LINE says the LINE Prepaid Card (Japan) works only on its Japan LINE STORE. Customers report that this takes a LINE account registered with a real Japanese mobile number, and by the reports we found such a number is not sold remotely to people outside Japan. Sign-up from abroad is also not confirmed. Without a Japanese number, do not buy this card. This guide is based on LINE’s own help pages and terms, and on customer reports where we say so, as of October 2026.
What you need
- A Japanese mobile number that receives SMS or voice calls. LINE verifies mobile numbers from Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong and Thailand only. A number from the other four creates an account, but not a Japan one. LINE refuses landlines, numbers starting with 050, virtual numbers and data-only SIMs. If you are abroad, the SIM must receive the SMS or call where you are (roaming).
- A smartphone with the LINE app (iPhone or Android). Accounts are created only in the app, not on a PC.
- An email address. You need it for email login to LINE STORE on a PC, and to move an existing account.
- A country where LINE STORE is offered. LINE says the store is not available in mainland China, Russia and Singapore.
LINE’s sign-up and charge steps do not ask for a postal address, a payment card or an ID document. Getting the Japanese number is a different matter: one provider that sells to foreigners delivers voice and SMS SIMs only to the address on a Japan-issued ID, or for pick-up in Japan. By that provider’s page, keeping such a number means a monthly fee, and receiving SMS while roaming can cost extra.
One point is not confirmed: whether phone-number sign-up, or moving an existing account to a Japanese number, works when the app is used outside the five countries above. LINE’s help says an error appears when the app is operated from a region where verification is unavailable. One customer abroad reports seeing only the Apple and Google buttons. Another reports LINE support telling them to do the transfer while in Hong Kong, Japan or Taiwan. We found no report of a Japanese-number sign-up completed from abroad.
New account or existing one
Both routes need a Japanese mobile number.
- New account (recommended). LINE allows one account per device. Use a phone that has no LINE account you want to keep.
- Move your existing account to the Japanese number. LINE documents this in its help article on changing country. One customer reports doing this in 2024 to use a LINE Prepaid Card. Know the limits first:
- The procedure uninstalls and reinstalls the app. Register an email address and a password on the account and back up your chats before you start. You need the email and password to get the account back.
- You cannot go back. LINE does not let you change to a number from outside Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong or Thailand.
- The same customer reports losing shared photos and videos, even with a backup.
- If a transfer fails, LINE says its support may be able to move some paid items, including charged credit, to a new account. This is not guaranteed.
- It is unknown whether it works for accounts created with Apple or Google. One customer says it does not.
- For 24 hours after the transfer you cannot change the phone number, email or password.
An account created with Apple or Google and a non-Japan country is not a Japan account. Customers with UK and US accounts report they could not use the card.
Creating the account
In the LINE app (iPhone or Android)
Before you start: if your Japanese number is already registered to another LINE account, registering it again deletes that other account.
- Install LINE from the App Store or Google Play and open it.
- Tap Sign up (新規登録).
- Select Japan as the country.
- Enter your Japanese mobile number.
- Read the Terms and Conditions of Use (利用規約) and the Privacy Policy (プライバシーポリシー).
- Tap Send (送信) or OK.
- Enter the verification code (認証番号) from the SMS. If no SMS arrives:
- Tap Call me instead (通話による認証).
- Tap Continue (通話で認証).
- Enter the code from the automated call.
- If Welcome back, XXXX! (おかえりなさい、○○！) appears, tap No, that’s not me (いいえ、違います), then Next (次へ).
- Tap No, create a new account (アカウントを新規作成).
- Set your name and profile photo.
- Set a password: 8 to 20 half-width (standard keyboard) characters, with at least three of these four types: upper case, lower case, digits, symbols. Do not repeat the same character in a row.
- Choose your friend-adding settings (use of your contacts) and confirm.
- Choose whether to verify your age. This is optional and works only through a Japanese carrier contract. LINE’s list of features limited without it does not include LINE STORE.
- Confirm the Regarding Usage of Your Information screen.
LINE’s full instructions are in its help article on creating an account.
Add an email address
- In the app, go to Home (ホーム) > Settings (設定) > Account (アカウント) > Email address (メールアドレス).
- Enter your email address.
- Tap Next (次へ).
- Enter the verification code sent to that address, or tap the link in the email.
Log in to LINE STORE
LINE STORE has no separate sign-up. You log in with your LINE account at store.line.me.
- On a phone: tap the menu icon (≡) at the top left, then Log in (ログイン).
- On a PC: click Log in (ログイン) at the top right. Then use one of two ways:
- Enter the email and password you set in the app and click Log in (ログイン).
- Click QR code login (QRコードログイン), scan the code from the app at Home (ホーム) > Add friends (友だち追加) > QR code (QRコード), then tap Log in (ログイン) in the app.
If an identity verification screen shows a code, enter that code in the LINE app on your phone.
