United Kingdom

From RetireWiki.jp

This page contains information about the UK relevant for residents of Japan. Organising voluntary contributions to the UK State Pension is possibly the most important financial matter that eligible residents of Japan should consider; more information is provided in the section below.

Also, in early 2024 many British citizens abroad gained the right to vote in UK parliamentary elections and some people discussed their experiences of voting from Japan in the 2024 general election on the RetireJapan forum.

Other information includes:

UK State Pension

Many former UK residents are eligible to make voluntary contributions to the UK state pension and/or receive the pension from abroad. Many eligible individuals regard doing so as a highly beneficial move.

This guide includes the following sections and subsections:

Overview of UK state pension

The new State Pension can be claimed by individuals of state pension age (or above) with sufficient qualifying years on their National Insurance record irrespective of nationality and residency. (Men born before 6th April 1951 and women born before 6th April 1953 will instead receive the older basic State Pension.)

Ordinarily, at least 10 qualifying years are required to receive benefits[1]. They do not have to be 10 qualifying years in a row. In principle, 35 qualifying years[2] are required to receive the full state pension (£221.20 per week or £11,502.40 per 52 weeks in 2024-2025)[3]. Those with fewer qualifying years will receive a pro rated amount.

Qualifying years are tax years[4] when sufficient contributions and/or credits have been made, via any combination of the below:

  1. mandatory national insurance contributions made via employment or self employment (earnings or profit need to be above a threshold, so part-time employment may not satisfy this condition)
  2. national insurance credits, eg when claiming benefits, acting as a carer, undertaking jury service, etc. Some individuals will have received starting credits automatically for the years in which they turned 16, 17 and 18. Further information is available in the gov.uk guide to national insurance credits and the NI Manual section on national insurance credits. Credits are automatically applied in many circumstances, but there are some circumstances in which an application is necessary, and full details can be found in the above gov.uk guide.
  3. voluntary national insurance contributions (these can be made from abroad by eligible individuals)

You can check your national insurance record online (requires Government Gateway access), by phone or by post (details for all methods in the link).

Your state pension age can be confirmed online. It is regularly reviewed and subject to future change. The current state pension age is 66; this applies to people born between 6th October 1954 and 5th April 1960. People born on or after 6th April 1978 currently have a state pension age of 68. People between these two cohorts currently have a state pension age between 66 and 68.

There is an Agreement between the UK and Japan on Social Security. It is not a totalisation agreement, meaning qualifying years for the UK state pension cannot be transferred to the Japan state pension, or vice versa. The agreement prevents compulsory dual coverage, meaning that people should only have a requirement to make mandatory contributions to one system at any one time. People making mandatory contributions to the Japanese pension system are usually able to make voluntary contributions to the UK system, if eligible. HMRC has published a summary of the agreement in plain English with some FAQs at the end.

Voluntary National Insurance Contributions from abroad

People with National Insurance records can apply to make voluntary National Insurance Contributions (NICs) from abroad in order to accumulate qualifying years towards the UK state pension, provided they meet eligibility criteria. From 31st January 2024, applications can be made online or by post. Postal applications can be completed via pen and paper or via an online tool. The application process has been significantly improved; a whole section of this guide was dedicated to notes on ambiguous and poorly worded questions on the previous version of the form.

Those accepted are often eligible to back-pay recent years which did not meet the threshold to be qualifying years. Ordinarily, back payments are limited to six years. However, until 5th April 2025 it is possible to pay voluntary contributions to make up for gaps between April 2006 and April 2016 if you’re eligible[5]. This unique opportunity to back-pay up to 18 years has arisen because of transitional arrangements surrounding the introduction of the new State Pension in 2016. These transitional arrangements had been due to end on 5th April 2023, but the deadline was extended until 31st July 2023 as described in this gov.uk press release, and explained more fully in this MoneySavingExpert article, then further extended until 5th April 2025 as explained in this 12th June 2023 gov.uk press release.

Class 2 and Class 3 voluntary contributions

There are two classes of voluntary contributions from abroad with differing eligibility criteria: Class 2 and Class 3. The weekly rates for 2024-2025 are £3.45 for Class 2 and £17.45 for Class 3. (52-week rates are £179.40 for Class 2 and £907.40 for Class 3.)

The rules regarding eligibility are subject to change, so potential applicants are encouraged to check the latest information carefully on gov.uk. However, a summary of the eligibility criteria is as below:

Voluntary Class 2 NICs from abroad: eligibility criteria
All three of the below conditions must be met:
1. You’re employed or self-employed outside the UK, and
2. You’ve lived in the UK for a continuous 3-year period at any time before the period for which NICs are to be paid[1], or before going abroad, you paid a set amount in NICs for 3 years or more (this will be checked when you ask to pay Class 2 NICs[1]), and
3. Immediately before going abroad, you were ordinarily an employed or self-employed earner in the UK.
Voluntary Class 3 NICs from abroad: eligibility criteria
One of the following conditions needs to be met:
1(a) You’ve lived in the UK for a continuous 3-year period at any time before the period for which NICs are to be paid[1], or
1(b) Before going abroad, you paid a set amount in NICs for 3 years or more, or
1(c) You've paid Class 1 contributions for the first 52 weeks of your employment abroad

Class 2 contributions are currently significantly cheaper than Class 3 contributions. Class 3 contributions are voluntary by definition, and were introduced to be the standard way for people to protect their rights to benefits when not making mandatory contributions or receiving credits. Class 2 contributions have historically been payable by a sub-set of self-employed earners, and some overseas earners also qualify to make Class 2 contributions voluntarily.

Over the last decade, there have been multiple government statements about reviewing and potentially abolishing Class 2 contributions. In a 2016 policy document to abolish Class 2 NICs (PDF) (a policy which was subsequenly withdrawn), the government noted:

At present, someone working abroad does not usually have a liability for NICs in the UK, nor do mariners on foreign vessels. However they are able to gain access to the new State Pension by paying Class 2 NICs voluntarily, whereas someone employed wholly in the UK but earning under £112 a week (and not eligible for NI credits) would have to pay Class 3 NICs if they wished to continue to gain qualifying years for the new State Pension. This means that they are currently paying much less than UK workers to gain access to the same State Pension on a voluntary basis. The government believes it is right that everyone makes a fair contribution towards the State Pension, so the facility for those working abroad (and who are not UK insured) to pay Class 2 NICs voluntarily will no longer be available after the abolition of Class 2 NICs. In the UK, all those who do not gain access to the new State Pension based on employment earnings or self-employed profits, or who do not receive NI credits, will need to pay Class 3 NICs should they wish to build qualifying years.

However, in the Autumn Statement 2023 it was announced that mandatory Class 2 contributions will be abolished, but there will remain the opportunity to make voluntary Class 2 contributions (Autumn Statement 2023: National Insurance Factsheet; emphasis added):

Those with profits under £6,725 and others who pay Class 2 NICs voluntarily to get access to contributory benefits including the State Pension, will continue to be able to do so.

The Autumn Statement 2024 reconfirms that voluntary Class 2 contributions will remain in place:

For those paying voluntarily, the government will also increase Class 2 and Class 3 NICs rates by September CPI of 1.7% in 2025-26.

Application: notes

Form CF83 (Application to pay National Insurance contributions abroad) is published by gov.uk in conjunction with NI38 Social Security Abroad. From 31st January 2024 there are facilities for online submission of the application (CF83).

The application requires a National Insurance Number (NINO), complete employment and address history since leaving the UK, and some detail of time in the UK as well. An HMRC Subject Access Request (SAR) or the HMRC app (for data from the previous five years) could be useful to establish details of the last UK employment and national insurance contributions.

Applicants select their preferred payment method at application stage: monthly direct debit, six-monthly direct debit (Class 2 only), manual payment (annually in arrears; via bank transfer or sterling cheque), or via an agent in the UK (who would himself/herself have the option to pay via direct debit or manually). Those opting to pay manually will ordinarily receive a bill around the end of each tax year.

Before sending any money for the voluntary NICs, you may be asked to confirm with the Pension Service (part of DWP) that these voluntary contributions will increase your State Pension. This can be done by phone (+44 191 2183600), and the Pension Centre will then send you a State Pension Forecast. When this forecast confirms that You can improve your forecast with voluntary contributions, this has to be communicated with HMRC. With this note on your record, your payment should then be properly allocated to your state pension record.

Neither Form CF83, Pamphlet NI38 nor indeed the underlying legislation (Regulation 147 of The Social Security (Contributions) Regulations 2001) provides further definition to the Class 2 criterion of 'immediately before going abroad, you were ordinarily an employed or self-employed earner in the UK'. Applicants for whom this is not clear cut may wish to present their case on this point in a covering letter. HMRC's thinking may be akin to the 'ordinarily resident' guidance in NI38 (consisting of written guidance and a table of indicators of likelihood of classification as 'ordinarily resident'). A long work history in the UK with a short gap to prepare for an international move should reasonably satisfy the criterion (although not actually employed immediately prior to leaving the UK, you ordinarily were). Even a more extended earning gap such as a university course might satisfy the criterion (the course is time-limited, and if your prior history supports your case, you might be considered to be ordinarily employed or self-employed despite being on a study break), but this is dependent on HMRC's interpretation.

Making payments

As described above, there are various payment methods (monthly or six-monthly direct debit; annual sterling cheque; annual bank transfer; agent). Further details for each method can be found within NI38, and on HMRC correspondence. Some basic information is provided in the table below, intended to be in a format so as to easily and readily compare the main payment options (direct debit / annual payments / agent), though there are further options for annual payments to take into consideration:

Class 2 payment methods
How you pay What you pay When you pay When payments cease
Direct debit: monthly Amount covering either 4 or 5 weeks, depending on the numbers of Sundays in the month

(there may be arrears to pay for the year in which the direct debit begins, which can either be paid by direct debit or sterling cheque)

4 months in arrears, ordinarily on or up to 3 working days after the second Friday of each month Until you cancel it (or payments lapse/fail) or until you've paid for all weeks prior to state pension age (since payments are in arrears, this will happen about 4 months after reaching state pension age); also, if you make a manual payment, HMRC might discontinue the direct debit
Direct debit: 6-monthly Amount covering either 26 or 27 weeks, depending on the number of Sundays in the 6-month period

(there may be arrears to pay for the year in which the direct debit begins, which can either be paid by direct debit or sterling cheque)

January and July Until you cancel it (or payments lapse/fail) or until you've paid for all weeks prior to state pension age (since payments are in arrears, this may happen after reaching state pension age); also, if you make a manual payment, HMRC might discontinue the direct debit
Annual payment (eg bank transfer; sterling cheque) Amount covering a full year Annually, in arrears. HMRC should send a payment request around the end of a financial year. [Payments are manual. If you do not make payments for two consecutive tax years, HMRC will stop sending correspondence on voluntary contributions.]
Agent [Agent selects direct debit or manual options]
Class 3 payment methods
How you pay What you pay When you pay When payments cease
Direct debit: monthly Amount covering either 4 or 5 weeks, depending on the numbers of Sundays in the month

(there may be arrears to pay for the year in which the direct debit begins, which can either be paid by direct debit or sterling cheque)

Monthly in arrears, ordinarily on or up to 3 working days after the second Friday of each month Until you cancel it or until you've paid for all weeks prior to state pension age (since payments are in arrears, this will happen about 4 months after reaching state pension age); also, if you make a manual payment, HMRC might discontinue the direct debit
Annual payment

(eg bank transfer; sterling cheque)

Amount covering a full year Annually, in arrears. HMRC should send a payment request around the end of a financial year. [Payments are manual. If you do not make payments for two consecutive tax years, HMRC will stop sending correspondence on voluntary contributions.]
Agent [Agent selects direct debit or manual options]

If searching for payment information online, take care to ensure information is relevant for overseas residents; often information is geared towards UK residents, yet there is a separate HMRC bank account for overseas contributors (see below), and different payment references too.

Bank transfer details for non-UK residents

There is a separate HMRC bank account for overseas residents to make contributions. Note that much of the info on gov.uk steers people towards the details for UK residents, which includes an 18-digit reference number. Overseas residents do not need an 18-digit reference number to make NICs, and their payment reference derives from their NINO and name. Please see HMRC payment instructions here for Class 2 and Class 3 (bank details are the same in both cases). For absolute clarity, the bank transfer details are provided below (and this information is ordinarily present on the correspondence HMRC sends when a payment is due):

HMRC NI Overseas Payments Bank Details
Sort Code 20 20 48
Account Number 30944793
Account Name HMRC NIC receipts
Bank identifier code (BIC) BARCGB22
IBAN GB49BARC20204830944793
Reference Use your National Insurance number followed by IC, your surname then your initial.

If your name is Anne Jones, you’d write the reference as QQ123456AICJONESA

After making a payment, it may be beneficial to communicate with HMRC confirming the payment amount and the tax year(s) it covers to ensure it is properly allocated on your record.

Sterling cheque details for non-UK residents

Instructions for making payments by cheque are the same for Class 2 and Class 3 contributors.

The instructions are for all contributors (UK resident and non-UK resident). Be sure to include all information on the instructions and ask for a receipt if you would like one.

The instructions state that if you do not have an HMRC payslip, you should either include an 18-digit reference number or your National Insurance Number (NINO). Overseas contributors will not ordinarily have an 18-digit reference number, so should include their NINO (if not in possession of an HMRC payslip).

Making back payments

Ordinarily, back payments are limited to the past 6 years. However, until 5th April 2025 it is possible to pay voluntary contributions to make up for gaps between April 2006 and April 2016 if you’re eligible[5].

Payments will be due at the current rate, except if you are paying Class 2 contributions for the previous tax year or Class 3 contributions for the previous 2 tax years, when payment will be due at the original rates for those tax years[6]. There are also provisions for payments to be at original rates for those disadvantaged through an error in the HMRC guidance between 17th November 2017 and 8th April 2019 - refer to NI38 for details.

These payments are entirely voluntary and there is no requirement to pay the maximum amount allowed; you can pay for years of your choosing on a timetable of your choosing (within the rules, and obeying any instructions in the correspondence from HMRC). It could be that different years cost different amounts for the following reasons:

  • payments for most years will be at the current rates, but payments for the previous 2 tax years may be at the original rates (see above); furthermore there are provisions for payment at the original rates for individuals disadvantaged by a specific error published in the HMRC guidance (see above)
  • you could have partially complete years, eg years in which you made some contributions but insufficient to meet the threshold of a qualifying year
  • you could have years split between Class 2 and Class 3 rates, eg if you fulfil the criteria for Class 2 but have had gaps between employment abroad, the gaps will be ineligible for Class 2 contributions and so Class 3 rates should be due for those time periods

As with any manual payments, it is highly recommended to contact HMRC to confirm the payment amount and the tax year(s) it represents to enable the contributions to be properly allocated to your national insurance record.

Reporting requirements whilst contributing

HMRC should be informed of any relevant change of circumstances, including:

  • change of address
  • change of name
  • change of employment status
  • death of a voluntary contributor

Please note that entitlement to pay Class 2 contributions is only possible if the person is gainfully employed (or self-employed) outside the UK throughout the week each payment relates to[7]. Thus, any gaps between jobs would be likely to create periods of ineligibility for Class 2 contributions.

Claiming and receiving the state pension from abroad

The state pension can be claimed by eligible individuals at any point after reaching state pension age (claims can be lodged up to 4 months in advance; claims can also be backdated up to 12 months). Those resident outside the UK should use an overseas claim form.

