First Month in Japan: Survival Guide for Newcomers

Packing Up & Landing Smooth

Moving to Japan is equal parts Studio Ghibli daydream and bureaucratic obstacle course. I’ve coached more than 300 professionals, families and wide-eyed language-school students through their first thirty days here, and the same questions always pop up:

“What must I do before boarding the flight?”
“How soon do I need to register my address?”
“Is my wallet going to combust from hidden fees?”

Below is the playbook I give my one-on-one clients—now in blog-form so you can bookmark, dog-ear and casually quote at dinner parties. Follow it step-by-step and you’ll step off the plane unsurprised, financially prepared, and fuelled by something tastier than convenience-store sushi.

Table of Contents

1. Pre-move preparation checklist
2. Arrival-week must-dos
3. Budgeting tips for the first month
4. Tools & local resources that do the heavy lifting
5. Final thoughts & your personalised next step

(Estimated read time: 14 minutes, with plenty of coffee-refill breaks.)

1. Pre-Move Preparation Checklist

Relocations rarely implode because of a single disaster. Instead, they crumble under ten small gaps: a forgotten document here, an unsigned HR form there. Let’s close those gaps.

1.1 Collect—and copy—your critical paperwork

Japan still loves physical documents, stamps and crisp photocopies. Assemble:

• Passport (valid 6+ months beyond intended stay)
• Visa approval letter or Certificate of Eligibility (CoE)
• Two extra passport photos (Japan’s photobooths are everywhere, but your jet-lagged face may not thank you)
• University diplomas, marriage certificates, birth certificates—each translated into Japanese by a certified translator if you’ll need them for dependent visas or school registrations
• Vaccination records (COVID-19, measles, etc.) – some employers request them
• An “Important Contacts” sheet: employer HR email, Japanese landlord, emergency consulate number, etc.

Coach’s tip: Scan every piece into one encrypted cloud folder and share it with a trusted family member. Japan’s copier machines are brilliant, but not when you realise your CoE is in a suitcase on the Narita Express.

1.2 Set up essential finance back home

1. Inform your bank you’ll be abroad so they don’t freeze transactions the first time you tap Suica.
2. Apply for at least one no-FX-fee credit card; 7-Eleven ATMs honour most international brands.
3. Enable two-factor authentication using an app rather than SMS; Japanese SIM setup can take a week.

1.3 Tackle housing from afar

The holy triad: location, budget, guarantor requirements.

• Short-term landing pad (1–4 weeks): Think monthly serviced apartments, Airbnb with “minpaku” license, or corporate housing if your employer provides it.
• Guarantor headache: Many landlords demand a Japanese guarantor or a guarantor company fee (half to one month’s rent). Start gathering employer letters proving income to smooth the process.

1.4 Downsize like a Zen monk

Shipping a 40-foot container to Tokyo is possible—but you’ll pay Tokyo rent for every extra cubic metre. Cross-reference the monster list in our ultimate international moving checklist and ask yourself: “Does this spark joy in yen?” Items to leave:

• Voltage-specific appliances (Japan uses 100V; most US 110–120V gadgets survive, EU 220V usually don’t)
• Giant sofas (apartment doors are famously narrow)
• Winter tyres (Hokkaido friends excluded)

1.5 Learn the “survival dozen”Japanese phrases

You don’t need N2 proficiency day one, but master:

1. すみません (Sumimasen) – Excuse me / Sorry
2. 英語のメニューがありますか？ (Eigo no menyū ga arimasu ka?) – Do you have an English menu?
3. ありがとうございます (Arigatō gozaimasu) – Thank you (polite)
4. これをください (Kore o kudasai) – I’ll take this.
5. どこですか？ (Doko desu ka?) – Where is …?

Stick them on a sticky note near your boarding pass and watch life get 40 % easier.

2. Arrival-Week Must-Dos

Congratulations—you’ve survived the in-flight soba and landed. Jet-lag will attempt to sabotage, so batch your bureaucratic errands logically:

Day 1–2: Immigration & residency card

At Narita, Haneda, Kansai or Chitose, immigration officers will affix a residence card (在留カード, zairyū kado) to your passport if you have mid-to-long-term status. Verify:

• Name spelling
• Visa category
• Expiry date

Mistakes are rare but fixing later involves time-travel levels of paperwork.

Day 3–4: City hall registration

You have 14 days to register your address at the local kuyakusho (ward office) or shiyakusho (city office). Bring:

• Residence card
• Passport
• Lease agreement or hotel address

During the same visit, enrol in:

1. National Health Insurance (国民健康保険) if your employer doesn’t handle it.
2. MyNumber—Japan’s social security & tax number system.

Expect to receive a tsunami of paper letters the following week.

Call-out
“If you forget city-hall registration, you technically void your residence status. Set a calendar alarm titled ‘Don’t Deport Me’ at breakfast.”

