Bank of America in Japan

[MMM]

Originally Posted by RickOShay

I will admit having the equivalent of $300+ on me at times did take some getting used to though.

And it is not uncommon for people to walk around with 10 times that.

[WingsToDiscovery]

Originally Posted by RickOShay

You need to open a Japanese bank account. Not only will it make your life way easier as far as getting a hold of cash goes, without a bank account there are many things you cannot do, such as get a cell phone contract etc. Japan is a cash society and the idea of a card that just takes money directly out of your bank account just to pay for your groceries is still an idea that does not quite register with people here.

This is something I've actually been curious about. Why is Japan such a "cash-based society" like everyone says? I mean, Do Japanese workers get direct deposit? Do they pull out cash from an atm and then buy the groceries rather than using the debit card as a form of payment? How do people in Japan acquire the cash to pay for everyday stuff, or how often do they frequent banks/atms? What happens if they're making a spur of the moment large purchase but don't have enough cash on them? Do they leave, get the money, and come back?

[MMM]

Originally Posted by WingsToDiscovery

This is something I've actually been curious about. Why is Japan such a "cash-based society" like everyone says? I mean, Do Japanese workers get direct deposit? Do they pull out cash from an atm and then buy the groceries rather than using the debit card as a form of payment? How do people in Japan acquire the cash to pay for everyday stuff, or how often do they frequent banks/atms? What happens if they're making a spur of the moment large purchase but don't have enough cash on them? Do they leave, get the money, and come back?

When I worked in Japan I was paid by direct deposit. There is no such thing as "checks" in Japan. You are paid by direct deposit or cash. Bank cards can only be used at the bank. Credit cards are becoming more commonplace, but still, cash is king.

To pay bills I would take my bills to the convenience store and pay them in cash.

[Nyororin]

I wouldn`t say that Japan is as much a cash society as people often say - credit cards are pretty common and these days most places accept them.

However, debit cards are pretty much nonexistent. It`s either cash, card, or recently prepaid electronic cash cards. There really isn`t anything that will draw money from a cash well in the bank like a debit card or a check.

My household bills are paid by direct withdraw. I get a notification for the amount, and it is automatically taken from my bank account. One or two (net and long distance, lumped together) are paid by credit card (which is paid by auto withdraw, so really it`s auto withdraw in the end.)
If something special comes up, I usually pay by bank transfer.

For groceries I pay with cash about 75% of the time. If I go to Aeon/Jusco - I pay with Waon (prepaid electronic cash card). The Waon card is automatically charged via my credit card in 3000 yen amounts when it drops below 1000 yen... And my credit card is paid by automatic withdraw.

What happens if they're making a spur of the moment large purchase but don't have enough cash on them? Do they leave, get the money, and come back?

What do you consider a "large purchase"? That is an important part of the question. $50? $100? $500?
I regularly carry around 30,000 yen. I feel stress if I have less than 10,000 stashed away in my wallet. As I tend to get the cash out at pay day and actually budget for the rest of the month - depending on the plans, I occasionally have 100,000 in there.
I can`t really imagine making a spur of the moment purchase of over 30,000. To be quite honest, I can`t really picture one of over about 8000. That`s sort of where my spending regulator kicks in. (As it`s hard to cover without pain)

And really, even if for some incredibly strange reason I decided to throw reason to the wind and buy something 30,000+ on the spur of the moment... I find it hard to think of anything I would want that would be sold somewhere that didn`t accept credit cards.

[WingsToDiscovery]

Originally Posted by MMM

When I worked in Japan I was paid by direct deposit. There is no such thing as "checks" in Japan. You are paid by direct deposit or cash. Bank cards can only be used at the bank. Credit cards are becoming more commonplace, but still, cash is king.

To pay bills I would take my bills to the convenience store and pay them in cash.

But what's your preferred method of obtaining cash(since you said you received direct deposit), and how often did you frequent atms/banks to get said cash?

