Your company is registered, and now you need your company bank account documents ready. Japanese banks are required to confirm four things before they open one: who the company is, who is behind it, what it actually does, and, for tax reporting, where it and its owners are tax resident. Most of the delays foreign-owned companies run into come from a document that answers one of those questions too weakly, too late or in the wrong language.
Each bank publishes its own list and date rules, and JETRO notes that the documents required are decided case by case. So use this checklist to prepare, then match it against the page of the bank you choose. If you haven’t registered the company yet, start with our guide to incorporation documents in Japan.
Key takeaways
- Banks such as MUFG and SMBC ask for a full-history certificate of registered matters and the company seal certificate, issued within the last 6 months.
- Banks must identify the individuals who control your company, including owners who hold it through an overseas parent.
- Registry extracts, articles of incorporation and office leases usually don’t count as business evidence. Japanese-language contracts, invoices or, for a new company, a detailed business plan do.
- Every new corporate account needs a CRS tax-residence notification, and companies with US tax ties also need FATCA forms.
Your company bank account documents checklist
| Document | What it proves | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Full-history certificate of registered matters (履歴事項全部証明書) | The company exists, its name, address and officers | MUFG and SMBC (branch applications) want it issued within 6 months |
| Company seal certificate (法人の印鑑証明書) | The company’s registered seal | It’s the company’s certificate, not the representative’s personal one |
| ID for the person handling the account | Who is dealing with the bank | Foreign nationals usually need a residence card |
| Power of attorney | Authority to act for the company | Needed when that person isn’t the representative |
| Beneficial-owner details | The individuals who control the company | Owners behind an overseas parent still count |
| Business evidence | The company is really trading or about to | Registry extracts and leases often don’t count |
| Licence or registration | Permission for a regulated business | In the company’s name and still valid |
| CRS and FATCA forms | Tax residence of the company and its owners | Required for every new corporate account |
Not every bank asks for every item, and requirements differ between a KK (kabushiki kaisha) and a GK (godo kaisha). Treat the table as the full set to prepare for.
Company certificates from the Legal Affairs Bureau
Two certificates come from the Legal Affairs Bureau, Japan’s commercial registry. If you’re unsure what the first one is, our explainer on what the registry certificate is covers it.
The full-history certificate of registered matters (履歴事項全部証明書). This shows the company’s name, head office, business purposes and officers. MUFG asks for one issued within 6 months, and SMBC asks for the same when you apply at a branch.
The company seal certificate (法人の印鑑証明書). This certifies the seal registered for the company. MUFG asks for it within 6 months. GMO Aozora Net Bank needs it when the company’s registered seal is stamped on the authority form, and it must be within 6 months when it reaches the bank. GMO Aozora also points out that the representative’s personal seal certificate isn’t a substitute.
You can request both online through the Ministry of Justice’s registration system and have them posted or collected at a registry counter. The registry certificate needs no electronic signature. The seal certificate does, so if you don’t have a qualifying electronic certificate, you’ll usually collect it at the counter with the company’s seal card (印鑑カード).
One more detail: some registry certificates don’t show the representative’s address. If yours doesn’t, MUFG asks for the representative’s ID separately, and SMBC may ask for a seal certificate issued within 6 months.
ID for the people handling the account
Banks distinguish between the representative director and the 取引担当者, the person who actually deals with the bank. They can be the same person. If they aren’t, expect to submit a power of attorney. MUFG wants that power of attorney stamped with the company’s registered seal.
If the representative or the person handling the account is a foreign national, MUFG asks for a residence card (在留カード) for each of them. GMO Aozora also expects a residence card in principle. If the name you registered is a 通称 (a commonly used name) that isn’t on the card, it asks for a document such as a 住民票 (resident record) showing both names.
Being foreign-owned doesn’t by itself push you to a branch. MUFG requires in-person applications from overseas corporations, but it excludes Japanese companies set up by foreign businesses from that rule.
If your representative lives outside Japan and has no residence card, the account becomes harder. Our guide to starting a company in Japan without residency explains the options before you apply.
Beneficial owners when the owners are overseas
Japan’s anti-money-laundering rules require banks to identify the company’s beneficial owner (実質的支配者), meaning the real person in control. For a KK, the test works like this. First, it’s the individual who directly or indirectly holds more than 50% of the voting rights. If nobody does, it’s each individual holding more than 25%. If there’s still nobody, the bank looks at who has controlling influence, and finally at the representative.
When you own the company through a parent
Many foreign-owned companies sit under a holding company abroad. That doesn’t end the bank’s inquiry at the holding company. Votes held through a company in which an individual owns more than 50% are counted as that individual’s indirect holding.
