Mobile Suica and Apple Pay Suica
Mobile Suica and Apple Pay Suica put the transit IC balance onto a phone so residents can tap gates and pay in stores without a plastic card.12 For commuters, that means recharge and commuter-pass management from the phone instead of queuing at a station machine.34
Procedures, fees, and requirements can change. Confirm current details at the JR East site and Apple Support.
Overview
This guide covers the resident migration from plastic to phone: Suica on iPhone via Apple Wallet, Suica on supported Android via Google Pay, and mobile PASMO on both platforms.245 It also covers phone top-up, gate taps, foreign-resident card-linking friction, and everyday IC payment use.367
It suits commuting residents and established residents who ride daily. Short-stay visitor products such as the 28-day plastic Welcome Suica are excluded; they follow different validity and refund rules.8
Who mobile Suica suits and what it replaces
Mobile Suica suits residents who already tap a physical IC and want the same balance on a phone, usable anywhere physical transit IC cards work and where interoperable IC marks are accepted (as of 2026-04; confirm current figures with Apple Support and JR East).28 The phone replaces both the gate ticket and the small-purchase wallet for konbini and vending machines.94
From plastic to phone: the migration paths
Three resident routes exist, and the right one depends on the phone and the commute. iPhone users go through Apple Wallet, Android users need a Japan-market FeliCa phone, and PASMO fits commutes with no JR East leg.1056
Suica on iPhone via Apple Wallet
Apple brought Suica to Apple Pay with the iPhone 7 generation in Japan, starting in October 2016 with FeliCa Type-F NFC support.1 Current Apple guidance requires an iPhone 8 or later for the full transit-card set, with Suica also supported back to iPhone 7, plus an Apple Account with two-factor authentication and current iOS or watchOS (as of 2026-04; confirm current figures with Apple Support).2
Setup runs inside Wallet: open Wallet, tap Add, choose Transit Card, choose Suica, choose an amount or pass, then confirm the purchase.10 To move a plastic card instead, choose Transfer Existing Card, enter the card number, then hold the top of the iPhone over the plastic until the transfer completes.10
After the transfer the physical card may no longer work, so do not plan to keep the plastic as a backup.10
A transit card lives on one device at a time. Moving between iPhone and Apple Watch or to a new iPhone uses the Wallet transfer flow, with the balance held against the signed-in Apple Account during the move.10
Suica on supported Android via Google Pay
On Android, Suica and PASMO ride as e-money in Google Wallet on Osaifu-Keitai compatible devices (as of 2026-09).5 Google requires Android 9 or higher for payment cards, with Osaifu-Keitai support required for e-money, QUICPay, and iD use.5
The hardware catch matters most for foreign residents. Only Japan-market Android handsets generally carry the FeliCa chip that Osaifu-Keitai needs, so phones bought outside Japan usually cannot add Suica at all.11 Most credit cards issued in Japan can add money to e-money in Google Wallet, and the same Google account must be used across Wallet and the Mobile Suica or Mobile PASMO apps.5
Mobile PASMO on iPhone and Android
PASMO Co. started Mobile PASMO on March 18, 2020 for Android and brought PASMO to Apple Pay on October 6, 2020.12 Apple Pay PASMO needs an iPhone 8 or later on iOS 14.0 or later, or an Apple Watch Series 3 or later on watchOS 7.0 or later, plus a card in Wallet, an internet connection, a signed-in Apple Account, and the device region set to Japan (as of 2026-09).4
Creation in Wallet follows Add, Transit Card, PASMO, amount, agree to terms, then approve payment.4 The practical rule is operator scoped. Riders whose commute touches a JR East line get the most options from Mobile Suica, while riders with no JR East leg who need a commuter pass must use Mobile PASMO for that pass.6
Google Wallet holds one PASMO card per device at a time. Converting a personalized plastic PASMO invalidates the plastic, with the balance transfer completing by 5 AM the next day (as of 2026-09).11
