• The new eternal NISA

    The new eternal NISA

    Christmas came early this year The outline of the new new NISA accounts, long rumoured and leaked, were announced this week. The FSA official page has not been updated at this point, but the broad picture is clear with just a few details yet to be confirmed. The changes are great and address pretty much…

  • On Tsumitate NISA

    On Tsumitate NISA

    I have changed my mind! I have yet to use tsumitate NISA myself, and until recently my advice to people looking to choose between ordinary NISA and tsumitate NISA was to go for ordinary if you could afford to invest the full amount and tsumitate if you couldn’t. But I have changed my thinking on…

  • Nenkin Calculations

    Nenkin Calculations

    Show me the money We had a lot of follow-up questions to last week’s nenkin post. One of the most common ones was ‘how much nenkin am I going to get?’. It’s a tough question to answer, so we’ll try to give some more information here. Kokumin Nenkin Basic kokumin nenkin is extremely easy to…

  • The Nenkin Thing

    The Nenkin Thing

    We need to talk I had an interesting email exchange this week with a reader about nenkin. We’ve also had some questions on the forum. And I often see this topic pop up on the r/japanlife board on Reddit. Perhaps it’s time we had a chat. If you are currently paying into the Japanese national…

  • How much money do I need to retire in Japan?

    How much money do I need to retire in Japan?

    Planning for retirement in Japan? Find out how much you might need to save and learn about different income sources, including pensions and investments.

  • Japanese Mutual Funds: A Beginner’s Guide

    Japanese Mutual Funds: A Beginner’s Guide

    Dive into the world of Japanese mutual funds. This guide offers insightful tips and advice to help you manage your investments effectively.

  • Dividends in Japan

    Dividends in Japan

    I love the smell of dividends in the morning… … smells like freedom. ​This post is a quick introduction to dividends with a focus on how they behave in Japan. There are several schools of thought on dividends and different people will want to approach them in different ways. What are dividends? Dividends are regular…

  • Investment Accounts in Japan

    Investment Accounts in Japan

    Now witness the power of this fully operational online broker account The three big online brokers in Japan For most people (US citizens see the note at the end of this post), the best option for opening investment accounts is going to be online. Banks and full service broker offices tend to have higher fees,…

  • Credit Scores in Japan (JICC): A Beginner’s Guide

    Credit Scores in Japan (JICC): A Beginner’s Guide

    Discover how to check your credit score in Japan using JICC. Understand the step-by-step process, what the report reveals, and whether it’s worth it for you.

  • Investing in Solar Panels

    Investing in Solar Panels

    Do you have solar panels? If not, why not? As part of our investigation into house builders something has come to my attention.It seems like under the current rules, putting solar panels on your house is close to being a no-brainer: most house owners should be considering it seriously.The system as I understand it works…


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