So for those people who switched jobs in Japan (from JET to something else in Japan) and moved to another part of the country, did you end up using the same bank you used when you were a JET, or did you end up opening a new bank account with a new bank in the new city you live in? Did you close the bank account you used while on JET after you moved? Do you keep both accounts open?
In general, what’s the best way to handle your bank account situation after JET and starting a new job in another part of Japan?
4 comments
Don’t use regional banks. Use national banks like JP Post so you won’t have your cash card declined at the other end of the country.
It really depends.
I still have my bank account from previous times living here, that has no locations in my prefecture. But it really serves me no purpose since I never use it.
My BoE requires us to use our regional bank for insurance payments. If/when I leave this prefecture, it makes no sense to keep using it since using a different ATM to keep accessing would be really expensive.
As the other poster said, national banks (JP, Seven, Aeon) are safer bets to use across the country.
If your current bank has no locations where you’re moving to, you can just go to your branch and explain and close the account. Open a national one and then never worry about it again.
I unfortunately still use Kyoto Bank even though we live in Tokyo now. There is only one Kyoto Bank in Tokyo and no ATM. It is incredibly frustrating, however you can still furikomi, etc at MSBC so it’s not impossible. Just haven’t gone through the (frustrating and time-consuming) process to open another one.
Probably going to bite the bullet and open another account somewhere not-regional this spring.
Having had several Japanese bank accounts, I suggest that whether or not your BOE or CO requires you have direct deposit to a regional or city bank (isn’t this against the law?), you open a Japan Post bank account and transfer your funds to it, using it as your main account. JP atms are ubiquitous throughout even the smallest towns in Japan; almost anywhere there is a post office there is a JP ATM and you can deposit or withdraw from it. There are also JP ATMS in Haneda and Narita airports. When I left Japan about 5 years ago I left about 30 mon in my JP account, and when I came back for visits I just stopped at the ATM to withdraw what I needed. It obviates the need to carry around large wads of cash. This worked fine for me until I was out of Japan for COVID. As I didn’t use my JP account for over 24 months, JP put a hold on the account and when I re-entered Japan last November on a Friday night, I could not withdraw funds from the account. Fortunately I had some USD that I brought for emergencies and was able to exchange it at a FOREX counter. When I went to JP the next week, I was told that because I was no longer a resident of Japan, I had to close my account or leave the funds in the account until I again was a resident and no longer a tourist. Other than this snafu, I was perfectly satisfied with my JP experience no matter where I was in Japan.