"Unfortunately, despite having the requisite two forms of identification to receive one I was denied an instant ATM card (read: because I am a foreigner), which means I have to wait for a packet from the bank to arrive, call the post office with a secret code, and then wait again for my card to be delivered."
I'm not sure I would be ringing the "discrimination" bell quite so fast. Japan has a different way of doing things. While my bank gave me a card on the same day, I also had to wait for the packet to arrive before I could actually activate it for use. My Japanese friends tell me that it works the same way for them. So, no, I don't believe this is an example of discrimination.
Actually, I was explicitly told by the bank rep that despite having the requisite documents, this was not an option for non-citizens. It is my understanding that the widespread adoption of mail-based activation for cards is a measure to help mitigate identity theft, but at least in this case, the denial of a same-day card issuance was directly related to my being a non-citizen.
That being said, I never used the word "discrimination." It makes complete sense that a bank would exercise precaution when dealing with someone who only moved to Japan two days prior. But if this is indeed standard protocol, it needs to be in writing, and it isn't. As such, it was an unexpected and minor annoyance at the end of a very long day of unexpected and minor annoyances.
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I'm not sure I would be ringing the "discrimination" bell quite so fast. Japan has a different way of doing things. While my bank gave me a card on the same day, I also had to wait for the packet to arrive before I could actually activate it for use. My Japanese friends tell me that it works the same way for them. So, no, I don't believe this is an example of discrimination.
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That being said, I never used the word "discrimination." It makes complete sense that a bank would exercise precaution when dealing with someone who only moved to Japan two days prior. But if this is indeed standard protocol, it needs to be in writing, and it isn't. As such, it was an unexpected and minor annoyance at the end of a very long day of unexpected and minor annoyances.
But thanks for your condescension!
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