おはよう！
Was recently accepted to an international program within Tokyo and have started my Visa application process. I have started to consider what to do with my finances and was seeking some advice.
I will be receiving a stipend from the university monthly as a researcher, and I think this ~may~ be the deciding factor in terms of deciding what to do with my current checking account.
I was planning on continuing to use my american Visa Credit Cards in Japan, as its 0% foreign transaction fee, and I should be able to just maintain my family home as my resedential address. I bank with Chase Bank and have seen people recommend Charles Schwab for a checking account if I'm going abroad, as I'll have 0 ATM fees anywhere, anytime.
However, the one thing I'm concerned about is, will not having a Japanese bank account pose some issue? For context, I will be in this program for ~5 years, and am curious about living in Japan long term if the opportunity presents itself. However, I think that the convenience and pre-existing knowledge of banking in the US would sway me in the direction of staying within that ecosystem if it wouldn't be an inconvenience.
Wanted to mainly know if anybody has experience with this, and if you have a particular recommendation on opening a Japanese bank account once I move in Spring. Thanks!
by TopTennis4928