Paying utility bills in Japan is interesting. You take your bill, and the necessary cash, to the post office or to the convenience store and pay there. You can’t mail a check since there are no checks in the Japanese banking system.

At the convenience store, the clerk scans the bar code on the bill and it’s rung up as a sale on the register. You hand over the money, she hands you change and stamps your bill to show you’ve paid. It’s as easy as buying a newspaper if considerably more expensive. Posted by kuri at January 19, 2002 09:35 AM