UK to Japan: Monzo, Revolut, EE and Vodafone Roaming, Plugs and What Works (2026)

Travel tips · from the UK · bank cards, roaming, contactless, plugs, medicine · checked 19 October 2026

By Nobu · bank, telco, rail operator and UK and Japanese government sources checked on 19 October 2026; the NCD controlled-substances list is dated 12 December 2024 · Sources at the end

Monzo, Starling and Chase UK charge no fee of their own on card spending abroad; Barclays debit cards add 2.99% and most HSBC debit cards 2.75%. Japan is outside the European roaming of the five UK networks checked: on eligible Vodafone and Three plans, a £7–£8 daily charge may apply on the days you use your phone (check your Extras, passes and plan benefits); O2’s Ultimate plans include Japan, and on other O2 Pay Monthly plans you can add the optional Travel Bolt On (£7 for 24 hours from first use) or pay standard rates (not checked); and EE’s public Japan page lists no roaming pass and no mobile data without one. Tapping a contactless card works at listed stations of eleven Kanto rail operators, not everywhere. Check UK cold remedies and codeine painkillers before packing.

Quick answers for UK travellers

If Tokyo is on your route, check Tokyo hotels on Agoda. Travelling onward with a large suitcase? See our Shinkansen luggage guide.

UK bank cards: Monzo, Revolut, Starling, Chase and the high street

JNTO says international-brand cards are “generally accepted throughout the country”, but many rural places “may still only accept cash, even hotels”. The fee depends on your bank.

Other banks: see your fee page. Monzo, Starling and Chase say ATM owners may add a charge.

If a terminal or ATM offers to charge you in pounds, Starling advises choosing the local currency; Barclays warns the rate offered then often includes a markup. Seven Bank ATMs make this offer with Visa and Mastercard.

Cash from a Japanese ATM

JNTO names Japan Post Bank and Seven Bank for foreign cards. Seven Bank lists Visa and Mastercard service hours as 00:00 to 24:00 (check the opening hours of the building the ATM is in) and caps each withdrawal at 100,000 yen, or 30,000 yen with a magnetic-stripe card; it says some cards with these marks may not be accepted. Japan Post Bank lists Visa, PLUS, Mastercard, Maestro, Cirrus, JCB, China UnionPay and Discover; it may charge 220 yen per withdrawal, caps each at 50,000 yen, and says your card issuer may add its own fee. ATM hours: when banks close in Japan. Cash or card: Japan cash vs card in 2026.

Tapping in: contactless cards, Oyster and Suica

On 25 March 2026, eleven Kanto rail operators, including Tokyo Metro, Toei, Keio, Keikyu, Tokyu, Odakyu, Odakyu Hakone, Seibu and Tobu, began shared “Tap to Ride” with contactless credit, debit and prepaid cards, and phones holding them. Their release lists seven card brands including Visa, Mastercard and American Express, and 54 lines and 729 stations at launch, adult fares only; lines and stations missing from its table are not covered. JR East is not one of the eleven.

PASMO lists ten interoperable transit IC cards for trains and buses across Japan: PASMO, Suica, Kitaca, TOICA, manaca, ICOCA, PiTaPa, HAYAKAKEN, nimoca and SUGOCA. Oyster is not among them (checked 19 October 2026). Where gates accept transit IC cards, including JR East lines that take them, use one of those cards; check rural routes and shinkansen ticket rules separately: IC cards in Japan: Suica, PASMO and ICOCA.

In shops, JNTO says overseas phone payments “such as ApplePay, GooglePay and AliPay sometimes cannot be used in Japan”.

EE, O2, Vodafone, Three and giffgaff roaming in Japan

From each network’s own page, 19 October 2026:

If you use roaming on all 14 days of a trip at £8 a day, that comes to £112. The other route is a Japan data eSIM on an unlocked phone; if you keep your UK SIM on for bank text codes, turn off data roaming on that line.

UK plugs and Japan’s 100 V

The IEC’s plug guide lists the UK as 230 V, 50 Hz, Type G, and Japan as 100 V with Types A and B; JNTO says Japan is 50 Hz in the east and 60 Hz in the west. A Type G plug needs an adapter, which changes only the shape, not the voltage.

Read the INPUT line on each charger: 100–240 V and 50/60 Hz covers Japan with a plug adapter, as on Apple’s USB power adapters. An appliance marked 220–240 V only needs a step-up transformer as well, of enough capacity, and its frequency rating should cover 50 or 60 Hz. Kashimura, which sells two-way transformers, advises a capacity of two to three times the rated power for heating appliances such as hair dryers.

The IEC describes Type A as an ungrounded plug. Use an appliance that needs an earth connection only where that earth can be connected as its manual says. Adapters, chargers and hair dryers: Japan plug type and voltage.

Medicine from the UK

The UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) warns that under Japan’s anti-stimulant drugs law it is illegal to carry some common medicines, including “Vicks inhalers”, “cold and flu medication containing pseudoephedrine” and “some over-the-counter painkillers containing codeine”, and says to check a medicine’s status with the Japanese Embassy in the UK.

Japan’s Narcotics Control Department (NCD) lists ingredients. The NHS describes co-codamol as paracetamol and codeine, and titles its pseudoephedrine page “Pseudoephedrine (Sudafed)”.

The NCD says to apply at least 14 days before travel, and its Tokyo office “cannot accept any last-minute applications for any reason”. Applications go to the NCD office covering your arrival airport, and permitted medicine must travel with you, not by post. For more than a month’s supply of a psychotropic, the NCD says to email MHLW at yakkan@mhlw.go.jp. When we checked on 14 November 2026, the NCD’s application page carried a notice that an email problem was stopping it from processing applications or issuing permits; check that notice before you apply.

Driving with a UK licence

Japan’s National Police Agency lets visitors drive with a Japanese licence, a 1949 Geneva Convention International Driving Permit (IDP), or a translated licence from six listed places, not including the UK (list as of 1 April 2026). An IDP is valid for up to a year after landing, or until it expires if sooner.

GOV.UK lists Japan as a 1949 IDP country. It costs £5.50 in person at certain PayPoint shops, for full UK licence holders aged 18 or over living in the UK, and lasts 12 months. The FCDO says to carry it with your UK licence and insurance documents, and that “you cannot buy an IDP outside the UK”. The Japan Automobile Federation says drivers “must keep to the left”. Road signs: Japanese road signs for foreign drivers.

Uber, Costco and tipping

Uber. Uber Taxi in Japan charges the meter fare, with a 100-yen app charge included, plus a booking fee of up to 680 yen and any facility fee (Uber Japan). More: Does Uber work in Japan?

Costco. Costco UK’s terms say your card “is valid at any Costco warehouse worldwide”. Costco Japan’s terms list cash, Costco’s own cards and all Mastercard-brand credit cards; Visa and debit cards are not mentioned. More: Costco Japan with a membership from home.

Tipping. JNTO says: “In Japan, it’s not common to tip for services such as those provided in bars, cafes, restaurants, taxis, and hotels.”

Before you leave the UK

• Look up your card’s fees abroad, and pack a second card from another bank.
• Check your network’s Japan charges, or unlock your phone for a Japanese eSIM.
• Check every medicine’s ingredients against the NCD list; apply at least 14 days ahead where permission is needed.
• Get a 1949 IDP at a PayPoint shop if you will drive.
• If you plan long shinkansen trips between cities, compare the Japan Rail Pass before you fly.

Questions UK travellers ask