Tax residency in Japan
How to become a tax resident — and how hard it is to leave.
How to become a tax resident
Typically after 183+ days of presence in a year — or any of:
- having a 'domicile' (jusho) in Japan, meaning a base of living or centre of vital interests in Japan
- having a 'residence' (kyosho) in Japan continuously for one year or more
- being sufficiently presumed, based on circumstances (e.g. employment contract, family, housing), to reside in Japan continuously for more than one year
Japan has no golden visa or direct passport-by-investment scheme, but a well-funded remote worker can use the new 6‑month Digital Nomad visa (JPY 10m+ income) and, for longer-term residence, must qualify under standard work/investor/business or other status-of-residence categories rather than pure passive investment.
How to break residency
moderate to leaveTax residency normally ends when you no longer have a domicile or a residence of one year or more in Japan, but the authorities look at overall facts (family, work, housing), so merely dropping below a day count is not enough and some individuals can still be treated as domiciled.
“You are considered as a non-resident in Japan for tax purposes unless you have a domicile or have had a residence continuously for one year or more in Japan.” — National Tax Agency Japan
Estimate — confirm against the linked sources. See methodology.