Arriving & settling
City Hall Registration and Setup: Address, My Number, Health Insurance, and Pension
What happens at the municipal office (市区町村役場): moving-in notification (転入届), residence record (住民票), My Number (マイナンバー), National Health Insurance, and pension — in one planned visit sequence.
Key takeawayTurn an intimidating first city hall visit into a checklist: what to bring, which counters to visit in what order, and which official source confirms each procedure.
1. The moving-in notification (転入届): your foundational registration
Japan's resident registration system (住民基本台帳), administered under the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (総務省), records where each resident lives. When you move into a municipality from abroad, you file a moving-in notification (転入届, tennyū-todoke) at that municipal office. This registration underpins almost everything else: your residence record, health insurance enrolment, and My Number procedures all key off it.
Bring: your residence card (在留カード), passport, and your exact address in Japanese. If family members move with you, ask the office in advance what proof of relationship they require, as documents and translations may be needed. File at the office for the municipality of your new address; a ward office (区役所) serves the same role in larger cities.
Practical sequence at the counter: 1) Take a ticket for the residents' affairs section (住民課). 2) State that you have arrived from abroad and are filing a tennyū-todoke. 3) Confirm the address and household composition (世帯) carefully before the record is created. 4) Ask for the address to be recorded on your residence card, and confirm it is printed correctly before you leave the counter.
2. Residence record (住民票) and My Number (マイナンバー)
After registration you can obtain a copy of your residence record (住民票, jūminhyō) — the document employers, banks, and schools most often request as proof of address. Municipalities set the issuance fee locally, so verify it at the counter or on the municipal website. Request only the items the requester needs; a standard copy is usually sufficient, and you can ask staff which version fits a stated purpose.
My Number (マイナンバー), the Individual Number administered under the Digital Agency (デジタル庁), is assigned to registered residents and used for tax, social security, and disaster-relief administration. After your first registration, notification of your number follows the procedure explained by the Digital Agency and your municipality; a My Number Card (マイナンバーカード) is obtained by application. Follow the official application route on the Digital Agency pages — never apply through unofficial intermediaries charging to 'expedite' a card.
Guard your number: provide it only where law or the requesting procedure requires it (employer payroll, tax, municipal procedures), and keep card and notification documents stored separately from daily carry items.
3. Health insurance: employee scheme or National Health Insurance
Japan requires residents to be covered by public medical insurance, as described by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (厚生労働省). If you are employed under conditions that qualify, you are enrolled through your employer in employees' health insurance (健康保険). Otherwise, you enrol in National Health Insurance (国民健康保険, kokumin kenkō hoken) at your municipal office — often at a counter near resident registration, which is why asking during your first visit saves a trip.
Ask at enrolment: how premiums are calculated and billed for your household, how to pay (convenience-store slips, bank transfer, or account debit), and which card or certificate proves coverage at a clinic. Premiums are set under municipal and scheme rules, so verify amounts with the office or your employer rather than relying on estimates from acquaintances.
If you change jobs, move municipality, or leave Japan, insurance status must be updated through the corresponding procedure. Keep enrolment and loss-of-coverage certificates (資格喪失証明書) when switching schemes to avoid gaps or double billing.
4. Pension, tax pointers, and finishing the visit well
Most residents aged within the statutory range are covered by the public pension system administered by the Japan Pension Service (日本年金機構): employees through Employees' Pension Insurance (厚生年金) via their employer, others through the National Pension (国民年金) via the municipality. Confirm which applies to you at city hall or with your employer, and verify procedures on the Japan Pension Service English pages.
For income tax, the National Tax Agency (国税庁) is the primary source; whether you file a return (確定申告) or your employer performs a year-end adjustment (年末調整) depends on your income type. Do not guess: check the National Tax Agency guidance for your situation or ask your employer's payroll contact.
Before leaving city hall, collect: your updated residence card, any jūminhyō copies requested, insurance enrolment confirmation or instructions, and the name of the section to contact for each open item. Photograph or scan everything the same day, and note the next deadline or visit in your calendar. One organised first visit prevents most second-month problems.
Sources
- Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (総務省)Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications — Residence registration for foreign residents (English)
- Digital Agency (デジタル庁)Digital Agency — My Number (Individual Number) system
- Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (厚生労働省)Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare — Health insurance (English)
- Japan Pension Service (日本年金機構)Japan Pension Service — English information
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