Metro stations accepting overseas cards to pay for tickets

Editor's note:

Shanghai has made intensive efforts to improve payment services for foreigners, ranging from cash, mobile payments to foreign card acceptance. Let's check out what the city has been doing to make it easier for foreigners visiting China.

Credit: Jiang Xiaowei / SHINE

Service centers at local Metro stations now have POS machines to allow the use of overseas bankcards to buy tickets, said Shanghai Shentong Metro Group, the metro operator.

This follows a successful trial at four stations covering Shanghai's two airports last month.

People can use their cards to buy single-trip, one-day, three-day Metro tickets and some stations also offer maglev tickets at manned service centers. The cards include Visa, Mastercard, Discover, AE, Diners Club, JCB and China's UnionPay.

In addition to the POS machines, foreigners also can use Shanghai Metro's Daduhui app to pay for subway trips directly after linking their overseas cards.

They can use valid identity documents such as passports or the mainland travel permits for Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan residents to register at the app and link their overseas cards for direct digital payment.