The Japanese government will no longer issue health insurance cards from Monday, instead integrating them with My Number cards.
The health ministry said people with current health insurance cards that have not yet expired will still be able to use them until Dec 1, 2025.
Registration procedures are required to use a My Number card as a health insurance card. These procedures can be completed on the government's online website, My Number Portal, through card readers at hospitals, clinics and pharmacies, as well as at Seven Bank ATMs in convenience stores.
If your My Number card has expired, you will need to apply for a new one at your ward office.
The My Number card, which has a 12-digit number for each individual, links together various personal data, such as taxes and social security information, and from next March, driver's license information.
The integrated cards allow medical institutions to view the cardholder's data, including medication prescription records and health checkups, and offer patients appropriate treatment options.
When you use your My Number card integrated with health insurance data, you scan it using a card reader at a medical institution, with their identity verified by entering a four-digit code or through facial recognition.
First introduced in 2016, the My Number ID system has been unpopular among the public following revelations of personal information leaks and registration errors.
© Japan Today
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Jay
The government isn't even pretending anymore - they're tying your health to a mandatory surveillance system disguised as 'efficiency.' Integrating health insurance with My Number cards is nothing less than a digital leash. Your personal data, health records, and entire life are now one keystroke away from the state’s prying eyes. Sound familiar? ‘War is peace. Freedom is slavery. Ignorance is strength.’ - 1984.
This isn't about convenience or modernization - it's about control. What happens when some unelected bureaucrat decides your health care depends on 'good behavior'? Or when glitches in the system suddenly deny you life-saving treatment? You'll have no recourse because the system you once trusted will own you.
People, wake up! Today, it's our health insurance. Tomorrow, it's our bank account, our employment. Do not trade liberty for the illusion of convenience. This is the road to authoritarianism, paved with good intentions and digital IDs. Resist it now, or forever hold your peace while Big Brother watches your every move.
JeffLee
The last time my My Number card expired, it took nearly 2 months after the time I filed the application for the new one and the time I received it. I wasn't able to just pick it up: I had to book an appointment at the ward office, whose appointment slots for an entire week were booked out, so I had to go later. What will I do in the future? Lose healthcare coverage for a couple months while waiting forever for the damn card?
The Einsteins who dreamed up this scheme seem to be forging ahead with grand plans they haven't thought out yet.
Albert
Yes we all know it is about control. It is not only Japan, also big tech companies. You don't need to keep repeating what was already well known.
Even placing the comment is subjected to control.
I really don't understand what you want to say but this is not new and this is the life we are accepting.
nishikat
I'm fine with this. Why? I pay a lot for health insurance that I have to have and have no choice not to. It's almost certain that anyone who complains about this is in Japan by choice and has the legal right to go back home. I do know some foreigners who are proud they get out of not paying. I keep my opinion of it to myself. And if they end up being forced to pay at that time I'll let them know indirectly I'm the wrong person to complain to.
Hmmm.......no. it doesn't work that way
Asiaman7
Use a smartphone? How about a credit card? Take trains in Japan?
Sh1mon M4sada
It's got very little to do with liberty, and more about personal info security. Scam etc.
David Brent
This is good. One less card to carry. I hope they can integrate the driver’s license with My Number as well.
Blacksamurai
Wow some real tinfoil hat comments. Here. Didn't know that a government process to streamline medical info for maximum patient care efficiency in digitalization rather than old fashioned paper and files threatens a few of you so much.
The paper health card which can be easily damged and has no photo ID or real way to identify who is the actual holder of the card belongs in the 20th century. As for My Number itself, it will make illegal stayers a thing of the past as it should because it will be the definitive proof that you are who you say you are. It will also combat illegal actions by Japanese people as well as Japan has a high number of the population who share the same names just like in other east Asian countries.
Blacksamurai
And this will also make it easier to catch up with people including foreigners who evade health insurance, city tax and pension payments.
Much harder to keep delaying payments of those legal obligations with My Number on your own terms instead of working anything out with city hall and the pension office. Or bouncing altogether when the obligations have piled up in red notices. I don't guess I know that's behind some of the 'outrage for privacy reasons' towards My Number.
diobrando
As said, mynumber card took TOO much time to renew! What happens if you need to go to hospital or soon a juminhyo ? How many times we heard city hall data as lost by employee and hacked. Definitely against that card with zero privacy.
