I've been thinking about retiring in Japan in a few years. I'll have my US based pension which should be around $3500 a month (minus whatever Uncle Sam takes off the top) so unless the en (I refuse to refer to it as Yen) rebounds I think I should be good for monthly income. So if I had to, I would be able to move on unless the USD collapses. As someone that is also an introvert, I know I would have challenges getting friends but hopefully I can just be a bit more social! I grew up in the Los Angeles area and I currently live near a dormant volcano in the Pacific northwest of the United States. While I don't want to earth to move under me, but I've experienced some very strong earthquakes so I think I can probably handle that without living in dread. I am particularly nervous about adapting to Japanese societal customs. While I've been a fan of Japan for the majority of my life, I know that there are more layers that I've never even exposed to. Anyways, I'm hoping to schedule a visit at the local consulate and meet a visa officer to see what requirements I would have to meet. I think one might be that I have a business of some sort but some videos I've watched seem to imply that just about anything that you could call a business would qualify for the visa requirement. One of the things that really impacts me is the Japanese summer, so I'm looking to live farther north where hopefully it won't be as hot or humid as southern Japan. To this end I'm hoping to fly over during the summer and see how bad it might be and if it's something I can deal with. Anyways, I'm actually looking for more videos, or articles, about the negatives of living in Japan because I want to be aware of what I would be up against.

Not have those deep friends is a problem I face as well after being here for more than 2 decades

Make video in rakuten forex

0:05 "I am a fan of stealing money from dead people because I am envious of their success" Shameless behavior.

My wife is Japanese and we are looking at possibly buying a second hand home in somewhere like Chiba next year whilst the yen is weak. We live in the UK. I’ve had nightmare neighbours in England and you mentioning having ‘psycho’ neighbours is really putting me off the idea 😂! Maybe renting would be the better option.

Very helpful. Thank you.

Thanks for all you do! I'd really appreciate a similar video on that overall summary page (the one you say you usually head straight for when updating your spreadsheet). And is there a way to see your previous purchases listed with the price at time of purchase (or quantity purchased)?

Sorry I have a JB bank account, however, not by choice assign by the company. Would you suggest I also open a wise account to send money back home or does JB have a quick/easy way to do so?

I'll be going to language school in Japan on a student visa next year. Would it be possible for me to invest in stocks and crypto? Or is that not legal?

I would be careful with the real estate for tax cut purpose, as you say if you have high income like over 15Mio Yen per year, then you can reduce tax by removing the depreciation from the income, however this is also cancelled by the fact you need to register the money you get from the rent in your income. If you know what you are doing it is ok but be very careful because many real estate companies target doctors or high income foreigner to sell them properties (often new) promising it is almost transparent thanks to the rent and that they will get a tax cut, but apart from the first year, the tax cut is minimal or cancelled (deadcross). They will also make you think the properties might gain value in time as it is tokyo or yokohama, and yes sure if it is 5 minutes away from Shibuya or Harajuku station which is often not the case, the last sweet part is telling you it will work as a life insurace as your morgage will be cancelled if you pass away, so why not buy 2 or 3 for your wife and children, unfortunately it does not really work that way in practice. Those are not scams but misleading sales talk that can lead you to poor investment on top of making you take another morgage. There is a trick for tax cut which is based on buying used wood structure base building in an expensive area that depreciate in just 4 years, but be prepared because it increase your chance to be flagged for a full audit by the tax office. There is definitely investment to be made but you will need to study and find a trustworthy real estate agent.

Wow、great content! Holistic financial advise! Super rare I would say. As a Physio I came two years ago to Kobe / Japan and opened together with my Japanese wife a Setai / Physio practice here. So without knowing your suggestions, we are self employed here and really enjoying it. And you are right Health and Skills are really most important to invest. Also in your social life, I would say. Something Ken Honda often points to: if you have good friends you may feel much wealthier, then the (financially) wealthiest people...

I agree that Options can be complicated, crypto can be volatile and risky, etc. But saying people should avoid something you don't understand yourself doesn't sound like great advice. It's not like stocks are all productive and fairly priced either. Investing a small % of my portfolio in Bitcoin a few years ago turned out to be a much better and more productive call than investing in poorly managed companies. Sure, crypto is full of fraud and scams but if you know what you are doing, you can safely invest for the long term while ignoring the spam and useless altcoins. And even without trading or investing, a smart person can also find great job opportunities in the space.

The best investment is to buy land and grow watermelons and grapes, which are worth a lot of money in Japan. ))

much appreciated English content as I get better with my Japanese 🥰

Individual stocks are fine as long as you do a bit of research. It's not going to be particularly risky investing in something like Coca Cola for a bit of growth and dividends from an extremely stable company. Still also track a diversified index or ETF but nothing wrong with stock picking alongside it. Physical gold depends on how they're taxed in the country. In the UK I've made similar gains with gold as I have with my stocks.

