About

There is a Japanese expression — 対岸の火事 (taigan no kaji), "a fire on the opposite shore" — for a problem you can watch from a safe distance, someone else's concern. For Americans living in Japan, the opposite shore is not someone else's problem. It is home. The financial, tax, estate, and health questions that follow you across the Pacific have to be organized in two countries, two languages, and two legal systems.

TaiganJP is written and maintained by Benjamin Eichhorn — a U.S. defense contractor based in Tokyo with twenty years of experience on U.S.–Japan programs, husband to a Japanese national, and father of three dual-citizen children. He has personally navigated 住民票 registration, 確定申告 filings, FBAR reporting, Japanese inheritance considerations, the Japanese medical system from the US-insurance side, and the question of where to retire on the opposite shore.

The site grew out of Taigan Bridge — a planning tool originally built for his own family — and the realization that no commercial product, and very little well-sourced English writing, addresses the specific situation of Americans in Japan. The guides here are the reference he wished existed.

Editorial policy

• Every factual claim cites a primary source. Guides link directly to the statute, agency page, or official form — not to someone else's summary of it.
• Every guide displays a last-verified date. If a guide hasn't been re-checked recently, you can see that at a glance and weigh it accordingly.
• No display ads. Nothing on this site is paid placement.
• Affiliate links are always disclosed inline, at the point where the link appears — never buried in a separate policy page.

How the site is funded is summarized in the footer of every page.

Nothing on this site is legal, tax, or investment advice. It's a well-sourced starting point, not a substitute for a professional who knows your situation.