Japan - NISA and J401k

[meep]

I've been reading up on my investment choices in Japan and I'd like to get the ball rolling. The problem is I don't really know where to start. In the US the top contenders seem to be Vanguard and Betterment. I'm not sure where I should go here in Japan. The guy behind Retire Japan goes through Rakuten, NISA seems to be advertised at most banks and I've seen J401k being advertised at JA Post and SMBC. I would appreciate being led towards the right direction.

I am a Japanese citizen, planning on retiring in Japan.

[dungoofed]

1) set up a trading account with Rakuten or SBI
2) tell them you want NISA.
3) buy  the max 100man of 1550.T to get started.

Judging from your English I'm guessing you have some ties to another country. If so, be aware that SBI and Rakuten both have residency requirements. I doubt they ever check but the penalty seems to be that they reserve the right to close your account without notice which could result in your position being liquidated without your consent.

More reading here :

www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=141802

[meep]

Thank you for the links and NISA info. I'll check out bogleheads and maybe they'll have J401k info as well.

My children and spouse are US citizens, besides that I no longer have ties to another country. I was a dual citizen until I was 20.

[josstache]

I would just be careful if any of the assets in the Japanese accounts would be attributable to your spouse for whatever reason.  If they are, I suspect you'll need to worry about FBAR and FATCA. It's conceivable that certain of your assets could be attributed to your spouse (even if he/she doesn't work) to the extent that they came to you after you got married.

Furthermore, J401(k) and NISA (according to Bogleheads) not recognized as being tax-preferred by the IRS, so your spouse would be liable for any US taxes on such accounts as if they were ordinary taxable accounts.

Note that I am not an expert but just wanted to point out some potential topics to research.

[meep]

Thank you for the tax info, I'll look into it more carefully.

Are ordinary taxable accounts taxed at your income bracket or are they taxed on their own set percentages? A quick Google search points to a combination of both. (ETA: this question is for US taxes)