This might be a dumb question; **what’s the difference between a cash card and a debit card?** I’m trying to wrap my head around finances before moving, and I’m wondering what’s the best route to take:
* If a cash card and a debit card are the same thing, can I just use my debit card from Charles Schwab to make ATM withdrawals and pay for bills at konbini?
* Will my Japanese employer be able to direct deposit salary into a Schwab account? Or will I need a domestic account with a bank like SMBC Prestia?
* If I open an account with SMBC Prestia, is Wise the best service to move money between international banks (USD @ Schwab to JPY @ Prestia)? Is there something better?
I’m trying to avoid having an overabundance of bank accounts, but I do have Navy Federal already–they just don’t have the same benefits for international transactions as Schwab.
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I have a cash card from SMBC and I can’t use it to pay for gas for whatever reason. My general understanding is some places won’t be able to accept it as payment even if VISA/MC are accepted
Cash card is a card you can use to withdraw cash from ATMs. Usually you can’t use them for payments (sometimes you can, sometimes it’s a combined cash card/debit card, depends on the bank)
Debit card is a card you can use for payment. It’s similar to credit cards, but without the credit (funds are necessary for purchase).
>* If a cash card and a debit card are the same thing, can I just use my debit card from Charles Schwab to make ATM withdrawals and pay for bills at konbini?
They are (usually) not the same. But you can (usually) use a foreign debit card in Japan.
>* * Will my Japanese employer be able to direct deposit salary into a Schwab account? Or will I need a domestic account with a bank like SMBC Prestia?
It may be possible, but since it usually will be more expensive to deposit money into foreign accounts, they probably want you to have a local bank account. They may even want you to have an account at the same bank as the company use, to avoid any deposit fees.
>* If I open an account with SMBC Prestia, is Wise the best service to move money between international banks (USD @ Schwab to JPY @ Prestia)? Is there something better?
Wise, wire transfer, PayPal. Whatever you like. Personally I very rarely do any international transfers. I have done 1 in the past 5 years.. just keep your money in Japan, and transfer a bulk sum if you need to.
> If I open an account with SMBC Prestia, is Wise the best service to move money between international banks (USD @ Schwab to JPY @ Prestia)? Is there something better?
Depends on your bank.
My US bank charges $25 per wire transfer, and then Prestia charges conversion fees / wire fees UNLESS you are transferring into a MultiMoney account. However, if you want Yen, Prestia’s rate is always lower than Wise’s. So, even if you send USD to your Multi-Money, you’ll end up losing some $$ converting that to yen and vice versa. It’s worth the extra $5-8 for me to get the better rate from Wise. Also, it’s instant; my bank would take 5-7 days otherwise.
Prestia charges ¥3,500 to ¥7,000 for international transfers, depending on how you do it and in what currency. So, sending from Japan is definitely cheaper with Wise.
You can use Schwab to take money out of ATMs. If you have a Schwab credit card, you can also use it wherever they take credit cards. If you have an iPhone, you can put your Schwab credit card into the Apple Pay and when you get a Suica card (for taking trains, subways, etc) you can easily top it up from your Schwab credit card via Apple Pay. Suica cards are great for paying at the konbini, for trains tickets and even at the grocery. Plus you can just tap your iPhone on the subway gate and the Suica in your phone gets debited automatically.