Interview Preparation

Good news for those traveling to China! You can finally enjoy the hassle-free, cashless payment experience you may have heard about for years and avoid the awkward interaction of asking your local friends to pay and handing them paper money they can’t spend anywhere.

This week, China’s two dominant mobile payment solutions, Wechat payment and alipayannounced that foreign users can now pay at Chinese retailers by linking their foreign credit cards, including Visa, Mastercard and Discover.

Previously, using WeChat Pay and Alipay in China required a local bank account, making it difficult for short-term visitors to use these payment methods. While paying has become easier for those living in China, finding places that accept cash is now a headache for foreign visitors as the two payment giants have largely replaced cash from metropolises to villages despite government efforts to warn merchants against rejecting cash.

The development is therefore a great improvement in the experience of foreign visitors in China. With Alipay and WeChat Pay literally ubiquitous in both China’s online and offline retail spheres, foreign visitors can now call a Didi car, ride the subway, rent a shared bike, buy fruit at a grocery store, order food delivery, and even shop online for a myriad of Chinese e-commerce products.

wechat advertisement provides useful details about what the configuration looks like. To activate their WeChat wallets, foreign users will need to authenticate their identity by uploading their passports. Foreign phone numbers can be used to receive verification codes.

Unfortunately, visitors won’t be able to experience the digitized Chinese custom of hongbao, which involves sending or receiving digital versions of auspicious red envelopes filled with money. This feature was originally what fueled the first wave of mass adoption of WeChat. Visitors are also barred from making money transfers, which is not surprising given China’s tight control over capital flows across borders.

On WeChat, the spending limits per transaction, month, and year for foreign visitors are 6,000 yuan (about $835), 50,000 yuan, and 60,000 yuan, respectively. Transaction fees are waived for payments under 200 yuan (about $28), with anything above a 3% fee. Exchange rates are based on the rates of the card organization and the issuing bank.

Previously, the payment giants had plans to integrate with international bank cards, but they did not materialize. Hopefully the regulatory approvals and infrastructure are in place this time. We will report back once we have tested it in the field.