Moving Back to Canada from Japan

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Resources for returning to Canada from Japan

Moving your belongings

Shipping your household goods from Japan can vary widely depending on how much you ship. Several freight consolidators have offices in Japan, which will include your items with a container heading back to Canada. An issue with this is you have less control over the timing and storage of your items. Air freight can take up to 1 week and consolidated sea freight items will arrive in approximately 1-2 months. In 2021 and into 2022 this has stretched to longer timelines of 2-4 months due to shipping and logistics delays world-wide. Anticipate potentially longer timelines right now for moving your household belongings to Canada by sea.

Sea freight is measured in volume and air is measured by the actual physical weight. Some shippers have a minimum amount, which depending on the shipper, can be around 35 sq meters for sea and 10 kg for air. Please note most shipper's costs decrease per unit with the more volume or weight.

For larger quantities of household belongings, a 20' sea container is likely sufficient, though 40' containers are also available. If you have enough belongings for a 20' or 40' container it is best to discuss your needs with an international moving company in Japan. As noted above, timelines for sea containers may take 8, 10, or 12+ weeks to get to Canada at this time.

It is important to note that some items simply can't be shipped out of Japan, regardless of destination. Common sense applies here but to clarify, according to Japan Customs a general list is items which can not be shipped out of Japan includes:

• Narcotics and psychotropic drugs, cannabis, opium and opium straw and stimulants (including raw materials for stimulants)
• Articles which infringe patent rights, utility model rights, design rights, trademark rights, copyrights and neighboring rights, or plant breeder’s rights.
• Articles designated as unfair competition
• Items protected by Plant Protection Act and the Act on Domestic Animal Infectious Diseases Control.

Movers:

If you are packing a whole household of personal belongings and furniture when you are leaving Japan and wish to use full moving services, here is one recommended company that John shares: (John and I receive no commission or other kickback)

Asian Tiger Mobility

Do you have a moving company in Japan you recommend for Canadians leaving to return to Canada? Please let me know so I can add them to this section of the resource page. Thank you!

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Taxes

Here are John's considerations and recommendations as you prepare to leave Japan:

When you are ready to leave Japan after being employed for any number of months or years, it's important to understand how taxes are handled in Japan. If you are a full time employee, your employer will process a year-end adjustment during your final payroll period, regardless of when you leave. Once the final payroll is deposited into your account your final Earnings Statement will be issued showing the gross and net compensation for that calendar year, as well as appropriate deductions such as health insurance and pension. Keep this copy and if you think you'll need another one, it's not a problem for the payroll processing department to create a second or third copy. Upon deposit of your final payroll amount, your tax liability should be complete.

This up the most common question asked when foreigners leave Japan, "Can I get my pension from overseas?". The simple answer is "Yes", provided you jump through the required hoops of filing a request for it. Please note that the request can only be filed from overseas and the amount due back from your pension contributions will only be wired to an account outside Japan. I recommend consulting your employer's accounting or HR department for particulars, as the process can be quite tedious, and can only be done by you. Sorry no proxies allowed.

If you are an independent contractor who files their own taxes, it's important you retain copies of the last return you filed, be it either eTax or in person at the tax office.

Needless to say, taxes are processed and managed differently in Canada. To learn some important aspects of Canadian taxes as you get ready to move back to Canada, please see the Tax, Accounting, and Banking resource on this web site.

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Lifestyle

John explores some aspects of Japan that you may find interesting and useful to know as you prepare for life in Canada:

Leaving Japan can be exciting, frustrating, and bring a plethora emotions; wanted or not. Japan's trains, convenience, high quality food / drink culture, safety, and politeness of the Japanese can be tough to leave. No longer being a foreigner and becoming someone who no longer stands out is reverse culture shock.

One of the things you may face that could take some getting used to is transportation. Japan is one of the best countries in the world for public transit and one where you really don't need a car. Also when going out, be it for food, a day trip to an onsen, or an island resort off Okinawa, everything tends to be uniform, meaning how tickets are purchased, how trains operate, what cashiers say when paying a bill. This can make life quite easy in Japan. However going back to Canada you may feel frustrated by what may seem like a lack of enthusiasm for the services provided.

An area people have noted about leaving Japan is how clean it is compared to other countries. The clean streets, lack of panhandlers, graffiti, narcotics (legal and illegal), and well maintained public facilities. Japan's famed washlets are not common, but you may see syringe disposal boxes in bathroom stalls.

