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Are you concerned about Japan's inheritance tax laws? Known as estate tax in the US.
This can be VERY bad, because while the US gives you a tax free inheritance of 5 million dollars from EACH parent, Japan just gives you an exception of 30 million yen (roughly 200,000 USD)... So in the US you get a 10 million dollar exception from inheritance tax, and in Japan you get $200,000.
that's fucking nuts. Here are the figures:
You inherit 1 million dollars
US: Pay zero tax
Japan: Pay 29 million yen (200k USD)
You inherit 2 million dollars
US: Pay zero tax
Japan: Pay 90 million yen (608k USD)
You inherit 5 million dollars
US: Pay zero tax
Japan: Pay 258 million yen (1.8 million USD)
You inherit 10 million dollars
US: Pay zero tax
Japan: Pay 709 million yen (4.9 million USD)
LOL. WHAT. I hope people reading this consider the tax consequences of living in Japan for an extended period of time
yeah it's wild how few people factor this into their long-term plans here. a lot of expats i know just assume they'll never inherit enough to matter, but even a modest house sale back home can trigger the tax if you're over that 30 million yen threshold. the key detail people miss is that the 5-year rule counts any presence in japan, not just consecutive years, so a few stints working here plus some long vacations can sneak up on you. if you're serious about staying past that window, it's worth talking to a tax accountant who specializes in cross-border stuff, like one in azabu-juban or hiroo, not just a random preparer
one thing i dont see people mention enough is how the valuation rules hit real estate here. they use the "road value" not market value, which is usually lower, so that part is actually decent. but if you inherit a property in the US the IRS uses fair market value and japan uses their own conversion rate on that same date. my tax guy warned me i could end up paying tax on more than the asset is worth if the exchange rate moves wrong
also the 30 million deduction is per estate not per heir. so if you have siblings they split that single deduction, not each get their own. that 1 million dollar inheritance example above gets even worse if there are 3 kids fighting over one deduction
honestly the bigger issue nobody talks about is how japan taxes gifts too, not just inheritance. you can't just give money to your kids while you're alive to avoid the tax because the gift tax rates are even worse than inheritance rates. there's an annual gift tax exemption of 1.1 million yen which is basically nothing. so if your parents want to help you buy an apartment in tokyo while they're still alive, that's prob gonna trigger a big tax bill unless you structure it through a formal loan with interest payments
another thing i've seen catch people is the "deemed inheritance" rule where life insurance payouts get counted too. the beneficiary gets a 5 million yen deduction per legal heir but anything above that gets taxed. so if you're the only kid and your parents had a 500k dollar policy on you, that's 50 million yen taxable right there. some people i know switched to permanent residency in singapore or hk specifically to dodge this, but that's a whole other level of commitment
point is, the numbers you posted are real but they assume zero planning. with proper timing and maybe a trust structure you can reduce the hit a lot. still worth talking to a specialist before you hit that 5 year mark
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Where can I find crispy, pan-fried bacon similar to a certain international style?
if u have a costco membership the kirkland thick cut is the move, 4 packs of 500g for around 2500 yen and it crisps up proper in a cold pan. for smaller runs, precce in azabudai hills & the basement at isetan shinjuku both carry imported US & danish brands in the chilled case, just read the label for "thick cut" or "smoked" and not "loin". also worth knowing japanese bacon is often wet-cured so pat it dry before frying or it steams instead of crisping
kaldi coffee farm is hit or miss but their smoked bacon from denmark shows up pretty regular, the 200g pack runs about 600 yen. what actually works better for me is asking the butcher counter at peacock or life to slice the block bacon thick, like 5mm, they do it for free and it crisps way better than the pre-packed stuff. also fwiw cheap bacon crisps faster, the fatty supermarket kind at 300 yen a pack works fine if u cook it from cold in a dry pan and pour off the fat as it renders.
tbh the gyomu super store brand bacon is surprisingly decent for crisping up, its not thick cut but if you cook it low and slow it gets pretty crunchy. the key is the dry cure vs wet cure thing, wet cure steams. also check hanamasa if you have one nearby, they sell big packs of american style bacon thats actually smoked and firm.