Debit cards for foreigners in Japan, compared

A debit card in Japan (デビットカード) takes each payment straight from your bank account, so you don’t need a Japanese credit history. You need the account. As of October 2026, the standard bank debit cards compared here have no annual fee and, where banks publish an age, are open to residents of Japan from age 15 or 16. You order the card with the account or add it later.

Can foreigners get a debit card in Japan?

Yes. The debit card pages we checked set two conditions and say nothing extra about nationality: you live in Japan and you meet an age minimum. PayPay Bank compares its Visa debit with credit cards and says there is no screening (入会審査) for the debit card.

The real gate is the bank account. Japan Post Bank (ゆうちょ銀行) wants more than 3 months left on your residence card and Seven Bank at least 3 months; neither sets a 6-month rule for its standard route (Seven Bank’s online route asks newcomers under 6 months for proof of a job). Sony Bank wants 6 months in Japan before foreigners can open an account. MUFG asks foreigners to apply at a branch with a seal (印鑑). Our bank account guide has the full rules.

Wise works differently. It verifies long-term visa holders with a My Number card, or with a residence card plus a My Number document such as a residence record (住民票) issued in the last 6 months. Your name, date of birth and address must match exactly on all of them.

Which debit cards can you get?

Published conditions and fees, as of October 2026:

The overseas fee (海外事務手数料) is added when you pay in a foreign currency. Overseas ATM withdrawals cost ¥110 each at Japan Post Bank, SMBC, MUFG and Seven Bank, plus any fee the ATM owner charges.

SMBC now issues Olive Flexible Pay for new debit applications. It switches between credit, debit and points modes in the app. The older SMBC Debit gave 0.5% V points or 0.25% cashback; we couldn’t confirm Olive’s standard rate in debit mode.

How do the debit cards score for newcomers?

We use the same published method as for banks and credit cards: can a newcomer get it (35%), fees (20%), English app and support (20%) and features foreigners need (25%). Each criterion is scored 0 to 10, and n/a means no evidence. A card gets an overall score only when at least 75% of the weights have evidence.

How 0 to 10 maps for each criterion:

• Newcomer access: 10 = any resident with a residence card can get it in the first weeks, online. 5 = needs 6 months in Japan or a job. Branch-only routes score lower.
• Fees: 10 = no annual fee and no overseas fee. About 1 point off per 1% of overseas fee, and 1 point off for a card fee or an unpublished conversion fee.
• English: 10 = English app, application and support. 0 = Japanese only.
• Features: 10 = rewards of 1% or more, multi-currency or cheap transfers home, and few payment exclusions.

Why each card scored as it did:

• Wise card: verification in English with a residence card, no overseas transaction fee, and free overseas ATM withdrawals up to ¥25,000 a month. You pay ¥1,200 for the physical card, and Wise gives no figure for its conversion fee on its card page.
• Seven Bank Debit: the account opens at an ATM with a residence card (cards issued from June 14, 2026 only from December 22, 2026, as scheduled), and the debit pages come in English and 7 more languages besides Japanese. But it can’t be used for registered recurring payments, tolls or gas stations.
• Japan Post Bank: no 6-month rule, an app in 7 languages including English, and Apple Pay and Google Pay. The 4.0% overseas fee is the highest here.
• Sony Bank WALLET: 0.5% to 2.0% cashback, and no overseas fee when you pay in one of 10 currencies from a foreign-currency account. But foreigners can apply only by mail after 6 months, and English online banking ended in March 2026.
• Rakuten Bank Debit: 1% in points, and it works for utility and phone bills with some exceptions. Its English page covers little more than opening an account, and its contact line is in Japanese only.
• SMBC (Olive Flexible Pay): the SMBC app accepts a residence card, and the card works with both Visa and iD. No English support found, and the overseas fee is 3.63%.
• PayPay Bank Visa Debit: no annual fee and up to 4 card-less numbers in the app. Its English page covers only opening an account, which needs you to count as a resident under the foreign-exchange rules (so working in Japan or 6 months after arrival) and more than 3 months left on your residence card. We couldn’t find its overseas fee or reward rate on its official pages, so fees are n/a.
• MUFG Visa Debit: only 0.20% cashback, and a published list of refused merchants that includes the NEXCO expressways and a Y!mobile service. Foreigners must open the account at a branch.

