Japan inheritance: procedures for frozen accounts and asset discovery

When a person passes away in Japan, their bank accounts are typically frozen once the financial institution is notified, which is a separate process from filing a death certificate at a municipal office. However, heirs can utilize a provisional payment system under Civil Code Article 909-2 to withdraw funds for funeral expenses. This allows for a withdrawal of up to 1.5 million yen per financial institution, calculated based on the deceased's total savings and the heir's legal inheritance share.

Regarding pensions, the Japan Pension Service notes that for individuals with a registered My Number, a formal death report is generally unnecessary. Unpaid pensions—funds for months the deceased was entitled to but had not yet received—can be claimed by surviving family members living with the deceased. The specific amount of unpaid pension depends on the date of death.

To locate assets after a death, heirs can use the inheritance inquiry system for bank accounts, provided the deceased had linked their My Number to those accounts. This system identifies the existence of accounts but does not disclose balances. For life insurance, the Life Insurance Association of Japan offers a query service to check for active policies. Experts recommend that individuals link their My Number to all accounts and create a list of assets while they are still healthy to simplify the inheritance process for their families.