Aly Rustom
Well, that's Japan in a nutshell.
wallace
I will continue to use my Health Card until it expires next summer. It was renewed yearly after I retired. I have used My Number once and without problem. Just scan the card.
koiwaicoffee
I tried to renew the expired card. I had to go to the ward office and bring a printed picture.
After a month or so they sent me a postcard home telling me to go again to pick it up, with a 1000 Yen fee for the privilege. Fee that they sure forgot to mention at the time of renewal.
Some dude
After the inevitable hacking and leaking of the personal data of tens of millions of people:
"OK, so which genius set the master password for all MyNumber data to oishiigohan?"
リッチ
So Japanese have no trouble handing over their tax records and data to the reception of any medical or pharmacy who can read the data? Seems very very strange. Japan went from privacy to state control in less than 10 years.
Tokyo Guy
"It was Tanaka, sir. He said that the previous password was too obvious"
"And what was that previous password?"
"It was kawaii, sir"
kohakuebisu
Most of the fears about private info leaking is overcooked. Only tiny incidents have happened, but with massive headlines. I bet 90% of the people complaining use some combination of Amazon, Google, and Apple, and like me are shovelling their personal info in every direction to whoever pays those companies for it.
A more understandable and reasoned complaint is that the machines and software medical clinics have to use are expensive. The software is also subscription based, so they have to keep paying. I dunno about now, but back in the day, the company running the software would be amakudari central.
Apparently there is no ID check with the paper cards, so there are cases of people handing them to uninsured mates. In the case of foreigners, this could be checked using zairyu residence cards, but I bet that would annoy some people too.
hooktrunk2
If you have a bank account in Japan, Japan National Health Insurance, file your taxes in Japan, have a Japanese driver's license, pay into the Japan Pension service, the government ALREADY has all your information. What's the big deal. They know where you live too. What's wrong with allowing us to have just ONE card to carry around.
It doesn't install a tracking chip in your brain or any stupid thing like that. Give me a break.
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hooktrunk2
BTW, for those who want to log into you mynumber from your PC, you'll need a card scanner. Find the link via their website instead of searching for it in the Japanese App Store. If you search, it will be a different scanner.
The scanner takes patience. It isn't instant and doesn't make a beeping noise when it's done.
Also, if you want to use your laptop computer to log into your account, you have to download the extension installer to install an extension for your browser. It says app, but the app is just an installer app.
kurisupisu
Foreigners are asked for their Zairyu cards when applying for the card at city offices.
And collecting the card has to be done in person.
All those overstaying in Japan either have to leave or be prepared to start paying a whole lot more for anything health related and go without a bank account.
OssanAmerica
Move. I renewed my My Number Card at the Ward Office in 20 minutes. Most of that was sitting and waiting for them to print up the new one and call my number. And no appointments taken. Your situation is not common.
CAPTAIN
You try to get car insurance and submit you my number in the process.
Car insurance company asks another company to check if your health status.
Company says your no. of hospital visits are more than average.
Car insurance uses that info to set higher payments on you.
Thank you J Gov.
hooktrunk2
How could My Number cards already be expired? I got mine a couple years ago and it doesn't expire until 2030. Is it ward by ward?
GBR48
Yes, it is universal surveillance. But as people don't have a choice, there is not much they can do but accept it. Even if it is insecure, less resilient and may not work very well. There is no point voting for an opposition party, as they want the same level of surveillance over you as your government.
'Old fashioned paper and files' is actually more resilient. Several British hospitals are currently falling back on 'old fashioned paper and files' as their IT systems have been taken down by malware. In going digital we are reducing the resilience of our core infrastructure. That won't end well.
If it is of any benefit to those concerned, all the surveillance in the world doesn't stop governments from being taken down. The Stasi had the best monitoring system on the planet, pre-tech, and the DDR still went the way of telegraphy. Most tech-based state surveillance systems have a single point of failure. One server room goes down, the entire system goes down. Good for revolutions, but a worry for day-to-day resilience.
WoodyLee
Great, so I no longer need to carry 3 cards!!? only one my number card will do the trick !?
hooktrunk2
@CAPTAIN, if any of your conspiratorial accusations are true, then it sounds like a legislative solution would probably serve us better than just not allowing us to have one card and preventing the ability to streamline our experience of navigating all the various services we use in our lives.
Instead of attacking the mynumber program, perhaps try to make it illegal to deny coverage for certain reasons you mention, etc.
