Getting a Suica Card for your Japan trip 

Wow that’s awesome! Didn’t know that

How does that work? Its possible to scan while the phone is off??

Wait what??? Can someone confirm this pls

If you’re running low on battery you can put your phone on airplane mode to save battery. And the card should still work without connecting to internet. But I don’t think you can do anything if your phone is completely dead

@@mstdfntlyincrdbl this makes sense

This wasn’t actually an app you download. Instead you go to your Apple wallet and add a new card then select transit and you can search for Suica.

@@ChiusTravel thanks!!

If you transfer to a physical card, I imagine the digital card would still work but just would need to be topped up again since you've transferred the balance and it would be at 0.

No deposit needed. But no refund option either. So you’ll want to plan to have your final trip take it down to zero balance

I don’t think you can with digital card. So what we did was top up the last day exactly how much we would need to get to 0 for one final ride back to airport.

@@ChiusTravelif you plan to return to Japan, can’t you just leave a remaining balance in it?

@@inquisitvem6723 yup that's correct!

Sorry I failed you. Can’t answer everything in 1 min. But this was an iPhone 13. I believe it needs any version of an iPhone 8 or later that can support whatever the latest software is. Hope that helps.

Hmm not sure. It shouldn’t still be pending. It was pretty quick and immediate

The foreign transaction fee depends on your credit card. You should check if the card itself doesn't charge a fee

@@ChiusTravel Ok I checked and it doesn’t. Also I read that Japan doesn’t accept foreign Visa credit cards when you book online events for tickets in their country like TeamLab, museums, Sumo events, etc. You would have to use Mastercard to book online. You can still use Visa credit cards for in person transactions at places that accept it.

You should be able to. But sometimes there are issue with Visa. If you have Mastercard or American Express, I would try them.

You can add it first before going to Japan and then use it in Japan even without internet. But make sure you have enough money on the card or you will need to add more when you’re there

Hmmm I don’t remember any point having issues with typing anything in. It’s just a matter of creating a digital Suica Card and just topping up with a debit or credit card. Do you remember at what point you had to do registration?

As long as the debit card can pay in foreign currency then yes. But you’ll want to check if they have any additional fees if Yen is not your standard currency

Nope doesn’t charge a fee. Whatever you pay is the amount loaded to the card. We used an Amex Platinum in this case.

@@ChiusTravel Thank you! I was going to use the chase sapphire card but you said VISA doesn't work so I will use a different card with a mastercard or Amex support then. Thank you.

I guess they just updated the system. Was able to use my Visa card. Before it didn’t work

If it's on your Apple Wallet or any mobile device, you won't be able to get refunded the amount. So I recommend only topping up what you would need. But otherwise the balance will stay on your card and you can always use it next time you visit :)

Hmm it should show up in Apple wallet. Not sure if it has anything to do with being in Italy. Maybe check wallet settings to see if it’s a setting that marked it as hidden or anything like that

I hope this will work for me using a spare iPhone without SIM card. My regular phone is Android(Pixel), but going to bring iPhone as 2nd phone to Tokyo in June just for this. I will try it tonight.

You won’t be able to. It’ll just permanently stay on your card until you use it

When you go to your Wallet in Apple, click the + button on the top right corner, then select Transit Cards and then search for Suica. I don't think you can add a physical card that you had previously. You need to register a new one for that phone.

is suica card can be use in narita airport express train to go to tokyo?

I think it requires a separate ticket for Narita Express

@@ChiusTravel ok thank you so much.. also suica and pasmo card are no longer available at the airport?

I’m not exactly sure but might no longer have physical card. They’re shifting to digital

Yeah I don’t know if there is :( would need to check Google Pay

I saw vid from Only in Japan channel and it said no foreign Android phones will work.

I know right. That means you can’t book events online from what read. You can still use Visa in person though.

I just used my Visa today to add 3000 yen.