| Term | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Suica | Suika | JR East rechargeable transit and electronic-money IC card8 |
| PASMO | Pasumo abbreviation | Kanto private-operator IC card interoperable with Suica4 |
| モバイルSuica (mobairu Suika, "Mobile Suica") | mobile Suica | Phone-resident Suica managed via app and Wallet6 |
| モバイルPASMO (mobairu Pasumo, "Mobile PASMO") | mobile PASMO | Phone-resident PASMO managed via app and Wallet4 |
| おサイフケータイ (Osaifu-Keitai, "mobile wallet") | osaifu keitai | FeliCa phone payment platform required on Android5 |
Topping up without a station visit
Phone top-up runs through Wallet or the transit-card app, with auto-charge as a gate-triggered extra for eligible cards. The stored-fare cap shapes how much to load: 20,000 yen on both Suica and PASMO in Apple Pay (as of 2026-09; confirm current figures with JR East and PASMO Co.).84
Credit-card direct link and auto-charge
Wallet top-up follows a fixed path: open the card, tap Add Money, choose an amount, choose an Apple Pay payment card, then authenticate.3 Provider apps offer the same recharge plus pass purchase and renewal from inside the app.34
Suica App card registration is limited to Japan-issued cards supporting 3D Secure 2.0, with listed brands including View Card, Visa, JCB, Mastercard, Amex, Diners, and the JR Central Express Card (as of 2026-07).6 Practitioner sources describe this list from app behavior, and the brand set can change without notice.
Auto-charge is the hands-free layer. It recharges Suica instantly at the transit gate over NFC when the balance has dropped to a preset trigger, and it works without a network connection including in airplane mode.6 It requires a View Card configured in the Suica app with a trigger amount and a charge amount; practitioner sources cite a 1,000 yen trigger floor and a 10,000 yen charge ceiling (as of 2026-07).6
Store and vending-machine purchases never trigger auto-charge, and gates outside the JR East Suica and PASMO fare regions do not trigger it either.6
What the balance cap means in practice
The figures below reflect operator pages (as of 2026-09).84 Size loads for a week of commuting plus konbini spending rather than parking months of cash on the chip.
| Item | Amount | As of | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Suica stored-fare cap | 20,000 yen | 2026-098 | Phone and plastic share the cap |
| PASMO Apple Pay SF cap | 20,000 yen | 2026-094 | Top-up closed 2:00 to 4:00 AM |
| Plastic Suica deposit | 500 yen | 2026-098 | Refunded on counter return |
| Plastic Suica return fee | 220 yen from balance | 2026-098 | Deposit still refunded in full |
| Plastic top-up steps | 500 to 10,000 yen | 2026-098 | Cash only; no credit-card top-up |
Plastic top-ups come in 500, 1,000, 2,000, 3,000, 5,000, and 10,000 yen steps with unlimited repeat visits up to the cap (as of 2026-09).8 Plastic cannot be topped up by credit card at all, which is exactly the station-visit friction the phone removes.8 JR East has announced a separate server-side code-payment balance up to 300,000 yen for a future Mobile Suica update, distinct from stored fare, but that launch sits past this article's verification window (as of 2025-11).12
Tapping gates and riding
Gate behavior is the payoff for the setup work. With Express Mode set, the tap needs no unlock, no authentication, and no network at the gate itself.2
Tap without removing the phone
Hold the top of the iPhone or the Watch display near the gate scanner on entry and exit. The screen shows Done with a checkmark, and the Watch adds a tap and beep.2 The same Express Mode tap works at shop readers, and on some iPhone models it can work for up to five hours while the phone needs charging (as of 2025-11; confirm current figures with Apple Support).13
If the phone is turned off, the reserve tap is unavailable. Checking the card list with the side or Home button while the battery is low drains the reserve faster.13 Hold the phone, not a wallet full of competing IC cards, near the reader to avoid misreads.