JeffLee
@Ossan
So what. I wasn't allowed to "renew." I was told I had to get a whole new card. First, I had to wait for my visa to be renewed, a process that was about 3 weeks delayed, (during which time I had no healthcare coverage, but, oh yes, I was obliged to keep up with the hefty health insurance payments). visa renewal = new card
How do you know? Do you work at the ward office and track the statistics behind the cases?
garypen
Not entirely correct. Most gov't sites with MyNumber logins allow you to use the MyNa app on your smartphone to log into the website on your PC.
The only website I've encountered that doesn't use the smartphone process and requires a scanner is the ISA (immigration) online renewal site.
The Sony RC-S300 works perfectly, and is available from Amazon and elsewhere for around Y3000.
Yes. The process is complex, poorly documented, and especially annoying as the smartphone MyNa app method has been readily available, and is implemented on most gov't sites, other than the ISA.
The good news is that they are planning to switch over to the MyNa app login system at some point, like other gov't sites.
garypen
It also depends on visa/immigration status. If one has a three-year visa, for instance, the myna card will expire when the visa expires.
To make matters more complicated (this is Japan, after all), the e-cert of the card has a different expiration from the card itself. (The e-cert allows you to use the card for certain online procedures.) So, keep a lok in your mailbox for a warning letter around 30 days before that expires. Or, just log into the My Number Portal, and check your status. It should give you all the deets on your myna account.
https://myna.go.jp/
hooktrunk2
@garypen
Thanks. That makes sense. I have P.R., so that probably explains my long expiration date, but the e-cert...will do.
A long time ago, the alien registration cards were doled out by each ward the immigration bureau. The visa expiration date and card date were different and I made a mistake reading it and was almost put in detention. Whew.
hooktrunk2
@garypen
You are right! D'oh. I meant to say scanner app from a smart phone.
OssanAmerica
There you go, you had to renew your Visa first. The expiration date of a My Number Card is set to match your permitted stay on your Zairyu card. Your complaint about the My Number Card is actually because of your Visa status. My Zairyu card was already valid for 5 years when I applied for a My Number Card. When I got a Permanemt Residence Visa then my new My Number Card expiration date matched to when the Zairyu "Card" itself expires in 7 years, although the status is permanent without expiry.
Common sense. Most people in Japan do not have My Number Cards validity dates tied to a Zairyu Card. Because most people are not foreigners.
Gobshite
Why the hysteria? Health insurance is compulsory, everyone has a "my number". One less card for my wallet. I see no problem.
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gokai_wo_maneku
Just did the procedure of integrating My Number and health insurance cards. It took 5 minutes. It is all computerized. Just type in a few numbers and you're done.
JRO
Until they can just send it to us without hassle don't make it mandatory, I haven't even been able to figure out how to get one in the first place. If they just send them out like the regular health insurance card no one will complain.
Jay
Sounds more like some real bleating of government-trusting sheep who have no problem cheerfully handing over every shred of privacy and control to Big Brother. And hey, nothing says "maximum patient care" like turning citizens into data points for bureaucrats to mismanage.
Tomini
Guys saying data privacy this privacy that.....in Japan, there is no privacy. They already got all the inforormation in their system.
nishikat
JUST ASK!!
It doesn't work that way. in fact, that is a crime and anyone leaking that information would be subject to prosecution. Now if you are found to be insane through the courts that's a different story.
Again, my main point is I'm tired of me paying while other people gaming the system and not paying. I understand some poor person who cannot pay and they get it free. I'm talking about people who have the cash (and they brag about gaming the system for their extra cash bonus) who are forced to pay.
7thPatriarch
Mynumber needs to be a requirement for every foreigner living in Japan, permanent resident or not. A comprehensive Mynumber database tying ID's to bank accounts, tax records, the Ministry of Justice's immigration control, health records, phone contracts, insurance policies, drivers licenses and Internet IPs linked to social media usernames is necessary for national security. The compulsory Mynumber app could also be used as a backdoor to track movements, though I'm sure that can already be done without it should the situation arise.
Any agency responsible for the safety of the country is to be provided unfettered access. Whereas security clearance levels should limit a party's access to the relevant information, for example medical professionals can only see medical records.
Customs already has facial biometrics and fingerprints on every foreigner entering the country, it's not difficult to create a single point access database of each individual with the way big data is accumulated. The pieces are all in place for the Mynumber platform to tie it nicely together.
7thPatriarch
On the other hand, the government, slow as they are, has undoubtedly realized they need to provide health coverage to the around 40 million Japanese who pay health insurance and are legally entitled to receiving it but won't sign up to Mynumber for whatever reason. The government knows making the situation difficult for everyone, including the many Doctors Associations against this, is only going to make it more difficult for themselves.
