Thatās really good to know! Iām thinking of going to the Ghibli Museum and using Monzo to pay for the tickets 
I found that most places where you would typically have tourists were very likely to take card. For everything else thereās cash.
I read this in the voice of the MasterCard ad.
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Just to make sure in case it wasnāt clear, you canāt buy tickets for the Ghibli Museum on the day. You have to get them in advance on the website.
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Yay, Iām glad someone got it
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Just a note; been travelling across Japan now for 3 weeks and cash is definitely king. Where possible I have attempted to use Monzo in MasterCard locations however it has been rejected around 50% of the time. The card is not accepted by the card machine and I have to incur charges on my AMEX.
I donāt know if Monzo can see these attempts on my card but it would be great if you can highlight the issue to MasterCard and see if they can validate reasons why.
Iāve been in Japan for nearly two weeks and Iāve not had any rejections where the Mastercard logo has been present. I enabled magstripe for ATMs too. However, I have been using Suica more than my Monzo card where possible, and of course cash is king.
Which merchants have you had rejections on?
Can you see the rejections in the app? If not, unlikely Monzo can, as this would indicate the merchant or terminal rejected your card before they even sent anything to Monzo.
Always rejected at the terminal stage.
Dozens of restaurants across the country and places like the Patagonia retail shop which I was very surprised at.
Iāve used my Monzo extensively in Japan earlier this year but I did have quite a few declines, especially when visiting museums. Retailers and restaurants seemed to ok though.
Any up-to-date info on ATMs that donāt charge fees and work for withdrawals?
The 7bank ATMs in 7-11 convenience stores are free during ābusiness hoursā which are I think 8am to 9pm on weekdays but I canāt remember. Those are the only ATMs I used on my trip last month, but I actually ended up using the digital suica card on my iPhone which I top up with Apple Pay instead, or sometimes using my Monzo card directly when possible (more possible than 2019 thatās for sure)
Coming back to update on this-
The concept of ābusiness hoursā only applies to transactions processed over BANCS (major Japanese banks) or MICS (smaller Japanese banks and building societies). For foreign card transactions, itās either always free or itās not, no matter the time of day.
With a foreign MasterCard like Monzo, Aeon Bank ATMs are free of charge, 24/7, and as you mentioned, 7-11 ATMs are free (even though they say theyāll charge you 110 yen, they donāt). Just about every other bank that takes foreign MasterCard will charge you 110 yen or 220 yen (which these days, isnāt that much, but still).
Hi folks, about to travel to Japan next month, can anyone confirm the daily withdrawal limit from 7/11 please? Thanks
From the 7-Eleven side the limit is 100000 yen. From the Monzo side I think it depends on your account type (for example, my account was opened in the US so my limit is 500 USD equivalent).
Thank you
Monzo works fine for purchases here, and combinis via Google Pay. I have not been able to use it at 7/11 ATMs though. With magstripe off the card is instantly rejected. With magstripe on, it charged my monzo account then instantly refunded it. Either way no money.
Iāve tried it on about 3 atms now but itās possible I was just unlucky. I am sure it used to work!
Maybe it was a temporary bug? I was able to use mine to withdraw cash from a 7-Eleven ATM about 6 days after you posted, and the receipt says it was processed with the chip.
