RetireJapan

Hi Everyone,

Thanks Ben for managing this info and forum for everyone's benefit.

I'm Andrew, I returned to Saga 6 months ago after working here as a JET in the early 2000s.

I've been living in Australia, owning and running a small seafood wholesale operation.

Then suddenly Corona hit, and the cards were all thrown in the air.
Business died, home value skyrocketed, so we took the exit cue and decided to come back to Japan and give it a crack.

My wife is Japanese national, Saga local. I'm a Kiwi by birth. Pretty obvious Aussie accent now though.

i noticed house prices were quite reasonable out in Kyushu so we thought we'd buy an old one and make it comfortable.

Make a living by trading stocks and crypto. Make a contribution by opening a bread shop or espresso coffee or similar in Saga.

So we've found a run down house we like, and I've just opened an account with Mizuho.
The local banks didn't want to accept international transfers, they sure made it difficult.

Over in Aus standard practice is to set up a company, and then a trust. Have all your assets owned by the trust and use that structure to minimise tax and liability in the case of getting sued.

I'd like to set up something like that over here before I purchase the house, and I'm willing to pay good money to an expert in the area of expertise.

Can anyone recommend someone I can talk to? An accountant or lawyer perhaps?

All suggestions appreciated,

Andrew

Hi Andrew

Welcome! Good luck getting settled in down there

Very much not an expert, but my impression is that Japan doesn't really recognise trusts for tax reduction purposes. You'll probably want to talk to an accountant or scrivener: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judicial_scrivener

Also happily there is much less liability risk in Japan than in some countries. You can generally only sue someone for actual damages suffered, so court judgements are quite restrained.

Hopefully someone who actually knows what they are talking about will enter the chat soon though

Thanks Ben,

Great, appreciate the info.