Discussing Inheritance

For the first time ever, my wife and I discussed future finances with her parents, such as inheritance, estate planning and their will.

Overseas Inheritances in Japan

Not as bad as I thought We’ve talked about inheritance tax in Japan before. The TL;DR is that they are not as onerous as people think and most people are not really going to be affected by them. This week I learned that Japanese inheritance tax on overseas inheritances is much more favourable than I […]

Japanese Inheritance Tax: A Beginner’s Guide

Photo of the sign on a Japan tax office building, saying "Tax Office" in Japanese.

The Japanese inheritance tax system is less forgiving than in some Western countries, but for most people should not be too onerous. Get some help with this guide to inheritance tax in Japan.

Inheritance Tax in Japan 2

The government blinked You may remember we were talking about the inheritance tax reforms last year. Basically short-term residents (under ten years, working visa) were not liable for inheritance tax on estates outside Japan. At the same time long-term residents (over ten years, spouse or PR visa) became liable to pay Japanese inheritance tax for […]

Tax Residence and Inheritance Tax

Oh, my. The section dealing with inheritance tax reform (linked document also talks about the new NISA and changes to dependents, etc.)Back in April we mentioned the changes to inheritance tax laws in passing. Since then people have brought it up a few times on Facebook and in conversation, so I think it’s worth looking […]

The Monday Read: Mental Models

RetireJapan Monday Read logo and illustrative photo of newspapers and coffee.

You need to update them from time to time I was in the supermarket the other day and noticed something curious: the two items in the basket have almost the same number of calories -the cinammon roll has slightly more! I would not have thought that before I went on a diet this year (since […]

The Monday Read: The Paradox of Aging

RetireJapan Monday Read logo and illustrative photo of newspapers and coffee.

The better you get, the less time you have left I’m almost 50 (which seems completely unbelievable to me), and I recently started training jiu-jitsu again somewhat regularly. I’m a mediocre blue belt in jiu-jitsu. I foolishly started at the age of forty, and got pretty into it before I knew what I was doing, […]

The Monday Read: A traveller in a now foreign land

RetireJapan Monday Read logo and illustrative photo of newspapers and coffee.

Everything is expensive and nothing works I’m in Europe at the moment. We had a week in London, then a week in northern Spain. My wife and me, and two of our grandkids. It’s been great. I don’t usually enjoy visiting the UK, aside from seeing my friends, but this time was different. I think […]

The Monday Read: Starting to feel like summer

RetireJapan Monday Read logo and illustrative photo of newspapers and coffee.

Enjoying all seasons There is a bible verse I really like (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8). It’s the ‘there is a time for everything’ one. I’m not in the slightest bit religious, but I do appreciate a good bit of writing. And that one has a lot of wisdom packed into a few lines. From the benefit of […]

Magic Pills and Outcomes

Too good to be true? I enjoyed this conversation about weight loss drugs. I found it interesting because the guy being interviewed has written a book about Ozempic after taking it himself. It’s a nuanced, thoughtful discussion. Worth checking out if you are interested in it (and it seems like these drugs are going to […]