RetireJapan

Thanks for everyone’s comments so far. You guys talk about not buying new, but buying used. What things should I you look at when buying used? Tahbsk again Another advantage to used properties is that you are usually buying from the previous ( individual not corporate) owner, so consumption tax doe...

I've tried to open an account with IB but when entering my country, Japan just straight up isn't an option in the dropdown list. Can I not just make an account on their site? I am guessing you were trying to sign up via their .com address? I queried with them in advance, and they told me that since...

NHK perhaps, or at least the companies they hire to go knocking on doors?

For everybody's reference, I heard back from IBKR on this. They confirmed that the funds are held with a US institution and a 1099 is issued, so no separate reporting via FBAR or 8938 required. I am waiting to see if my US tax accountant raises any flags, but looks good for now. IBKR is quite the sa...

Thank you for the reply! Before I signed up with them, I sent IBKR a query on whether I should sign up with their .com or .co.jp website. They replied that since I resided in Japan, I would need to sign up via the .co.jp website. So account is with their Japan entity, but the funds end up being held...

Hi everybody. "Favorite" time of the year doing taxes. Late last year, I signed up with Interactive Brokers via the .co.jp site. I am US citizen living in Japan with PR. I am not clear on whether the IBKR account is one that needs to be reported for FBAR and Form 8938. Are the funds ultima...

Can you tell me exactly how to do it with MUFG? Because I set up a 外国送金 for it. And the lady called me and told me that they cant do it. Like MUFG as a company cannot do this. When I went to the bank, they told me that it would cost me 7500 yen to send it and that they directed me to do the said ab...

Hi all For reference on MUFG, I just sent some funds to IBKRR LLC today. It was a fairly simple process. I filled out the foreign remittance form online, printed it out, and took it to the TV booth at my local branch. Some tweaks were needed on the form, but the teller adjusted everything on her sid...

Thank you very much for the insight! So many poisons to choose from! :) Good point that the US tax filings and such will probably be more of a hassle than those in Japan. Might be simpler to report in USD and then do manual JPY adjustments in my Japanese forms. Will keep reviewing as I go ahead. Tha...

Important bit here: 10% consumption tax rate must apply to the sale price. Consumption tax does not apply in all transactions. Unsure if it applies? Ask your real estate agent. If the consumption tax rate does not apply, the maximum annual deduction is capped at 200,000 Yen/year. Consumption tax wil...