A state pension can be deferred, in which case it will be paid at an enhanced rate when claimed. If a pension is not claimed, deferment will be automatic; no action is required to defer it.

Recipients of the state pension resident in Japan will not have their state pension amount uprated annually; it will be 'frozen' at the level due upon reaching state pension age.

Recipients of the state pension resident in Japan will ordinarily be liable for Japanese taxes on the pension benefits, and there are ordinarily provisions in place to be exempt from paying UK income tax on such benefits.

Overseas recipients may be required to periodically complete a 'life certificate' in order to continue receiving the state pension.

If a state pension recipient does not receive the full state pension and is eligible to make voluntary contributions, there are provisions to make such contributions to increase the state pension.

Claiming the state pension from abroad

Claims from abroad can be made by phone, or by a paper application. (Since the paper application is complex and requires a signed declaration as well as supporting evidence, the phone method may well be an initial step, to be followed up with paperwork.) The International State Pension claim form for the new state pension (IPC BR1 NSP form) requests a significant amount of detail and evidence, including:

  • original birth certificate (or a photocopy signed and stamped by an individual belonging to a very restrictive list of professions)
  • address history including dates for all periods of living in the UK, and dates of any other time in the UK such as visits
  • full employment details of all time in the UK, including payroll/staff/reference numbers, and (if available) original contribution or National Insurance record cards (?) or notices that you were employed in the UK
  • original documentation regarding marital status, if applicable
  • information about living and working abroad (country(ies), dates, details of your social security reference number(s) in the overseas country(ies) and name(s) and address(es) of overseas Social Security Authority(ies))

NB As of October 2024, the International State Pension claim form for the new state pension (IPC BR1 NSP form) is a form that has remained unchanged since 2015. It is possible that this form will be updated at some point and/or some functionality to input some of the data online will exist.

The state pension can be claimed up to four months in advance. It is a good idea to claim in advance as it may take a while for your claim to be processed. A claim can be backdated for a period of up to 12 months, but not to a date before state pension age. If backdating, you will receive a lump sum, and there will be no interest paid. You do not need to provide a reason for backdating. If you claim more than 12 months after reaching state pension age, you are treated as having deferred the state pension.

Deferring the state pension

The state pension can be deferred, and the benefit amount will increase every week you defer, as long as you defer for at least 9 weeks. The state pension increases by the equivalent of 1% for every 9 weeks you defer. This works out as just under 5.8% for every 52 weeks. The extra amount is paid with your regular state pension payment. No action needs to be taken to defer the pension; until you claim it, it will be deferred.

Note that for Japan residents, even if the state pension is deferred and claimed in a tax year when the state pension has been uprated for UK residents, no uprating will apply to the Japan-resident individual. The increases due to deferral are, however, available to all.

Receiving the state pension abroad

Overseas recipients of the state pension can receive the pension either in a UK bank or building society account in GBP or in a bank in the country of residence in the local currency.

Recipients can decide whether to receive payments every 4 weeks or every 13 weeks. Payments will be sent in arrears. The initial payment may be for a slightly adjusted time period, but subsequent payments will be for exactly 4 weeks or 13 weeks. (Those whose pension is less than £5 per week will be paid once a year in December.)

The amount of the pension will not be uprated annually for recipients resident in Japan.

Uprating ('frozen' and 'unfrozen' pensions)

State pension recipients resident in the UK and in a selection of other countries will have their pension uprated annually ('unfrozen'). Those resident in countries not on the aforementioned list will not have their pension uprated annually ('frozen'). Japan falls into the 'frozen' category. Thus, a person resident in Japan reaching state pension age in 2022-2023 would have their pension ‘frozen’ at the 2022-2023 payment level. (For reference, the only Asian countries in the 'unfrozen' category are the Philippines, Israel and Turkey.)

The individual still has the option to defer the pension to increase the benefit amount as detailed above. The effect of deferring would be a simple 1% increase in benefit for every 9 weeks of deferral. Should the pension actually be claimed in 2023-2024, the new rate for 2023-2024 would not apply to this individual[8]. If an individual with a 'frozen' pension moves to the UK or another eligible country, the pension will be uprated ('unfrozen'); conversely, if an individual with an 'unfrozen' pension moves to a 'frozen' country, the pension will be 'frozen' upon change of residency.

Recipients of 'frozen' pensions remaining in Japan or other 'frozen' countries may have their pension temporarily uprated ('thawed') during visits to the UK and other eligible countries (excluding USA and Bermuda). There is also an annual £10 Christmas bonus which state pension recipients may be eligible for if visiting the UK in early December.

"Frozen overseas pensions" is a 2021 House of Commons Library Briefing Paper which summarises the history of the policy not to uprate pensions to recipients abroad unless legally required, and attempts to change the policy. The paper notes that the current policy is a longstanding which has been unamended by governments of various political persuasions for over 70 years. There is an All-Party Parliamentary Group on Frozen British Pensions which publishes information as well as lobbying for change.

Taxation of state pension benefits for Japan-resident individuals

Information concerning taxation for UK state pension recipients resident in Japan can be found on this wiki. The Japan-UK Double Taxation Convention is a complex document, but the basic principle is that primary taxation rights are assigned to the country of main residence, which in the case of Japan-resident individuals is likely to be Japan. Thus, recipients of the UK state pension resident in Japan are likely to only be subject to Japanese taxes on the pension benefits.

Form Japan 1 DT and 'Japan individual notes' should be used by Japan residents wishing to claim relief on UK income tax on income from UK pensions. Applicants may find it easier to get the Japanese National Tax Agency Office to issue a certificate of residency rather than sign and stamp Form Japan 1 DT.

Making voluntary National Insurance contributions whilst receiving the state pension

If you are already receiving the state pension but are not getting the full amount and have gaps in your National Insurance record eligible for voluntary contributions, you will be able to make voluntary contributions to increase your state pension. This MoneySavingExpert guide notes:

If you're already claiming state pension, HMRC will notify the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) that you've done so, and prompt DWP to carry out a benefit review, so your payments won't increase straightaway. However, the DWP will backdate the increase to the date you made the payment (NOT to the date you started claiming state pension).

Reporting requirements whilst receiving the state pension

The International Pension Centre should be informed of any relevant change of circumstances, including:

  • change of name
  • change of address
  • change of bank details
  • death of a state pension recipient
Life certificates

Furthermore, state pension recipients living outside of the UK may be periodically required to submit a 'life certificate' in order to confirm they are still eligible for the pension. Such a document will need a witness (PDF). Authoritative information on life certificates is limited, but in March 2023, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Laura Trott, made the following written answer:

DWP issues Life Certificates to overseas State Pension customers on a rolling 24-month cycle. Therefore, if a customer receives multiple Life Certificates in this period, when they have already completed and returned a Life Certificate, we recommend that they contact the International Pension Centre helpline on 0044 191 2187777 to ensure that we have received the completed Life Certificate for the period concerned. This will ensure that their State Pension remains in payment and is not subject to a potential temporary suspension.[9]

Summary of pension-related actions

Online access for some aspects of the state pension proves difficult for some people resident overseas. Mail and phone may prove useful. In late 2022, some Japan residents reported that the ID requirements for online access (Government Gateway account, etc) had changed favourably, eliminating some situations where some people were locked out.

The below table summarises the main actions surrounding the state pension and provides links, phone numbers and mailing addresses where known.

NB in early 2023, contacting HMRC by phone is proving extremely difficult for many as documented by MoneySavingExpert. Some RetireJapan members have reported success using +44 161 931 9070 -- see this RetireJapan discussion for further details.

Action Online Phone Post
Access national insurance record link + 44 191 203 7010 National Insurance Contributions and Employers Office

HM Revenue and Customs BX9 1AN

Determine state pension age link
Retrieve lost NINO link +44 191 203 7010 Complete Form CA5403 (fill in online then print and post) or Form CA5403 (fully paper version; PDF) together with evidence of identity and send to:

HM Revenue & Customs, National Insurance Contributions & Employer Office, National Insurance Registrations, Benton Park View, Newcastle upon Tyne NE981ZZ

Retrieve records of employment in the UK link + 44 191 203 7010 SARS/DPU

HM Revenue and Customs National Insurance Contributions Office BX9 1AN

Receive a state pension forecast link +44 191 2183600 Complete Form BR19 and send to:

Newcastle Pension Centre Futures Group The Pension Service 9 Mail Handling Site A Wolverhampton WV98 1LU

Apply for National Insurance credits link + 44 191 203 7010 Check the link carefully and follow instructions according to your circumstances. In most cases, the instructions to apply for credits which have not been automatically applied are to write to:

PT Operations North East England, HM Revenue and Customs, BX9 1AN, United Kingdom. Include your National Insurance number and say when the credits are for and why you’re eligible.

Apply to make voluntary NICs from abroad link Cannot be done by phone Complete Form CF38 and send to:

PT Operations North East England HM Revenue and Customs BX9 1AN

Pay voluntary NICs from abroad Class 2 Class 3 Follow the instructions for Class 2 or Class 3 voluntary payments by post and send a sterling cheque to the following address (making sure to include all information in the instructions):

HM Revenue and Customs National Insurance Contributions and Employer Office BX9 1AN

Claim the state pension whilst living abroad Cannot be done online The International Pension Centre: +44 (0) 191 218 7777 Complete International State Pension claim form IPC BR1 NSP and send to:

International Pension Centre The Pension Service 11 Mail Handling Site A Wolverhampton WV98 1LW

Apply for relief from UK income tax on UK state pension income while resident in Japan Cannot be done online Complete Form Japan 1 DT and send to:

HM Revenue and Customs Pay as You Earn and Self Assessment BX9 1AS

Report a change in circumstances The International Pension Centre: +44 (0) 191 218 7777 International Pension Centre

The Pension Service 11 Mail Handling Site A Wolverhampton WV98 1LW

Apply to have the state pension temporarily uprated during a visit to the UK or other eligible countries (all 'unfrozen' countries except USA and Bermuda) and/or apply for a Christmas Bonus Cannot be done online The International Pension Centre: +44 (0) 191 218 7777 International Pension Centre

The Pension Service 11 Mail Handling Site A Wolverhampton WV98 1LW

Complete a 'life certificate' Cannot be done online Cannot be done by phone Follow instructions on the certificate.
Report the death of a voluntary contributor or state pension recipient overseas The International Pension Centre: +44 (0) 191 218 7777 International Pension Centre

The Pension Service 11 Mail Handling Site A Wolverhampton WV98 1LW

Comparison between UK and Japan state pensions

UK Japan
Period of contributions 50-52 years (16-state pension age)

(50 years (16-65) for those reaching state pension age now; 52 years (16-67) for those born on or after 6th April 1978)

40 years (20-59)

(voluntary contributions possible for many from 60-64 and in limited circumstances from 65-69)

Qualifying years required to receive any benefits 10 (some exceptions) 10 (some exceptions)
Qualifying years required to receive full pension 35

(for new state pension; in some cases people who were 'contracted out' may need more qualifying years)

40

(actually, 480 months; Japanese system is based on months of coverage rather than 'qualifying years')

Qualifying years for full pension / period of contributions 70% (for those reaching state pension age now);

67% (for those born on or after 6th April 1978)

100%
State pension age Currently 66; iterating to 68 65
Voluntary contributions possible if not resident in the country? Yes, if eligible Yes, but only for Japanese citizens
Approximate full pension amount (JPY) ¥2,200,000

(for new state pension)

¥800,000 for kokumin nenkin; more for kosei nenkin (as a rule of thumb, kosei nenkin benefits will be double kokumin nenkin benefits if monthly remuneration is about ¥300,000)
Can you receive the pension before state retirement age? No Yes, can receive at a reduced rate any time from 60. At 60, the pension would be paid at 76% of the full rate.
Can the pension be deferred? Yes, indefinitely. The pension increases by 1% for every 9 weeks it is deferred. Yes, indefinitely. The pension value is 108.4% at age 66 and then increases by 0.7% for every month it is deferred, up to a maximum value of 184% at age 75.
Can the pension be received globally? Yes Yes
2021 Mercer Global Pension Grade (Index) B

(71.6)

D

(49.8)

UK state pension resources

Gov.uk

Other summaries

Further government resources

  • The Social Security (Contributions) Regulations 2001, and in particular, Case F: Residence and Persons Abroad (legislation)
  • Relevant section of the National Insurance Manual
  • https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/: a wealth of statistical information, including:
    • Japan-resident recipients of the UK state pension have risen from 234 (May 2002) to 6,763 (August 2020), an almost 3,000% increase.
    • Japan is currently one of the top 20 countries of UK state pension recipients (whether ‘frozen’ or ‘unfrozen’), ranking above Greece, Thailand and India.
    • Among the frozen pension countries and territories, Japan currently has the 5th most UK state pension recipients (following Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Africa)
  • Frozen overseas pensions (Feb 2021 House of Commons Library Briefing Paper)
  • State Pension age review (Oct 2022 House of Commons Library Research Briefing)

Notes

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 If you lived and worked in an EU, EEA country, Switzerland or Turkey, time spent there may help you to meet this condition.
  2. ↑ Individual circumstances for people with national insurance records starting before 2016 mean that some people may need 'extra' qualifying years to receive the full pension (particularly people 'contracted out'), and some people may receive more than the stated 'full state pension' (those with a 'protected payment'); see the gov.uk guide for further details.
  3. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/new-state-pension/what-youll-get
  4. ↑ 6th April to 5th April, though there is consideration to change this in the future; see https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/exploring-a-change-to-the-uk-tax-year-end-date
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 https://www.gov.uk/voluntary-national-insurance-contributions/deadlines
  6. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/voluntary-national-insurance-contributions/rates
  7. ↑ https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2001/1004/regulation/147/made
  8. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/deferring-state-pension/if-you-move-abroad
  9. ↑ https://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2023-03-09.162300.h&s=state+pension+life+certificate#g162300.r0

UK personal pensions

Former UK residents may have accumulated personal pensions during their time in the UK, including workplace pensions and Self-invested Personal Pensions (SIPPs).

Managing UK personal pensions whilst non-UK resident

UK personal pensions can be managed from Japan, but it may not be possible to make new contributions as most providers only accept contributions eligible for tax relief, and most non-residents are not eligible for tax relief. However, some non-UK residents will be classified as relevant UK individuals who are eligible for tax relief, eg those who were based in the UK in the last five years, but some providers may still have additional stipulations, such as contributions from non-UK residents are only accepted if these were set up when UK-resident, even if the individual is a relevant UK individual. Providers known to accept contributions not eligible for tax relief (ie from people outside the UK who are not relevant UK individuals) include:

  • MyExpatSIPP
  • [readers are encouraged to add to this list]

Providers should be kept up to date with your address. There may be death benefit nomination forms, which should be kept up to date too.

Transferring to new providers

It is possible to consolidate and transfer existing personal pensions with some providers whilst non-UK resident. This includes transferring a stakeholder pension into a Self-invested Personal Pension (SIPP).

Receiving benefits

Benefits can ordinarily be taken from 55 years of age. This will change to 57 from 2028 (though if your pension was set up by April 2023, the old rule of 55 may still apply)[1]. Some providers may have a maximum age (usually 75) at which the pension must be drawn.

If your life expectancy is less than a year due to serious ill health, you may be able to take the whole pension pot as a lump sum (tax free from the UK perspective).

