Getting a debit card in Taiwan (why is it so hard?)

Idk they refused to give it to me. Even when I demanded it. The manager said no. I heard it’s actually normal for most banks here to do that. :frowning: It’s whatever though. Still not as bad as Bank of America lol

I heard it’s actually normal for most banks here to do that

Not true for debit cards. Everyone foreigner I know who lives and works here has a debit card. In fact, most foreigners I know who work here have a credit card as well.

Just go to the Megabank branches that people mentioned and ask them for a debit card.

Maybe it’s a problem in Asia. Not as many problems in Europe or North America.

In fact, I was able to get a top cashback credit card in the US as a foreigner student without any income and without any guarantor. I was also able to invest in the stock market within like a day. An alarming number of foreigners I know in Taiwan do not invest their savings, and keep them in a checking account or some shitty 0.5% yearly Taiwanese savings account. This is a pretty real problem IMO - Salaries already suck here and not getting easy access to credit cards and investment opportunities makes the situation worse for foreigners. Taiwan really needs to improve on stuff like this for better foreigner integration.

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When was that? I remember it was like this decades ago, but didn’t that cause some sort of trouble and they shut this down?

That make sense. Most of my experience and the stories I know happened in Asia.

I guess it has something to do with the culture. As you know, we tend to save more money than Americans. Credit cards aren’t considered as an investment generally. They’re seen as an evil product of capitalism :joy:

When was that? I remember it was like this decades ago, but didn’t that cause some sort of trouble and they shut this down?

Five years ago.

I guess it has something to do with the culture. As you know, we tend to save more money than Americans. Credit cards aren’t considered as an investment generally. They’re seen as an evil product of capitalism :joy:

It’s not just about credit cards. Just take Taiwanese Stock Exchange for example, and compare the process for a foreigner and local to be able to invest in it (assuming both earn median wage). Hint: One of them has much more roadblocks.

The best CDs and interest account rates in Taiwan will shock you as well.

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Yeah now that you mentioned it I think it might really be an Asian thing :thinking:

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Come to think of it, most Asian countries have natural borderlines. Countries are separated by seas or mountains. We don’t have a large scaled political and economical union such as the EU.

Even through out the history, Taiwan and Japan hasn’t had that much affairs with other countries compared to european countries. The politics, trades, Royal marriages… etc. China is now one country so it doesn’t really matter how it was when there were many countries.

This just got me thinking :thinking:

I mean normal for no online banking if you haven’t been here s year.

I had everything activated from day 1. Including outgoing USD transfers.