do it? I would say it takes a bit of money to pull it off, especially if you arrive with no job in hand. You should also try to get out to get some info, but tht costs a bit too, the costs of getting info. if you're lucky and land a job quickly, you could get by with a couple of grand (American). But don't count on it, luck that is. |
I don't know aboout canuck but my wife and I survived on under 100K yen when we first arrived so canucks figure seemed excessive. If you read the OP carefully you wil notice that he is assuming already having visa sponsorship and thus a job and a potential salary in roughly 6 weeks. The major variant is going to be how much he needs/wants to spend on accomodation (I walked into a fully furnished apartment provided by the school so I didn't need much at all). |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Sun May 06, 2007 8:57 am Post subject: |
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| Quote: |
| 1. travellers cheks cost money and you get the worst rate of exchange. |
Of course they cost money, but the rate of exchange depends on when you buy them. Get a good deal, and once you're here, there is no further problems with exchange rate. Get them in yen, and you can actually exchange more than if they were in your country's currency.
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| 2. Finding a bank that will deal with them will be problematic. |
Totally unfounded statement. |
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Shimmeringstar
Joined: 18 Mar 2007
Posts: 34
Location: Kagoshima, Japan
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| Posted: Sun May 06, 2007 10:02 am Post subject: |
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| How much money you need to bring really depends on where in Japan you're going to be. The cost of living is considerably higher in some parts than others. You will need much more in the Tokyo area than, say, Kagoshima. |
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chirp
Joined: 03 Dec 2005
Posts: 148
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| Posted: Sun May 06, 2007 10:48 am Post subject: travelers cheques |
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| Quote: |
| 2. Finding a bank that will deal with them will be problematic. |
Glenski wrote: Totally unfounded statement.
Actually, in my experience, this can be true. I had no problem exchanging TCs in Tokyo, but once I moved to my smallish town in the country, no bank would touch them. I had to go to the closest big city and I was told that only one bank there would exchange them.
Strangely, Japan is the only country I have ever been to where banks do not widely accept TCs. Then again, maybe "strange" isn't the word I am thinking of...  |
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