Welcome to the RetireJapan forum
Re: Welcome to the RetireJapan forum
Thanks for the input and we’ve got the insurance angle sorted out for life, illness/cancer and loss of income (me only) at corporate rates (60%-ish discount).
Re: Welcome to the RetireJapan forum
Hi Everyone,
Been in Japan since 2012. DB rolled over to DC then rolled over to iDeCo when i was no longer eligible for the corporate plan.
Planning on a Nisa or Tsumitate for 2023 haven't made my mind yet and then wait for the New Nisa in 2024.
Thanks again for sharing all that wealth of information about retiring in Japan!
宜しくお願いします
Been in Japan since 2012. DB rolled over to DC then rolled over to iDeCo when i was no longer eligible for the corporate plan.
Planning on a Nisa or Tsumitate for 2023 haven't made my mind yet and then wait for the New Nisa in 2024.
Thanks again for sharing all that wealth of information about retiring in Japan!
宜しくお願いします
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RetireJapan
- Site Admin
- Posts: 4939
- Joined: Wed Aug 02, 2017 6:57 am
- Location: Sendai
- Contact:
Re: Welcome to the RetireJapan forum
WelcomeCedric wrote: ↑Thu May 18, 2023 5:45 am Hi Everyone,
Been in Japan since 2012. DB rolled over to DC then rolled over to iDeCo when i was no longer eligible for the corporate plan.
Planning on a Nisa or Tsumitate for 2023 haven't made my mind yet and then wait for the New Nisa in 2024.
Thanks again for sharing all that wealth of information about retiring in Japan!
宜しくお願いします
English teacher and writer. RetireJapan founder. Avid reader.
eMaxis Slim Shady
eMaxis Slim Shady
Re: Welcome to the RetireJapan forum
Thanks Adam i have indeed came across the article. 
Re: Welcome to the RetireJapan forum
Hello all!
I just joined the forum as it is a god-saving resource to navigate finances in Japan!
I work as an English teacher in Hokkaido, and thanks to the people on this site, I was finally able to start my 2024 Nisa account and transfer some money in.
I am not very knowledgeable on investments and money management, so please forgive my basic questions if any had to happen.
I just joined the forum as it is a god-saving resource to navigate finances in Japan!
I work as an English teacher in Hokkaido, and thanks to the people on this site, I was finally able to start my 2024 Nisa account and transfer some money in.
I am not very knowledgeable on investments and money management, so please forgive my basic questions if any had to happen.
-
RetireJapan
- Site Admin
- Posts: 4939
- Joined: Wed Aug 02, 2017 6:57 am
- Location: Sendai
- Contact:
Re: Welcome to the RetireJapan forum
Welcome to the forum! Any question is fineRobertaZ wrote: ↑Fri Nov 29, 2024 1:35 am Hello all!
I just joined the forum as it is a god-saving resource to navigate finances in Japan!
I work as an English teacher in Hokkaido, and thanks to the people on this site, I was finally able to start my 2024 Nisa account and transfer some money in.
I am not very knowledgeable on investments and money management, so please forgive my basic questions if any had to happen.
English teacher and writer. RetireJapan founder. Avid reader.
eMaxis Slim Shady
eMaxis Slim Shady
Re: Welcome to the RetireJapan forum
Thank you so much! 
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farmerboggis
- Probation (posts moderated and no PMs)
- Posts: 1
- Joined: Mon Feb 10, 2025 5:24 am
Re: Welcome to the RetireJapan forum
Hi Ben and all,
I thought I would introduce myself here and say what an amazing online resource this is, before posting some more detailed questions in the forum.
And Ben I am sorry to hear about your wife's illness and wish you both good health.
I live in Australia with my Japanese partner. I have lived here since 2005 moving from the UK with work at the time. I brought all my super over (well except one Group Pension I was not able to but it's a small amount) thankfully and my super has grown on average about 10% per annum. I have only recently become "super aware" and had an interest in financial literacy (lots of poor financial decisions before this but thankfully super was not one of them, just been balanced not high growth unfortunately). She moved here in 2017 for English language and work and we met in 2019. Her family all live in Tokyo and we visit regularly. My Nihongo is pretty limited before anyone asks! I do know that is a detriment and will make things difficult for the below...