Summary: The differences between lifestyles in Japan and Canada can grow in number the more you look for them. The goal of this resource is not to make one country better than the other but rather to take the time to prepare to take advantage of the great lifestyle you can create for yourself in Canada. It will be a different lifestyle than in Japan for sure.

Suggestion: Visit Canada for at least a 2 week period long before moving back. Take time during this visit to really understand what lifestyle you would like to create here. This effort and time will have a big payback in how fast and comfortable your transition to life in Canada will be.

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Moving a Japanese born spouse and children to Canada

This is likely the most important area of consideration when you are thinking of moving back to Canada. I cannot stress enough how serious this consideration is. In the 20 years of helping Canadians return from countries around the world it has become very clear that moving a Japanese born spouse and children to Canada is almost always a significant and serious challenge. From no other country is moving them as difficult. Not even from Switzerland, the other most highly process-oriented country in the world. Japan stands alone in this regard.

"Wow! Why? What is going on here?"

Simply put, the highly structured systems and life in general in Japan are very useful and trustworthy for everyday life. But they also create a frame of reference and mental model that structures the minds of people living there in a very particular way. This frame of reference is so strong and so exclusionary to other ways of thinking that when a person is pulled out of it and confronted with a very different frame of reference it causes severe distress. Oh, not when on a vacation to a foreign place. Then, non-Japanese ways of thinking and doing things are interesting and entertaining. But when faced with having to live in a non-Japanese place and have day-to-day interactions with a non-Japanese culture, the frame of reference and mental models are not compatible and distress typically sets in.

Often severe distress.

"Oh, they will adapt. It just takes time. You are over-exaggerating."

No. Full stop. No. They usually don't adapt. And so, families turn around and return to Japan, a spouse will leave you and go back by themselves and with your children, and in almost all cases, adaption challenges, resentment, and emotional trauma results.

"Seriously?! How can it be that bad?"

It is. Study the history of Japan to learn why the islands of Japan have a very distinct, structured, and particular approach in all aspects of living. Canada is a more structured country than the U.S. or other places, but still very different from Japan. From family life to school to work to social contexts the nature of life in Canada can be very uncomfortable to many people moving here from Japan. From "we", "dad makes the decisions", and "how to do all things is structured and understood" to "I", "I must make my own decisions on many things" and "life is fluid and changing". A fundamental shift in reality.

For the purposes of moving back to Canada, your key takeaway is that you must be very, very cognizant of what it takes to successfully move your Japanese born spouse and children to Canada. And if you have been living in Japan for many years and decades, then you, too, may find it a challenge to adjust. A Canadian-born colleague I worked with who had just moved back from Japan flew into rages at how un-Japanese behavior was in Canada and how despicable it was. He was a very unhappy person who had actually "gone native" in Japan. Not only had he become entrained in the Japanese mental structures, but more seriously, had come to see them as superior to any other ways of thinking. This belief that the Japanese way of thinking and doing things is superior is a potential "Achilles heal" that can make changing and adapting to another culture very challenging.

Suggestions for your consideration:

• As noted earlier, visit Canada first and have your spouse and children discuss everything they think and feel about what life might be like for them if they moved here. You will get a sense of whether a move is in your family's best interest from this visit.
• If you are moving a Japanese spouse but have no children, plan to be of significant support to them for the first year at least. They will take time to adapt and will rely on you for emotional support. And expect to be hit with significant emotional "blow back" as they process their mental structure adaptation and stress.
• Moving young children? If you can, move them very, very young. At the age of less than 5 years old some good things happen:
  
  First, children are so young that they haven't been fully entrained in the Japanese structured mind mentality. They are still flexible.
  
  Second, your spouse will have their hands full with taking care of young children. This is a silver lining to their own adaptation: If they are busy with young children they are less focused on their own stress of adaptation. "Busy people are happy people" is the old adage.
  
  Third, children are the golden social elixir. A Japanese mother (assuming your spouse is a woman) can more easily reach out and connect with other local mothers in Canada. As mothers and children are out and about in play groups, at playgrounds, or simply at a coffee shop, opportunities for random interaction and bonding between mothers are very abundant. Mothers seem to bond very quickly with each other to emotionally and socially get the company and parenting support they need. This leads to rapid friendship development, even inter-culturally.
• Moving older children and teenagers? Over the age of 10 years of age +/- moving children out of the Japanese culture and systems can get really challenging. Expect significant behavioral anomalies when moving "tweens" and/or teens. And distress. And possibly trauma, leading to potential resentment against you for moving them.
  