Gold is not an investment, but a hedge against currency. It has its place in a portfolio as a "safe" place to store some wealth. But how is it taxed in Japan when it's sold?

2 questions. Can you make a video (if you don't have yet) comparing different stock brokers in Japan ? Rakuten Paypay Moomoo etc. Another question but weird, I am a Muslim , I am unable to invest in all funds. I understand there are some halal funds internationally (like HLAL) but not available in Japan. Can you check if we find such things from Japanese brokers ?

I disagree with everything you said except for investing in the NISA and of course you should own your own home. But everything else is absolutely the worst financial advice ever.......

Please make video for non japanese how to change SBI broker username now I have a problem with it😢

I am interested in buying a holiday house in Japan but as a lifestyle choice not an investment, and I am not in any hurry (5-10 year planning timeframe) as there are likely to be a lot more houses for sale outside the "Golden route" areas by then.

Great content. I have a question, what are the chances of the Japanese government (pension and health system) freezing your assets and/or confiscating them in the future if you decide to stop paying the mandatory pension, health insurance, etc…?

When you say buying stocks in Japan, do you mean index funds? Because later you said to avoid picking stocks.

How about term-deposit accounts?

Pleased you included health in the list. It's our biggest asset.

Our man’s starting hair transplant treatment! Good luck 😉

All of your "stay away from" list is accurate as well as two through five of the best list but I would steer clear of the stock market if as you say you also avoid picking stocks and forex. Having working IT for large investment banks on their trading floors, I would say if you want your health to be good, steer clear of stocks. Be your own boss, having/learning the right skills and the language are the best investments one can make in Japan.

Another great video.

Cool video, thanks for sharing! Finance advice for Japan in English language is still a bit of a niche, but likely to grow more and more going forward, all the best. Curious how you feel about REITs in Japan? That seems to me like a possibility of getting your toes wet in the real estate market, without having to deal with all the bureaucracy that comes with actually owning physical real estate. Even though utilizing depreciation on buildings on reducing income tax sounds like a smart idea, I will have a look at that!

Welcome back Ben missed you for a while and was about to send you a note via email to find out if all was well. From the looks of it you are as peachy as ever 😅

Is NISA a good option for US taxpayers? One wealth management firm said don’t count on it being exempt but that was before the ‘new’ NISA.

Crypto might be getting the capital gains tax rate next year as it’s becoming more of a mainstream asset, but definitely still a pain doing the accounting.

Hey, can you teach me how to make money with NISA? Am i supposed to sell it everytime it goes up so i have more funds to buy more of it? Or just leave it? 'cos i imagine it would look silly after over 10 years when it says +232% or something.

Fantastic video Ben. I'm loving the channel. I'm moving back to Japan next year and looking to be self employed. Not sure what I will do yet though.

Good luck getting a mortgage from a japanese bank.

Not much of an options market here -> CFDs are much more popular. Same animal, different mechanism, less transparency. Obviously avoid. FX speculation is bad enough....but Binary currency options are legal here!

Yes, there is a big risk that comes with investing in cryptocurrencies. Scams, hacks, technical expertise required. But still, Bitcoin is one of the best performing assets over the last decade. Thank you for the list Ben, I definitely agree with your top 5 ! NISA (capital gain tax free) is a great instrument and can't wait to start using it! I have just relocated to Japan 3 months ago from Australia.

The subtitles are so distracting... Please make them optional captions rather than burned in 🙂

A comfortable bed, your children's education, Bitcoin. Done x

Hello, your videos are incredible ! As one other person shared in the comment, it would be great to have a video about individual/side business as there are not much info about that. For example, is it possible to do a side business while working for a company, and then what is the best path to do the transition into actually doing it full time in the case this side business start to doing well (with all visa and other legal matters it imply).

With the new government now in the place in UK, are there any UK-based investments for Japan that you would recommend?

Crypto will always be a massive gamble, but HODLERS can probably avoid the tax implications if they wait until they retire and have no real income. If you're earning less than 6,950,000 yen a year and don't cash out all at once, your crypto tax could be 20%. That might be attractive to someone who has already maxed out their NISA.

I think those are two fine lists. I did pick up some stocks mostly just because I'm a learn by doing person, but I'd never put more than a fraction in them. I'm prioritising the All Country fund, and seeing those stocks with 3x the gain you can see how people get enticed into big financial mistakes by thinking early gains will represent the long term. We'd been discussing the potential of combining property and a business in an AirBnB, but the tight regulations in that area make me wonder how all these overseas owners of the ones already in Kyoto are making a profit.

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Mark my words. The best investment in Japan is Metaplanet Inc (3350:Tokyo) stock!

You're approaching 50? I thought you were older than me, and I'll be 50 next year. 😅

Another good vid. I’ve been trying to find accurate information on the net worth of individuals in Japan , both average and medium, but I get very varying figures. Might make a good vid - by age , individual, household