Redeeming the code
Check which account is logged in first. The credit goes to that account and cannot be moved.
Type the PIN in half-width letters and digits, match upper and lower case exactly, and leave no spaces. A PIN that differs by one character is treated as incorrect.
- On the LINE STORE home page, select Add Credit (チャージする).
- Select LINE PREPAID CARD (LINEプリペイドカード).
- Select Continue (選択して次へ).
- Enter the PIN (PINコード) from our email.
- Select Add Credit (チャージする).
The balance appears as LINE Credit. One credit equals one yen. Your charges of the last 12 months are listed under Credit log on your account page.
Problems and fixes
- No LINE PREPAID CARD option on the charge screen. One customer with a UK-number account reported this, and another with a US account could not use the card. The only fix reported is an account registered with a Japanese number.
- Cannot log in to LINE STORE at all. LINE says an account verified only with Facebook, Apple or Google cannot log in unless a phone number is registered. It makes an exception for accounts created without a number in “certain regions”, which it does not name.
- Correct email and password refused on LINE STORE. A temporary lock after failed attempts. Wait half a day to a day.
- Sign-up shows only Continue with Apple and Continue with Google. Reported by a customer outside the five countries. There is no confirmed fix.
- 不正な電話番号 / 無効な電話番号 (invalid phone number). The number is a 050 or virtual number, or the country selected does not match the number.
- Sorry, text message verification isn’t available in your country. (お住まいの国⋅地域ではSMS認証を利用できません) LINE shows this when the app is used from a region without phone verification. Whether it can appear for a Japanese number used abroad is not known.
- ○日後にもう一度お試しください (try again in ○ days). Too many code requests, or a temporary suspension for breaking LINE’s terms. Wait until the date shown. LINE does not lift this on request.
- 登録ができませんでした (could not register). Possibly a temporary limit after many code requests. Try again after one or two days.
- PIN rejected. Retype it. Full-width characters, wrong case or a space make it incorrect.
- Card charged but the balance did not change. Reported once, in 2017, by a customer logged in to a non-Japan account. Contact LINE STORE support with the time of the charge. Do not expect a refund.
- Coins in the app did not increase. The card adds LINE Credit on the web store, not LINE Coins.
- Sticker bought but missing in the app. Restart the app, then check the purchase history (購入履歴) in the app.
- Game item cannot be bought. Link the game to the same LINE account by logging in to the game with LINE.
More error messages are explained in LINE’s SMS verification help article (Japanese) and on the LINE STORE help page.
Rules and limits worth knowing
- Card validity. Charge the card within one year of purchase. After that it cannot be used and is not refunded.
- Where the credit works. Only inside the Japan LINE STORE, as LINE states in its prepaid card disclosure (Japanese). The store sells stickers, themes, emoji, LINE MUSIC, currency for LINE GAME items and LINE Fortune coins. Not every item from the app is sold on the store, and some items are limited to certain countries. The credit cannot buy LINE Coins, anything inside the LINE app, or Manga Coins.
- Prices. Since July 1, 2026, an official sticker set costs from 320 yen on LINE STORE. A 500 yen card covers one official set.
- No refunds. Credit is tied to the account that charged it. It cannot be refunded, moved or exchanged for cash.
- Accounts are personal. LINE’s terms prohibit using, buying or sharing another person’s account, and ask you to register true and accurate information. For Apple or Google sign-up, LINE says: “Please select the country you actually live in.”
- Keep the number and the account active. If someone else later registers your Japanese number, your account is deleted. A LINE STORE account not accessed for a year may be deleted. Deleting the LINE account erases the balance.
- Never share the PIN with anyone.
FAQ
Can I use the card with my existing non-Japan LINE account?
Not as it is. LINE says the card works only on the Japan LINE STORE, and customers with UK and US accounts report they could not use it. The account would first have to be moved to a Japanese number, as described above.
Can I check my charge screen before buying?
It is not a reliable test. In 2019 a US customer reported seeing a prepaid card option on the charge page, yet other customers report that non-Japan accounts cannot use the Japan card.
Do I need a VPN?
No LINE page requires a Japanese IP address, and LINE’s terms do not mention VPNs. Customers report that the store region of a logged-in account follows the account’s registration, not the IP address. We found no report, either way, on a Japan account charging from outside Japan.
Can I buy stickers on a Japan account and gift them to my main account?
LINE STORE has a gift function, but LINE says a gift fails when the recipient’s account is in a country outside the sales area or has no phone number registered. Do not rely on it.
Does charged LINE Credit expire?
The card must be charged within one year. Whether charged credit itself expires is not stated on the LINE pages we read.
If you have a LINE account registered with a Japanese number, you can find the cards from 500 to 50,000 JPY in our LINE Prepaid Card category. Questions about an order go to support@japan-codes.com.
Last updated: October 2026. Screens and menu names change. If something looks different, check the provider’s help pages linked above.