Getting Internet in Japan Before You Have a Bank Account: From Day One to Your First Monthly Plan

By Elena · Published 2026-09-03 · Updated 2026-09-13 · How we check prices

This article contains affiliate links. We have an affiliate partnership with Sakura Mobile. We have no partnership with IIJmio, Rakuten Mobile, or any other connectivity provider mentioned in this article. If you sign up through our Sakura Mobile link, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you, and it does not affect what we recommend. Details

Which path you take for internet on day one in Japan depends on a single fact: whether your arrival airport issues the residence card at immigration or sends it by post some time after you register your address (the official FAQ does not say how long). At ten designated airports, immigration hands you the card before you leave the arrivals hall, and that afternoon you can pick up a monthly SIM using only your passport — first-month total ¥8,778, no Japanese bank account required. At every other port of entry, your passport is stamped with a note that the card will follow by post, and a travel WiFi rental covers the gap.

This article covers: which airports issue the residence card immediately, what a passport-only monthly SIM pickup involves, the cost of a travel WiFi bridge period versus starting a monthly SIM on day one, who this path is not for, and what to do if you need a Japanese phone number the day you land.

All prices and policies are verified from official sources, September 2, 2026.

Which Airports Issue the Residence Card on the Spot

Japan's immigration agency designates ten airports where long-term residents — people arriving on work visas, student visas, family visas, and most other multi-year visa categories — receive the residence card at the immigration counter, before they clear the arrivals hall.^moj-faq

Those ten airports are:

• Narita International Airport
• Haneda Airport
• Kansai International Airport
• Chubu Centrair International Airport
• Fukuoka Airport
• New Chitose Airport
• Sendai Airport
• Hiroshima Airport
• Kobe Airport
• Naha Airport

"Long-term resident" in this context means anyone with a visa granting a stay of more than three months. Tourist visas, 90-day short-stay entries, diplomatic status, and a small number of specific activity categories are excluded. Work visas, study visas, family visas, and most residence-based statuses qualify.

At these ten airports, the card is printed and given to you at the counter as part of the normal immigration process. You do not need to go to a municipal office first. You walk out of arrivals holding both your passport and your residence card.

At any other port of entry — including most regional airports and many seaports — immigration stamps your passport with a notation that the residence card will be issued later. The card does not travel with you. It arrives by registered post after you register your address at your local municipal office, which must be done within 14 days of settling at your new address.^moj-address The immigration agency's FAQ describes the card as being sent "promptly" after that registration; the FAQ does not state how long, and this article does not fill that gap with an estimate.^moj-faq

If you have not yet received the residence card, you can still present your stamped passport — rather than the card — to complete the municipal registration. The card is then sent by registered post to the address you registered.^moj-address There is no fee charged to the resident for this postal delivery.^moj-faq

If You Land at One of Those Ten Airports: Monthly SIM from the Arrivals Hall

If you land at one of the ten airports, you have a practical option available the same day: a monthly SIM from Sakura Mobile, collected using only your passport as identity documentation.

Sakura Mobile's monthly SIM program accepts a passport as the sole identity document, but this option requires in-person pickup — at an airport counter or at the Shinjuku office in Tokyo.^sm-id Delivery to a home address requires a residence card with a confirmed address printed on it, which you do not yet have on your first day. The in-person pickup route works because the staff can verify your identity directly, without needing to match a postal address.

The cost for the first calendar month is ¥8,778 tax inclusive: a one-time activation fee of ¥5,500 plus the first month's charge of ¥3,278 for the 5 GB Voice+Data plan.^sm-price From the second month onward, you pay only the monthly plan fee — ¥3,278 for 5 GB with calls, or ¥2,728 for 5 GB data-only if you do not need a Japanese phone number for outgoing calls.^sm-price There is no long-term commitment: Sakura Mobile's monthly plans operate with no two-year lock-in.^sm-monthly

No Japanese bank account is required. Sakura Mobile accepts internationally issued Visa, Mastercard, Discover, JCB, American Express, and Diners Club cards.^sm-payment If you prefer to pay in cash at a convenience store, the Smart Pit option lets you pay at Lawson, FamilyMart, or MiniStop between the 1st and 10th of each month; a ¥20,000 deposit is required upfront for Voice+Data plans under the Smart Pit option, and a late payment incurs a ¥500 fee.^sm-payment

One practical point before you travel: if you plan to collect the monthly SIM at an airport counter on arrival day, confirm with Sakura Mobile in advance that your specific arrival airport has a counter for monthly SIM pickup. The company's confirmed travel WiFi pickup airports are Narita, Haneda, Kansai, and Fukuoka, plus the Shinjuku office and delivery options.^sm-wifi Which airports support monthly SIM counter pickup specifically is not listed on any page confirmed during research for this article; check sakuramobile.jp before your travel date. The Shinjuku office is a confirmed alternative for any traveler who can reach Tokyo the same day or the following morning.