Moneyhelper.org.uk has resources explaining the options for receiving benefits, and identifies the following 6 options:

  1. Defer
  2. Purchase an annuity
  3. Flexible retirement income (pension drawdown)
  4. Multiple lump sums
  5. Single lump sum
  6. Mixture of the above

Taxation of UK personal pensions for Japan-resident individuals

The Japan-UK Double Tax Convention makes provisions for individuals deemed resident in Japan to only pay Japanese taxes on most UK pensions. Form Japan 1 DT should be used by Japan-resident individuals wishing to claim relief from UK income tax on pension benefits. The same form covers UK personal pensions and the UK state pension.

However, UK Government, local authority and publicly funded educational institution pensions are excluded:

If you receive a pension paid by the UK for service to the UK Government or a local authority, there are special provisions in the Double Taxation Convention. Your pension from that employment will be exempt from UK tax only if you’re a national of Japan or a dual national of the UK and of Japan, as well as being resident there. If these provisions mean that your pension will be taxed in the UK, you may be able to claim UK personal allowances, provided you satisfy certain conditions.

Source: Japan individual notes

Tracing lost or forgotten pensions

It is estimated that around £20billion is sitting in lost or forgotten pension pots. The Pension Tracing Service helps to reconnect people with their pension pots.

UK savings and investments

UK-based savings and investment options are limited for Japan-resident individuals.

Individual Savings Accounts (ISAs)

You cannot open or make new contributions to an Individual Savings Account (ISA) as a non-UK resident after the tax year in which you leave the UK[2].

Existing accounts can be maintained (and a limited number of providers may allow you to transfer an existing ISA to them), but Japan does not recognise the tax-protected status of these accounts. After becoming a permanent resident for tax purposes (after 5 years of residence in Japan; see residency for tax purposes), income from these accounts are subject to Japanese taxes and should be declared on a tax return.

Japan has its own tax-advantaged accounts for residents of Japan: see NISA and iDeCo.

National Savings and Investments (NS&I)

National Savings and Investments (NS&I) doesn’t have residency restrictions for many of its accounts, but will ordinarily require a linked UK bank account.

UK bank accounts and alternatives

UK bank accounts

Options for opening or retaining UK bank accounts whilst resident in Japan may be limited. Readers are encouraged to add information.

Online accounts with UK banking credentials

Wise and Revolut offer multi-currency accounts for residents of Japan. The GBP accounts comes with a UK sort code and account number, and the multi-currency accounts come with debit card which can be used internationally.

Wise multi-currency account

What you can do:

  • have UK banking credentials (sort code + account number + bank address in UK)
  • make and receive payments, including salaries, pensions, etc.
  • convert money at 'real' rates with low fees
  • have a debit card which works internationally
  • hold money in JPY (but without Japanese banking credentials)
  • send up to 150,000,000 yen in a transaction
  • receive bank statements in English (which may be useful for various purposes)

What you cannot do:

  • as a Japan resident, hold more than 1 million yen across all currencies (and 'jars'). NB the account will accept incoming transfers which exceed this threshold, after which you have 30 days to reduce your balance to below the threshold.
  • issue or pay in cheques
  • have JPY banking credentials (you can hold a JPY balance but will not have a Japanese account number and sort code)
  • have FSCS protection

Wise publishes some Japan-specific information, guides and articles, including:

Offshore accounts

Some of the major UK high street banks have offshore accounts designed for expats. Readers are encouraged to add information.

British nationality and British citizenship

Nationality and citizenship laws are complex. This section aims to provide relevant, readable and referenced information for Japan residents, including:

British nationality

There are six types of British nationality, of which British citizenship is the most common. Details of the other five types of British nationality (British overseas territories citizen, British overseas citizen, British subject, British national (overseas) and British protected person) are perhaps beyond the scope of this article, but can be explored in more detail via the gov.uk links above and the HMPO resource below.

British nationality: resources

  • This HMPO response to an FOI request (January 2023) (PDF) states:
    • (1) how many British passports were issued for each type of nationality (using separate categories for British subject with right of abode and British subject without right of abode) in each month of 2022, and
    • (2) how many valid British passports were in circulation for each type of British nationality on 31st December 2022, which may give an indication of the ratios of each type of nationality, though of course many people could hold statuses but not valid passports, and some individuals hold more than one type of British nationality. In terms of British passports held on 31st December 2022, passports of British citizens accounted for about 98.4% of the total.

British citizenship

British citizenship can be acquired automatically (eg by birth or adoption) or otherwise (eg by naturalisation or registration).

Gov.uk provides a tool to check if an individual has British citizenship.

British citizens have the right of abode in the UK[3]. A British passport stating 'British citizen' is proof of right of abode; a Certificate of Entitlement to Right of Abode in the United Kingdom can be applied for by British citizens who do not possess British passports, though a British passport is significantly cheaper.

British citizen by descent, and British citizen otherwise than by descent

A British citizen is either a British citizen by descent or a British citizen otherwise than by descent. There is no difference between these two classifications except the automatic ability to pass on British citizenship to their children born overseas.

British citizen otherwise than by descent

A British citizen otherwise than by descent is someone who can pass their citizenship onto a child born overseas. Generally speaking, a British citizen otherwise than by descent is a British citizen who was born, adopted, naturalised or (in some cases) registered in the United Kingdom or a qualifying territory or to a parent working for the crown overseas.

British citizen by descent

A British citizen by descent cannot normally pass on their British citizenship to a child born outside the UK and qualifying territories (unless working for the crown overseas). One large class of British citizens by descent are children born outside the UK to one parent who was a British citizen otherwise than by descent.

British citizen by descent or otherwise: further reading

This six-page government summary provides further detail in a readable format.

The text of the underpinning legislation can be accessed here:

Children of British citizens

Below is a summary of the British citizenship status of children in four scenarios (considering whether the parent is a British citizen by descent or otherwise, and whether the child is born in the UK or overseas):

Parent →

Child ↓

British citizen otherwise than by descent

(eg born, adopted, naturalised in the UK or qualifying territories, or to a parent working for the crown overseas)

British citizen by descent

(eg born overseas, excluding qualifying territories, and excluding to a parent working for the crown overseas)

Born in UK

(or a qualifying territory, or to a parent working for the crown overseas)

British citizen otherwise than by descent British citizen otherwise than by descent
Born overseas

(excluding qualifying territories, and excluding to a parent working for the crown overseas)

British citizen by descent

unless:

  • child born before 1 January 1983 and only mother was a British citizen
  • child born before 1 January 2006 and British father not married to the child's mother at the time of birth

(in the case of these exceptions, the child is not automatically a British citizen, but registration as a British citizen will normally be possible)

Not automatically a British citizen

(registration of the child as a British citizen might be possible if eligibility requirements are met)

Broadly speaking, British citizens are able to pass on their citizenship whilst abroad for one generation. The subsequent generation of children will not automatically have British citizenship if they are also born abroad. They may, however, be eligible for registration as British citizens, which is a less arduous process than naturalisation. However, it is important to note the exceptions to automatic transmission of British citizenship listed in bullet points in the table above, and detailed more fully in the registration section.

Children of British citizens by descent

British citizens by descent cannot always pass on British citizenship automatically to their children. However, there are a number of cases whereby their child(ren) could automatically be British citizens upon birth or could be registered as British citizens as minors, including:

Section of the British Nationality Act 1981 under which the child has a claim to British citizenship Brief description of the eligibility criteria Automatically a British citizen? If registration is required, is the route to British citizenship an 'entitlement' or a 'discretion'[4] British citizen by descent or British citizen otherwise than by descent
Section 1(1) Child born in the UK Yes N/A British citizen otherwise than by descent
Section 2(1) Child's other parent is a British citizen otherwise than by descent; child is born overseas (in this case, the child's British citizenship derives from the child's other parent) Yes N/A British citizen by descent
Section 3(2) The British citizen by descent spends three or more years in the UK at any time prior to the birth of his/her child (overseas) and one or both of his/her parents were British citizens otherwise than by descent; other parent is not a British citizen otherwise than by descent; application for registration is made while the child is a minor[5] No

(registration required before the child is 18)

Entitlement British citizen by descent
Section 3(5) The British citizen by descent, the child (born overseas), and the other parent (unless death or divorce prevent this) spend three years in the UK immediately prior to application for registration while the child is a minor[5], and both parents (if possible) consent to the application; other parent is not a British citizen otherwise than by descent No

(registration required before the child is 18)

Entitlement British citizen otherwise than by descent[6]

Children adopted by a British citizen overseas are sometimes eligible for registration as British citizens via Section 3(1). However, adoptions in Japan will not be eligible, because Japan does not appear on any of the following lists[7]:

Registration as a British citizen

Section 3: registration of a minor as a British citizen

Registration of a minor as a British Citizen is available in cases as discussed above, including:

  • Section 3(2): a British citizen by descent spends three or more years in the UK at any time prior to the birth of his/her child and one or both of his/her parents were British citizens otherwise than descent, the child (born overseas) should have entitlement to be registered as a British citizen provided he/she is a minor[5] at the time of registration
  • Section 3(5): a British citizen by descent, his/her child (born overseas), and the other parent (unless death or divorce prevent this) spend three years in the UK immediately prior to application for registration while the child is a minor[5], and both parents (if possible) consent to the application

Section 3(2) registrations give the child British citizenship by descent, whereas Section 3(5) registrations give the child British citizenship otherwise than by descent. In cases where an application for registration by Section 3(2) is made prior to a child's 15th birthday (ie in cases where it would still be possible for the child and parent(s) to live in the UK for three years before the child reaches 18 and apply via Section 3(5)), there are two checkboxes on the application form to state you are aware of the implications of this and want to proceed anyway.

Section 3(2) and Section 3(5) both have three-year rules. The below table examines who these rules apply to, the deadlines, and the wording of the legislation:

Section 3(2) and Section 3(5): summary of the three-year rules
Who the three-year rule applies to When must the three-year stay be completed Wording of the three-year rule
Section 3(2) The British citizen by descent Before the birth of the child as regards some period of three years ending with a date not later than the date of the birth:

(i) the parent in question was in the United Kingdom (or a qualifying territory) at the beginning of that period; and

(ii) the number of days on which the parent in question was absent from the United Kingdom (and the qualifying territories) in that period does not exceed 270.

Thus, a period of less than three years but with fewer than 270 days of absence might satisfy this condition

Section 3(5) The British citizen by descent and

the other parent (if possible) and the child

Before application for registration, which must occur before the child is 18 that person and his father and mother were in the United Kingdom (or a qualifying territory) at the beginning of the period of three years ending with the date of the application and that, in the case of each of them, the number of days on which the person in question was absent from the United Kingdom (and the qualifying territories) in that period does not exceed 270

Registration of a minor via Section 3 involves an application and a fee of £1,214 from 6th April 2024 (unless a fee waiver is applied for and granted). Guidance for the application should be followed in full, as part of the application form requires you to confirm you have understood the guidance. Ordinarily, two referees are required. Should a minor turn 18 before approval, a citizenship ceremony and the corresponding fee is required (£130 from 6th April 2024).

Registration under Section 3 is not possible for adults.

Section 4 (applicable to adults and minors)

Section 4 allows registration for adults and minors in certain circumstances.

Possibly of most relevance to the intended readership of the wiki is the legislation which allows registration for people who were previously excluded British citizenship due to unequal legal provision between the transmissibility of citizenship from father and mother, and unequal treatment depending on a parent's marital status. More specifically:

  • Before 1 January 1983 British women were not able to pass on citizenship to children born outside the UK in the same way as British men. Children born before 1 January 1983 to British mothers can apply for registration as a British citizen under Section 4C of the British Nationality Act 1981. They will normally qualify if they would have become British citizens automatically under that Act had women been able to pass on citizenship in the same way as men. Form UKM and the guidance should be used.
  • Before 1 July 2006 a British man could not pass on citizenship to a child born outside the UK if he was not married to the child’s mother. Similarly, a child born between 1 January 1983 and 30 June 2006 in the UK to a settled or British citizen father might not have become a British citizen if the parents were not married. Children born to unmarried British or settled fathers can apply for registration as a British citizen under sections 4G – 4I of the British Nationality Act 1981. They will normally qualify if they would have become British citizens automatically under that Act had their parents been married. The application form (Form UKF) and guidance can be found here.
  • A child born on or after 1 July 2006 to a British father whose mother was married to someone other than the natural father has entitlement to registration as a British citizen provided they would have become British citizens automatically had their (natural) father been married to their mother, and are of good character. The application form (Form UKF(M)) and guidance can be found here.

Gov.uk guidance can be found here.

Applications for registration via Sections 4C, 4G, 4H, 4I should be made as below:

  • Form UKM (born before 1983 to a British mother)
  • Form UKF (born before 1 July 2006 to a British father and your parents were not married)
  • Form UKF(M) (born on or after July 2006 and your mother was married to someone other than your natural father)

Adult applications only cost £80, which is the cost of the citizenship ceremony. Child application fees are not stated on the fees page, but are presumed to be free (given that adult application fees only cover the cost of the citizenship ceremony, and children do not undertake citizenship ceremonies) unless the child turns 18 prior to approval, in which case a citizenship ceremony and the corresponding fee is required.

Other sub-sections of Section 4 deal with rules for British overseas territories citizens, etc., not elaborated on in this article.

Registration certificate

An example of a registration certificate can be found here.

Naturalisation as a British citizen

Individuals wishing to naturalise as a British citizen should check the gov.uk guidance carefully, as eligibility criteria are dependent on circumstances.

A summary of conditions for two main routes to naturalisation are shown below:

Route to naturalisation Summary of specific conditions Link Summary of general conditions
Spouse or civil partner of a British citizen
  • have lived in the UK for the last 3 years and can prove you were in the UK exactly 3 years before the application
  • either have IDL or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme or indefinite leave to enter the UK
 link
Indefinite Leave to Remain (IDL) or Settled Status
  • lived in the UK for 5 years and can prove you were in the UK exactly 5 years before the application
  • held one of the following statuses for 12 months: IDL or settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme or indefinite leave to enter the UK
  • intend to continue living in the UK
 link

An example of a naturalisation certificate can be found here.

Citizenship ceremonies

Persons aged 18 or over who have successfully applied to become British citizens are required to attend a citizenship ceremony (including those who turn 18 before their application is accepted). The fee for the ceremony is ordinarily included in the application fee, but those who turn 18 before their application is accepted may have to pay the fee separately.

People residing outside the United Kingdom can elect to have their British citizenship ceremony at a British embassy or consulate in their country of residence. Between 2017 and 2020 (inclusive) there were 6 British citizenship ceremonies conducted in Japan[9].

Renunciation and resumption of British citizenship

British nationals who wish to naturalise as Japanese, and people who possess both British and Japanese nationalities (a large sub-set of whom would be offspring of British and Japanese nationals aged below 20 years of age) and who wish to retain their Japanese nationality when their deadline for their choice of nationality approaches, may wish to renounce their British nationality in order to comply with Japanese nationality law.

Applicants must be aged 18 or over. Online applications are encouraged, but applicants may wish to consult the paper application form to see the questions in their entirety before entering data online on a page by page basis. The guidance and fee information should also be consulted.

If an application is successful, a certificate of renunciation will be received. If a successful applicant doesn’t already have Japanese citizenship, he or she will have six months to gain citizenship, otherwise the British renunciation will be invalid.