Just send me the "2026 Certificate of Eligibility" paperwork or whatever in the mail.
virusrex
That would apply only if foreigners could get it both at the city office or at the immigration office instead of having to do twice the paperwork and juggling the dates of expiration of either card.
Let's say the person has yearly contracts and immigration refuses to give a residency permit for more than one year each time, currently as long as the contracts never lapses any insurance card linked to the work is also valid the whole time without needing any renovation, but the MN card has to be renovated at least once a year together with the residency card. And if immigration takes longer than usual you get an automatic 3 month extension of your residency card (while in paperwork) but you have to renovate the MN card to get those 3 more months, and when you get the new residency card then you have to go again to the city office to change those extra 3 months you got for the full year of residency.
And the best part is that these renovations of the MN card have to be written in the front of the card for it to be valid, so if the immigration office took their time 2 times in a row that means you have to apply for a new MN card (and wait weeks) the next time you go to renovate it, not because it lapsed but simply because there is no space to write the expiration date.
That means that for anybody on yearly contracts the insurance card that was valid the whole time without doing anything, would instead take 3 to 6 extra visits to the city office (and at least one wait of several weeks) in order to remain valid as a MN card.
wanderlust
Let's hope Fujitsu, the company behind My Number do a better job with system than they did with the Horizon system at UK Post Offices. But the frequent data leaks and mix ups do not give much confidence.
DanteKH
This is the most annoying this ever.
When I try it to login to the My Nuner card, via the annoying App, I get this error message after scanning the card:
And yes, the card is set to expire in 2029, so imagine old people, without technical knowledge going through this hassle and annoyance with those cards...
nishikat
That's what offices are for. The same with young people without technical knowledge. They just need the common sense to JUST ASK
Gobshite
The ignorance abounds: If you live here, it's not a choice. You work and pay taxes, you WILL get a "my number". Initially a scrap of paper (it's Japan), card was optional, not sure about now.
Get the "my number" card at city office, also health insurance if not supplied by employer.
Application at city office is painless, no excuses.
https://japanhpn.org/en/hs1/
Gobshite
One more thing, "my number" is not limited to working and paying tax:
Kaowaiinekochanknaw
I miss the good old days when this was just a conspiracy theory.
Baradzed
According to my observations, most of the ‘improvements’ in Japan never make anyone’s life easier. Usually, it’s over engineering, or substituting one ridiculous system with another ridiculous system, or both.
Jennie
Oh wow I don’t understand what the big fuss is about, never had issue with my number card, I just had to update the address when I moved, does it expire? I knew of them combining and in between there’s another card that was issued. It’ll be better to just carry one, but even that doesn’t make a big difference because I already have to carry all medical cards and pharmacy cards and point cards….etc.
iron man
I do not consider it a problem in japan, any comparisons with your home countries?
Jennie
@iron man
I don’t see any, my number is like the social security number you punch it in and you can retrieve all the information pertaining to its owner. Since introduced here it didn’t play any major roles and I think they’re starting to put more emphasis in its use. Those entitled to residency and national health insurance should have no issue just presenting the my number card. Also insurance cards are accepted as a form of ID, so I’m guessing my number card will replace that as well? It has a picture on it so maybe it’s a better form of an identification.
Asiaman7
In 2020, security cameras with facial-recognizing technology were installed at major train stations and other locations throughout Japan to detect wanted individuals.
There’s not much privacy here. If Japanese authorities desire information, they can generally get it.
Hawk
Jay,
May I just ask: what are you doing about it? How do you resist? And if you're living in Japan, how will you avoid this MyNumber system?
Jennie
Jay,
Probably stop using Google first.
ThonTaddeo
One not-often-noticed bit of privacy invasion that comes with My Number cards is that they contain a backdoor way to identify non-Japanese holders. They have your name in Roman letters, zairyu card style, which gives it away, but even if you're Asian and have a kanji name, these cards use different formats for your birthdate depending on your nationality: the Japanese calendar if you're Japanese, and the Western calendar if you aren't.
I can't think of any reason to have two different calendar formats, and while surely there are few medical institutions that will treat you differently based on nationality, it will soon be trivial for them, or anyone who sees your My Number card, to do so if they wish.
