Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes

What are Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes?

Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes must be paid to the City of Hiroshima by everyone (including international residents) who have an address in Hiroshima City as of January 1 and whose income (etc.) exceeds certain thresholds. Even if you leave Japan on or after January 2, you are still liable to pay Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes. The amount you will need to pay is determined by your income and other earnings from January 1 to December 31 of the previous year.

How to Pay Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes

Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes can be paid in the following ways:

Special Collection (Subtracted from your wages)

You employer will subtract Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes from your wages in advance and pay them to the City.
This method of payment is standard for those employed in a company; you do not need to pay these taxes to the City by yourself.

Ordinary Collection (Paid directly by individuals)

The City will send payment notifications for Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes to those paying via ordinary collection.

You can pay via the two following methods:

1. Payment Slip

Please pay using the enclosed payment slip by the deadline written on tax notifications/payment slips.
You can pay at any of the following places:

• Financial institutions, such as a bank or the post office
• Convenience stores (payment slips with barcodes only)
• The following City of Hiroshima offices: Municipal Tax Offices, Tax Rooms, the Municipal Residents Tax Division, ward branch offices, or the Payment Department

You can also pay municipal taxes online via credit card or smartphone app.

When paying online via credit card or smartphone app, you will need your payment slip (those with barcodes only) and a smartphone/tablet (etc) that has access to the internet. For more details, see here (this site is only available in Japanese; please use the auto-translate function at the top of the page to view it in other languages).

2. Bank transfer

If you set up a direct debit/bank transfer, payment will be made automatically from your bank account on the payment deadline. For further information, see here (this site is only available in Japanese; please use the auto-translate function at the top of the page to view it in other languages).

Paperwork and Procedures for Leaving Japan in the Middle of the Taxable Year

Declaration of Tax Agent and Relevant Paperwork

Upon leaving Japan, international residents must appoint someone still living in Japan as their tax agent.* If your tax agent is a Hiroshima City resident, you must submit a Declaration of Tax Agent for Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes [Wordファイル／56KB]. If your tax agent resides outside of Hiroshima City, you must submit an Application Regarding Tax Agent for Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes (for New Tax Agent Appointments/Changes in Appointment) [Wordファイル／56KB] to the Municipal Tax Office/Tax Room in charge of your local ward.
For those who are able to receive documents, such as tax notifications, and make tax payments without a tax agent, please submit an Application Regarding Tax Agent for Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes (to Forgo Appointing a Tax Agent) [Wordファイル／48KB] in lieu of the paperwork listed above.
Please note you must notify the Tax Office/Tax Room in charge of your local ward of any changes in the forms listed above by submitting a Notification of Changes Regarding Tax Agent for Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes [Wordファイル／48KB].

*Tax agents are those who act on behalf of the tax payer in their tax affairs (receiving tax notifications, paying taxes, etc) for reasons such as leaving Japan. For this reason, tax notifications and other tax documents will be addressed to the tax agent. If you do not declare a tax agent, we will be unable to send tax documents (tax notifications, etc) and tax payers will be subject to service by publication** in accordance with the law. If, after service by publication, taxes remain unpaid by the deadline, the tax payer may also be subject to delinquent charges. For all of these reasons, it is in your best interest to submit the necessary paperwork before leaving Japan.

Paperwork regarding tax agents should be submitted to the Municipal Tax Office/Tax Room in charge of your local ward. For more information, please contact the Municipal Tax Office/Tax Room directly.

**Public posting of appropriate notice of initial legal action to a defendant who is intentionally absent, in hiding, or unknown.

Payment After Leaving Japan

International residents who will leave Japan (for reasons such as returning to their home country) in the middle of the taxable year are still legally responsible for paying their municipal/prefectural residents taxes.

For those whose municipal/prefectural residents taxes are taken from their monthly paycheck, it is possible to take the necessary lump-sum amount from your last paycheck or separation package (known as lump-sum collection). Those who would like to use this system must notify their place of employment. Please note that for those who will be leaving the country from January 1 to April 30, lump-sum collection is mandatory, thus you will not need to notify your place of employment.

For those who are not subject to lump-sum collection from their final paycheck or separation package, tax notifications and other tax documents will be sent to their tax agent as stipulated in 1. above.

