Use this checklist to prepare for leaving Japan and, if eligible, claiming a pension lump-sum withdrawal payment. Check off each step on your own copy. A pension claim and a tax refund are separate procedures; neither the amount nor the processing time is guaranteed.
Before departure: confirm your pension position
- Confirm your scheme and contribution record. Eligibility includes non-Japanese nationality, no current Japanese public pension coverage, sufficient qualifying months, no Japanese address, and the relevant pension-entitlement conditions. Six months alone does not establish eligibility.
- Ask about future pension rights and any social security agreement before choosing a withdrawal. Receiving a lump sum removes the Japanese coverage periods before the claim, including periods beyond the payment calculation cap.
- Confirm your deadline with the pension office. The two-year limit is generally measured from your last loss of public pension coverage, or from first ceasing to have a Japanese address afterwards if you still had one at that loss of coverage.
Check the official eligibility rules and English claim guidance against your own record.
Before departure: organise tax, accounts and paperwork
- Ask your tax office which departure-year filings apply and whether to appoint a tax representative. Keep the submitted notification and submission record. Do not assume that appointing someone completes all tax filings.
- Ask your municipality about moving-out notification, health insurance, outstanding resident tax and any separate local tax representative requirements.
- Request final pay and tax documents from your employer and keep your pension number and contact details accessible after departure.
- Tell your bank about your move and confirm permitted account use. Arrange a supported receiving account and any subsequent overseas transfer before closing an account you may need.
- Check your departure and re-entry arrangements with immigration. Do not cancel residence status solely because a generic pension checklist says to do so.
- Arrange your lease, utilities, final bills and a reliable address for correspondence.
For national tax arrangements, see the National Tax Agency’s departure and tax representative guidance. Confirm municipal procedures with your own city or ward.
After departure: prepare the pension claim
- Download the current form and check its submission instructions and destination for your pension scheme.
- Prepare the required passport copies, proof of a receiving bank account in your name and a document establishing your Basic Pension Number. An original blue pension book is not the only way to establish that number.
- Check whether separate proof of no Japanese address is required. Moving-out notification can remove that requirement, but an exception applies to people insured from July 2012 or earlier.
- Include a power of attorney where needed for an agent or an agent’s mailing address.
- Keep a copy of the claim and submission record, and respond to requests for further information.
Use the official document checklist; this summary does not replace the form’s instructions.
After payment: check any withholding and refund filing
- Retain the payment notice and check the gross payment, withholding and amount received. The treatment of National Pension and Employees’ Pension lump sums differs; do not apply the same withholding assumption to both.
- Ask your tax office or qualified adviser whether a retirement-income election is appropriate and what documents, filing date and deadline apply. Include other relevant retirement payments in that discussion.
- Keep a copy of the notice. The Japan Pension Service’s English instructions direct you to send the original to your tax agent. If it is lost, contact the issuing organisation and tax office about the next steps.
- Agree how any refund will reach you, including the representative’s fee and transfer costs. Do not budget on a guaranteed full refund or fixed arrival date.
The National Tax Agency’s retirement-income election examples explain this procedure. It should not be confused with departure-year income tax filing.
Before an overseas transfer: confirm names and costs
- Identify the sender and receiving account holder for each payment. A pension payment, a representative forwarding a refund and a transfer of your own savings may require different routes.
- Do not ask a representative to deposit into your Wise JPY pay-in account: funding must come from your own-name bank account. Check the JPY pay-in rules.
- Compare current quotes for equal total yen outlay, including any additional deductions. Confirm eligibility and timing for your actual destination and residence status.
Keep a record of the recipient amount, exchange rate and fees so you can reconcile the payment when it arrives.