You have a right (once only) to be registered as a British citizen if you previously renounced British citizenship in order to keep or acquire another citizenship (resumption). Further instances are at the discretion of the Home Secretary.

The British Nationality Act 1981 provides the legal framework for Renunciation (Section 12) and Resumption (Section 13).

Deprivation of British citizenship

The Home Secretary has the power to take away a person’s British citizenship if they consider it conducive to the public good, or if the person obtained their citizenship by fraud. This cannot ordinarily happen if such a move would render an individual stateless or unable to acquire another citizenship. Section 40 of the British Nationality Act 1981 is the relevant legislation. A related measure is the withdrawal of a British passport, but such a measure does not affect the individual's citizenship. Deprivation of British citizenship and withdrawal of passports is a comprehensive House of Commons Library report published in January 2023.

Considerations with Japanese nationality law

Japanese nationality law has some aspects which might affect British citizens or those considering becoming British citizens. These include:

Summary of applications relating to British citizenship mentioned above

Action Section of British Nationality Act 1981 Online application Paper application form Guidance Cost[10] Notes
Naturalisation Section 6 link AN AN guidance £1,330
Registration of child (S3) Section 3 link MN1 MN1 guidance £1,012 £80 extra for those who turn 18 before acceptance; this extra is for the citizenship ceremony
Registration of child/adult (S4C-I) Section 4C-I

Section 4C

Section 4E

Section 4F

Section 4G

Section 4H

Section 4I

link (UKM) (born before 1983 to a British mother)

link (UKF) (born before 1 July 2006 to a British father and your parents were not married)

UKF(M): online application not found; (born on or after July 2006 and your mother was married to someone other than your natural father)

UKM (born before 1983 to a British mother)

UKF (born before 1 July 2006 to a British father and your parents were not married)

UKF(M) (born on or after July 2006 and your mother was married to someone other than your natural father)

UKM guidanceUKF guidanceUKF(M) guidance £0/£80 £80 for adult applicants and those who turn 18 before acceptance; the cost is for the citizenship ceremony
Renunciation of British citizenship Section 12 link RN RN guidance £372
Resumption of British citizenship Section 13 (Online application not found) RS1 RS1 guidance £1,206

British citizenship: resources

  • Citizenship: Detailed Data Tables (Immigration System Statistics, year ending Dec 2022) The above resource includes the following datasets in Excel sheets:
    • Cit_D01: Applications for British citizenship, by application type and nationality
    • Cit_D02: Grants of British citizenship, by application type, nationality, sex and age
    • Cit_D03: British citizenship ceremonies attended, by local authority
      • In 2022, 54 Japanese nationals naturalised as British citizens and 21 Japanese nationals registered as British citizens
      • There were 0 British citizenship ceremonies conducted at the British Embassy in Tokyo in 2020, 1 in 2019, 2 in 2018 and 3 in 2017; 2005 has the highest number of citizenship ceremonies in Japan in the data set with 17 (10 at the British Embassy in Tokyo and 7 at the British Consulate General in Osaka)

British passports

The front cover of a British passport

The British passport is ranked 5th in the Guide Passport Ranking Index 2024, based on the 'degree of global entry' the passport affords. (The Japanese passport is ranked 3rd.)

This guide covers multiple aspects of British passports (and Emergency Travel Documents) relevant to Japan residents, including:

Applying for a British passport whilst resident in Japan

British nationals resident in Japan who require the issuance, replacement or renewal of a British passport should apply as overseas applicants. Overseas passport applicants can apply online or by post, with online applications being cheaper. The overseas application fee is higher and the processing time is generally longer[11] than for UK-based applications because it can be more difficult to assess overseas applications. British passports are issued from HM Passport Office (HMPO) in the UK and are delivered overseas by courier.

There are a couple of special cases of applications to note:

  • Multiple passport applications within a family or couple have special rules; each application will need its own reference number but supporting documents can be sent together, and the same document can in some cases be used to support multiple applications
  • Additional British passports may be issued upon application to those who apply for reasons including frequent travellers and people travelling to "incompatible countries".

Japan-resident applicants should be warned that:

  • some of the general gov.uk passport information does not apply to overseas applications
  • the main gov.uk page for overseas passport applications invites readers to "get the forms, prices and application details you need if you’re a British national and you want to renew or apply for a British passport from overseas". However, the page does not contain any links to the paper application form, and is essentially a tool to start an online application.
  • there are different groups of countries, yet it is not clear that the current membership of each groups is published (readers are invited to share details if they find this information). Japan is in Group 1, as confirmed by the HMPO electronic query service.
  • overseas applications for a child's first UK passport might need to include birth certificates and marriage certificates (if applicable) of the child's grandparents if the child's parent(s) were born on or after 1st January 1983 (see supporting documents, Table D)
  • In July 2024, HMPO published a Japan "Knowledge Base". This is intended for staff use but contains potentially useful information to Japan-based applicants, including a section on documents. However, even at Version 5.0, the Japan Knowledge Base has multiple deficiencies.

Online applications

The online application requires basic information to determine the type of passport application, then a photo before proceeding to the questions which are presented on a screen-by-screen basis without an option to see the whole set of questions. Therefore, online applicants may wish to consult the paper application form, guidance, and supporting documents before proceeding with the online application, though should read the italicised note below and do their own due diligence to check that any guidance applies to online applications.

The guidance document states that it supports the 'OS application form' (the paper form for overseas applications), and some of the information (eg "write in capitals in black ink") is clearly geared towards the paper form. The supporting documents pamphlet does not state it is to support any particular application method.

Many online applications will require a digital referee, with a notable exception being adult passport renewals where no details have changed and with the likeness of the applicant still being recognisable from the previous passport.

Warning: the main gov.uk resource for digital referees only provides information relevant to UK applicants, which appears to be a big oversight, given that almost half a million overseas passport applications are made per year.

A link provided during the online application includes details for both UK and overseas applicants and should be referenced instead of the link in italics above.

Also, Confirming identity: countersignatories and digital referees (HMPO caseworker guidance) gives the full rules and explains the identity confirmation process in more detail. For overseas applicants, the basic eligibility criteria are:

  • at least 18 years of age
  • have a British, EU, US or Commonwealth passport (NB UK applicants can only use British passport holders who are UK resident, or Irish passport holders if confirming identity via the offline method)
  • be working in or retired from a recognised list of professions and/or be of 'good standing in the community' (there are some discrepancies in the wording between different gov.uk sources)

It is possible for the digital referee to complete the identity checks offline via a 1-page countersignatory form in some circumstances.

Postal applications

Applicants should complete the paper application form, referring to the guidance, and supporting documents.

Countersignatures will be needed in many cases (with a major exception being simple renewal of an adult passport with no changes and with the likeness of the applicant being still recognisable from the previous passport); details and rules are found in the gov.uk countersigning link, on pages 12-13 of the guidance and in Confirming identity: countersignatories and digital referees (HMPO caseworker guidance). Note that for overseas applicants countersignatories can be holders of current British, Irish, EU, US or Commonwealth passports, whereas UK applicants must use countersignatories who hold current British or Irish passports. (Uncancelled but expired British passports may be acceptable as below although two differing parts of gov.uk word things differently; other passports should be currently valid.)

  • The gov.uk countersigning link states that overseas applications will be more swiftly processed if British or Irish countersignatories are used. It does not mention a preference between these two options. However, see below:
  • The HMPO caseworker guidance on confirming identity states that the order of preference of citizenship of countersignatory is British, Irish, EU, US, Commonwealth (and it states in the notes on discretion that exceptionally other passport holders could act as countersignatories)

Furthermore, there's another discrepancy:

  • The gov.uk countersigning link states that a British countersignatory must hold a current British passport
  • The HMPO caseworker guidance on confirming identity states that "an uncancelled British passport (this can be a current or expired passport that has not been replaced)" is permissible.

There appears to be a discrepancy in information regarding supporting documents between the paper application form and the supporting documents guidance, which could be relevant for dual nationals who hold non-British passports:

Paper application form; Section 3B You must send us all uncancelled passports with the application.
Supporting documents Uncancelled non-British passports: Please send us a colour photocopy of your non-British passport (every page including blank pages). We retain the right to ask for the original passport. We will let you know by email or post if we need you to send it to us.

That's quite a difference. Having to surrender the actual non-British passport(s) for an extended period (as the paper application suggests) could be significantly more burdensome than supplying colour photocopies.

General notes

  • it is possible to make minor changes to your name on your passport, eg deleting middle names. Individuals running into repeated name issues in Japan might consider this, though it could cause problems as well as solving some. See the below note, too.
  • if you hold any non-British passports and are applying for a British passport, the name and gender on your British passport must match that on your non-British passport(s)[12]
  • a consular birth registration certificate cannot be used as a birth certificate; a translated version of the locally issued birth certificate must be used
  • you are free to renew your passport at any time (unlike undamaged Japanese passports which cannot ordinarily be renewed unless details have changed or there is less than one year of validity remaining or three or fewer blank pages remaining)
  • since 10th September 2018, any remaining validity on an unexpired passport will not be transferred to the new passport. This is to "meet international guidelines relating to maximum passport validity".[13] Holders of British passports issued prior to 10th September 2018 may have passports with a validity of up to 10 years and 9 months. Some countries do not allow entry to holders of passports issued more than 10 years ago, and passport holders should do their own due diligence.
  • www.passportwaitingtime.co.uk is a crowdsourced website giving statistics of recent processing times, categorised by application type and passport office, and the site also hosts a forum with passport-related questions.

Fees for overseas passport applications

From 11th April 2024, the fees for overseas applications are as follows:

Child passport

(5 years duration; available to children under 16)

Adult passport

(10 years duration; available to individuals aged 16 or older[14])

Online application Standard (34-page) £65.50 £101
Frequent traveller (50-page) £Not published on main site £Not published on main site
Postal application Standard (34-page) £77.50 £112.50
Frequent traveller (50-page) £Not published on main site £Not published on main site

Notes:

  • The fee is waived in full for individuals born on or before 2nd September 1929 for a standard 34-page passport (full fee due for frequent traveller passport)
  • The fee is higher for overseas applicants than UK-based applicants because it can be more difficult to establish whether an overseas applicant is entitled to a UK passport[15]
  • Overseas residents cannot avoid the higher fee for overseas applications by applying in the UK by post or online[15]
  • A mandatory courier fee (£19.86 to overseas addresses as of April 2023) will apply in addition to the passport fee

Applying for a British passport whilst visiting the UK

Applicants wishing to apply for a British passport as an overseas resident while visiting the UK should follow this process.

Multiple passport applications within a family or couple

Multiple passport applications within a family or couple may be sent together, which might negate the need for applicants to supply multiple copies of the same supporting documents. The link provides full guidance, including the following important points:

  • if each person has been given a different address (ie different passport office), you can send all applications in one envelope to one of the addresses
  • all application references must be written on the envelope above the address

Additional British passports

It is possible to apply for additional British passports, for reasons including frequent travellers and those travelling to "incompatible countries".

There appears to be no customer-facing guidance; the above link is the HMPO caseworker guidance, which states "the additional passport service is not widely promoted and there is no separate service type on the passport issuing system for processing these."

Reporting a lost or stolen British passport

You can report and cancel a lost or stolen passport online.

However, an application for an Emergency Travel Document (ETD) automatically counts as the reporting and cancelling of the lost or stolen passport; this does not need to be done separately.

This 2018 government press release gives further information and statistics about the importance of cancelling the passport as soon as possible to minimise the risk of identity fraud.

Reporting the death of a British passport holder and cancelling the passport

Follow this guide (including Form D1) to send a deceased British citizen's passport back to HMPO.

Withdrawal or withholding of British passports

British passports are issued at the discretion of the Home Secretary under the Royal Prerogative (an executive power which does not require legislation). They can be withdrawn or withheld using the same discretionary power. Withdrawal of passports is not the same as withdrawing citizenship. Someone whose passport is withdrawn remains a British citizen but their overseas travel is restricted. Home Office policy states this will be done “sparingly”, such as where the person intends to travel abroad to engage in terrorism.

Source: Deprivation of British citizenship and withdrawal of passports (House of Commons Library, January 2023)

British passports: advice and complaints

Contact details for HMPO include phone, post and an online enquiry form. HMPO also publishes its complaints procedure.

Those wishing to make a complaint may wish to research HM Passport Office: passports policies (a set of publications intended for use for HMPO caseworkers but published for transparency; comprehensive guide to multiple facets of passports policies), eg:

HMPO data subject rights request

It is possible to request all of the information that HMPO holds about you. Such information is available free of charge. An HMPO data subject rights request could therefore be a cheap way of obtaining official record of former names, if required for any purposes.

Emergency Travel Document (ETD)

An Emergency Travel Document (ETD) can be issued rapidly to a British national outside the UK in limited circumstances, eg if a British passport is lost, stolen, damaged, full, or with HMPO or a foreign embassy or consulate ahead of imminent travel. The ETD will allow travel to a destination country, transiting a maximum of 5 countries, and a return to the country of issuance is permissible if the applicant lives in that country. Travel plans (countries and dates) are printed on the ETD, and no changes to the itinerary are permitted. A non-refundable fee of £100 is required upon application (correct as of November 2024). Gov.uk provides a tool to check whether countries will accept ETDs for travel. The gov.uk site suggests that in straightforward cases, an ETD should be ready in 2 working days. An interview at the embassy or consulate may be required. In the case of a lost or stolen passport, an application for an ETD automatically counts as the reporting and cancelling of the lost or stolen passport; this does not need to be done separately.

Emergency Travel Document (ETD) resources

  • What to do if you lose your British passport abroad (2019 Freemovement.org.uk blog by a UK immigration and nationality solicitor who went through the process of obtaining and using an ETD himself following the loss of his passport in Greece; clear and comprehensive write-up)
  • Government data suggests that between 150 and 200 ETDs were issued in Japan in 2019[16].

British passports: resources

Voting and representation

British citizens aged 18 and above who are resident outside the UK are usually[17] eligible to vote in UK Parliament Elections and some referendums provided they were either:

  1. previously registered to vote in the UK; or
  2. previously resident in the UK.

They are known as overseas electors.

Overseas electors wishing to register should do so in the constituency containing their address of most recent registration or residency (if not previously registered).

Some applicants may be able to register online in minutes by providing their basic details including their National Insurance number (if lost or forgotten, there are methods to retrieve it). Other applicants may need to submit documentation demonstrating their previous registration or residence and/or their identity and nationality. Such documents may include passport, driving license, bank statements, P45/P60, etc. Should an applicant be unable to satisfy the electoral officer via documentation, it may be possible for a registered voter to attest the applicant.

Registration is valid for three years. Renewal is usually possible online. Should your name, address or nationality change, you should re-register (or de-register if your nationality renders you ineligible to vote).

Voting as an overseas elector is possible in person, by post or by proxy. The Electoral Commission recommends considering proxy voting.