• Unless you do something really different...
  
  ...different from what is usual in Japanese culture and in Canadian culture, too, for that matter:
  
  First and foremost is to bring the level of awareness up among your whole family that "we are in this together" and "we have to understand the fundamental differences between Japanese culture and Canadian culture and learn new ways of thinking and being in Canada."
  
  Easy? No. Of course not. But it does work.
  
  How? Open, regular, in-depth conversations that #1 acknowledge everyone's feelings, #2 address the underlying differences to build understanding, and #3 create a pathway forward with goals and the support your spouse and children need. Oh, you could get through the culture shock by force, such as "I make the decisions, you will have to tough it out, and just get on with it!". Such a choice would lead to more trauma and worse results for your relationship to your spouse and children. A bad mess results.
  
  Are these open, truthful, positive, and supportive conversations that I am describing something that your spouse and children will find comfortable? Likely some of the conversations will be uncomfortable because the discussions will address unstructured topics, underlying truths about life in Japan and Canada, and feelings that arise as to what is "right and wrong" and "good and bad". But the conversations will lead to deeper understanding, trust between family members, more self-confidence, and yes, more independence ("I"), which is required for successful integration into life in Canada.
  
  Finally, one barrier that you may have to work through as part of even initiating conversations of this nature is the "age and authority hierarchy" issue. In Canada you can usually have heart-to-heart conversations with children about all things in life. But in more structured and process-oriented cultures this might be unthinkable to parents. "They are children! They don't know anything and wouldn't understand! And they would no longer respect and obey us! We have authority. We instruct and tell them what to do! And..." If such unconscious resistance arises, be patient. And of course, children, not being used to such discussions might find it uncomfortable at first, too. If you can get through the "age and authority hierarchy" resistance on the other side awaits a very different kind of dynamic that can be foundation of a healthy move to Canada.
• A final option: Don't move your family. Stay in Japan until your children are done their high school at least, or forever. Yes, this is sometimes preferable if you are not able to prepare for and support your family when you move back. If you will be working full-time in Canada, under financial pressure, and/or are not comfortable with strong emotional support activities and the patience and time it takes, consider staying in Japan. You, your spouse, and your children will likely all do better than trying to adapt to life in Canada if the move cannot be strongly supported once you are here.

Practical ideas for moving Tweens and Teens (10-20 years of age)

In addition to the highly valuable family discussions noted above (if you can do them) there are some practical things you can do for tweens and teens that you can't do with younger children. Because moving tweens and teens is such a challenge I asked for practical ideas from people who have moved back from Japan and from a Japanese-Canadian family living in Canada. Here are some practical things you can do to help tweens and teens before and after you move:

• Find a bridge between your tween/teen's life in Japan and life in Canada. For example: Sports, musical instrument playing/performing, dance, etc. Having this hobby/interest/passion that can carry over to Canada can be something that your tween or teen can use to psychologically and emotional make the transition easier. Explore this ahead of time and create links in advance of your move, not just after you move back. Help them build this bridge consciously during one or more visit to Canada before you move back (see next point).
• If you know you are going to move back someday, and at least 2 years ahead of your planned move, start sending your tween or teen to spend time with welcoming and supportive family members or close friends in Canada. "You are going to spend a month this summer with Grandma and Grampa and your cousins, too!" Making it a fun, but not permanent, adventure means that they can get used to Canada and have family they know in Canada to be a bridge when the time comes to move. If it works out, have them go twice or more in the years before you return to Canada permanently.
• Many high schools in Canada have international students in attendance and these students tend to group together and "bond" because they are new to Canada and find comfort in their fellow international peers. You might consider sending your teen to such a school and arrange ahead of time for them to attend the international student orientation and activities. This will not only provide practical information and considerations for getting acclimatized to Canada and Canadian schools but also give them a chance to connect with the international students with their common reality of all being new to Canada.
  
  Thoughts shared in 2021 by a Canadian who moved back with his Japanese wife and their two Japanese born children:
  
  "Regarding high school kids moving from Japan fitting in over here, I would strongly suggest the parents try to find a school with a good population of International students. Her school normally has almost 1/4 international and new immigrant (therefore ELL) students. Even last year [2020], a bunch of Japanese students came, and they're still arriving. Many plan to stay until graduation and beyond, and meeting them really helped _____ calm down. She feels much more in common with them than the kids who have always lived here, but she is getting to know a few of those ones, too."
• If you have an older teen (16+ in age) have them consider working part-time in a Japanese restaurant very soon after they move to Canada. This was witnessed as a success in one case because working engaged the individual in a Japanese cultural connection and the other Japanese employees (speaking Japanese) acted as a bridge to life in Canada. Note: Many Japanese restaurants in Canada are operated by Chinese or Koreans. There is nothing negative intended about this, just a suggestion to try to find one run by a Japanese immigrant or Japanese-Canadian owner. Why? Because of the goal to have a cultural "touchstone" through the shared culture and speaking of the same language.

