How you move money while studying abroad depends on three situations: paying tuition to your school, living abroad, and receiving wages. This page compares transfers, local accounts, cards and cash for each situation, and checks how Wise works using official sources. Checked on 6 November 2026.
In short
For transfers such as tuition or money from home, choose a method that shows the fee and the amount that arrives before you send. Wise Payments Japan K.K., which runs Wise in Japan, is listed in the Financial Services Agency’s register as Kanto Local Finance Bureau No. 00040. Wise says it keeps customer money in a trust account, separate from its own money. For daily spending abroad, use a local account and a card, and carry only the cash you need on your arrival day.
Start from your situation
Pick your situation to jump to that section.
- Pay tuition to your school Send foreign currency to the account your school names
- Move rent and money from home Send from home to your own account abroad
- Receive working holiday wages Get paid into a local account and send money home
- Pay while travelling and on arrival day Use a card and a little cash
Compare ways to send and use money
Which method suits you depends on how clearly you can see the total cost and on fees taken on the receiving side. We compare types of methods here, not named companies.
What to check
Typical bank international transfer
Wise transfer
Wise transferSeeing the total cost
Typical bank international transfer
Check the transfer fee and the exchange rate separately
Wise transfer
The fee and the amount that arrives show before you send
Fees on the receiving side
Typical bank international transfer
Intermediary bank fees may be deducted
Wise transfer
Check Wise’s guidance for each way of receiving
Countries and currencies
Typical bank international transfer
Set by each bank
Wise transfer
Check Wise’s list of supported countries and currencies
Account and app
Typical bank international transfer
Send from your bank account at a branch or online
Wise transfer
An account that holds several currencies, with an app
Protection and regulation
Typical bank international transfer
Licensed banks
Wise transfer
Funds transfer registration and money held separately in a trust account
When Wise suits a transfer and when it does not
Wise suits transfers and holding several currencies. It does not suit payments that need cash or payments where the school decides how you pay.
| When Wise suits | Why |
|---|---|
| Sending tuition in foreign currency to the school | You can check what the school receives before you send |
| Sending money from home to your own account abroad | You can save your own account as a recipient |
| Spreading out when you exchange | You can hold several currencies in your balance |
| When it does not suit or needs checking | Why |
|---|---|
| Paying local fees in pesos in cash | Some schools take cash after you arrive |
| The school names a payment method | Pay to the account or by the method it names first |
| Topping up more than JPY 1,000,000 at once | Top-ups to your balance are up to JPY 1,000,000 each |
Wise’s registration and how it protects customer money
To judge whether a service is safe to use, check its registration and how it protects money in primary sources. The table shows what the FSA register and Wise’s official pages say.
| What to check | What the official sources say |
|---|---|
| Registration in Japan | Kanto Local Finance Bureau No. 00040, Wise Payments Japan K.K. |
| Type of registration | Type 1 and Type 2 funds transfer service |
| Customer money | Held separately from company money in a trust account registered with the regulator |
| Daily calculation | Wise says it calculates liabilities every business day and deposits the same value in yen |
| Difference from a bank | It does not lend out customer money and protects it by safeguarding rather than deposit insurance |
| Registration elsewhere | UK FCA, Australia ASIC, Canada FINTRAC, Philippines BSP, National Bank of Belgium |
We checked the Japanese registration in the FSA register of funds transfer service providers (version as of 30 September 2026). How money is protected and the registrations in other countries come from Wise’s official pages, checked on 6 November 2026.
