People living in Tokyo lip lai!

[darkmatt]

Have you check their income tax structure, can be very high.

Also the working culture and the drinking session after work on Friday etc.

yes and yes..

tax there is lower if u earn less anw..

 

[Hetheone]

yes and yes..

tax there is lower if u earn less anw..

Wah you really determine to work n stay there.

Happy for u. 加油

 

[darkhonour]

Have any of you become more time-sensitive (and maybe OCD) after you starting living in Japan?

 

[kifo]

which one of you got pollen allergy already own up?

http://s.news.mynavi.jp/news/2016/03/21/048/

but seriously, anyone here developed pollen allergy after staying here so long?

 

[cleffa3000]

More becos of cold weather bah

 

[lapucelle]

which one of you got pollen allergy already own up?

http://s.news.mynavi.jp/news/2016/03/21/048/

but seriously, anyone here developed pollen allergy after staying here so long?

mine a bit weird. 2nd yr and 3 yr kena. then never kena liao.

 

[goodchong]

Will be heading over to Waseda University for my master program this coming March!

Anything that I should be aware of?

 

[mofodofo]

Hi all
Not tokyo but i've been placed at okayama for work (will be working in kansai next year)

Am getting my humanities visa soon.
Can any bros recommend which bank in japan is good for transferring money back home to sg. Intend to give % of my salary to parents once i have bank acc in japan

 

[dreant]

Hi all
Not tokyo but i've been placed at okayama for work (will be working in kansai next year)

Am getting my humanities visa soon.
Can any bros recommend which bank in japan is good for transferring money back home to sg. Intend to give % of my salary to parents once i have bank acc in japan

I use Shinsei Powerflex for my day-to-day banking. Mainly because it allows unlimited free ATM withdrawals 24/7 at many convenience stores in Tokyo, and one free domestic bank transfer (furikomi) per month, which I use to pay my rent.

The other advantage is that can apply for an account online/by mail - you don't even need to step into a branch.

I'm not sure how effective they may be in Okayama however.

If you are able to maintain Platinum status, it'll entitle you to one free international telegraphic transfer every month. Most banks charge between JPY4,000 - 6,000 per TT.

Additional note: CIMB and Citi do not charge any fees for incoming TT. Other local banks will take between SGD10-15 from the incoming amount.

 

[Poker]

wah i read u those staying in japan life experience i very envy leh
how i wish i can work and play there

too bad no cert, and angmo also no good

so any meet up in japan since so many of u going over?

i will be there in 2 weeks time anyone wanna meet up for dinner?

 

[mofodofo]

I use Shinsei Powerflex for my day-to-day banking.

hi thanks for the info.

would like more input from other bros living in japan too before i decide.
got my visa last week, registering my add at city hall tmr


actually i need to ask har
powerflex requires me to have a personal phone number to sign up for a new bank acc.
but the mobile phone plans i am looking at...most of them require me to ave a bank acc or credit card cos they are 1 year contract....
like this chicken and egg which one can i sign up for first??

http://www.kuropixel.com/switching-to-a-japanese-mvno/
i wanna get the IIJmio one.
any advice?lol

 

[kifo]

hi thanks for the info.

would like more input from other bros living in japan too before i decide.
got my visa last week, registering my add at city hall tmr


actually i need to ask har
powerflex requires me to have a personal phone number to sign up for a new bank acc.
but the mobile phone plans i am looking at...most of them require me to ave a bank acc or credit card cos they are 1 year contract....
like this chicken and egg which one can i sign up for first??

http://www.kuropixel.com/switching-to-a-japanese-mvno/
i wanna get the IIJmio one.
any advice?lol

shinsei bank a bit difficult for first time residents in japan... most other banks not so strict on phone number.

you can sign up for those mvno with your singapore credit card as well.

 

[dreant]

actually i need to ask har
powerflex requires me to have a personal phone number to sign up for a new bank acc.
but the mobile phone plans i am looking at...most of them require me to ave a bank acc or credit card cos they are 1 year contract....
like this chicken and egg which one can i sign up for first??

I'm using Fusion ip-phone. You need a credit card to sign up (I used my SG card), and it gives you a free 050 (voip) phone number. I use it for everything. If anyone asks, I just say it's my mobile number (and they can call it, and my phone will ring...).

The call quality is acceptable if you have a good internet connection, but not great when you don't. The good point is that it's totally free (no monthly costs), and receiving calls is free too - You only need to pay if you make outgoing calls, and even then it's quite affordable (JPY8 per 30 sec).

Initially, I only subscribed to an unlimited Wimax 2+ plan (~JPY4000/month, 25 mth contract), which I use as my main internet connection at home, and also while out and about.

Now, I also have a OCN sim with data in my phone. Buying the sim (ie, the 'startup' cost) was *really cheap* on Amazon. I think It cost me only about JPY500 or so at that time.