My current health insurance card has my name only in katakana and my birthdate in Showa/Heisei like everyone else. I can't see an advantage of switching to this new card that will instantly reveal that I am an immigrant.
smithinjapan
My partner's parents both live at home still, though they are getting on, and we've been talking about the possibility of retirement homes, since it is getting hard for her father to take care of his mother and himself. We were told that it is standard to have patients at the homes turn over their MyNumber cards to the staff as well as the passwords to use it in case of emergency when the patient is unresponsive. Now, do you know what that means? It means the homes -- where there are NEVER abusers -- will have access to much more than just health care info, especially when the cards are linked to bank accounts (will be mandatory by the end of next year, I'm sure). Can't wait to see what happens.
SDCA
With passwords for E-commerce sites, Social Media, Forums, Gov sites, Banks, Apps, Memberships, Pins for Cards, Pins for smartphones, and so on already existing, it is an absolute headache that we now need to remember a new pin number for something that has potentially all of our information on record. Let's try to keep things simple shall we?
Moderator: Thanks for your contribution. Your comment has been featured in the latest episode of the Japan This Week podcast. Visit the Japan Today top page to listen.
Tax Cutter
The integration of health insurance cards with My Number cards marks a significant shift in Japan's approach to personal identification and healthcare. While this change may offer convenience by linking various personal records, including health information, taxes, and social security data, it also raises concerns, particularly regarding privacy and security. Much like the ongoing discussions around property tax protest, where residents seek transparency and fairness in their assessments, the public's wariness of the My Number card system stems from past issues of data leaks and registration errors. For people considering a property tax protest, it’s essential to stay informed about any changes in systems like these, as they may impact the way personal data is handled in future legal or financial matters. In both cases, ensuring data security and proper registration will be key to building trust and ensuring fairness in the process.
Namorada
My trouble with the card is that I just don’t care for all of that data connected to one card that needs to be used at tiny little clinics that probably don’t have the necessary security.
The government knowing information about me? Who cares. They already know it.
I just don’t want some nut job disrupting my life just because the security features installed failed or what not.
My second concern is the renewal. From the beginning, I applied for the card with an IC chip. No renewal form came. It expired. I went into the ward office and had to listen to some lady rip me a new one about not renewing it on time. Then it took about a month to get a new one.
If this card is going to be essential, I want it ready the day I go in to update it. I don’t care if the renewal is late or not. I pay for health insurance and I will get served in a timely manner and I don’t need some paper pusher having a bad day denying me that right.
Moderator: Thanks for your contribution. Your comment has been featured in the latest episode of the Japan This Week podcast. Visit the Japan Today top page to listen.
owzer
I can't wait for the first leak!
wallace
MY Number is only valid for five years for use in the ATM. My Resident Card is for 7 years. After the first five years, I renew My Number. Two years later I renewed my Residents Card and then also My Number again.
iron man
Jennie,
admission, I am not jpn resident tho got family and apartment there. I have an ID card/number(chipped). R.O.A., immigration channel, departure channel, driving license, no health ins here. But public hospital access, car license renewal (needed for insurance application. Ins Co not allowed to use it excepting traffic offenses),
bank services, police immigrant checks (ID please). hospitals, if you sign up all public hospitals can access records.. bang crash wreck beeeboo already 'first responders' give ID of incoming. I also sign up for my private hospital to make all available. so insurance? you have to make a honest declaration anyway! The disaster is when you loose it, on line police hot no case no. next day immi appt. JUST ask. data leaks happen from on-line shopping etc, not seen any significant data losses in ~30yrs, somethings in 2019.. not internal intl hacks.
Derrick Smith
This will only hobble the people that work through the system. The people outside the system will still be there working in the shadows with no healthcare. They will tie this to the digital surveillance system in Tokyo for the police for sure but anyone can use ir led face masking to block cameras. Until they wipe out physical money, there will always be people getting treated under the table. They have been anti-foreigner since the pandemic, but they don't want to give up the money, so they will continue to make their purge subtle.
Geeter Mckluskie
Good. One less card to carry
SDCA
exactly! Just like a driver's license.
Aoi Azuuri
According to Tokyo Newspaper last month, utilization rate of "My Number Insurance Card" among general citizen is still less than 14%, rate among employees of central government ministries and agencies were less than it despite side promoting it.
In the first place, conventional "Health Insurance card" had no problem.
But, LDP government integrate it with defective "My Number" system unnecessarily, its system error has already killed patient, and its cost has even cornered many clinics to go out of business nationwidely.
This system just victim immense taxpayers money, health and the lives of citizen to benefit large corporations who donating to LDP and undertaking national digital policy, it's absolutely irrational and wasteful.
falseflagsteve
I haven’t even got a My Number card, far as I know was never sent one unless my ex took it.