Tax Conventions

Regarding Tax Conventions

Tax conventions are treaties which stipulate the levy of taxes between Japan and other countries to avoid double taxation. International residents such as exchange students and professional trainees who meet the relevant criteria may be eligible for exemption from municipal/prefectural residents taxes; however, exemption criteria and conditions (tax items, income, etc) vary depending on the country.

Exemption Requirements

Requirements for exemption from taxation via tax convention vary depending on the country. For more information, please contact the Special Collection Section of the Municipal Residents Tax Division in the Tax Department of the Finance Bureau, or Municipal Tax Office/Tax Room in charge of your ward.

Paperwork and Procedures for Tax Exemption

Those who would like to receive exemption from Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes via tax convention must submit a notification for tax exemption every year by the submission deadline (March 15). Information to be filled out on the notification and accompanying documents varies depending on the exemption requirements. Please contact the Special Collection Section of the Municipal Residents Tax Division in the Tax Department of the Finance Bureau, or Tax Office/Tax Room in charge of your ward for details.

For business owners (those who pay salary): if you are submitting a notification on behalf of an employee who is eligible for tax exemption with their payroll report, please include a comment in the remarks column of the payroll report that indicates which treaty and which article they meet the requirements for (i.e. Japan-XX Tax Treaty, under Article XX).

Please be aware that you cannot file for municipal/prefectural residents tax exemption using notifications for income tax exemption (Application Form for Income Tax Convention) submitted to your tax office.

Important Tax Forms

• Declaration of Tax Agent for Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes
• Application Regarding Tax Agent for Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes (for New Tax Agent Appointments/Changes in Appointment)
• Application Regarding Tax Agent for Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes (to Forgo Appointing a Tax Agent)
• Notification of Changes Regarding Tax Agent for Individual Municipal/Prefectural Residents Taxes

Contact Details

Inquiries Regarding Special Collection (Subtracted from your wages)

Special Collection Section, Municipal Residents Tax Division

• Tel: 082-504-2089
• Fax: 082-504-2129
• Email: shiminzei@city.hiroshima.lg.jp
• Address: Hiroshima City Hall 1-6-34 Kokutaiji-machi, Naka-ku, Hiroshima,
  Japan 730-8586

Note: closed on national holidays, weekends, August 6, and December 29 to January 3.

Inquiries Regarding Ordinary Collection (Paid directly by individuals)

Central Municipal Tax Office (in charge of Naka Ward/Minami Ward)

Eastern Municipal Tax Office (in charge of Higashi Ward/Aki Ward)

Western Municipal Tax Office (in charge of Nishi Ward/Saeki Ward)

Northern Municipal Tax Office (in charge of Asaminami Ward/Asakita Ward)

Note: Tax Offices are closed on national holidays, weekends, August 6, and December 29 to January 3.

Tax Rooms

Minami Tax Room (Central Municipal Tax Office)

• Tel: 082-250-8946
• Fax: 082-254-2624
• Email: chuozei@city.hiroshima.lg.jp
• Address: Minami Ward Office, 1-5-44 Minami-machi, Minami-ku 734-8522

Aki Tax Room (Eastern Municipal Tax Office)

• Tel: 082-821-4913
• Fax: 082-824-0411
• Email: toubuzei@city.hiroshima.lg.jp
• Address: Aki Ward Office, 3-4-36 Funakoshi-minami, Aki-ku 736-8501

Saeki Tax Room (Western Municipal Tax Office)

• Tel: 082-943-9716
• Fax: 082-943-3310
• Email: seibuzei@city.hiroshima.lg.jp
• Address: Saeki Ward Office, 2-5-28 Kairoen, Saeki-ku 731-5195

Asakita Tax Room (Northern Municipal Tax Office)

• Tel: 082-819-3913
• Fax: 082-815-1650
• Email: hokubuzei@city.hiroshima.lg.jp  
• Address: Asakita Ward Office, 4-13-13 Kabe, Asakita-ku 731-0292

Note: Tax rooms are closed on national holidays, weekends, August 6, and December 29 to January 3.　

Related Information

• Addresses and Contact Information for the Tax Department of the Finance Bureau and City Tax Offices/Rooms
• Tax Delinquency