[WingsToDiscovery]

Originally Posted by Nyororin

And really, even if for some incredibly strange reason I decided to throw reason to the wind and buy something 30,000+ on the spur of the moment... I find it hard to think of anything I would want that would be sold somewhere that didn`t accept credit cards.

I'm in the minority anyway in the states because I don't have any debt, and I don't buy ANYTHING on credit(unless it's something big that requires a credit card). I don't buy anything unless I can pay for it outright. It's a lot easier using a debit card in the states to make your large purchases, assuming you have the money. Therefore, it's still hard for me to wrap my head around making many purchases with a credit card instead of a debit card. Not really a big deal but I just don't like to associate anything with credit cards haha. So something like 30,000 I'll have a credit card for, but it just leaves a weird taste in my mouth to buy something that way if I know I can just pay for it right there, rather than buying it on the credit card and then paying off the card. Or with what you said about your credit card being paid by automatic withdraw; is this instant like using a debit card?

[Nyororin]

Originally Posted by WingsToDiscovery

I'm in the minority anyway in the states because I don't have any debt, and I don't buy ANYTHING on credit(unless it's something big that requires a credit card). I don't buy anything unless I can pay for it outright. It's a lot easier using a debit card in the states to make your large purchases, assuming you have the money. Therefore, it's still hard for me to wrap my head around making many purchases with a credit card instead of a debit card. Not really a big deal but I just don't like to associate anything with credit cards haha. So something like 30,000 I'll have a credit card for, but it just leaves a weird taste in my mouth to buy something that way if I know I can just pay for it right there, rather than buying it on the credit card and then paying off the card. Or with what you said about your credit card being paid by automatic withdraw; is this instant like using a debit card?

I don`t have any credit card "debt" either - what I pay for by card is what I can afford. What is on my card this month will be paid off in full on the withdraw date. I rarely pay by card anyway as it`s pretty uncommon for me to just buy something out of the blue that I don`t have the cash on me for.

I think you have to really think of it more out of necessity. There ARE no debit cards. There are no checks. (You can explain a credit card, but it`s pretty impossible to even get someone to comprehend what a check even IS.) It`s pay by cash or credit.

The automatic withdraw isn`t instant. It`s once a month on a set date, but anything that isn`t put into the revolving account on the credit card is interest free, so you can really think of it as a delayed debit card sort of thing. If you have the money in the bank, just leave it there and it will be paid by automatic withdraw. If it is something that you would normally pay by credit (ie. You don`t have the money available to pay it all right away), you would request that it be put in the revolving account on the card. That part is what would be considered "debt" as it is paid off in monthly installments and you are charged interest.

I have a bank account dedicated just to my card - there is no chance of "accidentally" using the money elsewhere.

Credit cards themselves aren`t bad. It`s just people who have no clue how to use them responsibly and who treat them like free bags of money that are the problem.

[MMM]

Originally Posted by WingsToDiscovery

But what's your preferred method of obtaining cash(since you said you received direct deposit), and how often did you frequent atms/banks to get said cash?

My preferred method is going to the bank and using the ATM to get cash. I probably went a couple times a month.

[WingsToDiscovery]

Originally Posted by Nyororin

The automatic withdraw isn`t instant. It`s once a month on a set date, but anything that isn`t put into the revolving account on the credit card is interest free, so you can really think of it as a delayed debit card sort of thing. If you have the money in the bank, just leave it there and it will be paid by automatic withdraw. If it is something that you would normally pay by credit (ie. You don`t have the money available to pay it all right away), you would request that it be put in the revolving account on the card. That part is what would be considered "debt" as it is paid off in monthly installments and you are charged interest.

I have a bank account dedicated just to my card - there is no chance of "accidentally" using the money elsewhere.

So basically you buy most of what you need throughout the month on a credit card, and then when pay time for your work rolls around, the credit card just pulls from your bank account at the end of the month?

[WingsToDiscovery]

Originally Posted by MMM

My preferred method is going to the bank and using the ATM to get cash. I probably went a couple times a month.

So you probably took out the money in large quanities? I'm just so used to taking $20-100 here or there every few days.