Procedures After Moving in Japan: 住居地届出, 転入届, マイナンバーカード and 国民健康保険

When you move in Japan, a 中長期在留者 (mid- to long-term resident) has to report the 「住居地」 under the Immigration Control Act in addition to the resident registration; and if you move to a different 市区町村, the マイナンバーカード, 国民健康保険, 児童手当 and so on each have their own deadlines. This article organizes, in chronological order, what to do before and after a move, for foreign residents in Japan to check on their own. Office hours and required documents differ by 市区町村; where 新宿区 is used as an example, follow the instructions of the 市区町村 for your own address.

Key points

• Within 14 days: within 14 days from the day you move into your new address, take your 在留カード to the 市区町村 of the new address and file a 転入届 or 転居届; this is treated as having completed the 住居地届出 under the Immigration Control Act.
• 90 days: if you move out of a reported 住居地 and, without a justifiable reason, do not report a new 住居地 within 90 days, this is a ground for revocation of the 在留資格.
• 転出届: when moving to a different 市区町村, you must submit the 転出届 "in advance" to the office of your old address; if you have a マイナンバーカード, you can also submit it online through マイナポータル.
• マイナンバーカード: you must submit the card together with the 転入届; the 転入届 must be filed within 14 days from the day you move in and within 30 days from the planned moving-out date, otherwise the card becomes invalid.
• 国民健康保険・国民年金: for 国民健康保険 the 世帯主 reports within 14 days; if the マイナンバー and the 基礎年金番号 are linked, an address change report is in principle not needed for the pension.
• 児童手当: if you are receiving it, you must apply to the 市区町村 of the new address within 15 days from the day after the planned moving-out date.

Timeline

When	Procedure	Office	Deadline / notes
Before the move	転出届 (when moving to a different 市区町村)	市区町村 of the old address (or マイナポータル)	The law says "in advance"; at the 新宿区 counter, from 14 days before the move (or within 14 days after the move)
Within 14 days after moving in	転入届・転居届 (= 住居地届出)	市区町村 of the new address	Bring your 在留カード; cannot be filed before you start living there
At the time of the 転入届	Continued-use procedure for the マイナンバーカード	市区町村 of the new address	Submit the card together with the 転入届; at the latest within 90 days from the day of the 転入届
Within 14 days	国民健康保険 notification	市区町村	Reported by the 世帯主; if late, you must pay the premiums retroactively
Within 14 days	国民年金 address change (only for those who need to report)	市区町村	In principle not needed if the マイナンバー is linked
Within 15 days from the day after the planned moving-out date	児童手当 application (認定請求)	市区町村 of the new address	Public servants apply to their workplace

入管: 住居地届出 (within 14 days)

• After a 中長期在留者 changes their 住居地, within 14 days from the day they move into the new 住居地 they must show their 在留カード at the counter of the 市区町村 of the new 住居地 and report the new 住居地 to the Commissioner of the 出入国在留管理庁 through the 市区町村 (Immigration Control Act Article 19-9, paragraph 1).
• When you file the 転入届 or 転居届 under the 住民基本台帳法 with your 在留カード, this is treated as having completed the 住居地届出, and a separate 住居地届出書 is not needed (paragraph 3 of the same article).
• If you did not bring your 在留カード when filing the 転入・転居, you must file the 住居地届出 separately (taking 新宿区 as an example: within 14 days after settling in).

Consequences of not reporting: the 90-day revocation ground and penalties

• If, after moving out of a reported 住居地, you do not report a new 住居地 within 90 days from the day you moved out (unless there is a justifiable reason), the Minister of Justice may revoke the 在留資格; reporting a false 住居地 is also a revocation ground (Immigration Control Act Article 22-4, paragraph 1, items 9 and 10).
• This "90 days" is the standard for the revocation ground, not the reporting deadline; the reporting deadline is still 14 days. The wording of the law is "may revoke", not automatic revocation.
• When a 在留資格 is revoked for the above reason, a period of up to 30 days is designated for departure, and you must leave Japan within that period.
• Penalties: failing to report a new 住居地 is punishable by a fine of up to 200,000 yen; making a false report about the 住居地 is punishable by imprisonment of up to 1 year or a fine of up to 200,000 yen (Immigration Control Act Articles 71-5 and 71-2).
• Under the 住民基本台帳法, failing without a justifiable reason to file a 転入・転居・転出届, or making a false report, is punishable by an administrative fine (過料) of up to 50,000 yen (Article 52).

