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Money & Tax

Residence Tax住民税·jūminzei

The tax bill that arrives a year late and catches everyone. Plan for it in year one so it does not hurt in year two.

Not verified yet

Drafted from general knowledge. Amounts, thresholds and deadlines change and vary by insurer and municipality — confirm with the office named here before you rely on it.

Why it matters

Residence tax is charged on last year’s income and billed from June of the following year. So your first year in Japan feels cheap, and then a bill lands for a year you have already spent the money from. Two situations hurt most: your second year, when the bill appears out of nowhere; and leaving Japan, when a bill for your final year follows you overseas with no straightforward way to pay it. Liability is decided by where you were registered on 1 January.

Deadline
Billed from June each year, for the previous calendar year
Cost
Set by your city
Time
Arrives by mail; 30 minutes if you need to discuss it

Do these first

  1. 1Move-in Notification 転入届

What to bring

  • Tax notice納税通知書·nōzei tsūchisho

    Arrives by mail from your municipality, usually in June.

How it goes

  1. 1

    Expect it in your second year, and save for it

    If you arrived partway through a year, your first bill covers only part of a year and looks small. The one after covers a full year and is much bigger. Setting aside a little each month from the start turns a shock into a non-event.

  2. 2

    Check whether it comes out of your salary or not

    Company employees usually pay by 特別徴収 (deducted monthly from salary) — easy, invisible. Everyone else pays by 普通徴収, which arrives as payment slips in four instalments. If you switch jobs or go freelance you can flip from one to the other and suddenly owe a lump sum. Ask HR which one applies to you.

  3. 3

    The 1 January rule decides who bills you

    Whichever municipality you were registered in on 1 January bills you for that whole year, even if you moved in February. This is why people get bills from a city they no longer live in. It is not a mistake.

  4. 4

    If you are leaving Japan, deal with it before you go

    Either pay the remaining balance in a lump sum before departure, or appoint a tax representative (納税管理人) to handle it after you leave. Do nothing and the bill goes to an address you have vacated — and unpaid tax can complicate any future visa application.

    Say this

    出国します。住民税はどう払えばいいですか。

    Shukkoku shimasu. Jūminzei wa dō haraeba ii desu ka.

    I am leaving Japan. How should I settle my residence tax?

  5. 5

    If you genuinely cannot pay, talk to them

    Municipal tax offices will discuss instalment plans. Ignoring the bill leads to reminders, late penalties and eventually collection. A conversation is far cheaper than silence.