"Gosh, Paul, you are pretty serious about this subject!"

Yes. But it comes from so many experiences with returning families and my own teaching of Japanese BA and MBA students in Canada, most of whom struggled to get used to Canadian culture and ways of doing things. A move to Canada can work for mixed Canadian/Japanese families. But it takes real effort, planning, and support. Otherwise bad things usually happen. Sorry: No "softening" this conclusion. I have helped over 1500 individuals and families move back to Canada from all over the world. Moving Japanese spouses and children - and repatriating yourself if you lived in Japan for a long time - are the most challenging returns from any country in the world that I have witnessed and supported.

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Systems & Services

John writes here about navigating processes (systems and services) and life in Japan for foreigners. What is important to know for arriving in Japan, living there, and...preparing to leave. Understanding leaving processes will be new for Canadians getting ready to depart Japan permanently:

Whoever has spent any amount of time living in Japan knows that the country presents a unique set of circumstances for foreigners, including but not limited to, language and cultural barriers and a lack of understanding of how processes work. Despite what can seem like a myriad of misshapen processes, disjointed bureaucracies, and socialist public services, Japan simply works, once you understand it. The most important step a foreigner can take when starting to live in Japan, and preparing for leaving Japan, is to understand the processes and follow them. There are instances where a foreigner is given the benefit of the doubt for not following a process correctly, however those days are slowly coming to an end.

The health care system is smooth in Japan. 70% paid by the coverage, 30% paid by the patient (frequently in cash upon leaving. Also children's health care is free until about (I think) through Jr. high school. There are only 2 health care coverage plans, and you are required to be enrolled. No choice. It's taken out of your pay monthly. Japan's health care is simple. Though some would challenge the quality of care.

Paul, on the Canadian health care system:

Canada has a public health care system, which is almost free for most people on an insurance basis but with extra costs when expensive and multiple prescriptions or very special health circumstances arise. In some major cities in Canada it can be hard to get a traditional family doctor and most people in these places use drop-in clinics for their non-emergency medical needs. For many people, Canada's health care system works just fine. But for others, it is very difficult and stressful, particularly if they desire instant full medical attention at all times and for all circumstances, as is available in the U.S.

The Health Care in Canada comparison page between the U.S. and Canada on this site can help those returning from Japan understand the health care system in Canada better.

Summary: In Canada information on most government service processes are available online. And in some cases government services themselves can only be accessed online! There is no office you can go to. This may be new to those returning from Japan. And other processes like banking, public transportation, insurance, etc. will also be different. As mentioned earlier, a 2 week or more visit to Canada can also be a big help in familiarizing you to systems and services here. As can be time spent online learning about how government and other systems work in Canada.

Of course, if you are reading these very words, you are already doing some of the online exploring that can help you prepare for life in Canada!

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Real Estate

Canadians returning from living in Japan have one very big difference to prepare for in terms of real estate: In Japan foreigners typically rent (lease) their living space but they may be able to buy their own condominium, townhouse, or house in Canada. The process of going about leasing and ending a lease in Japan is very different from either renting in Canada or buying real estate in Canada. If you have been away from Canada for many years and have never owned real estate in Canada be sure to research and understand how the buying process works here. See the dedicated Buying Real Estate in Canada resource page on this web site for more information.

John notes the process of leaving a leased dwelling in Japan:

Housing leases are 2 years and when you leave, damage inspections happen fairly quickly after moving out. Living normally, I would say most people get around 75% of their deposit back.

Summary: One of the exciting things about moving back to Canada is the possibility of owning your own property, whether it is a condo in Vancouver, 20 hectares of natural land in a mountain valley, 500 hectares of farmland in Saskatchewan, a house in Ontario, or a lake-front cottage in Quebec. Or...you get the idea. If you are very comfortable in the structured, organized, and highly integrated nature of living space life in Japan, expanding into the real estate possibilities in Canada can be overwhelming. Take the time now, before you move back, to really understand what you desire in terms of living space when you return. Doing so can be a big help with your transition back to Canada!