The Elections Act 2022 and the related statutory instrument provide details of the changes which were enacted on 16th January 2024. Briefly:

  • Eligibility for registration simplified to those previously registered to vote in the UK or previously resident in the UK. (This eliminated the situation whereby some people were disenfranchised due to the choices of their parents or guardians: under the previous rules, those who move abroad as children were only able to register to vote if a parent/guardian was registered to vote.)
  • Overseas electors will have 'votes for life'; the previous 15-year rule was abolished
  • Registration renewal is now every three years (rather than the previous policy of annual renewal)

Resources providing further detail about the new policies include:

The Labour Party Manifesto 2024 included a statement to change the voting age to 16. The Labour Party formed a government on 5th July 2024 but it is anticipated that legislative change will take time. This November 2020 House of Commons Library Briefing Paper entitled 'Voting age' (published during the Conservative government of Boris Johnson) gives background on the topic including a summary of all parliamentary debate on the topic since 2000, which parties support the call to change the voting age to 16 (spolier alert: almost all parties except Conservative), how voting at 16 works in Scotland, and Wales, the number of 16- and 17-year-olds in the UK, the situation in the Isle of Man and Jersery, and wider international comparisons.

Registering before turning 18 (attainers)

Eligible individuals may be able to register to vote up to two years before turning 18 and are sometimes known as 'attainers'. Such attainers are able to vote in any eligible elections on or after their 18th birthday.

Registering and voting in England, Wales and Scotland

Potential electors can register to vote online. Alternatively, select the relevant application form, complete and post to your Electoral Registration Officer whose address can be found via www.electoralcommission.org.uk.

Within the registration process, you will ordinarily be asked for your preferred voting method (in person, proxy, or by post). The Electoral Commission recommends that overseas voters should consider appointing a proxy to vote on their behalf because of the short period available for ballots to be sent and returned from overseas during an election[18].

You can find and contact your local Electoral Registration Office online.

Registering and voting in Northern Ireland

Those applying to register as an overseas elector in Northern Ireland should use the Northern Ireland overseas elector registration form.

  • Voting by proxy is possible, and an applicant should complete an application form. Note that a reason for the proxy vote (disability, employment or education) needs to be given, and this requirement could potentially disenfranchise applicants as they may not be disabled, employed or engaged in education, but simply living abroad (retired, perhaps).
  • Voting by post is not possible for overseas electors[19].

You can contact the Electoral Office for Northern Ireland by various methods as described in the link.

Representation

The MP for your registered constituency will be your representative in parliament.

You can contact your MP via email or letter.

Most MPs receive a high volume of communication and many will only respond to constituents, and some have an auto-reply stating that they will only respond if you confirm your address. In the case of overseas voters, it might be worth concisely but clearly stating your ties, eg "I am contacting you as a registered overseas voter in your constituency (my address is XXX Japan; until January 20XX I was registered to vote with a postcode of XXX YYY)."

Voting and representation resources

Driving licences

Exchanging a GB or NI licence for a Japanese licence

It is possible to use a valid GB or NI driving licence to apply for a Japanese driving licence without taking a practical driving test. One of the requirements is at least three months of residence in the UK since the licence was issued. Acceptable proof of this may vary on a case by case basis.

Status of an "exchanged" GB licence

Whether the process is an "exchange" is a grey area. The situation seems to be that from the British perspective it's an exchange, whereas from the Japanese perspective the GB licence simply grants eligibility for the Japanese license. This is reflected in the fact that a GB licence cannot be renewed as a non-GB resident, but a Japanese one can be renewed as a non-JP resident (Japanese link) Also, in the reverse process when converting a JP to a GB licence, DVLA sends the Japanese licence to the Japanese embassy, but the Japanese embassy returns it to the holder.

The following correspondence was received from DVLA in response to a query regarding the exchange process:

if any GB driving licence is exchanged for another country, that country's licensing authority will contact us and return the GB licence to us. This will then induce a marker to be put on the GB licence record and makes the licence invalid.

However, it seems that Japan only uses the GB licence as documentary evidence for the Japanese licence application and returns it to the holder without informing DVLA that a Japanese licence was issued on the strength of the GB licence. The following is a DVLA response to a query regarding a renewal letter received for a GB licence that was supposedly exchanged for a JP one:

If you are still resident in Japan then you would not be able to make any applications for a GB licence. If you now have a Japanese licence we would be grateful if you would return your GB licence to us with a covering letter advising us of this so that we can update our records. Should you return to the UK you can reapply for your GB licence at any time, free of charge.

The advice above about the replacement being free of charge contradicts the information from the pamphlet INS57P, which states (Page 14):

If you return here from a country that is not in the European Union/European Economic Area (EU or EEA) and you do not have a GB licence, you may […] apply for a replacement of your previous GB licence by paying the appropriate fee"[20]

As JP licences are valid for driving in the UK for up to a year, it may be prudent for non-GB residents to return their GB licence to DVLA, at least before the photocard is due to expire, to avoid renewal letters (with threats of fines) being sent to the registered address.

Notes on GB licences whilst non-resident

It can be difficult to find authoritative information on the status of GB licences for non residents. Some considerations are:

  • DVLA must be informed of change of personal details including change of address (and there can be a fine of up to £1,000 for non compliance)[21]... yet only a GB address can be included on a GB licence.
  • A GB licence cannot be renewed whilst not resident in GB (see previous section).
  • Non-residents (and recent arrivals to GB) cannot apply for GB licences, eg a British citizen resident abroad cannot simply book and take a GB driving test on a visit or short period of residency in Great Britain.

Some resources are:

  • INS57P[20]: a DVLA guide published on gov.uk, and updated multiple times since original publication

Driving in the UK as a resident of Japan

For information about driving in GB and NI as a Japan resident, see #Driving in GB and NI as a resident of Japan.

Tax and HMRC

Tax can be complex. Japan-based former UK residents or Japan-based individuals with income from the UK may have reporting requirements to HMRC. Gov.uk publishes a guide on Living or working abroad or offshore: detailed information with links to forms and guidance. This section provides information including:

Japan-UK Double Taxation Convention

The Japan-UK Double Taxation Convention exists to minimise the effects of being doubly taxed by Japan and the UK, and to prevent tax evasion.

Broadly speaking, the convention uses rules to determine a centre of residence (Japan or UK) for an individual or entity, and that centre of residence then has primary taxation rights, though there are exceptions to this. It is likely, though by no means certain, that Japan will be the deemed centre of residence of the intended readership of this article.

HMRC forms

Should the Japan-UK Double Tax Convention mean that an individual, company or entity is entitled to claim relief at source and/or repayment of UK taxes, the following HMRC forms should be used. Each link contains the official guidance as well as the form.

  • Form Japan-1-DT is for use by an individual resident in Japan receiving pensions, interest or royalties arising in the UK to apply for relief from UK income tax.
  • Form Japan-2-DT is for use by a company or concern resident in Japan receiving interest or royalties arising in the UK to apply for relief from UK income tax. (Do not use this form to claim exemption from UK tax on interest under Article 11(3) of the Double Taxation Convention. Use form Japan-3-DT.)
  • Form Japan-3-DT is for use by an entity identified in Article 11(3) of the Double Taxation Convention to apply for exemption from UK income tax on interest.
  • Form Japan-4-DT is for use by a company or concern resident in Japan to claim repayment of UK income tax deducted from property income dividends paid by UK Real Estate Investment Trusts (‘UK-REITs’).
  • Form UK REIT-DT-Individual is for use by an individual resident in a country with which the UK has a double tax treaty or convention that provides for relief from UK income tax on dividends paid by UK Real Estate Investment Trusts (‘UK-REITs’).

Certificate of residency

Your local Japanese tax office can supply a bilingual certificate of residency (PDF) for the purposes of claiming double tax convention benefits. It may prove to be much easier to get the Japanese tax office to issue this rather than signing and stamping a section on one of the above monolingual HMRC forms.

Personal experience is that it was relatively quick and straightforward to gain a refund from HMRC on doubly taxed royalties (Form Japan-1-DT), but it is proving a long-running saga for HMRC to issue tax exemption certificates which would prevent my UK payers of royalties from withholding UK income tax in the first place. The tax residency certificate worked in place of the Japanese tax office stamping and signing the HMRC form.

Claiming UK personal allowances and/or tax repayments overseas

The UK has a standard personal allowance (amount of UK income on which no UK income tax is due) of £12,570 (from 6th April 2024 to 5th April 2025), which may be larger if additional allowances are included (Blind person's allowance; marriage allowance) or smaller if income thresholds are exceeded.

Eligible individuals residing overseas are entitled to claim UK personal allowances and tax repayments and should do so via Form R43 (link includes guidance notes). Eligible individuals include British citizens and EEA citizens resident outside the UK (under condition 3a in the guidance notes linked above) and Japanese nationals resident in Japan (condition 3i). If Japanese nationals resident in Japan are claiming, they need to provide a copy of their Japanese passport and you "a certificate from the tax authority of your country of residence stating that you’re resident there for tax purposes for the period of your claim" (quoted from the guidance notes). This NTA certificate of residence in Japan (for purposes other than the application of tax treaties) may fulfil this requirement, though the purpose would have to specified under "Other" on the form, and the form would only prove the tax residency at the time of issuance rather than for the "period of your claim" which HMRC refers to.

Submitting a UK tax return from overseas

You cannot use HMRC’s online services to tell them about your income if you’re non-resident. Instead, you must do one of the following:

  • fill in a Self Assessment tax return and an SA109 form and send by post
  • use commercial Self Assessment software that supports SA109 reporting (this may appear as a ‘residence, remittance basis etc’ section)
  • get a tax professional to report your UK income for you

Source: https://www.gov.uk/tax-uk-income-live-abroad

HMRC app

The HMRC app allows individuals to access a range of information and services on their smartphone. This includes, but is not limited to:

  • confirming your National Insurance Number (NINO)
  • confirming your Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) for Self Assessment
  • checking your employment and earning history from the last 5 years
  • checking your state pension forecast
  • checking any gaps in your National Insurance record
  • updating your name and/or address

HMRC Subject Access Request (SAR)

Individuals have the right to make a Subject Access Request (SAR) with HMRC. This allows the individual to access information HMRC holds on them, and a request could include:

  • employment history
  • record of earnings
  • tax paid
  • National Insurance Contributions paid
  • benefits received
  • record of written correspondence or telephone calls

Thus, an SAR could be useful for retrieving information that may be required for an application to make voluntary NICs from abroad, for claiming a UK state pension from aborad, or for other purposes.

The SAR can be made online, by phone or webchat, or in writing, and there is no charge. Ordinarily, the request will be actioned within one month of receipt.

National Insurance Number (NINO)

A National Insurance Number (NINO) is a unique identifier primarily used for national insurance purposes. Most people growing up in the UK are issued a NINO automatically; adults such as inbound migrants and others who did not receive a NINO automatically are able to apply for a NINO if eligible. However, non-UK residents are not eligible to apply for a NINO[22].

  • Methods of retrieving a lost NINO can be found on this gov.uk page
  • A NINO is required to make voluntary National Insurance Contributions
  • A NINO can be used as a UK Tax Identification Number (TIN)[23]. For example, if you are dual tax resident in the UK and Japan and open a Japanese bank account, the Japanese bank will require your UK TIN.

NINO resources

UK inheritance tax (IHT)

UK inheritance tax might be relevant for some individuals in Japan, including:

  • people who die and whose estates contained UK assets, or whose history of domicile etc meant their estate is liable for UK inheritance tax
  • beneficiaries of UK estates (who wouldn't pay UK IHT directly, unless they'd received certain gifts in the 7 years prior to death, but who may need to be aware of the estate's UK IHT calculations in order to correctly file for Japanese IHT).

Japanese inheritance tax may also be due. The wiki article in the link provides a summary of Japanese inheritance tax with a section on transnational inheritance.

Note that in the UK, inheritance tax is levied on an estate, whereas in Japan, tax is levied on the beneficiaries. However, unlike some countries (eg Germany), Japan may credit foreign tax already paid on the estate, to prevent duplication of tax for the beneficiary. Information on the foreign tax credit system for inheritance tax (Japanese) in a readable form can be found here.

Beneficiaries of UK estates which have already been subjected to UK inheritance tax may have a 'foreign tax credit' applied to any bill for Japanese inheritance tax. The UK inheritance tax payment deadline is ordinarily the end of the sixth month after the month in which the person died. The Japanese inheritance tax deadline is 10 months after the death. In both cases, it is possible to file and pay an estimated return, and correct at a later date. Ordinarily, it is possible to pay the UK IHT bill first (provisionally or otherwise) and then use the 'foreign tax credit system' to offset some of the Japanese IHT bill, if relevant.

If a beneficiary receives estate income, eg a share of bank interest while the estate is in administration, UK income tax will ordinarily be paid on this income by the adminstrators of the estate prior to distribution. From 6th April 2024, no UK income tax is due if the total estate income is less than £500. Non UK-resident beneficiaries may be able to reclaim UK taxes apportioned to their share of the estate. Form R185 (Estate Income) should be requested from the representative of the estate and then tax can be reclaimed by submitting Form R43 (Claim personal allowances and tax refunds); read the guidance accompanying the form and also ensure the version of the form corresponding to the tax year(s) of the claim is used. Due diligence should be taken to ascertain whether this income is subject to Japanese tax.

Some potential complications:

  • As of 2023, Japan considers gifts given in the 3 years prior to the death as part of the estate (changing to 7 years in 2024, with staggered implementation), whereas the UK looks back 7 years. Also, UK allowances on gifts, including the annual allowance, small gifts allowance, wedding gift allowance, etc, would not be recognised by Japan. Therefore, the estate could be considered to be of different sizes by the two tax authorities, so careful records of relevant gifts should be kept.
  • Funeral expenses are deductible from the estate in both the UK and Japanese systems. However, there might not be alignment as to the exact nature of the allowable expenses within this category.
  • Certain trusts may be considered outside of the estate for UK IHT purposes, but in Japan, a gift bequeathed upon death, even in the form of a trust or other 'testamentary gift', would be considered part of the 'estate' for Japanese IHT purposes

UK inheritance tax resources

Informing HMRC of a change in address

It is possible to tell HMRC of a change in address online, by mail or via the HMRC app.

HMRC Charter, feedback and complaints

The HMRC Charter includes seven standards (1. getting things right, 2. making things easy, 3. being responsive, 4. treating you fairly, 5. being aware of your personal situation, 6. recognising that someone can represent you, 7. keeping your data secure)

There is a link to the HMRC complaints process.

There is also an invitation to provide feedback:

HMRC welcomes any feedback about your interactions with them and how they have performed against the Charter. You can email HMRC.Charter@hmrc.gov.uk.

HMRC estimated response time

Use this gov.uk tool to estimate when you will receive a response from HMRC according to the category of enquiry.

UK birth certificates and British consular birth registration

UK birth certificates

Babies born in the UK are issued with a UK birth certificate irrespective of nationality and residency. The birth certificate provides a record of the birth registration, and is in no way related to citizenship or residency.

Short certificates and long certificates

There are two forms of UK birth certificates:

  • short certificate, which records only the baby's details
  • long certificate, which also records the parents' details (NB certificates issued in Scotland do not state the parents' place of birth)

A short certificate is issued for free at birth.

Ordering copies of certificates

Copies of the either the short or long certificate can be ordered by anyone at any time (under UK legislation they are classed as 'public records'). The process for ordering varies according to where the birth was registered:

In addition to these centralised register offices, it may be possible to order copies from the local register office where the birth was registered. Indeed, for births which occurred within the last six months, the General Register Office (for England and Wales) is unable to issue certificates and advises individuals to contact the local register office.

Examples of uses of UK birth certificates for Japan residents

Some potential uses of a UK birth certificate mentioned on this wiki include:

Additionally, birth certificates could provide evidence of kinship/family relations for Japanese inheritance tax purposes in cases where heirs/beneficiaries are not recorded on a Japanese family register.

Amendments to UK birth certificates

UK birth certificates resources

British consular birth registration

British consular birth registration is a service offered by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office which allows a British citizen born overseas to have their birth registered with the General Register Office or National Records Office of Scotland in addition to the locally issued birth certificate.

As of 2024, applications are ordinarily made online, though an email address is provided in case you cannot apply online, have questions, or wish to register multiple births:

Email Overseas.RegistrationUnit@fcdo.gov.uk if you:

  • have any questions about registering a birth abroad with the UK authorities
  • cannot apply online
  • want to register multiple births (such as twins)

The fee for consular birth registration is £150[24] and consular birth registration certificates can be obtained for a fee of £50[24] each (cheaper copies, currently priced at £11, will be available from the November after the year of registration[25]). Whether or not certificates are ordered initially, the shipping fee for the return of documents costs £5 to the UK, £17.50 to a range of European countries and £22.50 to the rest of the world[24].

As part of the registration process, it is possible to confirm the name as it should be rendered in English, which should be the same as in the local birth registration with a few exceptions, such as clear Anglicisations (eg Arisu -> Alice), adding a middle name or middle names, and registering the surname as the British parent's surname (if not already registered locally), or registering the surname as a double-barrelled name formed from both parents’ surnames.

Please note the following important information:

  • consular birth registration is available for eligible individuals born on or after 1st January 1983
  • consular birth registration is available for people born overseas with automatic acquisition of British citizenship; people who acquire British citizenship through adoption, Home Office registration or naturalisation are not eligible for consular birth registration
  • a person does not acquire British nationality by virtue of having a consular birth registration
  • consular birth registration is not required to obtain a British passport
  • a UK consular birth registration certificate is not a UK birth certificate and should not be used as one
  • a UK consular birth registration certificate does not replace the original birth certificate issued by the authorities in the country in which the birth took place
  • consular birth registration should not be confused with registration of an individual as a British citizen; see the differences below:
Type of 'registration' Eligibility
Consular birth registration An individual born overseas who automatically acquired British citizenship at birth and who wishes to have a permanent record of the birth recorded with the UK authorities in addition to the local birth certificate
Registration as a British citizen An individual who is not automatically a British citizen but who fulfils eligibility criteria to apply for registration as a British citizen via the British Nationality Act 1981, and more specifically, Section 3 (minors) and Section 4 (British overseas territories citizens, etc)

Unlike a UK birth certificate, the UK consular birth registration certificate will state the child's claim to British citizenship (and also that of the parent(s)). In many cases, the child's claim will be listed as 'S2(1)(a) British Nationality Act 1981', ie a person born outside the UK whose father or mother is a British citizen other than by descent at the time of the child's birth[26].

The 'informant' should be a parent of the child being registered (unless there is a valid reason for another person to act as an informant), or the individual himself/herself if the applicant is aged 18 or more (in which case, the individual could register his or her own birth in this way including the gaining of a middle name or middle names).

Document requirements

Full document requirements may vary over time and with individual circumstances, so should be checked via gov.uk before application. However, a couple of key notes are:

  • local birth certificate (officially translated if not in English). If the birth was in Japan, the required document is called the shusshotodoke kisaijiko shomeisho (出生届記載事項証明書), 'Certificate of birth registration details'. This is a certified copy of the A3 form (example (PDF)) that the staff of the birth facility (hospital, clinic, midwifery centre, etc) and parents fill in to register the birth, and is different from the 'Certificate of acceptance of birth registration' (出生届受理証明書), which can be used as a 'birth certificate' in many international contexts. It can be ordered from the municipal office at the time of registering the birth or shortly afterwards. For births registered before March 2024, the document would ordinarily be transferred to the Legal Affairs Bureau with jurisdiction over the area where birth registration took place after 1 month. Different locations may have different storage policies, but the document may be stored for multiple years. A special reason is needed to request it, but the process to acquire it from the Legal Affairs Bureau is straightforward. For births registered on or after March 2024, the document will be stored at the place of birth registration. Again, policies may be in place regarding the period of storage.
  • British parent(s)' birth certificates: these should be the long birth certificates, and if issued in Scotland, the relevant parent(s) must also supply some bio-data from their passport as explained in the notes on the application form (this is because Scottish birth certificates do not display information relating to the parents' place of birth, which FCDO requires to assess the application for consular birth registration)

Advantages of consular birth registration

  • the certificate is a government-issued document providing proof of British citizenship without an expiry date (unlike a passport)
  • replacement copies can be obtained relatively cheaply and easily, which may not be true of the original birth certificate
  • it is in English, so no official translations are required when using the certificate for purposes within the UK
  • it provides a permanent and official record of the name in English, including middle names

Legislation

The legislation underpinning consular birth registration is The Registration of Overseas Births and Deaths Regulations 2014.

Getting married in Japan: information for British citizens

The main article Getting married in Japan provides more detailed guidance on the process. This section provides information specific to British citizens.

British citizens wishing to marry in Japan should follow the gov.uk guide.

A marriage or civil partnership will be recognised in the UK if both of the following apply:

  • you followed the correct process in the country where you got married
  • it would be allowed under UK law

Opposite sex marriage

For British citizens, an affirmation (non-religious) or affidavit (religious) is required and this serves as the ‘certificate of no impediment to marriage’ (kon'in yōken gubi shōmeisho / 婚姻要件具備証明書) which the municipal office may refer to. To obtain the affirmation or affidavit the British citizen must read a statement and sign the document in front of an official at the British Embassy in Tokyo, and this is done on an appointment-only basis. If both partners are British, both need to make appointments. The affirmation or affidavit includes the date of the proposed marriage, and for this reason it is recommended that you visit the municipal office with all documents before the proposed date; otherwise, if documents are rejected, you may have to return to the British Embassy to obtain a new affirmation or affidavit.

For applicants born in the UK, a ‘long birth certificate’ (as opposed to the ‘short birth certificate’ issued at birth) will be required, and this can be ordered online from the General Register Office or Scotlands People. Check in advance with your local municipal office whether they require your long birth certificate translated. There might be local variations on whether they accept the English original, the English original with an informal translation, or the English original with an official translation.

Same sex marriage or civil partnership

Same sex marriage or civil partnership is possible under UK law at the British Embassy in Tokyo provided that at least one partner is British, but will not be recognised in Japan. The process involves giving notice of the proposed marriage or civil partnership at the British Embassy, and then getting married or forming a civil partnership at the British Embassy. The marriage or civil partnership requires two witnesses. Full details and document requirements can be found in the guide on gov.uk.

It is also possible to convert a same sex civil partnership (formed in the UK) into a marriage at the British Embassy in Tokyo, provided that at least one partner is British.

Informing UK institutions of marriage or civil partnership

  • It is no longer possible to register a marriage or civil partnership abroad with the UK consular service[27].
  • You may need to inform HMRC
  • The terms and conditions of UK student loans include a requirement to inform SLC if you get married (the wording does not mention civil partnerships)
  • private pension providers (death benefit form may need updating)
  • Etc

If your name changes, then the list of institutions to inform may be significantly longer.

Making decisions on behalf of someone (power of attorney, etc)

The gov.uk guide to making decisions on behalf of someone provides an overview of the topic.

Age UK provides an excellent overview on the power of attorney (an arrangement set up by someone who has mental capacity at the time of the agreement) and deputies (arrangements set up for people who do not have mental capacity).

Lasting power of attorney (LPA)

A lasting power of attorney (LPA) is a legal document that allows an individual (the donor) to appoint one or more people (the attorneys) to make or help to make decisions.

There are two types of LPA:

  1. health and welfare
  2. property and financial affairs

The gov.uk and Age UK guides are both very clear and helpful.

There is no requirement for the donor or attorneys to be resident in the UK or British citizens.

Enduring power of attorney (EPA)

EPAs were replaced by LPAs in October 2007. However, if you made and signed an EPA before 1 October 2007, it should still be valid. An EPA covers decisions about your property and financial affairs, and it comes into effect if you lose mental capacity, or if you want someone to act on your behalf.

Source: Age UK guide

Ordinary power of attorney

This covers decisions about your financial affairs and is valid while you have mental capacity. It is suitable if you need cover for a temporary period (hospital stay or holiday) or if you find it hard to get out, or you want someone to act for you.

Source: Age UK guide

Deputies: make decisions for someone who lacks mental capacity

Making a will

  1. According to the Japanese government, non-Japanese citizens in Japan have their estate dealt with under the law of their 'home country'.
  2. UK law says that UK citizens living abroad will have their estates dealt with under the law of their country of residence. Other countries may differ.

The safest approach would seem to be, make as simple a provision in both countries as possible. For information about making a Japanese will, see making a will.

Making a UK will

If your situation is simple, you may be perfectly fine making a will online without legal advice. If your situation is complicated, it is recommended that you consult a solicitor, which you can also do online, via email if necessary.

The UK Law Society recommends employing someone carrying its ‘Wills & Inheritance Quality’ accreditation.

If you employ a solicitor, they will store a copy with HM Courts and Tribunals Service. This can be very useful if the will goes missing for any reason. You can do this yourself, the fee for which is £20 (as of 2021-12-13).

This Monevator post has more on how things work in the UK.

There is also a bi-annual event called Free Wills Month, where you can have a will made free, but you are expected to make a donation to charity.

Other useful links:

Death of a British citizen in Japan

The British government publishes a guide to help deal with practical arrangements following the death of a British citizen in Japan.

The 'Tell Us Once' service in which a death is reported to multiple government departments in one go is not ordinarily available to those residing abroad[28]. Gov.uk publishes some information and links for those not using the 'Tell Us Once' service. UK-based institutions which may need informing of the death include:

UK consular death registration

There is no requirement to register the death with the UK authorities, but it is possible to do so if the death happened on or after 1st January 1983. If you choose to register the death with the UK authorities, the death will be recorded with the General Register Offices (for England, Wales and Northern Ireland) and the National Records Office of Scotland, and you can order a consular death registration certificate.

UK consular death registration is done via the Overseas Registration Unit of the FCDO and bears many similarities with consular birth registration. From 2024, it appears applications can be made online, followed by online payment then mailing of supporting documents. The paper application form is still published and so is presumably still in use. A consular death registration certificate should not be used as a death certificate; the locally issued death certificate (potentially with a translation thereof) should be used.

FCDO publishes contact details including a phone number, email address and mail address should people have questions.

Overseas.RegistrationUnit@fcdo.gov.uk is an email address specific to the Overseas Registration Unit.

The legislation underpinning consular death registration is The Registration of Overseas Births and Deaths Regulations 2014.

UK student loans

UK student loans belong to multiple different plan types (mortgage-style, Plan 1, Plan 2, Plan 4, Plan 5, Postgraduate)[29], and the amounts, terms and conditions can be quite different from cohort to cohort as well as from individual to individual, and there can also be differences between loans awarded by the student finance authorities of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. However, some universal points can be made about post-1998 student loans, relevant to readers in Japan. Pre-1998 'mortgage-style' loans have some fundamental differences to other loan types and will be covered separately at the end of this guide.

UK student loans, including postgraduate loans for distance learning courses, are only available for those who fulfil residency requirements for the entirety of the course itself and the three years preceding the course. Therefore, this article will focus on repayments, as that is the only area likely to be relevant for the intended readership.

It is worth stating some imporant facts about (non-mortgage-style) UK student loans:

Owing to the above points, they are unlike most other loans. MoneySavingExpert has long been a key resource on student finance, and advocates viewing repayments as a tax rather than a loan. It is also possible to consider the loan as a loan/grant, because some of the money may be repayable but some effectively becomes a gift if it is written off.

This guide includes the following sections:

Individuals with student loans are are required to tell the Student Loans Company if you leave the UK for more than three months, and are also obliged to tell SLC of any change of name, address, if you get married (NB no mention is made of civil partnerships, nor divorce, nor becoming a widow(er)), if you change your employment status (eg from employed to self-employed). This list is not exhaustive. Refer to the terms and conditions.

Plan types

The table published by MoneySavingExpert summarises the plan types in a potentially more digestible way than the official gov.uk source; however, some nuances might be lost. Both are used as source material for the two tables below:

Table 1: Summary of plan type by year of starting course and by country within UK
Awarding body of loan ->

Started uni (undergraduate unless stated)↓

Student Finance England Student Finance Wales Student Awards Agency Scotland Student Finance Northern Ireland
pre-1998 'Mortgage-style'
1998 - 2011 Plan 1 Plan 1 Plan 4 Plan 1
2012 - 2022 Plan 2 Plan 2 Plan 4 Plan 1
2023 - Plan 5 Plan 2 Plan 4 Plan 1
Postgraduate course Postgraduate Postgraduate Plan 4 Plan 1

The basic rule is that whichever funding body you received funding from (eg Student Finance England) is a record of which UK regional classificaton applies in terms of loan type. 'Home students' (ordinarily those who resided in the UK for 3+ years prior to the start of their course) are generally classified according to their pre-course residency; therefore, a Wales-resident student who studied in Scotland would have applied to Student Finance Wales for their loan and would have been treated as a Welsh student for funding purposes. Please use the table below to confirm criteria.

NB the gov.uk guide 'Which repayment plan you're on' omits to mention the pre-1998 mortgage-style loans.

Table 2: Summary of applicability of each plan type
Loan type Who this applies to
Mortgage-style loan
  • an individual who took out a UK student loan before 1 September 1998
Plan 1
  • someone who applied to Student Finance England or Student Finance Wales and took out a loan before 1st September 2012
  • someone who applied to Student Finance Northern Ireland and took out a loan on or after 1st September 1998
Plan 2
  • someone who applied to Student Finance England or Student Finance Wales and took out a loan on or after 1st September 2012 and before 1st August 2023
  • someone who took out an Advanced Learner Loan on or after 1 August 2013
Plan 4
  • someone who applied to Student Awards Agency Scotland for an undergraduate or postgraduate course and took out a loan or after 1 September 1998
Plan 5
  • someone who applied to Student Finance England and took our a loan on or after 1st August 2023 for an undergraduate course, Postgraduate Certificate of Education (PGCE), or Advanced Learner Loan
Postgraduate
  • someone who applied to Student Finance England or Student Finance Wales who took out a loan for a postgraduate master's or doctoral course

(NB Scottish postgraduate student loans will be Type 4 and Northern Irish postgraduate student loans will be Type 1)

Repayments from overseas

People with loans who live abroad are required to declare their overseas employment details incliduding income, with supporting evidence (eg payslips). This is now largely done online, but it may still be possible to fill in a paper Overseas Income Assessment Form. Repayments depend upon your loan type and income and are ordinarily made via monthly direct debit.

For each plan type, there is an overseas repayment threshold for each country and an exchange rate is fixed annually. The system is designed to approximate UK repayments: below a threshold, no repayments are due; above a threshold (set internationally according to economic conditions of the country of residence), the same percentage of your income is repayable (termed 'standard repayment rate' on the table below), as it would have been in the UK. This is currently 9% for all loan types except Postgraduate, where the rate is 6%. So if you are on Plan 1 and earn ¥4m, you have earnings of about ¥525,000 above the repayment threshold for Japan, so would repay 9% of these, which is about ¥47,250 per year, or about ¥3,940 per month.

