Japan Exit Checklist: Steps for Leaving Japan Temporarily

Going home for the break? Maybe your company is on vacation for the holidays. Whatever the reason is, if you are exiting Japan temporarily while a resident, there are a few procedures to do before your departure.

Here is a checklist to ensure a smooth and relatively stress-free exit and re-entrance for your month-long departure. Make sure to complete these steps for leaving Japan temporarily!

Written by Sakura Mobile Blog Team

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Before Leaving Japan Temporarily:

Check Your Residence Card Expiration:

Make sure that your residence card won’t expire while you are abroad.

In the event that it does, you will not be able to use it upon re-entry.

If Your Residence Card or Re-entry Permit Expires:

If this happens:

1. Apply for and get a COE from the Japanese Immigration Bureau through your university or workplace.
2. Apply for and acquire a visa at the nearest Japanese Diplomatic Office
3. Once you get your visa, enter Japan.

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Ward Office Checklist:

National Health Insurance:

Your NHI premium needs to be paid while you are abroad. If you don’t, documents can be sent to your employer or other organization to investigate your assets, and the amount owed may be taken out of your savings or salary.

Here are a few ways you can pay it while you’re away:

1. Set up a fund transfer payment
2. Have a friend who might be in the country longer than you pay while you are away.

For the fund transfer payments, procedures may vary depending on your ward or city.

National Pension System:

Don’t worry if you have an exemption for this, but if you are making payments towards the National Pension, then you know that these payments can get quite expensive if you don’t pay them on time.

A couple of ways you can make these payments while you are gone include:

1. 🪙 Account transfer
2. 💳 Credit Card

With either method, make sure you have the money in the account from which it is being pulled.

For more information, check your ward’s rules and regulations.

The Japan Pension Service also has more information about how to pay on its website.

Everyday Life Checklist:

Rent:

Because your trip away from Japan will last no more than about a month, I don’t recommend canceling your lease.

You should do a couple of things before you leave your apartment for break, though.

1. Pay your rent while you are away. Set up automatic withdrawal if you won’t be in Japan when your rent is due.
   1. Make sure you have enough money in your bank account to cover the rent.
2. Notify your landlord and/or management company
   1. Provide them with a way to contact you while you are away.

⭐ Check with your management company and/or landlord for any other procedures you may have to do.

Utilities:

If you are keeping your current residence, you still have to pay your utility bills while you are away, so you have them when you return.

For each utility, there are different ways to pay it while you are away:

To learn more about which payment methods you can use, check with your utility provider.

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Temporarily Pause Mail for Up to 30 Days:

1. Submit a fuzai todoke one week before your departure to your nearest JP Post Office.
   1. Bring your residence card and your inkan or hanko if you have one.
   2. Fill this form out at the post office.
   3. Submit at the counter.
2. The post office will halt all mail deliveries to your address for up to 30 days.

Cellphone Plan:

If you are going to leave Japan temporarily but you don’t want to pay for your phone provider at the full price, you can consider two options:

1. Terminate your plan entirely
2. Suspend your contract

The downside to option 1 is that you may have to pay initial fees again when you come back and need a new Japanese number and make a new account with the company.

This is why we recommend suspending your plan if the company allows it. 

If not, you may want to transfer to Sakura Mobile to take advantage of our suspension option. This is called an MNP (Mobile Number Portability) and you can keep your current Japanese phone number!

Here’s how you can suspend your plan with Sakura Mobile:

1. Check to see if your account is eligible to suspend the plan.
2. Before the 25th of the current month, go into your account and submit a request for suspension.
3. From the 1st of the next month, the Call & Data function will temporarily be suspended.
4. You will be charged 220 JPY/month for the suspension period.

For more information on Sakura Mobile’s suspension plan and how to switch over, check out these resources:

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WiFi Plan:

Unlike the cellular plans, Sakura Mobile doesn’t offer a suspension plan for Home WiFi.

However, if you choose to terminate your contract for the period you are gone and continue to use Sakura Mobile’s service upon return, we can waive the administrative fee for the next installation.

Click here for more information about your Home WiFi.

Airport Checklist:

If you’re at the airport, there is one important thing to do before you go through passport control:

This is the Special Re-entry Permit. It allows foreign nationals who have stayed more than 90 days to return to Japan.

To fill out:

1. No advance applications or preparations are needed to fill this out.
2. Go to the passport control section of the airport.
3. Fill out the departure side of the paper:
   1. Fill out your name, date of birth, and flight information.
   2. In the next section, check the box that states “within one year.”
   3. Then, in the last section, check the box that says, “I am leaving Japan temporarily and will return.”
   4. Check the box at the bottom and sign.
4. Go through passport control, where they will staple the remaining arrival side into your passport.

When you return, you must fill out the remaining side, so keep your passport safe!

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Itterashai!

Before going on your well-deserved vacation outside of Japan, it is important to make sure you have checked everything off on your checklist of paperwork and tasks to avoid any unexpected complications upon your return after leaving Japan temporarily.

Each process below will make sure you have a smooth and hassle-free absence:

Some of these items are best-taken care of sooner rather than later. But make sure to do them in a timely manner so that they will be active throughout your trip abroad.

By using this checklist, you can enjoy your vacation, knowing you have already set up everything for a smooth return to Japan.

Enjoy your trip abroad, and we hope to see you soon!

Sakura Mobile offers various long-term postpaid voice and data service plans. Use the link below to find the one that best suits your needs.

LINK: Sakura Mobile Voice + Data Sim

For those leaving for longer, our Long-Term Departure Blogs are coming soon!