Points to Consider When Non-Japanese Freelancers Choose a Bank Account
When opening a bank account in Japan, many non-Japanese freelancers want to know which banks are relatively easy to use in English.
In this article, I will introduce banks that seem relatively easy to use in English, and then also check whether they can be synced with freee.
A bank that is easy to use in English is not always the same as a bank that is easy to sync with freee. If you are a non-Japanese freelancer in Japan, it is better to separate the following points:
- English support
- freee integration(If you’re considering using freee)
- International remittance and receiving money from overseas
- ease of use as a business account
Your personal preference is also important. Please use this article as a starting point when choosing a bank account.
You do not need to decide everything permanently from the beginning. It is also possible to use one bank account for six months or a year, and then change your account structure if it does not feel right.
Overall Comparison
Here is a rough comparison first.
| Bank | English support | freee sync | International remittance / receiving money | Business use |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SBI Shinsei Bank | Strong | Available | Receiving from overseas is possible. GoRemit outgoing remittance service has ended. | Mainly personal account use |
| SMBC Trust Bank PRESTIA | Strong | Available | Strong | Personal account / foreign currency oriented |
| Sony Bank | Moderate | Available | Good for receiving foreign currency | Mainly personal account use |
| SMBC / Olive | Fair | Available | Available as a major bank service | Be careful if you want a dedicated business account |
| PayPay Bank | English account-opening page available | Available | Outgoing remittance is mainly through a partner service | Sole proprietor account available |
| GMO Aozora Net Bank | Limited | Available | Wise-linked overseas remittance is mainly for corporate accounts. Receiving from overseas requires caution. | Sole proprietor account available |
| Sumishin SBI Net Bank | Limited | Available | Mainly receiving from overseas | Personal account / online bank use |
| Japan Post Bank | Multilingual information available | Available | International remittance and receiving money available | Good as a first daily-life account |
| Rakuten Bank | Weak | Available | General | Personal account / personal business account |
* The “Available” status for freee sync means that the bank appears in freee’s list of financial institutions that can be synced with freee Accounting. However, actual availability and stability may vary depending on the account type, API connection, internet banking settings, and changes in the financial institution’s specifications. Please check the latest information on freee’s official support page before opening or using an account.
* This comparison does not fully cover how easy it is to make international remittances by app. If international remittance is important for you, please check the latest procedure and fees directly with the bank.
* For international remittance and receiving money from overseas, banks often require My Number information and additional identity verification. If you need to use an international remittance, it is better to check the requirements early.
Also, please decide which bank account you will actually sync with freee.
For example, some banks may have several types of accounts or sub-accounts, such as a regular yen account and a foreign currency account. You should check whether the account you want to use can actually be synced with freee.
The step before syncing is also important. If you want to use a bank account for business, try not to mix too many private living expenses into that account.
If you use the account in this way, processing the synced bank transactions in freee will make it much easier to organize your business income and business expenses.
SBI Shinsei Bank
SBI Shinsei Bank is one of the easier banks to recommend if English support is important.
You can choose English support when contacting customer support. You may not call your bank very often, but some English-speaking clients choose SBI Shinsei Bank because this type of English support is available.
However, SBI Shinsei Bank’s GoRemit overseas remittance service ended in 2025.
Therefore, receiving money from overseas may still be possible, but if you want to send money overseas from Japan, you should check another method, such as Wise or another remittance service.
My impression is that SBI Shinsei Bank is more suitable as a personal daily-life account with relatively good English support, rather than as a dedicated freelance business account.
SMBC Trust Bank PRESTIA
SMBC Trust Bank PRESTIA is strong in English support, foreign currency, and international remittance.
PRESTIA is the brand that took over the retail banking business of former Citibank Japan, so it is relatively familiar to some long-term foreign residents in Japan.
Please note that SMBC Trust Bank is different from Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Bank. The names are similar, but they are different banks.
PRESTIA can also be synced with freee.
International remittance is available. According to PRESTIA’s official page, the fee depends on the account status and the chosen channel, so you should check the latest conditions on the PRESTIA overseas remittance page.
For receiving money from overseas, PRESTIA may be convenient, especially if you use foreign currency. However, even if the receiving bank does not charge a fee, intermediary bank fees may still be deducted. This is something to keep in mind.
If you plan to leave Japan in the future, you should check the latest rules on address changes, residence status, and account maintenance separately. Banks may restrict or close accounts depending on your residence status and whether you remain a resident of Japan.
Sony Bank
Sony Bank used to offer an English Online Banking Service, which was popular among some English-speaking users.
However, Sony Bank announced that it would introduce an AI automatic translation function and end its English Online Banking Service. Please check Sony Bank’s official notice for the current status: Notice regarding AI automatic translation and the end of English Online Banking Service.
Sony Bank can be synced with freee.
Outgoing foreign currency remittance is available. Sony Bank’s official page states that the outgoing remittance fee is generally 3,000 yen per transfer, with other possible fees depending on the transaction. Please check the latest information on Sony Bank’s fee page.
Sony Bank is also often considered useful for receiving foreign currency from overseas. If foreign currency transactions are important for you, it is worth checking.
Overall, Sony Bank may be a good option if you care about foreign currency and online banking, but the English experience is not as strong as it used to be.
SMBC / Olive
SMBC states that foreign nationals can open a bank account, and SMBC provides translated pages for some services. You can check the translated page list here: SMBC translated pages.
Recently, I often suggest SMBC or Olive to clients who want a major bank and an app-based experience.
SMBC is a well-known major bank, so there is also a sense of security in that regard.
SMBC accounts can be synced with freee.
International remittance and receiving money from overseas are also available as major bank services.
