Moving out of Japan checklist

Last checked: 2026-11-06

Start with your moving-out notice at the city office, which you can usually file from 14 days before you leave. Health insurance, tax and your My Number Card are all handled around that step. If you are not coming back, you also hand in your residence card at the airport. Sort out tax before you go, because some steps are harder from abroad.

The checklist by date

When	Task	Where	Detail
As early as you can	Tell your landlord	Landlord or agent	Saitama warns a deposit may not be refunded if you give no notice or very late notice. Check your contract.
Weeks before	Book oversized waste and appliance pickup	City and shops	What disposal costs
Before you leave	Decide whether you may return	Immigration, if you may	Special re-entry or a re-entry permit
Before you leave	Name a tax agent, if you need one	City tax office and tax office	Resident tax rules
From 14 days before	File your moving-out notice	City or ward office	Chuo City gives 14 days before to 14 days after. Ask if a date applies when you leave Japan.
Same visit, if you can	Leave National Health Insurance	City or ward office	Yokohama says within 14 days, with your certificate
Same visit, if you can	Ask about your My Number Card	City or ward office	Card rules
At least 2 or 3 days before	Tell power, gas, water and telephone companies	Each company	Shinjuku's guide gives this timing, plus a mail forwarding form at the post office
Before you leave	Cancel NHK, if you have a contract	NHK	NHK rules
Before you leave	Close your bank account	Your bank	Japan Post Bank asks you to close it. Keep it until your last bills are paid.
Last	Cancel your phone	Your provider	Plan terms
At the airport	Hand in your residence card	Immigration officer	If you leave without a re-entry permit or special re-entry
After you leave	Claim the pension refund	Japan Pension Service	Within 2 years

Money you may get back

Item	What to know
Rental deposit	Returned minus unpaid rent, other debts and damage beyond normal use
Pension lump-sum withdrawal	You need at least 6 months of cover and must claim within 2 years. It cancels your earlier Japanese pension periods. Think first if you may return.
20.42% tax on the Employees' Pension part	You may get a refund through a return. The Japan Pension Service says to file a tax agent notification before you leave. If you did not, file it with the return.

Money you may still owe

Resident tax. Leaving does not cancel the year's tax if you had an address on January 1. Higashiosaka adds that leaving between January 2 and the notice date means tax for the following fiscal year too.
National Health Insurance. Yokohama charges premiums up to the month before you leave the scheme.
National Pension. If you are a Category I member, ask your city's pension desk what stops when you leave.
Phone and NHK. Sakura Mobile ends a contract at the end of the month if you ask by the 25th. Mobal says you can cancel at any time with no termination fee. NHK refunds months after it accepts a cancellation.

Residence card

The agency says that when you leave without a re-entry permit, your card lapses and is returned at the port of departure. This does not apply if you leave on a re-entry permit. If that permit runs out abroad, your card lapses and must be returned within 14 days. It can be mailed. See the agency's page for the address.

Mistakes to avoid

Closing your bank too early. The pension refund needs an account in your name. It cannot be paid into Japan Post Bank.
Filing no moving-out notice. The pension claim needs proof you no longer have an address in Japan, unless you filed this notice before leaving.
Using old insurance. Yokohama warns that using your certificate after your move-out date may mean repaying medical costs.
Keeping a card without asking. My Number Card rules for people moving abroad differ between official pages, so ask your city first.
Forgetting your child allowance. If you receive a child allowance, tell the office, since payments made after you stop qualifying must go back.

What we could not confirm

Moving-out dates for leaving Japan. The 14-day wording is Chuo City's, and that page does not separate moves abroad. Ask your city.
Mail filing. Chuo describes a mail process, but we did not confirm that it works for a move abroad.
Income tax on leaving. We did not verify the rules for a final return. Ask the tax office, and see resident and non-resident tax.
Other banks. We checked only Japan Post Bank.

This page is general information, not legal or tax advice. Your city office, tax office and immigration office can confirm what applies to you. See the deadlines database for other time limits.