Many automatic teller machines (ATMs) in Japan do not accept credit, debit and ATM cards, which are issued outside of Japan.
The big exception are the ATMs found at the over 20,000 post offices across the country. These ATMs allow you to withdraw cash by credit and debit cards issued outside of Japan, including Visa, Plus, Mastercard, Maestro, Cirrus, American Express and JCB cards and provide an English user menu.
Note that only the central post offices of major cities offer a 24 hour/7 days a week ATM service, including the Tokyo Central Office, Shinjuku Office, Shibuya Office and the central offices of Osaka, Kyoto and a few other major cities (note that even these ATMs are unavailable on Sundays and public holidays for four hours between 20:00 and midnight).
Postal ATM operating hours then decrease proportionally to the size of the post office, from major post offices (typically 7:00 to 23:00, shorter hours on weekends) to medium sized offices (typically 8:00 to 20:00, shorter hours on weekends, possibly closed on Sundays) to minor offices (typically 9:00 and 16:00, closed on weekends).
Cash withdrawl by credit and debit cards issued overseas are also possible from the ATMs at over 10,000 7-Eleven convenience stores across Japan with the big exception of Mastercard cards (including Cirrus and Maestro cards), which are not accepted as of December 2009. The ATMs at 7-Eleven convenience stores are available 24 hours per day on every day of the year.
In addition to the ATMs at post offices and 7-Eleven convenience stores, international ATMs can be found at international airports, in major department stores and in Citibank and Shinsei Bank branches.
In order to use international ATMs, ensure the following at home before leaving for Japan:
