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Handling Foreigners Estate after Death?

psd

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Please excuse the morbid topic.

What happens to the estate of a foreigner who dies in Japan with no family in Japan? In my case the contents of my apartment don't matter but more important are bank accounts.

I assume the foreigner's embassy would be contacted to contact next of kin. Is there some procedure for remitting bank accounts to family overseas?


(In typical Internet style, I'm sure someone will feel the need to guess what would happen or just make something up, don't bother I can do that)
 
Can you get a spouse ATM card and send it overseas to someone you trust and also someone who is willing to travel to Japan to withdraw the funds? Only you can do face-to-face banking but someone with an ATM card can drain the account. If you can do this you need to never write down the PIN and communicate it verbally with whoever you trust. It would be nice if that person has backup paperwork to prove they are authorized to drain the account just in case the account is locked or investigators get involved.
 
It would be nice if that person has backup paperwork to prove they are authorized to drain the account just in case the account is locked or investigators get involved.

Draining the account might easily constitute a fraud, even if it's done by the only beneficiary. That is because since 2013 the Japanese government wants its share; if you die while having an address in Japan the beneficiary becomes a taxpayer in Japan meaning he has to pay taxes for the inherited assets.

Usually there is no estate administrator but heirs are responsible for it. If the heirs are overseas then they need to produce documents to prove family relationship. This is complicated and takes a lot of time so it is better to make a will and name them in there.

So to answer the original question; there is no procedure to remit the monies automatically after the death, that is left to the heirs or if they all agree they can appoint an administrator for the estate who then handles that.
 
That sounds like a total PITA. Imagine a family member on the other side of the world trying to convince a Japanese bank to send them funds.
 
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I would recommend consulting with a Japanese lawyer who can speak English. The websites of some embassies have lists of local lawyers who are used to dealing with foreigners.
 
I couldn't remember the the term earlier, In many countries there are public trustees who's job is do exactly this sort of thing. So it seems there isn't in Japan.
So, anyone who has assets in Japan should document their accounts etc for their next of kin back home.

I would recommend consulting with a Japanese lawyer who can speak English. The websites of some embassies have lists of local lawyers who are used to dealing with foreigners.
dude, I'm not dead.
 
There’s no mechanism for dealing with this sort of thing beyond notifying the embassy who can look for next of kin. Have been on the periphery of a few people dying without family here, and without a will and a local representative to act as executor, it’s really quite problematic for the family members overseas,

Best plan is to have a bilingual lawyer draw up a proper will, with the names and contact information of your overseas heirs, and assign said lawyer as the executor of the estate (they will generally do this for a percentage). It’s best to use a lawyer that is familiar with the legal system in your home country, as the estates of foreign nationals come under the laws of their home country, not Japanese inheritance law (other than taxation, of course… they want their pound(s) of flesh, be they warm and dripping or cold and firm).
 
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Best plan is to have a bilingual lawyer draw up a proper will, with the names and contact information of your overseas heirs, and assign said lawyer as the executor of the estate

The bestest plan is to invest everything wisely on whiskey and women so there is nothing left and thus no need for any heir to feel they got less than others.

But that's me, always thinking about other people and their feelings.
 
I would recommend consulting with a Japanese lawyer who can speak English. The websites of some embassies have lists of local lawyers who are used to dealing with foreigners.
Just you need to go to a Japanese lawyer, to write a will document certified by notary. Of course, no way to avoid taxes. Once your death will be declared, your bank accounts will be automatically blocked or if some one not legally authorized drains the account he will be prosecuted.
 
Just you need to go to a Japanese lawyer

Especially if you have decent amount of assets outside Japan you better get a lawyer that knows also the laws of that country. The laws even just inside Europe are very different so it's better to be aware. In some places your will is just the secondary way to divide assets; for example your legal children might be getting their share first. In some places like UK you can give everything to the association of homeless raccoon dogs and leave your wives and kids with nothing.

They say you cannot avoid death or taxes but you can prepare for both. People who have enough assets to be worried about the taxes can move before they kick the bucket; plenty of countries out there, even very decent ones, with no taxes on death.
 
That sounds like a total PITA. Imagine a family member on the other side of the world trying to convince a Japanese bank to send them funds.

Well said. I'd rather visit a dentist than deal with the bureaucracy I'd likely face following a death in the family
 
This thread deserves more love. Has anyone else dealt with wills, executors etc etc in Japan?

I have a bunch of assets in my home country & the dilemma is "should I sell the lot & transfer the funds to Japan"? Or leave the assets where they are and let them grow.

In my experience lawyers & accountants feather their own nests by overcomplicating or being overly cautious in ensuring that the tax office gets MORE than it's fair share.

Just want to do the right thing by my family. I've got another good 30+ years ahead of me but hey you never know ...
 
I have a bunch of assets in my home country & the dilemma is "should I sell the lot & transfer the funds to Japan"? Or leave the assets where they are and let them grow.
Depends on where you're from I suppose. I have things split between my home country and Japan... but I've firmly decided that Japan isn't where I want to be in a few years, so I'm shifting more assets to my home country.
I've already been here for 16+ years and at least in my case, it will soon be time to close the book on this Japan adventure.
 
Depends on where you're from I suppose. I have things split between my home country and Japan... but I've firmly decided that Japan isn't where I want to be in a few years, so I'm shifting more assets to my home country.
I've already been here for 16+ years and at least in my case, it will soon be time to close the book on this Japan adventure.

Cheers. 16 years is a long time The gaikokujin community will be all the poorer when you leave so do stick around. . Our little one just started primary school here. I'd prefer she finished her education in Japan. Problem is if I die all my Australian assets will be sold & repatriating monies back to Japan will incur taxes here - my grieving wife might struggle with the bureaucracy. Each time I transfer monies here we get bank & tax people calling us to ask how we earned it etc. A friend from NZ sold his inherited house over there & transferred the cash to Japan. Spent the money in 6 months living the high life. Shortly after it was all gone he got a call from the local Japanese tax office demanding he pay tax on the money. So now he more broke than ever & in debt to the tax office here.
 
As an aside. To all my TAG friends. If you are planning to transfer a few hundred thousand dollars to Japan (think inheritance or sale of property) you are likely to be flagged & the local tax office will call you to ask "how did you get that money.". If you say "I inherited it" or "I sold my house and stock portfolio" you WILL be taxed. Think carefully about what you say, refuse to discuss it on the phone (they sometimes show up at people's workplaces).

There are ways around it. So much depends on what you choose to voluntarily disclose
 
I assume the foreigner's embassy would be contacted to contact next of kin. Is there some procedure for remitting bank accounts to family overseas?

I totally get you might not be a U.S. citizen but the information links below , aside from partially answering your question , should also give you proper motivation NOT to leave it in the hands of your local Consular official. There’s no guarantee things will go smoothly.

Death Abroad of a US Citizen
https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/while-abroad/death-abroad1.html

Estates of Deceased U.S. Citizens
https://travel.state.gov/content/tr...-abroad1/estates-of-deceased-US-citizens.html

AFFIDAVIT FOR THE SURVIVING SPOUSE OR NEXT OF KIN
https://eforms.state.gov/Forms/ds5511.pdf

Two items I can think of immediately would be making sure the DS-5511 , AFFIDAVIT FOR THE SURVIVING SPOUSE OR NEXT OF KIN, which establishes proof of family relationships actually goes forward. Most non-Asian countries don’t use a family registry system ( koseki ) , and once in a while you can still find useless Japanese bureaucrats or bankers who can’t understand why not.

Even though as a foreigner , the civil laws governing inheritance are supposed to apply to your estate - versus the unified system under Japanese civil laws as it applies to Japanese decedents … I’m not sure if in the case of no apparent heirs what the case is for a foreigner. I’m guessing it might be the same - the Court appoints an administrator for the inherited estate. And, I’m guessing that for whatever fixed assets you may have , as well as debts and liabilities - they won’t automatically adjust themselves, and would be applied against your cash accounts etc.

Enough of a pain in the ass that for most people , even those who think the size of their estates won’t warrant it, really should have a practical will laid out for Japanese-side & home. The friends I know who weren’t sure whether they’d be in Japan or the US when they die , appoint different executors for their wills - as much as they might trust their brother , it’d be Hell for him to try work things out in Japan if they hardly know the place.

And, maybe even more cause for a bit of angst is what sort of plans do we have for all our digital accounts, including the activities that we don’t want outsiders finding? Our porn, our TAG accounts and other extracurricular activities?
 
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