Rakumani

Japan payments guide

Cashless payments in Japan: a visitor’s guide (2026)

Last checked: July 2026

TL;DR — the three-item wallet

  • A contactless Visa or Mastercard covers most shops, restaurants and, since March 2026, tap-to-ride on Tokyo Metro and many other lines.
  • A Welcome Suica (tourist IC card, no deposit) covers trains and buses everywhere else, vending machines and convenience stores.
  • Around ¥10,000–20,000 in cash for shrines, ramen ticket machines and small local places. Withdraw at 7-Eleven ATMs.

IC cards: Welcome Suica and friends

Japan’s rechargeable transit cards (Suica, PASMO, ICOCA…) are the default way locals pay for trains, buses, vending machines and konbini. The 2023–24 chip-shortage sales suspension is over — regular cards returned to unrestricted sale in March 2025.

  • Welcome Suica is the visitor version: no ¥500 deposit, valid 28 days, balance cap ¥20,000. Sold at Narita, Haneda and JR East Travel Service Centers. One catch: any balance left after day 28 is forfeited, so spend it down before you leave.
  • Welcome Suica Mobile (iPhone app, launched March 2025) lets you set up before arrival and skip the counter entirely.
  • The foreign-card trap: Mobile Suica in Apple/Google Pay generally cannot be topped up with overseas-issued cards (only domestic cards with 3-D Secure are accepted). Plan to top up physical cards with cash at station machines or convenience stores.

Credit cards and tap-to-ride

Contactless Visa and Mastercard are widely accepted in cities; JCB and UnionPay are strong domestically, while Amex is patchier at small independent shops.

  • Tokyo: from March 25, 2026, Tokyo Metro (all 180 stations) and ten other Kanto operators accept contactless tap-to-ride with seven brands: Visa, Mastercard, JCB, Amex, Diners, Discover and UnionPay.
  • Kansai: Nankai (the Kansai Airport line), Osaka Metro, Kintetsu, Hankyu and Hanshin all take tap-to-ride.
  • JR lines are the exception: JR East and JR West trains still need an IC card or a paper ticket — no credit-card tap at the gate. That’s the main reason to carry a Welcome Suica alongside your card.

Can you use your home QR wallet?

Japan’s dominant QR network is PayPay, and it now accepts many overseas wallets through Alipay+:

  • Alipay+ partner wallets (about 25 wallets across 14 markets, including mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines) can scan PayPay merchant QR codes and pay in their home app since April 2025. Check whether your wallet is an Alipay+ partner before relying on it.
  • Alipay and WeChat Pay from mainland China work at PayPay-accepting stores (WeChat Pay since September 2025) as well as at larger chains that accept them directly.
  • Singapore’s PayNow/GrabPay and Vietnam’s MoMo/VNPAY have no confirmed direct acceptance in Japanese shops as of July 2026 — plan around cards and an IC card instead.

Where you still need cash — and the best ATMs

Cash-only holdouts are predictable: shrine and temple offerings and entry fees, ramen-shop ticket machines (many take only coins and ¥1,000 notes), market stalls, small rural restaurants and some taxis.

For withdrawals with a foreign card, the two reliable networks are Seven Bank ATMs (inside 7-Eleven stores, 21,000+ locations, up to ¥100,000 per withdrawal, accepts Visa/Mastercard/UnionPay/ Amex/JCB/Discover/Diners) and Japan Post Bank ATMs in post offices. ATM-side fees are small (roughly ¥0–220 per withdrawal); your own bank’s foreign-transaction fee is usually the bigger cost.

Tax-free shopping: big change on November 1, 2026

The tax-free system switches mid-guide-lifetime. Which rule applies depends on your travel date:

  • Until October 31, 2026 (current rule): spend ¥5,000+ (before tax) in one store in one day, show your passport with entry stamp, and the 10% consumption tax is deducted at the register.
  • From November 1, 2026 (refund method): you pay the full tax-included price in the store, then claim the tax back at the airport before departure after customs confirms you’re exporting the goods (within 90 days of purchase). The old general-goods/consumables split, sealed-bag packaging and ¥500,000 cap are abolished.

Either way, tax-free shopping requires your physical passport — a photo of it is not accepted. For the category rules, department-store counters and the full refund flow, see our tax-free shopping guide.

Sources

Facts above were checked in July 2026 against, among others: JR East (Welcome Suica), Mobile Suica official FAQ, PayPay × Alipay+ press release, Nankai contactless ride, Seven Bank ATM FAQ, japan-guide.com on the 2026 tax-free reform.

Fees, acceptance and rules are representative values at the time of checking and can change without notice. This page contains no affiliate links; links go to official or primary sources.