Hi, for those who have purchased from https://www.japan-rail-pass.com, could you please share whether their payment processing is in AU or international? I just want to know whether I will be charged international transaction fee by my bank or not. And I suppose on the another note, whether I should choose AUD or USD as currency when purchasing.
Thanks.
Doesn't answer your question exactly, but I purchased mine from http://www.traveljapan.com.au/rail-pass, picked it up from their Melbourne office the following day and was charged in AUD.
You will get charged an international transaction fee regardless of whether it is in AUD or Yen since the fee is charged by most banks for any overseas transaction. Usually the conversion is not the best so I would pay in Yen and with a 28 degrees mastercard if you had one.
Thank you for all your comments. Seems like I need to use my Citibank card. The reason I ask was because if it is not an international transaction (processed by AU bank) then I will use my other credit card given the amount of transaction. My Citibank card is a debit card. The difference between getting charged by AU or US is for me to decide which exchange rate I would pay.
Thanks again.
usually where the transaction is processed determines whether it is an international transaction or not. an overseas AUD transaction could still incur a fee.
citiplus account is another card which doesn't charge international transaction fees. it is a visa debit card so it should be straight forward to obtain without credit history.
i find paying in local currency usually the best. visa take about 2% on top.
as an ozbargainer you should have a citibank card, or at least a 28degree mastercard.
using one of those will not incur international transaction fee.
On a side note : Does it matter whether you pay in US or AU? you're still making an international transaction.