Harry_Gatto
From other news sources: "Meanwhile, those who do not have My Number cards can still receive insured care if they show a certificate proving their enrollment in health insurance.
Residents who have not applied for My Number cards in the first place or registered them for use as health insurance cards by the expiration date are among those who will receive the newly issued certificates.
The certificates, which substitute for health insurance cards, can be used for up to five years and are subject to renewal. They can be sent to the residents via postal mail, among other methods."
Harry_Gatto
Fujitsu inherited Horizon from ICL (British firm, International Computers Ltd) when they took them over fully in 2002, Fujitsu did not develop Horizon. I used to sell ICL kit and my brother in law worked for them on the software side.
wallace
falseflagsteve
Everyone has a "number". Go to your city office and sort it because you will need it for your healthcare.
falseflagsteve
Wallace
I know the number but I don’t have a card. Nobody ever asked me to get a card or sent me one to my knowledge. My health card is valid until next August, expect I’ll get a letter from city hall before then.
wallace
falseflagsteve
Wallace
Probably nothing will happen unless you make it. Before next August you will need a My Number card from your city office.
falseflagsteve
Wallace
Guess I’ll have to sort, plenty if time still.
Aoi Azuuri
This is just new deceptive public work project that waste immense taxes on the pretext of efficiency.
who can benefit are NTT, Hitach, NEC, Fujitsu and only officials who can move through the revolving door into high-profile position of private sector, not general citizen.
They had threatened or even deceived citizen as if cannot get Health Insurance treatment unless "My Number Insurance Card" or as if cannot use conventional "Health Insurance Card" from December to increase utilization rate.
Those are nothing but fraud.
Kurisu
Bummer...I remember waiting with taut excitement to see what color next year's health insurance card would be. Bureaucrats kill all the fun.
JeffLee
@Ossan
No, that is NOT my complaint. My complaint is that i need to get a new card and make a new application every time my visa is renewed. When these two go out of synch, it seems I will technially lose my health coverage during that period, based on a real experience I recently had.
Why can't visa holders just renew their My Number, so that both their visas and MN are in synch? Associated complaint is that the application process is not short and simple. It takes nearly two months for the card to arrive and then an appointment at the ward office.
Blacksamurai
I love the people whining that nobody told them anything about this. It's the responsibility of adults who live, work and study in a country that's not their own to keep up with everything that affects their lives including their legal obligations. The different levels of J governance are much clearer than a lot of countries including some of the ones we come from.
City halls are easy to access, provide the jump off point for most information foreign residents will ever receive and have been a source of info about My Number ever since the card was first issued by them in its original form. I guess the My Number card update to multi functions including health is too much for the kind of people I've actually seen and heard online and in person saying they can't pay their health insurance and city tax because it's too hard and they can't understand the writing on the bills. One of those streamers has lived in Japan for about 15 years, says it all.
Redtail Swift
Next it will be your drivers license and eventually your passport. The powers that be will be able to shut your life down with a click of a mouse.
Once the authorities such as the police get involved, we can move that 99% conviction rate up to 100%. They won't release your human rights until you say what they want you to say.
Jennie
@Iron man
I apologize if my comment was too general and not informative enough. Upon browsing through not only yours but others’ situations I understand the confusion and complexity this may bring to many. I hope more detailed information will be followed up to clear up the questions and concerns.
lostrune2
They already do this in China
Blacksamurai
And as usual the people having a 'No more privacy/this is China's social credit scheme wa wa' meltdown over the Japanese version of what many developed countries already do, are so cocooned from daily Japanese life and so lacking in knowledge of Japanese history that they fail to realise Japan has never had a western concept of privacy at all. The fact that every resident has to register at their local city hall regardless of whether they're a property owner has been for a long time the way Japan monitors who lives where, their age, their partners/family etc.
In some developed countries you don't have to register your address at all with the local authorities unless you own the property you live at. The local neighborhood groups called the chonai kai are very useful organisations but were established during Japan's military government pre WW2 to monitor the population. The chonai kai still repot on residents to the local koban so the police know just what is going on in their area. Every year the local police do neighborhood checks on residents, nothing private about that, never was.
The population of Japan has been numbered in different ways for more than a century including the post WW2 tax, pension and health insurance systems. It doesn't matter there were separate numbers for each - it was always easy for J authorities to find out info through these numbers. Again, a lot of this dramatic over reaction is coming because unlike before, My Number will make it much harder to evade tax, health and pension obligations. About time.