You might find this wiki useful.

However, sometimes, it's hard to do anything without a JP CC. I started out with an MUFG visa debit card initially, until I got a proper CC here. You do need to be able to speak some Japanese to open an account with them however.

shinsei bank a bit difficult for first time residents in japan... most other banks not so strict on phone number.

Every bank I was at *required* a phone number. They would allow me to use a friend's phone number initially, but I couldn't open an account without one.

The more interesting exercise was how some banks would *not* allow you to open an account if you can't speak Japanese (and they won't let you bring a friend to help you translate...).

Some banks also won't open an account for you until you've been there for more than 6 months.

By far, I'd say Shinsei was one of the most friendly for foreigners who are new to Japan. (I also really like how they have a US 1-800 number, which I can call for free via Skype).

 

[mofodofo]

i bought a skype japanese phone number (also 050)
but i when i was doing research, i read before that some guy tried to sign up for bank with this 050 number and the bank denied him...
maybe i will try it anyway after all

i dun have credit card at all
got posb debit from SG only
hope to find a sim card subscription that can accept sg debit card

i can speak daily convo japanese
but i hate doing paperwork or gov related stuff
official staff always speak in keigo
ask them 敬語を使わないでください、簡単な日本語お願いしますthey still machine gun back to me in keigo
bopian their culture is polite

today went to city hall to register my address...lucky got friend come with me if not they machine gun keigo with me i catch no ball again

 

[kifo]

Every bank I was at *required* a phone number. They would allow me to use a friend's phone number initially, but I couldn't open an account without one.

The more interesting exercise was how some banks would *not* allow you to open an account if you can't speak Japanese (and they won't let you bring a friend to help you translate...).

Some banks also won't open an account for you until you've been there for more than 6 months.

By far, I'd say Shinsei was one of the most friendly for foreigners who are new to Japan. (I also really like how they have a US 1-800 number, which I can call for free via Skype).

my experience was different... i got a mufj acc without a phone number and without speaking a word of japanese

 

[mofodofo]

my experience was different... i got a mufj acc without a phone number and without speaking a word of japanese

care to elaborate?
would like to hear your exp.
お願いします。

ji dan gao now i feel like i cannot ask ppl for favour without adding the magic word onegaishimasu behind

 

[kifo]

care to elaborate?
would like to hear your exp.
お願いします。

ji dan gao now i feel like i cannot ask ppl for favour without adding the magic word onegaishimasu behind

i was staying in the company's dorm in my first month in japan, so that solved a lot of issues. but i didn't speak a word of japanese, someone from the company went with me to help translate when I went down to the bank to open my account.

 

[dreant]

my experience was different... i got a mufj acc without a phone number and without speaking a word of japanese

Well, MUFG was the bank that turned some of my friends away when I tried to bring them there to open an account, because they couldn't speak Japanese.

It was later explained to me because they could not confirm who was the beneficial owner of the account, and they could not be certain if the 'translator friend' was indeed translating accurately, or just using that account as a mule for money laundering. And even if it was a genuine client, they would not be able to service that person effectively if there were any issues and they didn't have a translator with them. Also, they could also get into trouble legally because you effectively can't make a contractual agreement when the other party can't understand what is actually said or being signed.

My best guess is it perhaps depends from region to region, or also the time when the account was opened. (This was about a year and a half or so ago). I would think it probably gets more restrictive over time...

mofodofo: I guess it also depends on how you're getting to japan - your employer/school will probably have some arrangements to help you get the very basics done, which can perhaps also explain why we all have slightly different experiences with various banks/services.

 

[SquallLH]

care to elaborate?
would like to hear your exp.
お願いします。

ji dan gao now i feel like i cannot ask ppl for favour without adding the magic word onegaishimasu behind

Why not try using this service? https://transferwise.com/help/artic...nd-asia-pacific-transfers/jpy-transfers#/From

If you're staying in Okayama (my wife's from there ), the most popular local bank there with more branch offices and ATMs is probably Chugoku bank. Once you have your residential address, should be pretty straight forward to get an account opened then just use the above service for fund transfers between SG and JPN?

 

[mazatsushi]

Hi all
Not tokyo but i've been placed at okayama for work (will be working in kansai next year)

Am getting my humanities visa soon.
Can any bros recommend which bank in japan is good for transferring money back home to sg. Intend to give % of my salary to parents once i have bank acc in japan

Like what dreant had advised, a good starter bank account is Shinsei as they explicitly target foreigners as the target consumer base. Just make sure that you have had registered an addressed on the Residence Card and gotten a valid mobile number.

If you intend to transfer money back to Singapore, try using TransferWise as it has the absolute lowest overall costs, due to it not marking up the exchange rate like most banks.

Do note that money transfers done using the service are not eligible for tax deductions though.