Day 5–6: Open a bank account

Most of my clients choose Japan Post Bank, Shinsei or Rakuten for easier English menus. Bring:

• Residence card with your new address printed
• Personal seal (inkan) if requested—though signatures are increasingly accepted
• A domestic mobile number (some branches waive this if you show proof of application)

Day 7: SIM card or eSIM activation

The big three (Docomo, Au, Softbank) require longer contracts and sometimes credit scores. MVNOs (IIJmio, Mobal, Sakura Mobile) are relocation-friendly:

• Pre-order the SIM to your temporary address for zero-day activation.
• Verify VoLTE compatibility; older phones drop to 3G in rural areas.

Optional but recommended in week 1

• Transit IC card: Suica (Tokyo) or Icoca (Kansai). Avoid paper tickets like it’s 1999.
• Bicycle registration: If you buy a bike, police will stop foreigners for random checks—registering costs ~500 yen, prevents awkward pantomime.

3. Budgeting Tips for the First Month

Japan’s reputation for being expensive is half myth, half miscalculation. The real killer is start-up costs: key money (礼金), agent fees, deposit, and school enrolment fees for families. Let’s crunch the numbers.

3.1 One-time costs you likely overlooked

3.2 Monthly living costs snapshot

(Assuming single professional in Tokyo 23 wards)

• Rent (25 m² studio near Yamanote Line): 85,000–120,000 yen
• Utilities & internet: 10,000 yen
• Commuting (home–office daily): 7,000 yen
• Groceries & eating out: 35,000 yen
• Health insurance & pension (if partially self-employed): 25,000 yen

Total: Roughly 160,000–200,000 yen before your weekend karaoke routine.

Families? My colleague Marie breaks down daycare, international schools and domestic helpers in our Singapore costs deep-dive— the line items differ, but the methodology stands. Adapt and conquer.

3.3 Stretching your yen without feeling stingy

1. 100-yen shops are your IKEA starter kit. From plates to umbrella socks (yes, those exist).
2. Lunch sets (teishoku) between 11 am–2 pm shave 30 % off dinner prices.
3. Subscribe to electricity via a reseller (Looop, Tokyo Gas & Power) for discounts if you stay >1 year.
4. Second-hand apps (Mercari, SayonaraSale Facebook groups) = foreigner’s furnishing paradise.

I challenge clients to keep a “Frugal, Not Miserable” spreadsheet. Track only three categories for 30 days—housing, transport, food—and watch clarity emerge, sans guilt.

4. Tools & Local Resources

In 2024, your phone does 80 % of the heavy lifting—if you download the right apps before your Wi-Fi lags.

4.1 Navigating transport

• Google Maps: decent but misses platform changes.
• NAVITIME (English): adds car number, last car for quickest transfer.
• JR-EAST Train Reservation: book Shinkansen digitally, no ticket machines.

4.2 Cashless payments

Japan is sprinting toward digital wallets, yet the corner soba stand might still reject plastic.

• Suica in Apple Wallet / Google Pay Suica: tap for trains, vending machines, some taxis.
• PayPay: QR-code monster accepted in 3+ million stores. Sign-up requires JP phone & bank.
• Wise multi-currency account: cheap overseas transfers into your new JP bank.

4.3 Language & community

• LINE: WhatsApp equivalent; your landlord, piano teacher and dentist use it.
• HelloTalk: language exchange, but also houses micro-communities for foreigners in each prefecture.
• Meetup: “Tokyo International Friends”, “Osaka Startup BBQ”—say yes to invitations; relationships open doors quicker than Google searches.

4.4 Health & wellbeing

• Japan Healthcare Info (JHI): bilingual support for hospital bookings.
• COCOA App: contact-tracing (still recommended).
• Gym tip: City sports centres offer 400-yen day passes—cheaper than glitzy chains.

4.5 Admin shortcuts my clients swear by

1. Delivery lockers (宅配ロッカー, takuhai locker): 24/7 parcel pickup if your building has them.
2. Combini ATMs: Pay utility bills by scanning barcodes—no bank needed.
3. BorderPilot’s relocation dashboard: yes, shameless mention, but it auto-generates time-line reminders so you never miss that “National Pension opt-out” deadline.

Pull-Quote
“In Japan, the line between tech-utopia and paperwork-nightmare is a single red ink stamp.”

5. Final Thoughts & Your Personalised Next Step

Your first month in Japan will feel like riding a train that alternates between bullet-speed and scenic crawl. Some days you’ll master kanji for ‘exit’; other days you’ll panic-Google ‘Why does my toilet need a remote control?’.

Remember:

• Front-load paperwork within the first 14 days (residence, city hall, bank).
• Over-budget for one-time costs—whatever number you have, add 25 %.
• Leverage local tools; they exist to make expats fail less.
• Cultivate patience. Lines move slowly until they suddenly don’t—stay flexible.

If you’d like a relocation plan that maps every to-do against real deadlines, local holidays and your specific visa type, try BorderPilot’s free planner. It’s the very tool I lean on when coaching private clients, now yours for the price of a konbini coffee.

Safe landing, and I’ll see you at the city-hall stamp counter.