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How to Use WeChat Pay as a Foreigner in China

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This Makes Life in China Easy

Allow me to give you some information that will make your life in the Middle Kingdom just a little bit easier. I had WeChat for years after I’d come to China, but never knew that I could use the WeChat Pay service as a foreigner.

Can you use WeChat Pay as a Foreigner?

Yes, you absolutely can. If you have a Bank Account in China.

Have you ever been at an establishment where they directed you to make your purchase with a QR code framed in bright green? This is what they meant.

Has there ever been a time when you’ve been invited to join a WeChat group but couldn’t because it said you didn’t have a bank card registered? Well, this is why: you didn’t have a bank card connected to your wallet.

To take advantage of one of the most convenient payment methods in China, you should set up WeChat pay. WeChat Pay for tourists is not likely to be appropriate as you will not be able to open a bank account without a residence permit.

What is it?

WeChat Pay is an integrated payment solution in the Tencent: WeChat social messaging application. If you open the app, tap on where it says “me,” you’ll see it listed as “wallet” on your profile page:

selecting wallet

In the wallet section, you can perform a number of different kinds of transactions, including:

  • Paying at any establishment that accepts WeChat pay
  • Transferring cash directly to other users
  • Paying for your mobile service on China Unicom
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    Paying for water and power, depending on your providers
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    Booking a night in a hotel
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    Buying movie tickets
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    Buying items off of e-commerce sites
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    And the most popular of all, sending red pockets (digital gifts of money) to friends

This is how the company Tencent makes most of its money. Facebook is the most comparable social media platform in the West and almost all of their revenue comes from advertising.

In the West, we still largely use plastic for most of our large payments and those kinds of powerful credit card companies don’t want us switching to software just yet. That’s interesting, because the infrastructure has been available for a very long time now.

Wēixìn (微信) Vs WeChat

One source of confusion among some foreigners has to do with the fact that WeChat has two different versions. There is the local version of WeChat (called 微信) widely used throughout the Chinese mainland. Then there is the international version of the app, simply called WeChat that is available for download everywhere else in the world. The app provides different features depending on the mobile number you use to register.

If you’re a Foreigner without a Chinese Bank Account

Though you may not have a bank account, you’re not out of luck for using WeChat pay to support your payments with a linked credit card. All you have to do to get started is:

  • Enter your card number and press “Next.” All you have to do is follow the instructions on the following pages to complete the setup. 
  • Once your phone number and card have been verified, your WeChat wallet will be active and you can use WeChat Pay to pay for goods and services. 

Know that debit cards will not work with WeChat Pay, only credit cards. Also, keep in mind that the service is limited to paying for purchases. You can also top-up to pay merchants using WeChat when your account has been bound to a card. If you ever have trouble transferring money, topping up and then paying, or sending red envelopes, might be a reasonable method.

How do I enable WeChat payment?

The following steps are people who have an established bank account.

First, you’re going to need:

  • The phone with the number you registered to your bank account
  • Your Chinese bank card
  • Passport number
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    WeChat account

After you’ve got all these items in front of you, here are the steps:

  • 1
    Open the WeChat App > Tap “Me” > Tap “Wallet” > Tap “Cards”

If you don’t see the wallet button, that’s because you’re using the international version of the app. But that’s easy enough to fix by changing the language setting. So here is how you change your language settings. Go to Settings> General> Language> and choose 简化中国 (Simplified Chinese). Then Restart the app and log back in.

general
language
selecting chinese
  • 2
    Bind your bank card to your WeChat account

After you press “Cards,” it will direct you to a page titled, “Add a Card.” This is where you enter your card number. It’s pretty self-explanatory.

Enter your card type, whether it’s ICBC or Bank of China. Banks that will accept your passport information as validation include ICBC, Bank of China, and China Merchants Bank, and China Construction Bank. Other choices include Industrial Bank, Bank of Communications, China Everbright Bank, Huaxia Bank, and ABC.