No provider paid for its score, and this page has no affiliate links.

Which debit card is best for you?

• Best if you just arrived: Seven Bank or Japan Post Bank. Both accounts start from a residence card with 3+ months left, and the card comes with the account.
• Best for paying abroad and holding other currencies: Sony Bank WALLET, once you have been in Japan 6 months. The Wise card is the option before that.
• Best for points on everyday spending: Rakuten Bank Debit (1 point per ¥100) or Sony Bank WALLET (0.5% to 2.0%).
• Best if you want English: Wise. Of the banks, Seven Bank has the most English and other-language pages for its debit card.

Where does a debit card not work in Japan?

A debit card is not a credit card. Banks and billers list these common gaps:

• Highway tolls and ETC. SMBC and Seven Bank say their debit cards may not work for expressway tolls. MUFG lists East, Central and West Nippon Expressway on its refused list, and Rakuten Bank’s JCB card can’t pay tolls.
• Gas stations. SMBC and Seven Bank list gas stations. Rakuten Bank accepts them only if your account holds ¥10,000 or more, because the final charge arrives days later.
• Utilities and subscriptions. SMBC warns that electricity and gas bills may not work. Seven Bank excludes merchants where you register the card for continuing payments. Japan Post Bank allows recurring payments only where it approves the merchant.
• Rental cars. Nippon Rent-A-Car takes branded debit cards online, but its premium and large classes are credit card only, and it treats Olive as debit. The card check takes money from your account at once, and the refund can take up to several months.
• Phone installments. au says non-Japanese with a period of stay need a credit card to buy a phone on installments (個別信用購入あっせん). With under 90 days left on your stay, monthly fees must go on a credit card in your name. See our phone contract guide.
• License paperwork. JAF doesn’t accept debit or prepaid cards for an online Japanese translation of a foreign license, a step in converting your license. It takes credit cards or cash at a convenience store.

Which Japanese debit cards are Visa?

Japan Post Bank, Sony Bank, SMBC, MUFG and PayPay Bank issue Visa debit cards. Rakuten Bank offers Mastercard, JCB and Visa. Seven Bank’s card is JCB.

A Visa debit card shows the Visa logo and works at Visa merchants in Japan and abroad, within your balance. Shops may still refuse it in the cases listed above.

Can I use a Japanese debit card abroad or to send money home?

Yes for spending abroad, at the overseas fees in the table. Sony Bank charges no overseas fee in 10 currencies (US dollar, euro, pound, Australian, New Zealand and Canadian dollars, Swiss franc, Hong Kong dollar, rand and krona) when you pay from a balance in that currency in its free foreign-currency account; you pay only Sony Bank’s exchange cost when you buy the currency. Without that balance, and in other currencies, the fee is 1.79%.

For remittance, a debit card is usually not the cheapest way to pay. On our remittance sample, paying a money transfer service by debit card cost more than paying by bank transfer. Compare routes in our guide to sending money from Japan.

What happens to your debit card when your visa changes or you leave Japan?

The card lives or dies with the account. Sony Bank asks for your new residence card each time you extend your stay and restricts transactions if it can’t confirm the renewal. Japan Post Bank’s debit terms let it end your card membership once you no longer live in Japan.

Wise says it can’t offer you an account in Japan once you move out, though you may be able to open one in your new country. Before you leave, check our leaving Japan checklist.

For tolls, rentals and phone installments you will eventually want a credit card. When you’re ready, see credit cards for foreigners in Japan and how your credit score works in Japan.

More guides: opening a bank account in Japan, credit cards for foreigners and sending money from Japan.