Before your first meeting with a tax accountant, gather three things: proof of identity (your My Number card), last year’s tax return and any letters from the tax office, and every record of this year’s income and deductible expenses, such as your withholding slip, receipts and insurance certificates. Business owners should also bring their books, bank statements and prior returns. Add a short list of your goals and questions, and the first meeting can go straight to advice instead of paperwork.
Why preparation makes a difference
Tax season in Japan is concentrated into a few weeks. The final income tax return period normally runs from February 16 to March 15, and for the 2024 tax year 23.39 million people filed an income tax return, roughly one in five people in Japan. More than 13.53 million of those returns were refund claims, which means many people file because they are owed money, not because they owe more.
Accountants are at their busiest in that window. Arriving with organized documents shortens the time spent collecting information, lowers the risk of missed deductions, and makes it easier to plan before deadlines rather than react to them. If you can, book the first meeting in autumn or early winter.
Checklist for individuals
Identity and history
- Your My Number card, or your notification card plus photo ID.
- Your most recent tax return and its attachments.
- Any notices from the tax office or your municipality, including resident tax notices.
Income records
- Your withholding slip (gensen choshu hyo) from each employer. Employers issue it after the year ends, usually by the end of January.
- Pension statements, if you receive a public or private pension.
- Rental income and expense records for any property you let out.
- The annual trading report from your brokerage account if you sold shares or funds.
- Records of side income, freelance work or overseas income.
Deduction records
- Medical expenses. The medical expense deduction covers what you paid above ¥100,000 (or above 5% of total income if your income is under ¥2 million), up to ¥2 million. You submit a summary statement rather than the receipts, but the tax office can ask to see receipts for five years, so keep them.
- Over-the-counter medicine. As an alternative, the self-medication deduction covers eligible purchases above ¥12,000, up to ¥88,000. You can claim one or the other, not both, so bring both sets of receipts and let your accountant compare.
- Life insurance and earthquake insurance deduction certificates.
- iDeCo or other pension contribution certificates.
- Furusato nozei (hometown tax donation) receipts.
- The year-end loan balance certificate if you have a housing loan.
Checklist for business owners and companies
- Articles of incorporation and a recent certificate of registered matters.
- Corporate tax returns and financial statements for the last two or three years.
- Your general ledger or accounting software export for the current year.
- Bank and credit card statements for all business accounts.
- Payroll records, including withholding and social insurance.
- Your qualified invoice registration number, if you are registered, and key supplier and customer contracts.
Corporations are required to keep their books and records for seven years after the filing deadline, or ten years for a year that produced a tax loss carried forward under the blue return system. If you have that history on hand, a new accountant can review past filings for problems or missed opportunities.
Questions worth asking
- Are you a registered tax accountant? In Japan, preparing returns and representing taxpayers for others is reserved for registered tax accountants (zeirishi) and tax accountant corporations. There were 81,696 registered tax accountants at the end of fiscal 2024.
- What exactly is included in the fee? Ask whether bookkeeping, year-end adjustment, consumption tax and responses to tax office inquiries are covered or billed separately.
- How will we work together? Confirm how you send documents, how quickly questions are answered, and whether returns are filed through e-Tax.
- What should I change this year? A good first meeting ends with a few concrete actions, not only a filing date.
What to expect from the first meeting
Most first meetings cover your situation, the documents you have, any gaps, and a timeline. The accountant will usually flag deductions you may be missing and anything that needs attention before the next deadline. You should leave with a clear scope of work, a fee estimate, and a list of anything still to send.
If you would like to talk through your situation with our team, get in touch and we will let you know what to bring.