Banking

Managing Your Finances

| Kobe JET Specifics | Banking in Japan | ATMs & Passbooks | Money Transfers | Citibank |

Kobe JETs' Banking Specifics

All Kobe JETs have Sumitomo Mitsui Bank (SMBC) accounts that are setup with the assistance of the KEC. The branch that is considered your "home branch" is the SMBC Kobe City Hall branch. Although any SMBC branch will be able to provide the usual roster of banking services, some services can only be done at the Kobe City Hall branch; such as applying for an international ATM card.

You're salary will be done by direct deposit into your SMBC account. Water, Gas, and Electricity are also billed directly from your account.

Banking in Japan

Banking Hours

Standard banking hours in Japan are weekdays, 9am to 3pm.

During New Years' Holidays and Golden Week, all banks and ATMs in the country are shut down. Be sure to withdraw all the money you plan to spend before these holidays.

Be aware that...

Japan is a cash based society. Cheques are unknown here. There are also no joint accounts in Japan.

ATMs and Passbooks

ATMs

In Japan you rarely need to talk to the bank staff face-to-face. Almost all transactions can be done at the ATM itself. All SMBC ATMs have an option for English. You will be able to withdraw or despoit money through the English menu. Money Transfer can only be done on the Japanese menu (see below).

Passbooks

Passbooks keep a record of all your transactions. It is like having your account automatically balanced for you. Your passbook can be updated anytime between 9am-5pm. There are machines at most banks specifically for updating passbooks. Try to use these machines because when you run out of pages you will automatically receive another passbook.

International ATMs

These ATMs are found at every post office or anyplace displaying "International ATM Service" with the PLUS or CIRRUS sign displayed. You will be able to withdraw cash at these ATMs with a credit card or bank card from home.

Money Transfers (Furikomi)

The option for a money transfer, or Furikomi, is only available in Japanese. Because furikomi cannot be done in English, it is reccommended that you ask banking staff to assist you with the transfer. Furikomi can only be done during business hours (9am - 3pm).

Go Lloyds

Go Lloyds is the recommended method of transferring money home. You can immediately transfer money from your account and send it home on the same ATM machine. It takes only 4 hrs for the money to be transferred from Japan to your home account and the transaction fee is only �2000.

To join Go Lloyds, apply at their website.

Citibank

Opening an account with Citibank can be highly advantageous. If you use Citibank you can use ATM services that provide for not only Citibank but Maestro, Cirrus, and Star System even when overseas. This keeps you money even safer than with traveler's cheques. You will also need a Citibank account (or another internationally accessible one) in order to receive your pension refund when you leave Japan.

You need to have at least �300,000 to initially open the account but could theoretically withdraw all of your cash two days later and the account would still be valid. Citibank also provides English-speaking staff to answer your questions and help you send money overseas.

Hours of business at the Kobe branch are from 9am - 3pm weekdays, but the ATM is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Map to Citibank

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