Has anyone used Smart EX to book shinkansen?

We want to book shinkansen tickets from overseas from our upcoming trip to Kyushu in November: Tokyo --> hakata Station.

Here is the site: https://smart-ex.jp/en/index.php

Questions:
1. Is this a legit service?
2. Have you had experience using it?
3. We live in New Zealand, is this service available to us?

The registration form won't recognise our credit cards at all, and we have tried using several cards. My only conclusion is that they don't provide this service to NZ folks?

1. Is this a legit service?

Yes, it is an official service by JR.

2. Have you had experience using it?

Yes.

3. We live in New Zealand, is this service available to us?

The website ("Tokaido Sanyo Kyushu Shinkansen Online Reservation Service") is available worldwide. The app (smartEX) is only available in a few countries, not including New Zealand.

The registration form won't recognise our credit cards at all, and we have tried using several cards

Unfortunately, it is very common in Japan for credit cards not being accepted because of over-the-top security concerns. It often comes down to some tiny discrepancies between the entered and registered data or because they don't recognize entire credit card types because of some security concern or requirement. JR is particularly horrible in that respect. In rare cases it is the credit card firm which is to blame. Visa, in particular, is known to block users from using certain rival payment methods (IC cards on Iphone, using foreign issued Visa cards).

I believe that the reason is because of so many fake card information issued in foreign countries. it is not JR problem. it is VISA problem.
if you buy a ticket at JR website with a fake credit card information. JR has no damage, because JR can get money from that credit card company. if the final user does not pay money (to that credit company), it is a business trouble between that credit company and that person.

actually, you can use your foreign credit card, when you show up to JR station and show your card physically.

Thank you very much Uji and Ken – you two are awesome and have been tremendously helpful in the past.

It seems you are onto something: all our different bank cards are all VISA, so that might be the key reason the Smart Ex form rejected our valid credit cards.

We will need to apply for a different card provider in that case.

Btw, we heard mixed news about Suica cards, I assume we can still use the old Suica cards, and the problem right now is just getting a new Suica cards, right?

Regular Suica cards become invalid if you do not use them for 10 years. Otherwise, you will be able to use them again.

recently, VISA company recommends their users to use their "numberless" card in Japan. also, store staffs do not handle customer's card by hand. we, customers, need to touch their terminal or insert (and remove) our cards to the slot of their terminal by ourselves.

One thing you may want to check is that you are using your full name that is registered with the Visa card, not just the name on the card. My card was being rejected a few months ago, because I was entering my name as it was written on the card (first and last name) however, the actual name associated with my card included my middle name and once I entered that, the card was accepted. This may or may not apply to you, but sometimes they ask for your name "as it appears on your card" when they really want the full name associated with the account which may be different if it includes your middle name.

because I was entering my name as it was written on the card

It is exactly these kind of details, name variations, different phone numbers, your name in romaji vs. katakana and possible space characters, the order you enter the address, 1-bit vs. 2-bit characters/numbers alongside the complete blocking of certain credit card types (or all foreign-issued credit cars) that make it impossible for many to use their credit cards at many Japanese websites and apps. User-friendliness takes the back seat in too many Japanese apps, and JR is particularly bad.

But unfortunately not the only ones:
https://www.japan-guide.com/forum/quereadisplay.html?0+176262

#3 is it available to New Zealanders?
Yes, and my New Zealand visa card works fine with the service. You should have no issues. The website is pretty easy to use. Have recently done two bookings and the advance purchase savings are worth having.

JR does not verify your card information by themselves. it is verified by the card company which issued your card. what JR does is "sending the card information to the credit card company and asking for verification". giving OK or not is decided by the credit card company, not by JR.
it also happens in the case of USJ.

because JR tickets, and tickets of USJ, TDL, etc. are re-sellable, people can easily convert fraud card information to cash. they must take extreme attentions to sell their tickets. as I already described, the loser is credit companies. it is no surprise that they deny some cards to avoid their loss.
when you use ApplePay, ApplePay has promised to pay money for stores. if trouble happens, it is among ApplePay, the credit card company, and the card user.


in conclusion, it is totally wrong that denied users complain to stores.

according to websites, such denials happen in some cases even for Japanese credit cards.
in the case of Rakuten card, the company says "they restrict card usage at USJ (and TDL). if you want to use it in that cases, they will stop the restriction temporarily." so, denied card users can buy tickets.

We've called our credit card companies and the banks. Everyone said our cards have 3D security and it's the faults with the Smart Ex website.

We're ready to give up using the website... hoping we could still get a shinkansen ticket on arrival, considering we need it the next day from Shinagawa Station to Hakata station.

@JapanCustomTours -- since you're from NZ, did you use a Windows or Mac when you registered, or did you do it on a phone?

We have tried different combinations of names on the bank account and credit cards. Nothing works. The only other possibility is that we are on Mac, using Chrome and Safari.

Any ideas?

if your computer satisfies more than TSL1.2 security. VISA secure should work on mac.

I haven't used Smart EX myself, but I've heard of it. It's a service provided by JR East. It should be legit. I believe it's mainly designed for use within Japan. Booking Shinkansen tickets from overseas might be a bit tricky. You might want to check if other services like Japan Rail Pass or Japanican can help with your international ticket needs.

It is a product by JR Central.

@hojo36 - using laptop - windows/chrome configuration. Registered years ago.

Hi everyone,

We managed to booked our shinkansen ticket via Smart EX, but we had to borrow our family's credit card which was not a VISA.

Thank you very much for all your help!

Help! Same problem.

Has anyone successfully used an Amex (which has SafeKey) to buy tickets on Smart-Ex?

PointsGuy article says SafeKey did work but I've seen threads where Amex's failed. Anyone else have success with SafeKey?

AVOID CHASE VISA

Hours on the phone with Japan Smart-Ex customer service, Chase, Wells Fargo. Upshot is this: We have VISA cards (Chase Sapphire Preferred). This is all about compatibility with 3D Secure technology. Chase DOES NOT use 3D Secure even though a rep insisted they do. It has "Verified by Visa," which a different rep told me does not work with 3D Secure (he's verified this because he's tried it himself) but Mastercard does keep up 3D Secure and he said his own Citibank Citicard Master Card does work. A Chase rep saying use Mastercard! Article on PointsGuy: "Mastercard supports the latest protocols at scale for every issuer of Mastercard products in the U.S. and supports implementation for every merchant wanting to participate in authentication during transactions."

it means Mastercard is better than VISA ?

very recently, VISA Japan (for local people) sent e-mail to their customers that they introduce one-time password system for internet trades next spring.@ it seems that they are suffered by fraud usages.
also, there were reports in newspapers that Chinese were arrested by fraud buying JR tickets with fake credit cards. the damage was about 2 million dollars.

Same issue here too. Ifd tried every single account that i own, from credit card to prepaid card but none is work. Unfortunately, my credit card is VISA, one debit is Mastercard.

Does debit card cant be use to register? Seems i read that Japan having problem with VISA 🥲

Yes, I am a frequent Smart EX user, as I go to Japan twice yearly, a month at a time, to visit my family. I, too, am experiencing Chase Visa cards denied but Citi MasterCard accepted. (all cards are currency conversion fee free). As we can now reserve (and pay for) Shinkansen a year in advance, I am currently booking my trains for October 2024. It is puzzling why I cannot use the Chase Visa, my preferred card. Chase confirms that no transaction processes have ever reached them, which means it has something to do with Japan's credit card processing entity.