Before you start

Residence card with your address written on the back
Ward registration completed
A Japanese phone number
A personal seal (inkan), still requested by some institutions

Step-by-step

1
Complete ward registration before attempting a bank
Your address must be printed on the back of the residence card, which happens at ward registration. Banks will refuse an application without it. This is why the fourteen-day deadline matters so much in practice.
In personWho: YouBefore the bank visit
2
Start with Japan Post Bank or an online bank
Yūcho, Sony Bank, Rakuten and Shinsei are the institutions that reliably open accounts for newly arrived foreign residents without a six-month wait. Yūcho branches are everywhere and the account is accepted for salary payment. This is the standard first account.
In personWho: YouWeek 1–2
3
Ask your employer which bank they prefer
Some Japanese employers pay salary only into particular banks, and some will help arrange the account as part of onboarding. Asking before you open one avoids opening two.
Via employerWho: You
4
Get an inkan if you will deal with traditional institutions
The personal seal is being phased out of government procedures but remains in use at some banks, for property contracts and for certain employers. A simple unregistered one is inexpensive; a registered jitsuin is needed for major contracts and is registered at the ward office.
In personWho: You
5
Get an IC card and link it to payments
ICOCA in Kansai — interoperable with Suica and Pasmo nationally — covers trains, buses, convenience stores and vending machines. It is the single most useful piece of daily infrastructure here and it works across the whole country.
In personWho: YouDay 1
6
Keep cash on you despite the digital progress
QR and IC payments are now widespread, but small restaurants, older shops, some clinics and many temples remain cash-only. Carrying ten thousand yen is normal and unremarkable here in a way it would not be in London or Stockholm.
In personWho: You

Documents you’ll need

Residence card with address printed on the reverse
Passport
Japanese phone number
Inkan, for some institutions
Employment certificate, sometimes requested

Things most newcomers don’t know

Several major banks will not open a full account until you have six months of residence.

This is an internal policy rather than a law, and it varies by bank and sometimes by branch. It catches people who walk into a big-name bank in their first week and are turned away without explanation. Japan Post Bank and the online banks do not apply it, which is why nearly every foreign resident's first Japanese account is one of those.

Source: community-reported

ATM fees outside your bank's hours are a real cost and Japan is unusual in this.

Withdrawing from another bank's machine, or from your own outside daytime hours, commonly attracts a per-transaction fee. Convenience store ATMs are ubiquitous and charge accordingly. It is a small amount that becomes annoying quickly, and choosing a bank whose fee structure matches how you actually withdraw money is worth five minutes of comparison.

Source: community-reported

International transfers out of Japanese banks are expensive and slow.

Sending money abroad from a traditional Japanese bank involves substantial fees and a poor exchange rate, and often a branch visit with paperwork. Wise and similar services are dramatically cheaper and are widely used by foreign residents. Set one up before you need to make a large transfer rather than after discovering the spread.

Source: community-reported

Close your accounts and settle your taxes before you leave, not after.

Closing a Japanese bank account from overseas is extremely difficult, and residence tax obligations can survive your departure. Anyone leaving Japan should appoint a tax representative or settle the outstanding residence tax, claim the pension lump-sum withdrawal, and close accounts in person. Doing none of this is common and each item is much harder to fix from abroad.

Source: National Tax Agency

Common mistakes to avoid

Attempting a bank account before ward registration puts your address on the residence card.
Walking into a major city bank in your first week and being refused without explanation.
Paying ATM fees repeatedly rather than matching the bank to how you withdraw.
Using a Japanese bank for international transfers instead of a specialist service.
Leaving Japan without closing accounts, settling residence tax and claiming the pension refund.

Some of this may be out of date. Spotted something inaccurate? Help us keep it right for the next newcomer.