Hey all,
Japan/US dual citizen here.
I’m running in circles trying to get a Sony bank account to use overseas to manage my property here in Japan.
I returned to Japan after 1.5 years of being in the US for personal reasons while keeping my residency in Japan just so I can have my Shinsei bank account open to manage my property here. As a result, I have to keep paying for my 健康保険 and 住民税. I don’t plan to live in Japan permanently as my life is in the US, but I do want to keep the property that I inherited from my father. I currently have a tenant living in there right now which means that I have rental income from my property that my real estate agent manages for me. He simply sends me the rental income to my bank account.
Since I don’t plan to live in Japan, I do want to cancel my residency to become a non-resident and I need to have a bank account I can use to deal with payments related to my rental property (receiving rent, paying for 管理費, paying for 固定資産税, etc.)
That being said, after doing some research, Sony Bank is the only bank that will allow you to keep your bank account open even after you leave Japan and become a non-resident. The problem is I can’t apply for it because I don’t have any of the documents you need as a Japanese national:
1. マイナンバーカード: This takes over a month to receive after applying, so this wouldn’t work.
2. 住民基本台帳カード: The city of Yokohama no longer issues this card anymore since the introduction of the My Number Card.
3. Driver’s license: This tends to be the only option I have left…
So my question is, does anybody have any experience with getting their US driver’s license converted to a Japanese one? More specifically, from a state that is not listed in the written/driving test exemption? More specifically someone who’s applied Kanagawa. Is it realistic for me to get a license in less than a month? I know the JAF translation takes approx. 2 weeks. I’m wondering if I can still go in person to get it translated the day of. I heard that the driving exams are scheduled further in advance which makes me worried I won’t be able to make it on time. If you were to take the exam all in the same day, do you get your license printed the day of?
Ahhhh any advice would very much be appreciated.
EDIT: Thanks for the quick replies so far, it seems like the general consensus is “no” with this one. Looks like I have a better chance trying to get a My Number Card instead. I just went ahead and applied for one.
by kento726