Residence card · Updated October 2026
Japan's new residence card fails some online sign-ups
If your card was issued on or after 14 June 2026, some online sign-ups cannot read it yet. The card is valid. The providers' verification systems have not been updated.
If a sign-up refuses your card
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What changed in June 2026
From 14 June 2026, Japan began issuing second-generation residence cards (在留カード, zairyu card), which can carry My Number Card functionality on the same chip.
Any card issued from that date is the new type, including one issued at renewal, at a change of status or on approval of permanent residency.
Online identity verification (photographing your card or tapping it against your phone) was built for the old card. Several providers' systems cannot read the new one yet.
Anyone issued a card since 14 June 2026 has the new type, and new arrivals are the people setting up a phone, internet and a bank account.
Tokutei Zairyu card (特定在留カード, specified residence card) or two cards?
From 14 June 2026 there is a specified residence card (特定在留カード), a residence card with My Number Card functions added, and the ordinary residence card moves to a new format too. Getting a specified residence card is optional, and you can still keep a residence card and a My Number Card as two cards. If you do not ask for a specified card, you are issued the new-format residence card. A residence card in the old format stays valid, and you do not have to switch to either new card.
| Specified residence card (特定在留カード) | Second-generation residence card | Residence card plus a separate My Number Card | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it is | A residence card with My Number Card functions added | The ordinary residence card in its new format, without My Number Card functions | A residence card and a My Number Card, carried as two cards |
| Do you choose it? | Yes, optional | It is issued if you do not ask for a specified card | Allowed: you can keep both |
| After a procedure at the immigration office | Your My Number Card details are updated there, with no city office trip | No My Number Card functions to update | A separate trip to the city office to update the My Number Card |
| Time to issue | About 10 days longer than an ordinary residence card | Ordinary | Ordinary |
| Handed out at the airport on arrival | No | Yes, a residence card | Yes, a residence card |
Sources: the Immigration Services Agency's specified residence card page and its residence card page, read 3 October 2026.
What a specified card changes
- It saves a trip: With a specified card, a procedure at the immigration office also records your latest details on the My Number Card function, so you do not go to the city office separately.
- It is also a health insurance card: A specified card can be used as a My Number health insurance card (マイナ保険証).
- It costs nothing the first time: As a rule there is no fee if you receive the specified card at your first procedure on or after 14 June 2026.
- It is slower: A specified card takes about 10 days longer to issue than an ordinary residence card. At the airport on arrival you receive a residence card, not a specified card.
- You have to ask every time: To keep a specified card you have to apply for it again at every later residence procedure and at expiry.
- Losing it is a double loss: Because a specified card is both a residence card and a My Number Card, losing it needs the procedures for both.
A specified residence card is a residence card, so the duty to carry it at all times applies. To switch from your current card only, apply at the immigration office for a replacement by exchange and apply for the specified card at the same time. For now the online residence application system cannot take an application for a specified card, so apply at the immigration office counter.
What neither new card prints on the front
Period of stay, permission type, permission date and issue date are no longer printed on either new card; the chip holds them. The agency's residence card reader app (在留カード等読取アプリケーション, residence card reader application) lets you check what the chip holds. A specified residence card prints your My Number on the back. The new-format residence card is the same as the specified card except that it prints no My Number on the back.
For online sign-ups the specified card does better at some providers that refuse the second-generation card, because they read it through My Number Card: IIJmio, povo and Aeon Mobile. ahamo and LP Mobile refuse it. The verification tracker has each provider's notice.
Which sign-ups refuse the new card
ahamo states that second-generation cards, and specified residence cards with My Number functionality, cannot currently be used for its online identity check.
ahamo tells you to apply in person at a retailer running an ahamo sign-up fair. LINEMO offers identity verification on delivery (配達時に本人確認): the courier checks your card at the door.
Rakuten Mobile started accepting the new card online on 1 September 2026. The verification tracker shows where each other provider stands, with a link to its own notice.
What to do instead
- Pick verification on deliveryWhere it is offered, the courier checks your card when the delivery arrives. You have to be home.
- Use a data-only eSIM for nowA travel eSIM asks for no ID, but it gives you no Japanese phone number. Plans with a number, prepaid ones included, check ID. Lyprimo, a prepaid SIM, told a mystery shopper in writing that its online check accepts residence cards issued from 14 June 2026.
- Do it in personIf the service has a shop, counter staff read the physical card.
Register your address within 14 days
When you move, you have 14 days to register your new address at the city office, which writes it on the back of your card. A bank will ask for the card with the address already on it, and so will an internet contract and a credit card application. Register in your first week.
What we have not verified
We have not found a central list of which services can read second-generation cards, so we read each provider's own notice and publish the result in the verification tracker. 12 are confirmed there, and the rest are marked checking. If a sign-up we don't list refused your card, tell us.
Residence card FAQ
What changed about residence cards in June 2026?
Two new cards: the second-generation residence card and, if you choose it, a specified residence card (特定在留カード) that is also your My Number card. The second-generation card no longer prints your period of stay, permission type, permission date or issue date on the front; the chip holds them.
What is a Tokutei Zairyu card?
A Tokutei Zairyu card (特定在留カード) is a specified residence card: a residence card with My Number Card functions added, available from 14 June 2026. It is optional, and you can keep a residence card and a My Number Card as two cards. The comparison table shows how the three setups differ.
Should I get a specified residence card or keep two cards?
It saves a separate trip to the city office to update your My Number Card after an immigration procedure. In return it takes about 10 days longer to issue, has to be requested again at every later procedure, and is not handed out at the airport.
Can I use a new residence card for online sign-ups?
At some providers. Rakuten Mobile accepts both new cards online, IIJmio, povo and Aeon Mobile accept the specified card through the My Number Card route, and Japan Post Bank’s Tetsuzuki App accepts every residence card; ahamo, Docomo SMTB Net Bank and Seven Bank accept neither online. The verification tracker has each provider’s notice.
How long do I have to register my address on a residence card?
Fourteen days from moving in. Missing it can bring a criminal fine of up to ¥200,000 under the Immigration Control Act, and after 90 days without good reason your status of residence can be revoked.
Source
Each provider's own notice, read one at a time.
Which sign-ups accept the new card comes from each provider's Japanese notice, linked with the date we read it in the verification tracker. Last reviewed October 13, 2026. How this site is checked.