Leaving Japan procedures/Pension refund service for foreign nationals leaving Japan

Home　＞　Leaving Japan procedures

Below is a list of procedures required if you do not plan to return to Japan after returning to your country.

1.Notification of change of residence

When a foreign resident of Japan returns to his/her own country or goes abroad on a business trip of one year or longer, he/she is required to submit a "notification of moving out" to the city office. The notification of moving out can be accepted from 14 days prior to the scheduled date of moving out.

Basically, you will need to bring your passport and resident card to notify the city office, but if applicable, you will also need to bring your My Number card, Basic Resident Registration card, National Health Insurance card, Late-Stage Senior Citizen's Health Insurance card, and Long-Term Care Insurance card. Since these may be handled differently at the municipal office, it is advisable to check what to bring beforehand.

When such a "notification of moving out" is filed, the resident tax will no longer be levied. In addition, as a rule, the municipal office will notify the Immigration Bureau of the fact that a "notification of moving out" has been submitted and this information will be shared.

One of the requirements for receiving the Lump-sum Withdrawal Payment is "those who do not have a domicile in Japan." Without this "notification of moving out", you will be treated as "those who have a domicile in Japan" and the Lump-sum Withdrawal Payment will not be paid. In addition, you may receive a bill for National Health Insurance even after you return to your country, so please do not forget to report your moving out.

2.Resident Tax Procedures

When a foreign national leaves Japan in the middle of a term, he/she is required to pay the remaining inhabitant taxes that have not yet been paid.

If the foreign national resigns between June and December, and the individual has submitted a request, the remaining inhabitant tax can be collected in a lump sum from the salary or retirement allowance paid at the time of resignation; however, if the resignation occurs between January and May, the tax must be collected in a lump sum regardless of whether or not a request is made.

If you are unable to pay the inhabitant tax before leaving Japan, you may choose to appoint a tax agent from among those residing in Japan to handle the tax procedures on your behalf and notify the municipality before leaving Japan.

3.Procedures related to pensions

Procedures related to pensions vary depending on whether the eligible person is from a country with a social security agreement. as of June 1, 2022, the countries with social security agreements are Germany, the United States, Belgium, France, Canada, Australia, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Spain, and Ireland, Brazil, Switzerland, Hungary, India, Luxembourg, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Italy, the Philippines, Slovakia, China, Finland, and Sweden.

For the agreements with the United Kingdom, South Korea, Italy (not yet in force) and China, only the "prevention of double premiums" is covered.

Who is covered by the Social Security Agreement

For those covered by the Social Security Agreement, there will be cases where health insurance will be provided in Japan, but the employee pension will not be provided in Japan as they will continue to be covered by the insurance of their country of origin, or where neither health insurance nor the employee pension will be provided in Japan.

Those who are only enrolled in the Japanese pension plan can choose to either total their enrollment period in the future based on the agreement, or to complete the withdrawal procedure from the Japanese pension plan and claim a lump-sum withdrawal payment.

What should I be aware of who is covered by the Social Security Agreement?

In the case of a country that has a social security agreement with Japan for pension aggregation, the employee was not covered by pension insurance in his/her home country for the period covered by the Lump-sum Withdrawal Payment.

People who are not covered by the Social Security Agreement

Medium- to long-term residents who are not covered by the Social Security Agreement and who have been enrolled in the National Pension Plan or Employees' Pension Plan for six months or more may claim Lump-sum Withdrawal Payments. To claim the Lump-sum Withdrawal Payment, you must submit a notification of change of residence (moving out of Japan) at the municipal office before returning to your home country.

Lump-sum withdrawal payment application service

ACROSEED's "Refund Claims Package" includes all the necessary procedures to claim the Lump-Sum Withdrawal Payment when a foreigner returns to his or her home country.

3.Withdrawal procedures for National Health Insurance and National Pension

When a foreigner who is enrolled in the National Health Insurance system returns to Japan, he/she is required to complete the withdrawal procedures for National Health Insurance and National Pension at the municipal office of the city or ward.

