taxes

Almost 20 years ago in order to prepare for my first trip to Japan I was advised by my travel agent as well as my cousin who resided here already that I needed to bring plenty of cash and traveler’s cheques (remember those?) with me because Japan doesn’t do credit cards or ATMs for foreigners. But in 2019, not only are there cash machines in every convenience store, but many stores and restaurants take credit and debit cards as payment and e-money like transport passes and Apple Pay are also becoming almost universal as well. Plus now there seems to be a “_ Pay” barcode mobile payment scheme popping up all over the place in Japan, emulating how transactions work in places like China. This is all because the perfect storm of Rugby World Cup 2019 and Tokyo Olympics 2020 that will bring the world to our neck of the woods expecting their credit cards to work seamlessly… But the major reason is due to the national consumption tax levied on almost all purchases set to raise from 8 to 10% in October. In order to combat some of the shock it will place on many households, the government has…