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Foreign Exchange - Transferring your money to Canada

As the Japanese Yen is one of the major world currencies there are timing implications when converting money between Japan and Canada as part of a move back.

Some foreign exchange considerations:

• You can move your savings to Canada at any time. There are no currency restrictions in Japan or Canada and most Canadians simply wire transfer their funds to a bank in Canada. You will likely be asked for the "source of the funds" by your Canadian bank if you transfer a large amount and this question is for money laundering and fraud protection purposes only, not for taxation. Normally my clients simply put "Savings from living and working in Japan" and this suffices. In a minority of cases you may be asked to provide proof, which can be a bank or investment account statement from your institution in Japan showing that you had the funds in an account there.
• Consider the use of a foreign exchange company to handle your exchange from YEN to CDN rather than using a bank in Japan or a bank in Canada. You will save lots of money on the exchange rate!

See the Transferring Money and Foreign Exchange resource page on this site for more information and recommendations of foreign exchange firms from other returning Canadians.

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Things To Do Before Leaving Japan

John shares his suggested list of things to do before you leave Japan. There really isn't a set-in-stone sequence of when to do things outside of closing your bank account and cancelling the cell phone last:

• When cancelling your lease, which normally is a 1 month notice, be sure to pay attention to how much time that leaves you to do things such as get rid or large items, pack, have a goodbye gathering, etc... I have yet to hear of a landlord extending a lease termination date so be aware that you will not be able to live there, from the date of termination.
• Cancel your residency at the ward office. You can set the official date in the future but most people visit the ward office to set the wheels in motion a minimum of 2 weeks before leaving. If family members are leaving separately for some reason, no problem, only the name(s) of the those leaving will be removed from the family registry. When others leave, they will just need to visit the ward office again to repeat the process.
• Confirm with your HR department or payroll provider to confirm your local and national taxes are in order and when your final payroll deposit will be made so you can cancel your bank account after it arrives.
• If you have paid into the pension scheme long enough, download the Pension Refund Application from The Japan Pension Office (English language page). See the notes in an earlier section above for more information on pensions.
• Arrange for disposal or sale of your oversized rubbish. The ward office sets appointments on specific days, so be sure to reserve a day for the collection truck to visit that is convenient for you.
• Visit the Post Office to arrange to have your post forwarded. Please note post forwarding is only domestic so you will need someone in Japan who will accept your post.
• Cancel your Japanese credit cards, because if a charge is left on it after you leave, if you come back to Japan those charges, which have been incurring interest, will be waiting patiently for you. In extreme cases, Japanese credit card companies have options to reach across the ocean and try to collect their money, such as an agreement between Mastercard Japan and Mastercard Canada.
• If you use a Suica or Pasmo card you probably accumulated T-Points. Even if you turn your Suica or Pasmo card back in the Midori Madoguchi to get your Y500 deposit back, those points are still active so you can use them anywhere they're accepted, as long as you still have your T-Point card. Also, be sure to use any other remaining points such as Yodobashi, Nanaco, Lawson, and other shops.
• If needed, collect medical and school records early because they may need to be translated.
• Be sure to take care of the little things as early as possible to get them out the way such as cancel any subscriptions, landlines, internet, memberships, copy important documents, back up files, buy souvenirs, and visit that favorite watering hole one last time.
• Selling a vehicle? You can sell it privately or you can have it purchased by a company like Mick Lay Motors, which is an English-speaking seller and buyer of vehicles in Tokyo.

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Your ideas, considerations, and experiences?

Canadians living in Japan planning on moving back to Canada: Please share your ideas, thoughts, and experiences relating to returning to Canada from Japan. I will post your thoughts here as help for others. Along with a credit to you will be a big thank you on behalf of the many people you will be helping!

Thank you!

Paul Kurucz

Canada

Latest update to this page: September 2024.

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I offer professional support to help you prepare for a smooth and easy return to Canada so you can feel confident and organized!

Your questions about when to move back, taxes, investments and finances, bringing back your household belongings, health care, and more will be answered promptly and professionally, with resources to back up what you need. My 20 years of supporting over 1,300 clients gives me a depth of expertise across all aspects of planning and returning to Canada.

Paul Kurucz - Canada

A happy client:

Hi Paul,

Just to update you - we landed and sailed through customs! So thank you so much for all of your advice...It was a thoroughly pleasant experience.

This is to say thank you for everything. Your advisory has been so incredibly helpful and saved us considerable time and removed room for error.

With best wishes,

Caroline

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