Hanko

20 comments

1. My BOE asked me what I wanted on mine, and they will be getting it for me before I arrive.

2. My BoE just got my first name on mine because my last name was too long so I don’t think it matters to be honest

3. It really doesn’t matter, your hanko will get officially registered with your city hall, making whatever you put on there as your official signature. I’ve seen hankos with just last names, just first names, and both. As long as it’s identifying to you in some way.

4. Doesn’t matter. BoE asked me what I wanted and I told them my Chinese last name since it’s different than my US government last name.

5. Doesn’t matter. The only limiting factor is the number of characters – hanko are small and can only fit so many characters before they become unreadable.

   I chose to use my first name since my last name is a common Japanese surname. I figured my hanko would be more unique if I used my first name lol

6. It doesn’t matter.

7. It doesn’t really matter. I went with my first name because my surname was too long and I have an ateji one that I use for not particularly important stuff

8. It doesn’t matter, in hindsight I wish I would have used my first name. Because I got married and changed my last name while living in Japan…so that was just an extra thing to worry about. Not a super big deal though.

9. My school never asked me and just gave me my first name in katakana. That seems to be standard among the ALTs I know.

   However, one ALT’s school just gave him one with his first name in English, which absolutely killed me lol.

10. My BoE/Supervisor got me mine. It just says my first name. From what I’ve seen, other ALTs usually just have their first name. Not sure why.

11. It doesn’t matter, the hanko is a symbol that will be associated with you, but it’s just a symbol. There’s no validation/invalidation associated with what you choose as your hanko.

12. It doesn’t matter, mine is only the first character of my first name

13. Get your own:

    I’ve worked with this person for 2 hanko. One for my son and one for myself. Super nice. Easy to communicate with. Hanko were delivered quickly and are well made. Many price points available.

    https://www.kanji-hanko.com/

14. Mine is the katakana for my first name

15. My BOE set mine up before I even arrived. It’s my first name in katakana. I know other people whose boes made them ones that was their last name in English. My BOE used to give ALTs ateji (phonetic kanji) for their hanko but apperently that’s no longer allowed by the town hall. Some places still allow it though.

    There’s a good chance your boe will have already had one made for you so don’t worry about it. If they haven’t made up then no big deal, cross that bridge when you come to it

16. Mine is just my surname written in English. As long as it’s at least your surname in either English or Katakana it’s fine.

17. Many banks let you use your signature these days, unless things have regressed. I used to use a hanko, but I prefer to use my signature because I can’t misplace it. Misplacing a hanko is a serious issue with banks. This year, my CO handler asked me if I had a hanko because they think I need two. I told them I already have two and will bring them with me when I arrive. I hate it when a CO/BOE assumes you need a hanko (or two) and orders one for you without asking.

18. A small word of warning: when I introduced myself to my BOE, I used my nickname instead of my legal name. When I arrived, the BOE handed me a hanko with the nickname. It was fine with opening a bank account and registering with the city. However when it came to needing a registered hanko (such as when buying a car), the city would not accept my hanko with my nickname. They said it needed to be either my full first name, my last name, or both. It didn’t matter which, but it should include part of my legal name, annoyingly. So I had to go make a new one for my official hanko which I pretty much never used again (except maybe when getting a resident certificate). So don’t use a nickname!

19. No…first name or second name is fine….even in big stupid romaji letters like you can’t even write your own name…as soon as you register it at city hall, that ridiculous piece of plastic becomes an NNFT…a Non Nippon Fungible Token….revered the country over as being impossible to forge

20. My friend’s last name was insanely long and couldn’t fit, so she just did the shortened version of her first name (ex: エリー ｖｓ　エリザベス). Mine was my first name, also because my last name is a bit long.