Plain-English guides for Japan
Japan, figured out
in plain English.
The practical side of visiting and living in Japan — tax-free shopping, money and taxes, and the paperwork — worked out clearly and backed by official sources. No fluff, just the numbers and the steps.
Where to start
44 guides liveWhether you’re visiting or settling in, start here. Every guide is built from official, primary sources — and cited.
18 guides
Travel in Japan
Tax-free shopping, trip budgeting and getting around — the practical questions visitors actually have, worked out with the numbers. Start with how tax-free shopping works.
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Living in Japan
Bank accounts, money and taxes, and converting a foreign driver’s licence — the everyday admin of settling in. Start with opening a bank account.
Explore →038 guides
Working in Japan
Your work residence status and changing jobs, social insurance (shakai hoken) on your payslip, and the safety net if you lose your job — the employment side, in plain English.
Explore →All 44 guides
every page cites its sourcesEverything published so far, in one list. Each guide answers one question with the actual figures and links the government or agency page it came from, so you can check it yourself.
Travel 18
- Cash & ATMs (foreign cards)
- Pocket Wi-Fi rental (vs SIM/eSIM)
- Forwarding luggage (takuhaibin)
- eSIM & SIM cards for visitors
- Bringing medication into Japan
- Customs & duty-free allowances on arrival
- Tax-free shopping in Japan
- Transit IC cards (Suica, PASMO)
- Is the Japan Rail Pass worth it?
- How much a trip to Japan costs
- Visit Japan Web & arrival procedures
- Power outlets, plugs & voltage
- Onsen etiquette & tattoos
- Riding the Shinkansen
- Earthquakes & disaster basics
- Medical help & pharmacies
- Airport to city (Narita, Haneda, Kansai)
- Smoking rules in Japan
Living 18
- Getting a mobile phone plan
- Sorting your garbage in Japan
- The Residence Card (Zairyu Card)
- Pension for foreign residents
- Permanent residency (eijuken), explained
- Opening a bank account in Japan
- Resident tax (juminzei), explained
- National Health Insurance
- Converting a foreign driver’s licence
- My Number & the My Number Card
- Income tax returns: do you file?
- Renting an apartment
- Furusato Nozei (hometown tax)
- Having a baby: birth & child allowances
- Marriage registration for residents
- Setting up electricity, gas & water
- Enrolling your child in school
- The NHK receiving fee, explained
How Japan Harbor is made
Built on official sources
We rely on government, tax-authority and other primary sources — cited on each page — not second-hand blog posts.
Practical first
Every guide aims to answer a real question with the actual numbers and the concrete steps.
Honest about what changes
Where rules or amounts vary or are being revised, we say so and point you to the official body for the final word.