You will be asked to submit overseas employment details annually, together with evidence. You should also do so if your circumstances change in the interim (including if you receive a bonus). A new JPY:GBP exchange rate and JPY income threshold for your loan type will be applied annually, so even with no change in circumstances, repayment amounts may vary from year to year. Ordinarily, for employed people, the required evidence will be your 3 most recent payslips and/or a contract issued within the last 6 months. For self-employed people, the evidence may include tax returns, bank statements, etc. If you are neither employed nor self-employed, you may have to submit documentary evidence of how you are supporting yourself financially.

If you do not submit the correct evidence, there is a 'fixed monthly repayment' that could be applied, and this rate is considerably higher than many people would be paying had evidence been submitted. A higher rate of interest may also be applied. Also, fines could be applied for failure to keep SLC updated with details such as address change, change of employment or change of employment status, change of country of residence, change of marital status. Anecdotally, it seems lots of people lapse on notifications but are able to avoid fines, punitive interest rates, etc.  

Repayment thresholds, exchange rates, and fixed monthly repayments

2024-2025 earnings thresholds and fixed monthly repayments for Japan + standard repayment rates and current interest rates
Loan type (link to thresholds etc each loan type) Exchange Rate Earnings threshold (GBP) Earnings threshold (JPY) Upper earnings threshold (GBP) Upper earnings threshold (JPY) Fixed monthly repayments (GBP) Fixed monthly repayments (JPY) Standard repayment rate Interest rate (Sept 2024)
Mortgage-style Repayments for mortgage-style loans follow different rules to other plan types 4.3%
Plan 1 0.005754 £19,995 ¥3,474,973 - - £312 ¥54,223 9% 4.3%
Plan 2 £21,840 ¥3,795,620 £39,305 ¥6,830,900 £297.60 ¥51,720 9% 4.3% - 7.3% (rate varies by income band)
Plan 4 £25,120 ¥4,365,658 - - £160.80 ¥27,945 9% 4.3%
Plan 5 Repayments for Plan 5 do not begin until April 2026 at the earliest[31] 4.3%
Postgraduate 0.005754 £16,800 ¥2,919,708 - - £224 ¥38,929 6% 7.3%

Rules for interest rates

Plan 1: Either the Retail Price Index or the Bank of England base rate plus 1%, whichever is lower.

Plan 2: Normally the Retail Price Index plus up to 3%, depending on your circumstances and income. However, during some periods an interest cap may be applied to ensure you’re not being charged a higher interest rate than comparable rates found in the commercial market.

Plan 4: Either the Retail Price Index or the Bank of England base rate plus 1%, whichever is lower.

Plan 5: Normally the Retail Price Index. However, during some periods an interest cap may be applied to ensure you’re not being charged a higher interest rate than comparable rates found in the commercial market.

Postgraduate: Normally the Retail Price Index plus 3%. However, during some periods an interest cap may be applied to ensure you’re not being charged a higher interest rate than comparable rates found in the commercial market.

Voluntary repayments

Individuals can make additional repayments at any time. These are non-refundable.

It is possible to make an additional repayment to your own account or someone else's account without signing in to the account.

If you wish to pay off the entire outstanding balance, you will need to phone SLC to learn the 'settlement amount' and 'settlement date' before making a payment.

The below subsection, Deciding whether to make voluntary repayments, provides some information on this topic.

Deciding whether to make voluntary repayments

Individuals sometimes have a choice of whether or not to make voluntary repayments, including full settlement of the outstanding loan. Such a decision is a personal decision and can depend on many factors. Whilst this article cannot give advice, it can give some facts and information that may be worthy of consideration when making an informed decision.

Save the Student publishes an excellent guide on this topic.

The write-off rules (not forgetting cancellation upon death or on becoming permanently unfit to work) and repayment terms (take a break if earnings are low) make student loans different from standard loans. Also, student loans do not affect credit ratings. Whilst the original rule-writers presumably had expectation of full repayments in the majority of cases, the reality is markedly different. Also, different cohorts have different deals (and of course individuals within each cohort can have wildly varying circumstances). For example, the government expects only 27% of full-time undergrads starting in 2022/3 to repay in full, yet expects 61% of those starting in 2023/4 to do so[32].

How to assess which decision to make? The MoneySavingExpert view is ordinarily to think of it as a tax rather than a loan. A slightly nuanced alternative is to consider it a student loan/grant, ie it could be a loan, it could be a grant, or it could have components of both.

Rarely is analysis provided with non-UK-residents in mind. Interest for most types of UK student loans is set to approximately match UK inflation, so most UK-based customers pay back in ‘real terms’ approximately what they borrowed. However, if living and earning overseas, UK inflation may be very different from the inflation experienced in the country of residence and/or earnings, and create a disparity between amount borrowed and repaid (in real terms). Each year, the SLC sets overseas repayment thresholds based on the cost of living in different countries and territories, and also sets exchange rates which will be used for calculations.

The repayment terms of the loan (or 'loan/grant') have built-in measures to suspend or limit repayments during periods of low income. Any of the below could happen:

  • Take a sabbatical? Have a break in repayments, and balance rises due to interest.
  • Experience wage stagnation, which can often happen in Japan? Repayments might go down if repayment thresholds rise due to UK inflation exceeding Japanese inflation, and the balance could increase.
  • UK inflation hits 12%? Loan balance shoots up.
  • Experience the choice between retirement or pay cut from age 60 at a Japanese employer? Repayments could stop if either option here brings you under the threshold.
  • Retire through ill health? Repayments may stop.
  • Die with an outstanding loan balance? Loan will be cancelled rather than become an inherited debt.

If there are a run of years where loan interest is significantly greater than repayments, the outstanding balance could increase significantly. In some cases, the outstanding balance becomes largely irrelevant, as a partial write-off becomes inevitable. (For example, 73% of full-time undergraduates who took out loans in 2022/3 are expected to have some of their loans written off. The current trend is for loan amounts to be rising, with expected write-off amounts also rising.) Write-offs should not at all be confused with defaulting on a standard loan (which is why the 'loan/grant' way of thinking might be useful).

In light of the above, some may conclude that repaying at the standard (mandatory) rate (with foreign thresholds adjusted each year) is their preferred option, since this is designed to be at an affordable level, even for overseas residents (as the overseas repayment thresholds are calibrated, however imperfectly, to the cost of living in the country of residence). Save the Student advocates this view, with many useful points.

Others may conclude that for psychological reasons, and for discontinuing any contact with SLC, they would prefer to pay off the loan (or 'loan/grant') in full as soon as possible.

Refunds

Gov.uk lists four scenarios in which you can get refunds:

  1. you’ve paid more than the total amount you owe
  2. your annual income was below the threshold
  3. you started making repayments before you needed to
  4. you’ve repaid more than you need to because your employer had you on the wrong repayment plan

Case 1 can occur towards the end of the loan repayments. Some people elect to call SLC for a 'final settlement' value and date as they approach the end of repayments to avoid over-repayment. However, if overpayments are made, refunds are of course available.

Case 2 might be applicable to the intended readership of this article, as in the following two examples:

Example 1: you moved from the UK to Japan on 1st July one year and were working in the UK prior to your move but not employed in Japan after your move. You made repayments in April, May and June because your monthly earnings exceeded the monthly repayment threshold, but your earnings for the entire year were below the repayment threshold.

Example 2: you have a full-time job in Japan exceeding the Japanese repayment threshold, but then start self-employment mid-way through the UK tax year, and don't receive substantial self-employed income for the remainder of the tax year. Your total of employed income and self-employed income is below the Japanese repayment threshold, yet repayments were made for the period of employment.

About a million instances of Case 2 have occurred annually in recent years[33] (worldwide).

Cases 3 and 4 appear to be less likely to be applicable to the intended readership of this article.

There is no time limit to claim refunds. Claims for the previous tax year for 'Case 2' (income was below annual threshold) can be made through an individual's online SLC account. Other claims will need to be communicated with SLC. Historical overseas repayment thresholds and exchange rates do not appear to be published, which can make it difficult to assess whether a refund is applicable or not, but SLC should respond if you contact them with the facts of your case.

You cannot get refunds for voluntary repayments under any circumstances.

See also the comprehensive, clear and authoritative MoneySavingExpert guide to student loan refunds.

Arrears

This gov.uk guide explains how arrears could accrue while overseas and how to clear them.

When loans get written off

Unlike many other types of loan, student loans have specific conditions under which they will be written off. Student loans are also cancelled upon death or upon becoming permanently unfit to work. The write-off rules vary according to loan type and, in some cases, year of loan agreement, and are summarised below:

Loan type When loan gets written off
Plan 1 Took out loan in academic year 2005-2006 or earlier Age 65
Took out loan in academic year 2006-2007 or later 25 years after the April in which you were first due to repay
Plan 2 30 years after the April in which you were first due to repay
Plan 4 Took out loan in academic year 2005-2006 or earlier Age 65, or 30 years after the April you were first due to repay (whichever comes first)
Took out loan in academic year 2006-2007 or later 30 years after the April in which you were first due to repay
Plan 5 40 years after the April in which you were first due to repay
Postgraduate 30 years after the April in which you were first due to repay

There may be additional nuances. For example, if someone has two Plan 1 loans (for example, for an undergraduate degree and a PGCE), they will both be under the terms of the first loan. Thus, if a first loan was taken out in 2002-2003 and a second was taken out in 2006-2007, both would have 'age 65' as the write-off rule.

Cancellation of the loan upon death or upon becoming permanently unfit to work

Any outstanding balance on a UK student loan can be cancelled if the holder of the loan dies. Evidence as detailed in the link needs supplying to the SLC.

Any outstanding balance on a UK student loan can be cancelled if the holder of the loan becomes permanently unfit to work. Evidence as detailed in the link needs supplying to the SLC.

Contacting the Student Loans Company

Contact details are provided on this gov.uk page.

SLC's complaints procedure, including contact methods, is detailed on this gov.uk page.

Student loan resources

Legislation

Mortgage-style loans

If you took out a UK student loan prior to 1st September 1998, it will have been a 'mortgage-style' loan.

MoneySavingExpert publishes an excellent guide to pre-1998 student loans (though with Sept 2023 - Aug 2024 figures). Some key facts (updated with Sept 2025 - Aug 2025 figures) are below:

  • Unlike the post-1998 loans, repayments are fixed (hence 'mortgage-style') rather than income-contingent.
  • Unlike post-1998 loans, repayments are not administered by the Student Loans Company; each outstanding loan will be managed by one of the following three companies: Thesis Servicing, Honours Student Loans and Erudio Student Loans.
  • Ordinarily the full loan would be repayable over a term of 5 years via 60 equal monthly installments (or 7 years via 84 equal monthly installments if the course lasted more than 3 years).
  • Overseas loanholders have reporting and repayment obligations and should contact the relevant company.
  • Payments can be be deferred if earnings are below an annual threshold (£39,543 for 1st September 2024 to 31st August 2025). None of the three companies appear to publishe details of which exchange rate should be used to assess overseas income in the case of overseas earnings.
  • The Sept 2024 - Aug 2025 rate of interest is 4.3%.
  • The write-off rules for these loans are complicated, but many have write-off rules of 25 years after the last loan was taken, which means that most mortgage-style loans will be wiped by August 2025 (given that 1998 was the last date of issuance of such loans). An exception is for people who have defaulted on repayments, who may have ongoing repayment obligations.
  • Voluntary repayments are possible. However, given that most outstanding loans have surpassed the original repayment timeline (5-7 years, had income thresholds been met) by a couple of decades and that most will be written off by August 2025, loanholders may elect not to avail themselves of the limited remaining opportunity to voluntarily repay.

Legalisation of UK documents

The Legalisation Office within the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) provides a service to legalise UK documents. The process, timeframe and cost can be found in the provided gov.uk link.

Some documents will need a notary or solicitor to make a declaration of authenticity prior to legalisation.

Japan is a signatory to The Hague 1961 Convention on Apostilles and so a UK document legalised with an apostille at FCDO in the UK will be recognised in Japan.

Countries not signatories to the convention (including much of Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia) will require further steps.

Notes:

Visiting the UK

Flying to the UK

This section is particularly subject to change and readers should do their own due diligence.

The war in Ukraine has resulted in many airlines discontinuing flights over Russian (and Belarusian) airspace. This has implications for Japan-UK itineraries.

  • Flight durations for direct Tokyo-London routes (JAL, ANA, BA) have significantly increased; this 2022 Business Insider Article includes information and a graphic on JAL Tokyo-London flight paths and durations before and after the route change.
  • Chinese, Turkish, Indian, Sri Lankan and other airlines may continue to fly over Russian airspace[34] and may offer relatively cost-efficient options.
  • Middle Eastern airlines (Etihad via Abu Dhabi, UAE; Emirates via Dubai, UAE; and Qatar via Doha, Qatar) may prove attractive as they split the journey into two chunks and these airlines usually have layover (stop < 24 hours; luggage checked through) and stopover (stop > 24 hours; luggage collected) deals (Emirates, Etihad, Qatar), sometimes including free or very heavily discounted hotels.
    • The UAE issues a free visa on arrival for citizens of many nations including the UK and Japan; Qatar has a visa waiver on arrival for citizens of many nations including the UK and Japan; technical differences aside, this means that many travellers can enter either country without completing any formalities before travelling and with no fees and minimal formalities on arrival
    • Qatar may have rules limiting cohabitation to families; couples may be required to show marriage certificates to check in to hotels. However, many accounts exist of this not being required; readers should do their own due diligence.
    • Qatar Airways is a codeshare partner of JAL[35], meaning tickets can be purchased for itineraries including many Japanese regional airports.
  • European airports with reputations as being good to transit include Helsinki (served by Finnair) and Amsterdam Schipol (served by KLM)[36]

Visas, customs, etc

'Visit the UK for a holiday or to see family or friends' is a gov.uk guide covering the following topics:

  1. Check if you're eligible (to visit the UK + check the list of allowed activities on a visit)
  2. Check if you need a visa (Japanese citizens do not need a visa for visits of up to 6 months[37])
  3. Apply for a visa / family permit / visa waiver (the visa waiver requiring an application is only for citizens of Kuwait, Oman, Qatar and UAE)
  4. Check what you can bring with you
  5. Check what you need to show at the UK border

Travelling with children

This Border Force leaflet explains that if you are travelling to the UK with children (under 18) and are not the parent or may not appear to be the parent (for example, if you have a different family name), checks may be carried out to ascertain the relationship between adult and child. Carrying evidence such as the following may help to smoothen the process:

  • a birth or adoption certificate showing your relationship with the child
  • divorce / marriage certificates if you are the parent but have a different surname to the child
  • a letter from the child’s parent(s) giving authority for the child to travel with you and providing contact details if you are not the parent

Section 55 of the Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009 is the legislation underpinning the duty of the UK government regarding the welfare of children.

Driving in GB and NI as a resident of Japan

Holders of Japanese driving licences who are visiting the UK are permitted to drive in GB and NI[38] for up to 12 months. Although not required, it may be beneficial to obtain an International Driving Permit. A translation of the licence may also be beneficial; note that an International Driving Permit translates name, nationality, date of birth, and address, but not the date of expiry of the Japanese driving licence. Recent Japanese driving licences display the expiry date using Gregorian years, which might prove useful if using the licence internationally.

Although published before Brexit, the DVLA Guidelines (PDF) give clear rules on driving in GB on licences from 'designated countries', including Japan.

This nidirect.gov.uk article summarises the rules on driving on foreign licences in NI.

