Nintendo to stop accepting foreign credit cards and PayPal accounts in Japan

If you’ve ever tried to buy content on the Japanese Nintendo eShop, you’ve no doubt had to buy a prepaid Nintendo eShop card because most foreign credit cards cannot be used directly on the Nintendo eShop. The reason for this is simple: if your country of residence already has a Nintendo eShop (like the United States for example), your credit card will not be accepted, presumably because Nintendo wants you to use the Nintendo eShop associated to your region.

And today, Nintendo has announced that this policy is about to change. Starting March 25th, ALL foreign credit cards will no longer useable on the Nintendo eShop or the My Nintendo Store in Japan, regarldess of whether your country of residence has its own Nintendo eShop.

But that’s not all: PayPal accounts will also be impacted, and all accounts created in any country other than Japan will no longer work on the Japanese Nintendo eShop or the My Nintendo Store.

Nintendo explains that this change was made in order “to prevent fraudulent use of the Nintendo eShop or the My Nintendo Store”. And as a result, starting March 25th, only credit cards issued in Japan, and PayPal account created in Japan, will be accepted.

Customers using a foreign credit card or a PayPal account created in another country will have to use a different payment method to buy content on the Nintendo eShop or the My Nintendo Store, like pre-paid Nintendo eShop cards for example.

Source: Nintendo