If Your Arrival Airport Is Not on the List: The Bridge Period

If your flight arrives at an airport not among the ten — or if for any reason your residence card is issued later rather than on arrival — the time between landing and card delivery is the bridge period. During this time you have no residence card address, and home delivery of a physical SIM card requires one. A travel WiFi rental covers internet access during this gap without needing that address.

Sakura Mobile's travel WiFi rental runs on the docomo 4G/LTE network, connects up to 15 devices simultaneously, and has a battery life of 20 hours.^sm-wifi The minimum rental is 4 days; the maximum is 90 days.^sm-wifi No setup is needed: the device works out of the box.

Pickup is confirmed at Narita, Haneda, Kansai, and Fukuoka airports, at the Shinjuku office, and by delivery to a hotel, home address, or post office.^sm-wifi If you land at an airport not on that pickup list, hotel or home delivery on a subsequent date is the practical option.

Rental prices, tax inclusive, as of September 2, 2026:^sm-wifi

Sources: Sakura Mobile Travel WiFi pricing page (sakuramobile.jp/travel/wifi/). Checked 2026-09-02.

Return is by the prepaid envelope included in the rental, dropped into any Japan Post mailbox. You do not need to find a specific location; any street-level or building mailbox accepts it.

Once you receive your residence card — after registering your address at the municipal office within the 14-day window — you can apply for a monthly SIM with home delivery. At that point the SIM is mailed to your confirmed address. If you are in Tokyo and can visit the Shinjuku office in person, you can pick up the monthly SIM with only your passport before the residence card arrives, shortening the bridge period.

Cost Comparison: Travel WiFi Bridge vs Monthly SIM from Day One

The cost of the travel WiFi bridge period adds to the first-month monthly SIM cost rather than replacing it. The table below shows the combined cost for confirmed rental durations alongside the first-month monthly SIM cost on its own.

Since no official source gives a specific number of days for residence card delivery by registered post, the table uses the confirmed rental durations from the pricing page.

Sources: Sakura Mobile Travel WiFi pricing (sakuramobile.jp/travel/wifi/), Sakura Mobile monthly SIM pricing (sakuramobile.jp/monthly/price/). Checked 2026-09-02.

The first row shows why collecting the monthly SIM on arrival day — at a ten-airport arrival — is the lower-cost path. A 7-day travel WiFi rental alone costs more than the entire first month of the monthly SIM. For anyone staying in Japan longer than a few weeks, the bridge period means higher connectivity costs, not a cheaper alternative.

Two practical points follow from this. First, if you arrive at one of the ten airports and your airport has a Sakura Mobile monthly SIM counter, the cost case for collecting it that day is strong. Second, if you need the bridge period, registering your address at the municipal office promptly after settling — within the 14-day window — brings the residence card sooner and shortens the time you are paying for two things rather than one.

The travel WiFi provides internet access for all devices you connect, but it does not provide a Japanese phone number. Calls and texts to Japanese numbers using a Japanese number require the voice SIM. If the bridge period covers your first days at a new apartment, be aware that some landlord communication, employer HR registration, and utility setup processes in Japan expect you to have a Japanese contact number. The section below addresses what to do if a phone number is needed on day one.

Who This Is Not For

Visitors on stays shorter than 90 days. Skip the monthly SIM. The one-time activation fee of ¥5,500 does not make economic sense for a stay of a few weeks, and the monthly SIM is designed for long-term residents. The travel WiFi rental, which runs up to 90 days, suits shorter visits better. Tourist-focused eSIM options from other carriers are worth checking for short stays — confirmed pricing and terms for those products are outside the scope of this article.

Travelers at non-listed airports who need a Japanese phone number on day one. The travel WiFi gives you internet immediately, but not a phone number. If your first day in Japan requires receiving calls on a Japanese number — some apartment handovers, employer onboarding systems, and municipal registration processes expect one — travel WiFi alone does not cover that need. The practical options are:

Visit the Shinjuku office with your passport on arrival day or the following morning. Monthly SIM pickup with passport only is confirmed at the Shinjuku office; you can leave with a Japanese number before the residence card arrives.

If your arrival airport has a Sakura Mobile counter for monthly SIM pickup, that works the same day without traveling to Tokyo. Confirmed airport coverage for monthly SIM pickup is not listed on any official page reviewed for this article; check sakuramobile.jp before your departure.

A prepaid voice SIM from a carrier with broader airport counter coverage is a third option. Confirmed terms, pricing, and foreign-passport acceptance for those products were not verified during research, so this article does not recommend specific alternatives.

Short-term visa holders. The residence card is issued only to long-term residents. If you enter on a tourist visa or any status granting 90 days or less, you are not eligible for the residence card, and the monthly SIM path in this article does not apply to your situation. The travel WiFi maximum of 90 days covers most such visits.