However, please be careful if you want a dedicated business account. From a tax and bookkeeping perspective, it is possible to manage freelance income using a personal bank account as long as the bookkeeping is clear. However, from the bank’s side, a dedicated business-use account or a sole proprietor account may be treated differently.
Olive may be convenient for daily personal banking, but if you want to use it as a dedicated freelance business account, you should check SMBC’s rules and procedures in advance. I get the impression that as long as the business is small-scale, using it primarily for business purposes isn’t really a big problem.SMBC also provides information for people who want to open an account for business use: SMBC business-use account procedure.
PayPay Bank
PayPay Bank has an English account-opening page for foreign nationals.
In that sense, it may be easier to start with than some other online banks.
PayPay Bank can also be synced with freee.
PayPay Bank has accounts for sole proprietors. If you want a bank account that is easier to use for freelance business purposes, this may be one of the candidates. You can check the business-use page here: PayPay Bank business accounts.
However, if you use PayPay Bank as a business account, be careful not to mix it too much with personal PayPay usage.
If your PayPay balance, daily PayPay payments, and business transactions are mixed together, bookkeeping in freee can become confusing. If you do not use PayPay payments for your business, it may be better to keep your personal PayPay usage separate from your business bank account.
PayPay Bank itself does not handle international remittance directly. However, it provides information on sending money through a partner service called PayForex. You can check the FAQ here: PayPay Bank FAQ on international remittance.
Therefore, PayPay Bank is not necessarily the strongest bank for English support or international transfers, but it can be practical for a sole proprietor account and freee integration.
GMO Aozora Net Bank
GMO Aozora Net Bank(Japanese) is a well-known online bank, together with banks such as Sumishin SBI Net Bank, PayPay Bank, and Rakuten Bank.
The website and procedure are mainly in Japanese, so it may not be the easiest bank for English-speaking users.
GMO Aozora Net Bank can be synced with freee.
It is useful for freee integration and sole proprietor accounts. However, my impression is that it is better suited to business owners who can handle Japanese procedures, rather than to people who prioritize English support or foreign-currency services.
There is a Wise-linked overseas remittance service at GMO Aozora Net Bank, but the official page describes it as mainly for corporate accounts and as a remittance-only service. Overseas incoming remittances cannot be received through that service. Please check the official page here: GMO Aozora Net Bank overseas remittance powered by Wise(Japanese).
If you are a sole proprietor and need to receive money from overseas clients, it may be better to consider using Wise separately, together with a Japanese bank account for domestic payments and freee integration.
Sumishin SBI Net Bank
Sumishin SBI Net Bank(Japanese) is also a well-known online bank.
I do not feel that its English support is particularly strong, but like GMO Aozora Net Bank, it has the advantage of being an online bank with relatively low fees.
Sumishin SBI Net Bank can be synced with freee.
Sumishin SBI Net Bank has a foreign currency remittance receiving service. It is possible to receive foreign currency remittances from overseas financial institutions. You can check the service here: Foreign currency remittance receiving service.
On the other hand, the personal foreign currency remittance service is mainly for sending money to a bank account in your own name at another financial institution’s domestic branch in Japan. This is different from sending money overseas. Please check the explanation here: Foreign currency remittance service.
If your purpose is to send money overseas, you should also check Wise or another remittance service.
Japan Post Bank
Some English-speaking residents may already have a Japan Post Bank account.
Japan Post Bank is often used as a first bank account in Japan. It has many branches, and there is multilingual information for foreign residents.
If you want to separate your business account from your personal account, you may be able to consult with the branch about opening another account (link to the explanation in Japanese). The actual handling may depend on the branch and your situation.
Please note that under the deposit insurance system in Japan, if you have multiple accounts at the same financial institution, the deposits are aggregated by depositor. The general protection limit is 10 million yen in principal plus interest per financial institution.
Japan Post Bank can be synced with freee.
International remittance and receiving money from overseas are available. You can check Japan Post Bank’s international remittance page here: Japan Post Bank International Remittances.
Japan Post Bank may not be the most modern or the easiest bank for business bookkeeping, but it can be a practical everyday bank account, especially when you are starting your life in Japan.
Rakuten Bank
Rakuten Bank is sometimes chosen because the screening may feel relatively accessible.
However, I have also heard impressions that the website is not very easy to use for English-speaking users.
Rakuten Bank’s English page also states that services after the account application are basically available in Japanese. Therefore, if you are not comfortable using Japanese, you should be careful before choosing Rakuten Bank as your main account.
Rakuten Bank can be synced with freee.
If you already use Rakuten Securities, Rakuten Card, or other Rakuten services, Rakuten Bank may fit into that ecosystem. Otherwise, I do not think it is always necessary to choose Rakuten Bank as the first option for a non-Japanese freelancer.
Using Wise Together with a Japanese Bank Account
For international remittance and receiving money from overseas clients, you do not always need to rely only on a Japanese bank.
Many foreign freelancers use a combination of a Japanese bank account and Wise.
For example, you can use a Japanese bank account for domestic payments, tax payments, rent, utilities, and freee integration. Then, for foreign currency receipts or overseas remittance, you may use Wise separately.
This does not mean that Wise replaces your Japanese bank account completely. For tax and bookkeeping purposes, you still need to clearly track your business income and expenses.
However, if you receive money from overseas clients or send money abroad, using Wise together with a Japanese bank account may be more practical than trying to do everything with one Japanese bank.
Conclusion
Please use the above comparison to choose two or so candidate banks first.
After opening an account, you can actually use it for a while. If it does not feel right, you can change your account structure later.
I also changed my bank account structure after using it for about a year.
If you are also choosing a credit card or debit card that can sync with accounting software, you may also want to check this related article:
List of credit cards that can sync with freee, Money Forward, and Yayoi
Please check the good points and weak points of each bank, and choose the account structure that fits your freelance business in Japan.
