PayPay app guide
Setup, funding, earning, sending, withdrawal, and security for Japan’s dominant QR wallet.
Set up PayPay with Japanese authentication and eKYC, fund via bank, ATM cash, or PayPay Card, and pay by QR at ~10 million stores; ordinary Points do not expire but only PayPay Money can be sent or withdrawn.
Key points
- Funding: bank transfer (no fee), ATM cash, or PayPay Card; the source sets the balance type.
- Earning depends on PayPay Step, which requires KYC since June 2, 2026.
- Point-funded portions do not earn Step rewards.
- PayPay Money can be sent/withdrawn; PayPay Points and Money Lite cannot.
- My Code receipt has required KYC since June 17, 2026.
Setup and funding
You register PayPay in the app with Japanese mobile authentication; higher usage requires eKYC identity verification. Funding sources include bank transfer (no fee), ATM cash charging, carrier charging, and the PayPay Card, and the source determines whether value becomes PayPay Money or Money Lite. Foreign-card funding is limited: PayPay is not a general foreign-card acceptance workaround, and supported card registration and 3-D Secure rules apply. Charging via ATM or an excluded card generally earns no reward, so use the app’s eligible route if you want points.
Earning, sending, and security
Base earning is conditional on PayPay Step, which since June 2, 2026 requires identity verification; any portion paid with PayPay Points is excluded from Step rewards. PayPay is accepted at around ten million stores and supports bill payment (reward treatment differs) and peer-to-peer sending. Only PayPay Money can be sent or withdrawn — PayPay Points and Money Lite cannot. Sending money is not a card purchase and has weaker reversal rights: PayPay states user-initiated send/receive activity is outside its compensation program, so verify recipients. For security, use biometric/PIN locking, and after a lost phone, lock the device, suspend credentials, and review transactions. Never disclose SMS codes or PINs to a caller.
Who this is for
- Mobile-payment users setting up PayPay
What this is not
- People relying on foreign cards for points
- ATM top-ups and excluded-card charges generally earn no points; sending money has weak reversal rights.
Frequently asked questions
Does charging PayPay earn card points?
Not automatically. ATM cash top-ups and excluded-card charges generally earn no reward; only specifically eligible routes qualify. A card being accepted as a funding source does not prove the issuer awards points for the funding transaction — verify each layer on the transaction date.
Does paying with PayPay Points earn Step rewards?
No, since June 2, 2026 the portion paid with PayPay Points is excluded from PayPay Step rewards, and PayPay Step now requires identity verification. Ordinary PayPay Points still do not expire, and points cannot be sent or withdrawn.
Which major points do not expire?
Ordinary PayPay Points currently have no expiration, while PayPay limited-time points do. Among cards, Saison Permanent Points (永久不滅ポイント) also do not expire. Most other programs use a one- to two-year window or extend the balance with activity, so a program with no expiry reduces the risk of losing a slowly accumulating balance.