4．Notification of Institutional Affiliations

1.Notification procedures for activity organizations

Mid- to long-term residents who are engaged in the activities listed in "Professor", "Advanced Professional 1 (c)", "Advanced Professional 2 (c)" (when engaged in the activities listed in the "Advanced Professional" section of the table in Appended Table 1-2 of the Immigration Control Act), "Business administration", "Legal/accounting services", "Medical services", "Education", "Intra-company transfer", "Technical training", "College student" or "Training", and "College student", "College student", or "College trainee", "College student", or "College trainee". Those who have the status of residence of "business administration," "legal/accounting services," "medical care," "education," "intra-company transfer," "technical internship," "study abroad," or "training" must notify the Minister of Justice of any change in the name or location of the activity organization in Japan, or the disappearance, withdrawal or transfer from the activity organization.

2.Notification procedures for contracting organizations

Mid- to long-term residents who are engaged in "highly skilled profession 1 (a)", "highly skilled profession 1 (b)", "highly skilled profession 2 (a) or (b)" (when engaging in the activities listed in item 2 (a) or (b) under highly skilled profession in the table in Appended Table 1-2 of the Immigration Control Act), "research", "technical, humanities, international services", "nursing care", "entertainment (only when engaged in activities under contract with a Japanese public or private organization)". (limited to cases where the applicant engages in activities based on a contract with a public or private organization in Japan) (2) Those who have the status of residence of "Research", "Technological/Humanities/International Services", "Nursing", "Entertainer (only when engaged in activities based on a contract with a public or private organization in Japan)" or "Technical" must notify the Minister of Justice of any change in the name or location of the contracting organization in Japan, or the termination of the contract or conclusion of a new contract with the contracting organization within 14 days according to procedures specified by a Ministry of Justice ordinance.

3.Notification procedures concerning spouses

A mid- to long-term resident with the status of "Spouse or Child of Japanese National" or "Spouse or Child of Permanent Resident" who is divorced or separated from his/her spouse must notify the Minister of Justice of the divorce or separation within 14 days according to the procedures provided for in a Ministry of Justice ordinance.

5．Return of resident card

Foreign nationals who possess a resident card, etc. must return the card to the Minister of Justice in the following cases.

1.When he/she ceases to be a mid- to long-term resident or a special permanent resident.
2.When the validity period of the resident card, etc. expires.
3.When a person leaves Japan with a re-entry permit and fails to re-enter Japan within the period of validity of the re-entry permit.
4.When the resident card, etc. in his/her possession expires.

When leaving Japan without a re-entry permit, the resident card must be returned to the immigration inspector.

6．Return of My Number Card

With the introduction of the My Number system in January 2016, all residents registered in Japan will be assigned a personal number. Accordingly, mid- to long-term residents, special permanent residents, and other foreign nationals who stay in Japan for more than three months are issued a 12-digit number My Number, just like Japanese nationals.

When a mid- to long-term foreign resident leaves Japan without re-entry permission, he/she is required to return his/her personal number notification card or personal number card to the municipal office of his/her place of residence.

7．Return of Pension Handbook

It must be returned before or after leaving Japan. If you do not have it on hand, we recommend that you reissue it in advance.

８．Bank Accounts

If you decide to return to your home country, you will need to close your bank account. There is no legal penalty at this time for leaving your account with a zero yen balance, but some banks may charge you an account management fee.

If you return to your country without closing your account, bank accounts that have not been transacted with for more than 10 years will be transferred to the Deposit Insurance Corporation of Japan under the "Law for Utilization of Dormant Deposits, etc." which came into effect in January 2018. In this case, you will be able to use your cash card at ATMs and online transactions will no longer be available, although you will still be able to use the counter.

In addition, there have been some recent cases of sales of deposit accounts to third parties. To avoid being involved in such criminal activities, we recommend that you close any unnecessary bank accounts before returning to your home country. Please note that if your bank account in Japan is used for "bank transfer fraud" or "money laundering," you will be punished by law and may be denied entry into Japan or deported from Japan the next time you visit Japan.

９．Electricity, water, gas

For electricity, water, and gas, you will need to complete the cancellation procedures online or by phone two weeks prior to your return to Japan. For electricity, it is not necessary to be present, but for water and electricity, it is necessary to have a person in charge lead you to the meter, which may require your presence in some cases, such as in properties with auto-locking systems.

For the remaining balance after the last month's payment, you will need to pay by direct debit, separate billing, or in cash at the time of your visit.