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I live in Japan. You can only open up a bank account here if you have a Registered Alien card. I was able to get an account at Citibank prior to this new rule. I wire money in monthly ($15 from Fideity) into my Citibank account. It goes into a USD denominated account. I transfer the money to Yen periodically at a rate that is 1 yen per USD less than the current mid-market rate.
For those that don't have accounts, just go to a Citibank, Post Office, or now 7-eleven. Citibank and Post Office charge you $5 plus 1% which is pretty darn good as long as you take out large amounts at a time. I had no problems getting money from either with my BofA ATM. I have never used ATM at 7-eleven.
I am not familiar with banking in Taiwan so I can't help the OP much. However, the last thing I would do is bring large amounts of USD in cash and convert; the rate is usually much worse than ATM rate (assuming large transfers). If you are on vacation spending a few hundred dollars; by all means, use a money changer. However, if you are talking about thousands, forget it. Citibank would charge me one more yen per USD if I brought in currency.
Marc
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