Real money talk for couples lost in translation — and in the Japanese tax system.
A Japanese-American family figuring out NISA, iDeCo, taxes, visas, and rural life — one bureaucratic form at a time.
“We are not experts of any kind. We are a Japanese-American family trying not to accidentally commit tax fraud in two countries.”
Everything here is our honest personal experience. Always consult a professional for your situation.
The six things consuming our life right now
NISA & iDeCo
NISAとiDeCo
The honest guide for international couples — NISA, iDeCo, and what investing together actually looks like when you hold two passports.
PR & Visa
永住権・ビザ
Real-time documentation of Japan's permanent residency process. Timeline, documents, costs, and bureaucratic absurdity.
Rural Relocation
地方移住
We moved from Osaka. The government subsidy didn't come. Here's what it actually cost.
Taxes
日本の税金
Furusato nozei, FBAR ($10K threshold — not the mythical $18M), and surviving two-country tax obligations.
Bilingual Kids
バイリンガル子育て
Raising two boys in two languages in rural Japan. They switch mid-sentence without noticing.
Daily Money Tools
日々のお金ツール
Bank accounts, international transfers, credit cards — the practical tools we actually use and honestly recommend.
Where we've been lately
We Moved Out of Osaka. We Expected ¥1.9M in Subsidies. We Got ¥0.
Two programs, two rejections, two completely different reasons we didn't qualify. One of them: the wife was 40.
Hello Work Japan: Do You Have to Report Side Income While Receiving Unemployment Benefits?
I receive small live-streaming tips while on unemployment benefits. Here's what Hello Work told me to report — and why I'd rather ask a boring question than have an exciting problem later.
We Lost ¥400,000 Cancelling Our Wedding in March 2020. The Money Was the Easy Part.
We were already married. COVID closed the borders, his family couldn't come, and we cancelled days before. The money loss, the insurance that wouldn't have helped, and what we got instead.
My American Husband Quit His Job in Japan. Hello Work Paid Him for It — Even Though He Quit.
In the US, quitting means $0. In Japan, he got months of benefits and a re-employment bonus. A foreigner's field guide to Hello Work.
We Share Everything Except His Pokemon Cards
We run one household budget as a Japanese-American couple. The rent, groceries, savings, and kid costs are shared. The Pokemon cards remain gloriously free.
My NISA Is My Little Secret Weapon
I am a Japanese wife in an international marriage, and NISA became my way to build assets in my own name. Seven years in, my investing has not been textbook-perfect. It has been real life.
The Day My Husband Met FATCA at a Japanese Bank Counter
We tried online banks. They couldn't fit his middle name. We tried megabanks. They asked for FATCA paperwork. He met FATCA. They did not get along. We have a bank account now.
My American Husband's Japanese PR Application: 9 Months, 20+ Documents, and a Rule Change Halfway Through
Filed August 2025. Rules changed January 2026. Nine months in, we still don't know which set of criteria applies. A real-time field report.
Furusato Nozei for an American in Japan: Free Meat, a Tax Refund, and the US-Tax Part Nobody Explains
It works even when the head of household is American. The limit with a dependent spouse, why we file a return, and the three US-tax points nobody explains (FBAR, charitable deductions, the Foreign Tax Credit).
英語わからへん。5歳に言われた日のこと。
Japanese only for now. Our 5-year-old was seen as the kid who speaks English, then answered in Kansai dialect: 英語わからへん.
🇯🇵🤝🇺🇸 A Japanese-American family figuring it out
The wife (Japanese, 40s) somehow ended up enjoying tax returns after a long string of money mistakes. The husband (American) is mid-permanent-residency — and the rules changed partway through, so we're waiting to see how it goes. He loves conveyor-belt sushi and convenience-store fried chicken.
Together we run NISA and iDeCo while navigating FBAR, PFIC rules, and a mountain of government paperwork. We have two bilingual boys (5 and 3) and recently moved from Osaka to rural Japan — where the relocation subsidy we researched for months came to exactly ¥0.
This blog is our honest record of all of it.