Here’s a hypothetical example. Founder A owns 60% of a Singapore holding company, and that holding company owns 100% of your Japan KK. A controls the holding company, so its votes count as A’s indirect holding, and the bank will treat A as the beneficial owner. Expect it to ask for A’s name, address and date of birth, which MUFG confirms for any individual with more than 25%.
Prepare a simple ownership chart that runs from your Japanese company up to the individuals, with the percentages at each level. It makes the bank’s questions easier to answer consistently. Banks may also ask for documents about the parent company itself, so ask your chosen bank early what it needs.
Evidence banks accept
A KK can ask the registry for a certified Beneficial Owner List (実質的支配者リスト). It’s free, but it’s only available to stock companies, so a GK can’t use it.
MUFG lists other options: a shareholder register, a securities report or the individuals’ ID. SMBC may ask a GK for its articles of incorporation when identifying beneficial owners. For foreign beneficial owners, it asks for a document showing the English name, such as a residence card or passport.
Proof your business is real
This is where new companies most often get stuck. A registry certificate proves the company exists, but it doesn’t show what the company does. Our article on why Japanese banks reject corporate account applications looks at this from the bank’s side.
SMBC asks for at least one of these:
- Signed or sealed contracts
- Invoices, purchase orders or delivery notes from other companies
- Invoices or delivery notes your company issued
- Records showing sales, purchases or business activity
- A business plan, but only for a newly established company that has none of the above
It wants these documents dated within 6 months, written in Japanese, sealed or electronically signed, and showing the same company name and address as the registry.
| Usually counts at SMBC | Doesn’t count at SMBC |
|---|---|
| Contracts, invoices, purchase orders | Registry certificate, articles of incorporation |
| Delivery notes, sales records | Utility bills, office lease, rent invoices |
| Brochures or catalogues showing your name and address | Invoices for business cards or website creation |
| A business plan (new companies only) | Documents not in Japanese or more than 6 months old |
GMO Aozora’s rules are similar. It takes 1 to 10 documents, and at least 2 if you haven’t started trading. It doesn’t accept anything created or sealed more than six months before its review, or anything written in a language other than Japanese. A website can count if it shows your registered name and address, describes your actual business and has been promoted for at least 3 months.
If you’re relying on a business plan, make it specific. GMO Aozora asks for more than you typed into the online form, such as your concept, strengths and weaknesses, sales strategy and financial projections. Our GMO Aozora application guide walks through that bank’s steps.
Regulated businesses need one more item. MUFG asks for proof that the licence, registration or notification is complete, in the company’s name and still valid.
Tax-residence forms: CRS and FATCA
Since 1 January 2017, every corporation opening a new account at a Japanese financial institution has had to file a notification under the CRS rules. The CRS (Common Reporting Standard) is the international system for exchanging financial account information. The National Tax Agency asks for the company’s name, address and country of tax residence, plus a foreign taxpayer number if that country isn’t Japan. Your Japanese KK or GK is normally tax resident in Japan, and the agency confirms that you still write “Japan”.
Foreign ownership matters at the next step. Most unlisted companies are “specified corporations” (特定法人) and must also report the tax-residence countries of their beneficial owners.
If the company or a beneficial owner has US tax ties, expect FATCA paperwork too. SMBC asks for a W-9 from a specified US person, or a W-8BEN-E in some financial or investment cases, signed by hand. Where the company is tax resident outside Japan, SMBC uses an English-language CRS form plus a Japanese supplement.
Before you submit: five checks that prevent resubmission
- Language. SMBC and GMO Aozora reject business evidence that isn’t in Japanese. Translate your business plan and key contracts before you apply.
- Date windows. Six months is common, but it isn’t universal. DOCOMO SMTB Net Bank wants a resident record or personal seal certificate issued within 3 months. GMO Aozora measures its 6 months to the day the seal certificate arrives, not the day you send it.
- Originals and copies. GMO Aozora wants a photo of the original seal certificate. It doesn’t accept PDFs or certificates marked “COPY”.
- Matching names and addresses. The company name and address on your evidence should match the registry. Personal names should match across IDs and forms.
- Timing. Order certificates when your other documents are ready, so they’re still inside the bank’s window when they arrive.
Getting help with the application
If you’d like help preparing your company bank account documents, SmartStart Japan’s corporate bank account support covers readiness screening, bank selection, document preparation and translation, and communication with the bank. The bank makes the final decision. To see where your company stands first, try the Bank Account Readiness Check.