Resident registration: 転出届・転入届・転居届

• 転出届: a person moving to a different 市区町村 must report their name, the place they are moving out to, and the planned moving-out date "in advance" (住民基本台帳法 Article 24). The law does not say "14 days before"; at the 新宿区 counter, filing is accepted from 14 days before the move (or within 14 days after the move), and foreign residents must bring their 在留カード.
• 転入届: a person moving into a different 市区町村 must report within 14 days from the day of moving in (Article 22). 新宿区 explains that it cannot be filed before the move (before you start living there), and that you must bring the 転出証明書 issued by your old address and your 在留カード; if you have a マイナンバーカード, bring the cards of all members of the same 世帯.
• 転居届: a person moving within the same 市区町村 must report within 14 days from the day of moving (Article 23), and this too cannot be filed in advance.
• Online 転出届: from February 6, 2023, every 市区町村 in Japan accepts the 転出届 online through マイナポータル and sends a visit reservation to the 市区町村 you will move into. A マイナンバーカード with a valid electronic certificate is required; the 転入届 must still be filed in person at the counter of the new address. Taking 新宿区 as an example, you can apply from 30 days before the planned moving date, or within 10 days after the moving date if you have already moved, and it cannot be used for moving out abroad.

マイナンバーカード: submit it together at the time of 転入

• A card holder filing a 転入届 must submit the マイナンバーカード to the 市区町村 at the same time and have the information printed on the card changed (the continued-use procedure) (番号利用法 Article 17, paragraph 6). For a 転居 within the same 市区町村, the card must also be submitted within 14 days from the day of the change (paragraph 8 of the same article).
• When the 転出届 was filed using the マイナンバーカード, the 転出証明書 is not needed for the first 転入届 (the 転入届 special rule); however, the special rule does not apply if the 転入届 is filed after 14 days from the day of moving in or 30 days from the planned moving-out date (whichever is earlier), or if the card is not submitted at the time of the 転入.
• Cases where the card becomes invalid: after the 転出届 was filed, the first 転入届 has not been filed when 30 days have passed from the planned moving-out date or 14 days from the day of moving in; or the card has not been submitted at the new address (the continued-use procedure) within 90 days after the 転入届 (番号利用法施行令 Article 14).
• Taking 文京区 as an example, the 住民基本台帳用暗証番号 (4 digits) is required for the continued-use procedure. 新宿区 explains that once the notification period has passed, the card cannot continue to be used.

国民健康保険 and 国民年金

• 国民健康保険: the 世帯主 reports within 14 days (国民健康保険法施行規則).
  • Moving to a different prefecture: submit the 資格喪失届 to the 市区町村 of the old address and the 資格取得届 to the 市区町村 of the new address.
  • Moving to a different 市区町村 within the same prefecture: report the address change separately to the 市区町村 of the old address and of the new address.
  • Taking 新宿区 as an example, if you are late you must pay the premiums retroactively to the month in which eligibility arose. Please confirm the 国民健康保険 notification at the counter when you file the 転出・転入.
• 国民年金: if the マイナンバー and the 基礎年金番号 are linked, an address change report is in principle not needed. Those who are not linked, and foreign nationals on short-term stays and the like, must report: 第1号被保険者 submit a change notification to the 市区町村 (within 14 days from the day of the event), those enrolled in 厚生年金 report through their company, and 第3号被保険者 submit through their spouse's company.

児童手当: apply to the new address within 15 days

• A person receiving 児童手当 who moves to a different 市区町村 must apply to the 市区町村 of the new address within 15 days from the day after the day of moving out (the planned moving-out date) in order to keep receiving it.
• In principle, payment starts from the month after the month of application; for an application made after 15 days, in principle the allowance for the delayed months cannot be received.
• The 児童手当 of public servants is paid by their workplace, so apply to the workplace.

Common misconceptions

• "Reporting within 90 days after the move is fine": the reporting deadline is 14 days; 90 days is the standard for the 在留資格 revocation ground.
• "After filing the 転入届 I still have to go to immigration separately": filing the 転入・転居届 with your 在留カード is treated as having completed the 住居地届出.
• "The マイナンバーカード is valid for 90 days from the planned moving-out date": the 転入届 must be filed within 14 days from the day you move in and within 30 days from the planned moving-out date; 90 days is the deadline for the continued-use procedure after the 転入届.
• "No procedure is needed for a move within the same 市区町村": the 転居届 too must be filed within 14 days, and it is also treated as the 住居地届出.