When exchanging a GB licence for a Japanese licence, the Japanese authorities might not retain the GB licence. The DVLA does not appear to publish information on whether a GB licence which has been exchanged for a non-GB licence yet has been retained by the licence holder is valid for driving (in GB or elsewhere). In any case, GB licences are not renewable from Japan.

Eligibility for NHS treatment

NHS treatment is available in Scotland (PDF) for former UK residents (and their spouse/civil partner and children) who meet eligibility criteria, summarised as:

  1. currently working abroad
  2. lived legally in the UK for 10+ years in the past
  3. Either left the UK less than five years ago or return to visit the UK at least once every two years or contract allows you to visit the UK at least once every two years or employer will pay for your return to the UK at the end of the contract

Discounts for non-UK residents

Non-UK residents are eligible for special deals including:

Sample prices (November 2024)
adult 15-day consecutive pass (2nd class) £399
adult 8 days in 1 month flexipass (2nd class) £339

For reference, a 14-day All Line Rover ticket from National Rail costs £908 (November 2024).

  • Eurail Pass (various options, covering travel in 33[39] countries and territories including Great Britain and Ireland (in Eurail terms, the island of Ireland is one geographical unit, so the Eurail Ireland Pass covers the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland); eligibility requires non-European residence). Paper and mobile versions available; free child pass (4-11) with the purchase of an adult pass. Passholders are entitled to 2for1 discount offers on a wide range of attractions, provided they travel by train. (Non-passholders who travel by train should also be able to access these 2for1 and other discount offers.)
Sample prices (November 2024)
adult 15-day consecutive pass (2nd class) £402
adult 7 days in 1 month flexipass (2nd class) £321

Additional fees apply for some trains requiring seat reservations, eg Eurostar (London-Paris reservation fee: EUR30 (standard) / EUR38 (first class)). Further detail on booking Eurostar reservations with a Eurail Pass (to all destinations, including Rotterdam and Amsterdam) is provided by the Eurailplanner site.

Youth passes (12-27) are 25% cheaper than adult passes (28-59); senior passes (60+) are 10% cheaper than adult passes.

In some circumstances it could be cost effective to buy Eurail passes instead of Britrail passes even if travel is solely in Britain, eg a 27-year-old would be able to avail the Eurail youth fare which may be cheaper than the corresponding Britrail adult fare.

Passholders are entitled to discounts on some international ferry routes including Stena Line (GB <-> NL) and Irish Ferries (GB <-> IR).

The Eurail Pass is valid on all National Rail routes but not valid on the London Ungerground or Docklands Light Railway. The Britrail page explaining how to transit London on a Britrail Pass (making use of Thameslink, Elizabeth Line and London Overground services) has information which will also be applicable to Eurail passholders.

Those who travel to an attraction by train in Britain are often eligible for 2for1 offers, but this does not apply to Eurail passholders. In some instances, purchasing a cheap ticket to the final destination could be cost-effective (eg approx £3 rail tickets x2 from Surbiton to Hampton Court could enable approx £27 discount on entry to Hampton Court Plalace). Return tickets to and from a destination with multiple attractions, such as London, could enable discount over multiple days and multiple attractions between the date of arrival and return, so for example two Clapham Junction to London Terminals return paper tickets might open the door to multiple discount opportunities in London. In all cases, to avail the discount tickets must be retained rather than surrendered to automatic gates.

Tax free shopping

From 1st January 2021, the UK government ended the tax free shopping scheme in most circumstances.

In England, Scotland and Wales tax free shopping is only possible on goods delivered to an address outside the UK and only by participating retailers.

In Northern Ireland some retailers still offer tax free shopping in person, which involves paying the full amount and then claiming a VAT refund. The refund is not applicable if travelling directly from Northern Ireland to Great Britain.

See the gov.uk page on tax free shopping.

State pension 'thawing' and Christmas Bonuses

A 'frozen' UK state pension may be 'thawed' (temporarily uprated) during visits to the UK or other 'unfrozen' countries (excluding USA and Bermuda)[40]. Individuals for whom this is relevant should contact the International Pension Centre (tel: +44 (0)191 2187777; fax: +44 (0)191 2187021; mail: The Pension Service 11, Mail Handling Site A, WV98 1LW, United Kingdom).

Additionally, if you are a UK state pension recipient and are present in the UK[41] in the 'qualifying week' (ordinarily the first week of December), you may be eligible for a £10 Christmas Bonus. This may need claiming via communication with the International Pension Centre. The legislation giving the right to Chistmas bonuses can be found here.

Applying for a British passport while visiting the UK

This gov.uk page details the process of applying for a British passport while visiting the UK. Note, however, that if an applicant resides overseas, the overseas fees will apply[42].

Voting in person as an overseas elector

England, Scotland and Wales

If you are registered to vote as an overseas elector, you are entitled to vote in person at your polling station.

From 4th May 2023, overseas voters in England, Wales and Scotland will be required to present photo ID if voting in person. A range of ID options including current or expired British passport or driving licence are contained within the link. There is an option to apply for a free Voter Authority Card (online application or paper application) which acts as acceptable ID.

Even if you have applied to vote by proxy, you are able to cast your vote in person if (a) your proxy has not already voted, and (b) your proxy has not applied to cast the proxy vote by post.[43]

Northern Ireland

Voters in Northern Ireland require one of seven forms of photo ID to vote in person. It is possible to apply for a free Electoral Identity Card.

Record-keeping

Records of visits to the UK might be useful for a number of purposes, including:

Boarding passes represent better evidence than travel tickets, as tickets could be bought but the journey not made.

Moving to the UK

Returning to the UK is a gov.uk guide for British citizens returning to the UK after living abroad.

Permission to enter/live in the UK

All British citizens and some Commonwealth citizens have the right of abode in the UK. In some cases, such citizens may require a certificate of entitlement to right of abode in the United Kingdom.

Citizens without automatic right of abode ordinarily require a visa to live in the UK. There are many types of UK visas. This article currently focuses on visas likely to be most relevant to readers, including family visa, youth mobility scheme visa (ie 'working holiday' visa), student visa and returning resident visa.

Note that a healthcare surcharge is payable in addition to visa fees for many individuals applying for visas to live in the UK (a notable exception being those on Health and Care Worker visas; those on other visas who conduct eligible health and care work may apply for a refund).

Family visa

A family visa can allow a non-British citizen to live in the UK if they have British family or family who have settled status in the UK. There are financial requirements, accommodation requirements and language requirements for the visa. The financial requirements are undergoing significant changes in 2024 and 2025.

  • If applying as a spouse of a British citizen from abroad, note that the British citizen has to 'sponsor' the applicant and it is the British citizen who is subject to the financial requirements.
  • The minimum income requirement is due to rise in stages to £38,700, which would mean the cash savings threshold would rise to £112,750 should the formula remain the same. An exact timetable is not confirmed, but the following statements have been made:
    • For applications before 11th April 2024, a sponsor ordinarily required earnings of £18,600 or more, cash savings of £62,500 or more, or a combination of earnings and savings in some circumstances. Sponsors with non-British dependents needed to meet or exceed higher thresholds.
    • On 11th April 2024, the minimum earnings threshold rose to £29,000 (the 25th percentile of earnings for jobs which are eligible for Skilled Worker visas). The cash savings requirement rose to £88,500.
    • The next planned increase would be to the 40th percentile, which is currently £34,500, leading to a cash savings requirement of £102,250.
    • The final planned increase, projected for 2025, would be to the 50th percentile, which is currently £38,700, leading to a cash savings value of £112,750.
  • Ordinarily a family visa will be issued for 2 years 9 months from outside the UK (2 years 6 months from within the UK). An extension will ordinarily be granted for 2 years 6 months.
  • After 5 years of living in the UK on a family visa, an individual is usually eligible to apply for Indefinite Leave to Remain.
Family visa resources

Youth Mobility Scheme Visa

Youth Mobility Scheme visas (ie the UK's version of 'working holiday visas') are available to citizens from a small selection of countries including Japan. Japanese citizens aged 18-30 are eligible to apply and as of February 2024 no longer need to participate in the Youth Mobility Scheme visa ballot. Citizens aged 18-30 of Hong Kong and Taiwan have ballots; citizens aged 18-35 of Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Korea can apply directly, as can citizens aged 18-30 of Andorra, Iceland, Japan, Monaco, San Marino and Uruguay, and British overseas citizens, British overseas territories citizens and British nationals (overseas) aged 18-30. Individuals with children under 18 or financial responsibilities for children are ineligible, as are those who have previously held the visa. Most types of work can be undertaken. The visa cannot be extended, with the exception of citizens of Australia, Canada and New Zealand who are able to extend by 12 months.

Student Visa

This gov.uk guide details the key facts about student visas.

Returning Resident Visa

A Returning Resident visa is a visa for individuals who have previously held Indefinite Leave to Remain but have let that status lapse via an absence from the UK of 2 or more years.

Certificate of Entitlement to Right of Abode in the United Kingdom

All British citizens and some Commonwealth citizens have the right of abode in the UK. Individuals with the right of abode in the UK are entitled to apply for a Certificate of Entitlement to Right of Abode in the United Kingdom, provided they do not already possess a valid British passport or a valid certificate of entitlement in a different passport. The certificate gets affixed to a (non-British) passport, costs £388 from outside the UK and cannot be transferred to another passport (so expires when the passport expires or is cancelled). Immigration (Certificate of Entitlement to Right of Abode in the United Kingdom) Regulations 2006 is the legislation underpinning the certificate.

For Commonwealth citizens, eligibility is either via 'parents' or 'marriage', and the criteria are:

Category of eligibility Eligibility criteria
Parents
  • one of your parents was born in the UK and a citizen of the UK and colonies at the time of your birth or adoption
  • have continuously held Commonwealth citizenship since 31st December 1982
Marriage
  • a female Commonwealth citizen
  • have been married to someone with right of abode prior to 1st January 1983
  • have continuously held Commonwealth citizenship since 31st December 1982
  • not be subject to exclusions based on the person you were married to having other living wives or widows (full rules on gov.uk site)

Tax

Pensions and benefits

UK pensions and benefits

  • The International Pension Centre states that if returning to live in the UK individuals should contact the Pension Service and provide a return date and contact details, both abroad and in the UK
  • State pension recipients moving to the UK from 'frozen' countries such as Japan will have their state pension uprated
  • Child Benefit is ordinarily available to eligible individuals from 3 months after starting UK residence, but if Class 1 or Class 2 National Insurance contributions are up to date from working abroad, eligibility may be immediate on starting UK residence

Japanese pensions and benefits

Miscellaneous

  • This gov.uk guide to using the NHS when returning from abroad gives information on how to register and acceptable evidence that you have moved to live in the UK.
  • Home fees for UK universities are usually available to those who are resident and 'settled' in the UK on the first day of the first academic year of the course and who have been ordinarily resident in the UK for three years prior to the start of the course
  • Similarly, student loan eligibility (including postgraduate loans) is usually limited to those with three years of residence prior to the start of the course; in this case, it may be relevant whether residency was in England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.
  • Driving:
    • Information on driving licences (INS57P[20]) provides guidance on driving licences, and has proven to be fairly frequently updated. However, information on some fairly routine queries can prove difficult or impossible to find regarding driving, licencing, and moving internationally.
    • You can drive in GB and NI for 12 months on a valid Japanese driving licence.
    • If you previously held a GB licence and return to GB from a country that is not in the EEA, you can apply for a replacement of your previous GB licence[20] (p14).
    • A valid Japanese licence can ordinarily be exchanged for a GB or NI licence (DVLA is the licensing authority of GB and DVA is the licensing authority of NI)

See Also

UK Government UK help and services in Japan portal.

Footnotes

  1. ↑ ‘’Which?’’: Loophole to beat pension age hike to 57 discovered: should you consider it?
  2. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/individual-savings-accounts/if-you-move-abroad
  3. ↑ See also Right of abode: caseworker guidance (gov.uk)
  4. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/form-mn1-guidance, p5
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 Under 18, within the British Nationality Act 1981 (seehttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/children-nationality-policy-guidance)
  6. ↑ https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1981/61/section/14
  7. ↑ Intercountry Adoption and British Citizenship (Gov.uk guide)
  8. ↑ The 'designated countries' are those listed within The Adoption (Designation of Overseas Adoptions) Order 1973 and The Adoption (Designation of Overseas Adoptions) (Variation) Order 1993
  9. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/managed-migration-datasets
  10. ↑ Fees for citizenship applications (Gov.uk)
  11. ↑ officially applicants are told to allow for 11 weeks rather than the 10 weeks stated for UK applications; unofficial average processing times are significantly shorter
  12. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/changing-passport-information
  13. ↑ https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/2018/09/passport-applicants-hit-out-after-being-given-shorter-than-expec/
  14. ↑ and those turning 16 within 3 weeks of the application
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/application-fees-and-refunds
  16. ↑ 168 according to column BH ("Travel Documents > Emergency Travel Document"), but 193 according to column BZ ("Emergency Travel Documents"); possible that the numbers could be issued documents and applications
  17. ↑ Exceptions include those with a legal incapacity to vote, eg those in prison, those with convictions of certain electoral crimes, and peers in the House of Lords.
  18. ↑ https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/sn05923/, p7
  19. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/voting-when-abroad
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 20.3 Information on driving licences (INS57P)
  21. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/change-address-driving-licence?step-by-step-nav=c1f13d41-ed7f-44a3-be11-fd95525ddf40
  22. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/apply-national-insurance-number
  23. ↑ https://www.oecd.org/tax/automatic-exchange/crs-implementation-and-assistance/tax-identification-numbers/UK-TIN.pdf
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 https://pay-register-birth-abroad.service.gov.uk/
  25. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/order-copy-birth-death-marriage-certificate
  26. ↑ https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1981/61/section/2
  27. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/government/news/marriage-certificate-registry-service-discontinued-for-overseas-brits
  28. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/after-a-death/death-abroad
  29. ↑ Wondering why there's no Plan 3? The Postgraduate plan (England and Wales) was once termed Plan 3, before gaining its new name.
  30. ↑ Will a student loan impact your ability to get a mortgage?
  31. ↑ Repaying your student loan: When you start repaying - GOV.UK
  32. ↑ Student loan statistics - House of Commons Library[1]
  33. ↑ Student loan overpayments: Are you due a refund? – MSE
  34. ↑ Source: https://www.alternativeairlines.com/airlines-flying-over-russian-airspace, accessed March 2024
  35. ↑ Code-share partners | Qatar Airways
  36. ↑ Source: https://thepointsguy.com/guide/where-are-the-best-european-airports-to-connect-in/; accessed March 2024
  37. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa/y/japan/tourism
  38. ↑ https://www.nidirect.gov.uk/articles/advice-foreign-driving-licences-northern-ireland
  39. ↑ The official Eurail site refers to 33 countries and territories, but Monaco can also be visited (using the French rail network). Source: Can I travel to Monaco on a Eurail Pass?
  40. ↑ https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/pensions/article-10786301/Can-state-pension-unfrozen-visit-UK.html
  41. ↑ Or Channel Islands or Isle of Man or Gibraltar
  42. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/how-to-decide-if-an-application-is-a-uk-or-overseas-submission/how-to-decide-if-an-application-is-a-uk-or-overseas-submission-accessible
  43. ↑ https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/apply-to-vote-by-proxy-if-youre-living-overseas
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