Suica | Fares & Passes (2024)

• What is it?
• How to Buy and Use a Suica
• Prices
• Where to Purchase
• Using Your Suica Card – Getting Around


• Using Your Suica Card – E-money
• Recharge the Suica
• Refunds
• Validity Period
• Other

Important Notification

• Welcome Suica A Suica card for short-term visits. The Welcome Suica can be used for 28 days beginning with the date of purchase, no deposit necessary. The Welcome Suica will be available starting September 1, 2019.

What is it?

The Suica is a prepaid e-money card for moving around and shopping. There is no more need to buy a ticket from a vending machine. Just touch your Suica to the ticket gate and the fare is automatically deducted from your Suica. The Suica can be used not only for JR East trains, but subways and buses as well. See the Suica Map for transportation systems you can use with the Suica.

The Suica can also be used to pay for things with e-money. Buy soft drinks and coffee from vending machines and on the train. Even buy a newspaper at the station kiosk without fiddling for coins. For traveling in Japan, the Suica makes a more pleasant trip.

How to Buy and Use a Suica

Prices

Note:
Prices include a deposit of 500 yen. The difference between the adult's card and the child's card is the amount deducted when using transportation.
When using a child's Suica card, the child's fare is deducted, and when using an adult's Suica card, the adult's fare is deducted.

Where to Purchase

Using Your Suica Card – Getting Around

Riding Trains

• Simply touch the Suica card to the reader at the ticket gate when out and about. There is no need to purchase a ticket from a vending machine.
• The fare is automatically calculated at the station where you get off.
• When you get off the train, the fare will be calculated at that station. If the balance is insufficient, however, you will need to add more money to your Suica.

Note:
Additional tickets must be purchased to use the Suica for travel on a limited express, express or Green Car. The Suica cannot be used for travel on the Shinkansen.

Regions where the Suica can be used

The Suica cannot be used for continuous travel between areas. The use of transportation begun in one area must be ended in that area. When crossing from one area to another, first leave the ticket gate and then re-enter.

Using Your Suica Card – E-money

Shopping

• The Suica can be used not only for transportation but for shopping as well.
• You can use your Suica to make purchases onboard trains as well as from vending machines, to rent coin lockers and for spending at convenience stores and restaurants.

The Suica can be used wherever the below logos are displayed.

Recharge the Suica

• The Suica can be loaded and used as many times as desired.
• The Suica can be loaded up to a maximum of 20,000 yen at Automatic Ticket Vending Machines and Fare Adjustment Machines displaying the Suica mark.
• Only yen may be used to load a card. A credit card cannot be used to load a Suica.

Refunds

• Suica cards issued by JR East Japan can be returned only at JR East stations. Suica cards issued by the Tokyo Monorail or elsewhere cannot be returned to JR East. Refer to the issuing company for further details on how to return them.
• When the card is returned, the deposit of 500 yen is returned along with any remaining amount.
• There is a charge of 220 yen to return a Suica card, which is deducted from the total. For refunds, a fee of 220 yen is subtracted from the total (a result of less than zero is considered zero), and then the initial 500 yen deposit is added.

Refund examples

1. With a balance of 1,000 yen, the fee of 220 yen is subtracted for 780 yen, and then the deposit of 500 yen is added for a refund of 1,280 yen.
2. When the balance is 100 yen, subtracting the fee leaves less than zero, so the amount is considered zero, and then the deposit of 500 yen is added for a total refund of 500 yen.
3. When the balance is zero, subtracting the fee leaves less than zero, so the amount is considered zero, and then the deposit of 500 yen is added for a total refund of 500 yen.

Validity Period

• If not used for a period of 10 years, the Suica becomes invalid. For such invalid cards, the following options are available:

1. Get a replacement Suica card
   The charge on the invalid Suica will be transferred to your new card.
2. Get a refund
   A refund will be made after subtracting a refund fee from the charge on the invalid Suica. The initial deposit of 500 yen will also be refunded.

Other

• Lost Suica cards cannot be reissued.
• When traveling outside the Suica valid area please purchase a ticket beforehand.

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