We have a 10 year plan which includes:
- obtain a spouse visa in Japan
- me turning 60 in 2035 (I am 50 this year in other words)
- max out my super and contribute to hers (starting from zero sadly, as what she did have was whittled away with unnecessary insurance before she knew what was going on and before the new laws were brought in to prevent that) here in Australia
- invest outside of super into high growth ETFs here in Australia
- continue saving to a HISA here in Australia
- I have recently back paid 16 years of UK NI and now have 34 years paid up (I read with much interest on people's experiences with HMRC and this process, and happy to chime in with my experience, which was relatively painless, on those threads).
- purchase a property in Japan (we have gone from thinking Hokkaido to Akita to Nagano and probably going to settle on Nagano - as its relatively close to family) within the next 2 years all being well, using the money we've saved in the HISA.
- move into the property (aiming to purchase with minimum renovations required) fully by 2035, and use it as a "holiday home" in the years before then.
I have a rough understanding that my income (from in and outside of super and UK NI payments from age 68) will be taxed in Japan as foreign income after I have been resident for 5 years. Unfortunately I think this is inevitable, as we cannot afford to buy in Australia (currently renting) and therefore will not be able to remain tax residents in Australia and receive super income tax free.
That's a high level view of my circumstances and plan anyway. I definitely have questions and would like to get feedback on my plan, especially the tax element - I've had a read of some of the threads on this and it looks like I may be up for a 20% or even 30% tax on any income. I have a beast of a google spreadsheet modelling all this and doing auto calculations on GBP/AUD/JPY currencies etc. That has been a great learning curve for me plotting it all out and seeing the figures and working out what we can live on per month/year including inflation, super fees, annual %'s randomised etc etc.
Cheers,
Farmer Boggis or Farmer or Boggis for short
I thought I would introduce myself here and say what an amazing online resource this is, before posting some more detailed questions in the forum.
And Ben I am sorry to hear about your wife's illness and wish you both good health.
I live in Australia with my Japanese partner. I have lived here since 2005 moving from the UK with work at the time. I brought all my super over (well except one Group Pension I was not able to but it's a small amount) thankfully and my super has grown on average about 10% per annum. I have only recently become "super aware" and had an interest in financial literacy (lots of poor financial decisions before this but thankfully super was not one of them, just been balanced not high growth unfortunately). She moved here in 2017 for English language and work and we met in 2019. Her family all live in Tokyo and we visit regularly. My Nihongo is pretty limited before anyone asks! I do know that is a detriment and will make things difficult for the below...
We have a 10 year plan which includes:
- obtain a spouse visa in Japan
- me turning 60 in 2035 (I am 50 this year in other words)
- max out my super and contribute to hers (starting from zero sadly, as what she did have was whittled away with unnecessary insurance before she knew what was going on and before the new laws were brought in to prevent that) here in Australia
- invest outside of super into high growth ETFs here in Australia
- continue saving to a HISA here in Australia
- I have recently back paid 16 years of UK NI and now have 34 years paid up (I read with much interest on people's experiences with HMRC and this process, and happy to chime in with my experience, which was relatively painless, on those threads).
- purchase a property in Japan (we have gone from thinking Hokkaido to Akita to Nagano and probably going to settle on Nagano - as its relatively close to family) within the next 2 years all being well, using the money we've saved in the HISA.
- move into the property (aiming to purchase with minimum renovations required) fully by 2035, and use it as a "holiday home" in the years before then.
I have a rough understanding that my income (from in and outside of super and UK NI payments from age 68) will be taxed in Japan as foreign income after I have been resident for 5 years. Unfortunately I think this is inevitable, as we cannot afford to buy in Australia (currently renting) and therefore will not be able to remain tax residents in Australia and receive super income tax free.
That's a high level view of my circumstances and plan anyway. I definitely have questions and would like to get feedback on my plan, especially the tax element - I've had a read of some of the threads on this and it looks like I may be up for a 20% or even 30% tax on any income. I have a beast of a google spreadsheet modelling all this and doing auto calculations on GBP/AUD/JPY currencies etc. That has been a great learning curve for me plotting it all out and seeing the figures and working out what we can live on per month/year including inflation, super fees, annual %'s randomised etc etc.
Cheers,
Farmer Boggis or Farmer or Boggis for short