Two Alternatives for Monthly Service: When to Look Elsewhere

Once you have your residence card and are ready to move to a monthly plan, Sakura Mobile is not the only option. The sister article Best Monthly SIM for Foreigners Living in Japan 2026 covers IIJmio's Gigaplan and Rakuten Mobile's Saikyo Plan alongside Sakura Mobile, with verified prices and the cancellation billing terms that appear only in Japanese on each carrier's official pages.

Two things to check when you compare carriers:

IIJmio Gigaplan offers substantially lower monthly rates. A 5 GB voice SIM runs at a campaign price of ¥950 per month during the campaign period valid through November 4, 2026, compared with Sakura Mobile's ¥3,278 for the same tier.^sm-price-ref The tradeoffs: the entire application is in Japanese, the terms of service are in Japanese only, and whether cards issued outside Japan are accepted is not stated on any official page. If you can navigate a Japanese-language application — or have a Japanese-speaking contact who can help — and your payment card is Japan-issued, the cost difference over a long stay is meaningful. When the bridge period ends and you have your residence card, this is worth checking against your actual card situation and language comfort level.

Rakuten Mobile Saikyo Plan uses tiered billing where months with under 3 GB of data automatically cost ¥1,078 — useful for residents with variable usage. Domestic calls through the Rakuten Link app are included at no extra charge. Relevant cautions for new foreign residents: phone support is in Japanese only, and foreign nationals whose residence card was issued on or after June 14, 2026 of a specific card type cannot apply online — in-store application is the only option for that group. Whether internationally issued credit or debit cards are accepted is not confirmed on any official page reviewed for this article.

When to stay with Sakura Mobile: if English-language application, English contract terms, and English customer support matter throughout your stay — or if your only payment method is an internationally issued card — Sakura Mobile is the only one of these three confirmed to meet all of those conditions. The sister article has the full comparison side by side.

How to Sign Up

Travel WiFi for the Bridge Period

1. Visit Sakura Mobile through this link (affiliate link — opens their home page; Travel WiFi is in the top menu): Check current Sakura Mobile travel WiFi prices
2. Select your rental start and end dates. The minimum is 4 days.
3. Choose a pickup location. Airport pickup is confirmed at Narita, Haneda, Kansai, and Fukuoka. For other arrival points, select hotel delivery or home address delivery.
4. Pay with an internationally issued credit card — no Japanese bank account needed.
5. The device arrives ready to use. Return it before the rental end date using the prepaid envelope: drop it in any Japan Post mailbox.

Monthly SIM with Passport-Only Pickup

1. Use the same affiliate link — opens Sakura Mobile's home page; Monthly SIM plans are in the top navigation: Check current Sakura Mobile monthly SIM plans
2. Select Voice+Data or Data-only, then choose a data tier. The 5 GB Voice+Data plan costs ¥3,278 per month plus a one-time activation fee of ¥5,500, for a first-month total of ¥8,778.
3. Choose in-person pickup — airport counter or Shinjuku office. If you select home delivery, a residence card with a confirmed address is required at fulfillment.
4. Bring your passport to the pickup location. The name on the passport must match the name on your application, and the photo must be clear and legible.
5. Pay with an internationally issued Visa, Mastercard, Discover, JCB, American Express, or Diners Club card. Alternatively, choose Smart Pit for convenience-store payment, which requires a ¥20,000 upfront deposit for Voice+Data plans.
6. Cancellation: if you cancel by the 25th of a month, service ends at the end of that month. If you cancel on the 26th or later, service ends at the end of the following month. The final month is billed in full with no daily proration.^sm-cancel

Japan's Telecommunications Business Law provides an eight-day cooling-off period beginning on the contract start date.^sm-tos The activation fee and any monthly charges already incurred are not refunded under cooling-off; consult Sakura Mobile's FAQ for the specifics before applying.

Summary

The residence card timing is the one variable that everything else depends on. At the ten designated airports, you receive the card at immigration and can collect a monthly SIM that afternoon — total first-month cost ¥8,778, no Japanese bank account needed. At other ports of entry, the card comes by registered post after you register your address at the municipal office within 14 days, and a travel WiFi rental covers internet access during that gap.

Both the travel WiFi and the monthly SIM accept internationally issued credit cards and require no Japanese bank account. The application and pickup process at Sakura Mobile is in English, and customer support throughout the contract is in English.

If you are comparing monthly SIM carriers after the bridge period ends, the related article Best Monthly SIM for Foreigners Living in Japan 2026 covers IIJmio and Rakuten Mobile with the same level of source verification, including the cancellation billing terms and identity verification requirements that appear only in Japanese on those carriers' pages.

For home internet — the connection in your apartment, separate from the SIM in your phone — the related article Home Internet in Japan for Foreigners 2026 covers Sakura Mobile's Home WiFi router and fiber options, including the 45-day advance notice rule for fiber contracts that does not appear on the English product pages.

Check current Sakura Mobile plans (affiliate link — opens their home page; Monthly SIM and Travel WiFi are in the top navigation).