  • Enter the cardholder’s name.
  • ID Type is passport.
  • The number is your passport number
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    Lastly, enter the phone number registered with the bank and accept the user agreement.

This is where some foreigners may hit a roadblock:

Chinese banks don’t know how to deal with foreigners names. Sometimes they enter all of your names in ALL CAPS because that’s how it’s displayed in your passport.

Another thing you might try is entering your LAST NAME FIRST. I’ve had it entered this way before when trying to get my card linked.

Some users have told me that by receiving a hongbao from a friend they were able to unlock the WeChat wallet feature. So if the language trick doesn’t work for you, this is something else you can try.

  • 3
    You’re successfully linked with your bank card.
success

You’ll see a bright green checkmark.

If you need to change your app back to English, you can go to 设置> 通用> 多语言> English.

Adding Money in Your WeChat Wallet

You can add money to your account through the following three ways:

  • If you have a Chinese bank account, you can add funds directly to your WeChat Wallet to spend on any desired transactions. You can also use the WeChat payment gateway to directly debit your connected bank account. 
  • You can also do a peer-to-peer transfer through WeChat. If you don’t have a bank account, you can still get a friend that does to transfer money to your account with a red envelope or a general transfer. Though this service is free, you will not be able to withdraw the money to a bank account, unless you have a valid Chinese bank linked. 
  • Lastly, you can do third-party transfers. There are more than a few online platforms where you can load money to WeChat pay for a small fee. Problem is that these kinds of services might against the terms of service. 

WeChat Pay vs. Alipay

The differences in terms of functional use are not so different. One reason why people might want to WeChat instead of Alipay is because someone sent them a red pocket through the social media and they want to spend the money to buy something. But you can send gifts of money through Alipay as well.

Can I Top Up WeChat with Paypal?

If you have a Chinese bank account integrated with a Chinese Paypal account, but not if you want to integrate your Western Paypal account. That won't work. 

Can Alipay use a Credit Card?

You can use Alipay in tandem with a bank account, but as far as I know, there is no way to use Alipay with a foreign credit card or Paypal.

Do I have to pay for it?

WeChat as an app for chatting with friends is free, but if you want to use WeChat Wallet, there is a fee. There is a charge levied on withdrawls of more than 1000 yuan with a minimum fee of 0.1 yuan.

Is it safe?

Not only does WeChat Wallet require you to enter a PIN when you purchase, but now with the security on your phone and fingerprint and voice sensors, the platform is reasonably secure. 

Sending Red Pockets

You can send digital red pockets to your friends with a limit of 200 RMB.

Open someone’s chat in your WeChat app. In the lower right, there’s a “+” sign in a circle. From there, click the Red Pocket button. Enter an amount and press send.

Cash Transfers

If you are ever in a hurry for cash but have no time to visit an ATM, you can send someone money directly from your account in exchange for paper bills. This is the best way to get cash when you need it.

I used WeChat transfer to buy Bitcoin in China before I finally got an Alipay account. The button to send a transfer is in the same place as the Red Pocket (to the right). Click here if you want to learn how to buy Bitcoin with WeChat. 

Local Purchases

When you head to a business, they should have their QR code on display. This is the best way to buy dinner.

On the WeChat main page, click the “+” in the upper right. Choose “Scan QR.” The software should take over from there, with your ability to enter an amount and send it to the business owner.

Available Countries for WeChat

  • While you can download WeChat at quite a few different app stores, WeChat Pay is only available in a few different countries. You can use it in Hong Kong, Mainland China, South Africa, and Malaysia. 

  • Apart from these regions listed above, you will not be able to use WeChat. 

  • If you get a red pocket sent to your wallet, you will have 24 hours to link it to a Mainland Chinese bank card if you want to withdraw the money. WeChat isn’t meant for money transfers. If you want to use the app for sending money outside China, you’ll need to go to a bank and show proof that you earn money in the country. 

  • Though you can change the WeChat wallet region using the app, you cannot transfer the money from one region to another.

Enjoy! You are now modern!