Completely lost

[Sanos]

Hi everybody! I'm a complete beginner and completely lost on what to do, so I will appreciate all the advice you can give me.

I'm a 36yo Mexican living in Japan.
I feel like I'm already late to the party, but I would like to start planning something for my retirement.
In my country kids are expected to care for their parents, so there is not investing for the future culture at all.
But I'm single and I don't plan on having kids...
My income is low-average at 3M a year bit I have been able to save 1M in about 18months.

I have read about iDeco and NISA and they both sound amazing.
However, and here is where I would like your input, I don't know if I want to stay in Japan forever and ever, and I read that unless I stay in Japan until I'm 60yo, there is no point in investing in neither iDeco or NISA. I do plan to stay at least another 4-6 years, though.

I thought about sending money for the pension fund system in Mexico, but things are so bad over there right now, that I wouldn't be surprised if the government disappeared the system and stole the money.

What other options would there for someone like me?

Thanks for your time and input!

[RetireJapan]

Welcome to the forum! This is the right place to ask questions.

One thing I would recommend is not to listen to very negative people. They are often wrong, and use their negativity as an excuse not to take action.

I think people who are positive and take action tend to enjoy life more, and get better results.

If you are planning to leave Japan in the short- to medium-term (5-10 years) the advice you will get will be different from the advice someone who is planning to stay longer would get.

For now, I recommend that you:

1) try to learn more about investing, and what options you have here and in Mexico
2) open a broker account in Japan (with Rakuten, SBI, Monex, or Matsui) and a NISA account
3) start investing with small amounts of money and continue saving

The best way to learn about investing is to start doing, but if you rush in there is a chance you will make a mistake and become scared of investing.

Anyone else?

[Kanto]

Hi everybody! I'm a complete beginner and completely lost on what to do, so I will appreciate all the advice you can give me.

I'm a 36yo Mexican living in Japan.
I feel like I'm already late to the party, but I would like to start planning something for my retirement.
In my country kids are expected to care for their parents, so there is not investing for the future culture at all.
But I'm single and I don't plan on having kids...
My income is low-average at 3M a year bit I have been able to save 1M in about 18months.

I have read about iDeco and NISA and they both sound amazing.
However, and here is where I would like your input, I don't know if I want to stay in Japan forever and ever, and I read that unless I stay in Japan until I'm 60yo, there is no point in investing in neither iDeco or NISA. I do plan to stay at least another 4-6 years, though.

I thought about sending money for the pension fund system in Mexico, but things are so bad over there right now, that I wouldn't be surprised if the government disappeared the system and stole the money.

What other options would there for someone like me?

Thanks for your time and input!

Hello Sanos,

If you see yourself going back to Mexico in the next 10 years, you should learn about investment opportunities in both countries.

Sorry for the English sources.

https://www.oecd.org/els/public-pension ... Mexico.pdf

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Retiremen ... _(Mexico)

Vanguard is a great broker that operates in Mexico.
https://www.vanguardmexico.com/institucional/inicio/es

.................................

Why don`t you weigh your options in both countries? It will help you decide what your future might look like.

[urayasujin]

Welcome to the forum! This is the right place to ask questions.

One thing I would recommend is not to listen to very negative people. They are often wrong, and use their negativity as an excuse not to take action.

I think people who are positive and take action tend to enjoy life more, and get better results.

If you are planning to leave Japan in the short- to medium-term (5-10 years) the advice you will get will be different from the advice someone who is planning to stay longer would get.

For now, I recommend that you:

1) try to learn more about investing, and what options you have here and in Mexico
2) open a broker account in Japan (with Rakuten, SBI, Monex, or Matsui) and a NISA account
3) start investing with small amounts of money and continue saving

The best way to learn about investing is to start doing, but if you rush in there is a chance you will make a mistake and become scared of investing.

Anyone else?

Are there application fees when you start opening a Monex account?

[OkiBum]

Are there application fees when you start opening a Monex account?

It is free to open a securities account.

[adamu]

It sounds like Tsumitate NISA is the perfect fit for you.

You can save some money every month, it will be tax free for 20 years, and if you decide to leave Japan you can cash it all out and reinvest it in the country wherever you go next.

[Sanos]

Thank you all for your suggestions.
I've been reading a lot and I am liking Tsumitate NISA.
I've read Monex is the best one since it includes some international markets that Rakuten doesn't, so I will go with that one.

Thank you!