If a station agent must service the card, put the phone in Service Mode from the card details screen before handing it over.2
Commuter passes on mobile
New commuter plans can be created and existing ones changed or refunded from the transit-card app, including Green Car tickets for JR East trains.2 Wallet also sells passes directly through Buy Passes and renews them through Renew or Buy More.3 PASMO commuter passes bought in the Mobile PASMO app appear in Google Wallet and renew there.11
Full pass economics live elsewhere. The 1, 3, and 6-month terms, transfer-pass mechanics across JR and private railways, and employer reimbursement belong in the commuter-pass articles, not here.
Linking bank cards as a foreign resident
Card linking is where foreign residents hit the most friction. Some banks cards do not link cleanly to mobile Suica top-up, while Rakuten and View cards are the documented foreigner-friendly options in practitioner guidance.67 Issuer behavior varies, so treat any single success story as scoped to that issuer.
Cards that link cleanly
Rakuten Card accepts foreign-resident applications subject to screening on income stability, credit history, and period of stay, with no Japanese guarantor on the standard path and no annual fee on the standard card (as of 2026-05; confirm current figures with Rakuten Card).7 Approval is never guaranteed and depends on the applicant file.
The ビューカード (byū kādo, "View Card") is the JR East group credit card positioned for Suica use including auto-charge.6 Practitioner sources describe Rakuten and View cards as the foreigner-friendly linking pair, but issuer failure modes are inconsistently reported and no operator page certifies universal foreign-card compatibility.67
When a link fails
Fall back to cash. Station ticket machines, fare-adjustment machines, and konbini registers all recharge Suica quickly.89 If Wallet shows no Add Money option at all, Apple directs users to the transit issuer site for the correct add-value path.3 If a top-up leaves the balance stale, the Service Mode toggle in card details refreshes it.2
Paying beyond the gates
The same stored fare pays for transit and shopping. JR East frames it as freedom from coin counting: say the card name at the register and tap.9
Konbini, vending machines, and retail
Suica electronic money pays at konbini, restaurants, beverage vending machines, taxis, airport shops, station retailers, and coin lockers.9 Recharge happens at station machines and konbini registers.9 Shopping works anywhere the IC mark family appears: Suica, Kitaca, PASMO, manaca, TOICA, ICOCA, Hayakaken, nimoca, and SUGOCA.8
PASMO stored fare pays at stores showing the PASMO logo, including konbini, restaurants, and malls.4 Apple Pay transit cards are accepted for shopping where Suica or PASMO marks appear, and clerks may ask which card is used before tapping.2
Good to know
Transferring a physical Suica retires the plastic
Transfer Existing Card moves the balance to the phone, and the plastic may no longer work afterward.10 Do not plan to keep both live. The counter-return arithmetic for plastic (500 yen deposit, 220 yen handling fee from the balance) is confirmed for station returns, but no fetched primary confirms whether an iPhone transfer refunds the deposit, so assume the plastic is spent.8
Only one card can be the Express Transit card
Only one transit card per network can hold Express Mode at a time.13 Holders of both Suica and PASMO must choose which taps without unlock.134 Switching is a settings change, not a reinstall, but forgetting to switch before the gate causes a failed tap and a queue behind.
A dead phone battery still taps, but only briefly
Power reserve can keep Express Mode taps working for up to five hours after the phone needs charging (as of 2025-11; confirm current figures with Apple Support).13 It does not work after the phone is turned off, and each side-button card check drains the reserve.13 Charge before long transfer-heavy trips.
Lost or replaced phones need the card restored from the account
Transit cards removed from a device keep the remaining balance stored against the signed-in Apple Account, available for transfer to the same or another signed-in phone or Watch with a network connection.10 On Android the split is remote find, lock, or erase plus contacting the e-money provider to stop the mobile service on the phone.5 Auto-charge and some app registration paths are Japan-issued-card only and gate-region scoped, so confirm issuer and region before promising a setup works nationwide.6
See also
- Teikiken: The Commuter Pass
- Employer Commuter-Pass Reimbursement
- Journey-Planning Apps
- IC Transit Cards as Cash Substitutes
- First Credit Cards in Japan for Foreign Residents