Wealth management in Japan

“Alexis, I am leaving for Tokyo for five years. My Japanese employer has already had me registered at the town hall. Is that enough for me to stop being a French tax resident?”

No. Registration at the town hall, the jūminhyō, proves an address; it is not a tax residence certificate. Only the certificate issued by the Japanese tax office carries weight under the treaty, and it is on that document that your departure will be judged.

Japan has 13,125 French nationals on the consular register at 31 December 2025, compared with 12,652 a year earlier, a rise of 3.7% year on year.

The French-Japanese framework has an advantage that is rare in Asia: the exit tax benefits from automatic deferral. It also has a gap: no estate tax treaty. At Balmont Conseil, we start from these two verified findings.

1. Why seek expert wealth management advice in Japan?

Four points determine your situation.

The right proof of residence. The certificate from the Japanese tax office, not the extract from the municipal register. Many cases are based on the wrong document.
The first five years. Japanese law treats a foreigner who has lived in Japan for less than five of the last ten years as a “non-permanent” resident, taxed on Japanese income and on foreign income paid in or remitted to Japan. Yet Article 4(1) of the treaty excludes from residence persons taxed only on income from local sources: how the two fit together must be examined before departure.
The exit tax is automatically suspended. Japan assists France in recovering tax: the deferral is automatic, the filing is not.
Your estate. No convention governs it: France applies article 750 ter of the general tax code, without conventional correction.

2. The France ↔ Japan framework in five verified points

Here is the applicable framework, checked against official sources as at 1st October 2026.

French nationals on the register	13,125 at 31 December 2025 (+3.7% year on year).
Income tax treaty	Yes — treaty of 3 March 1995, amended by the protocol of 11 January 2007. It covers only income tax: IFI applies under French law alone.
Estate tax treaty	No. No convention governs inheritances or gifts between France and Japan: Article 750 ter of the General Tax Code applies without conventional correction.
Exit tax — deferral of payment	Automatic deferral of payment : Japan assists France in recovering tax (annex BOI-ANNX-000508) and is listed in the notes to the 2026 form 2074-ETD.
CSG and CRDS on property income and capital gains	17.2% on property income and property capital gains, 18.6% on furnished lettings from 2025 income. The reduced rate of 7.5% does not apply.

Sources: list of tax treaties concluded by France (BOI-ANNX-000306, updated 29 April 2026); exchange-of-information and recovery-assistance clauses (BOI-ANNX-000508, position at 8 October 2025); register of French nationals living outside France at 31 December 2025 (Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs); text of the treaty published by impots.gouv.fr; impots.gouv.fr for non-residents' social charges. Position as at 1st October 2026.

On residence. The certificate is requested from the tax office responsible for you. It is accompanied by your Japanese tax returns, your employer's withholding tax summary, your residence card and your lease.

On inheritance. Japan levies its own inheritance tax, while France levies its own tax on assets located in France and on anything received by an heir domiciled in France for at least six of the last ten years. There is no coordination between the two: inheritance planning must be done before departure.

On exit tax. The deferral is automatic, but filing is mandatory in the year of departure, then every year for as long as the deferral runs.

What we do not show. Japanese income tax and inheritance tax scales are handled with a qualified adviser in Japan, whom we coordinate.

3. Our services: 360° support for expatriates and investors

Three workstreams, in the order in which they are decided.

Departure: residence and exit tax

We date your French tax departure and your arrival in Japan, list the residence documents to obtain, and examine your situation over the first five years in light of Article 4 of the treaty.

If your securities exceed €800,000 or if you hold at least 50% of the profits of a company, the exit tax applies (Article 167 bis of the General Tax Code): we file the declaration and monitor the deferral.

Tax departure date and Japanese residence documents.
Exit tax return and monitoring of the deferral.
Foreign income paid or repatriated to Japan.

Your French income and contracts as seen from Tokyo

Rent, dividends, assurance-vie: we establish what France continues to tax, what the treaty reduces, and what becomes of your contracts. A French assurance-vie held by a non-resident no longer bears social charges; withdrawals are subject to a 12.8% levy, or 7.5% after eight years.

A Luxembourg assurance-vie contract may be considered for long-term mobility, on a case-by-case basis.

Passing on wealth between two inheritance taxes

We establish, heir by heir, what would be taxed in France, and we coordinate the Japanese side with a local adviser. Gifts are prepared before departure.

4. Methodology: our way of working

We work in four stages, and at each stage you know where you stand.

The initial review. We establish your actual situation: the make-up of your wealth, the project timeline, the situation of each member of the household, and the tax domicile of your heirs — because it is theirs that counts, not yours.
The applicable framework. We set out, source by source and with its date, the framework that applies to you. What we do not know, we mark “to be confirmed” — never anything else.
The choices. We present the options with figures and their respective consequences, and you decide. Wealth structuring comes after the decision, not before.
Ongoing monitoring. An annual review, free of charge, to check that the framework has not moved — treaties are amended, incentive regimes are abolished, thresholds change.

5. What the firm offers you

What concretely sets our work apart.

Sources, not claims. Every item in your file carries its reference and its date. You can check. It is the only way to work on a subject where most of the information available online is out of date.
A single point of contact in France. We coordinate your local advisers; we do not replace them: the host country's domestic tax rules are handled with a qualified professional on the ground. Our role is to keep the whole picture consistent and to defend the French side of the file.
Fees that are easy to understand. Fees disclosed before any commitment: fixed-price reviews, tailor-made engagements at €500 incl. VAT per hour, insurers' commissions on contracts taken out. The annual review is free of charge.

Frequently asked questions: Japan

Does the jūminhyō prove my tax residence in Japan?

No. The extract from the municipal register proves an address. The document that counts under the treaty of 3 March 1995 is the residence certificate issued by the Japanese tax office.

Is the exit tax deferral automatic for a move to Japan?

Yes. Japan assists France in recovering tax (annex BOI-ANNX-000508): payment is suspended without any guarantee being required. Form 2074-ETD must still be filed in the year of departure, then every year (Article 167 bis of the French Tax Code).

Is there an estate tax treaty between France and Japan?

No. The 1995 treaty covers only income tax. France therefore applies Article 750 ter of the French Tax Code, and Japan its own tax, with no coordination.

Is my French rental income still taxed in France?

Yes: at a minimum rate of 20% up to €29,579 of net taxable income and 30% above that, unless you opt for the average rate, plus social charges of 17.2% on unfurnished lettings and 18.6% on furnished lettings from 2025 income.

I'm leaving for five years: does my Japanese status change anything?

Yes, potentially. During the first five years out of ten, a foreigner in Japan is a “non-permanent” resident, whose Japanese tax base is limited. Article 4(1) of the treaty excludes from residence persons taxed only on income from local sources: your situation needs checking before you leave.