Transferred to Another City in Japan? A Practical Tenkin Checklist

2026年9月1日

Transferred to Another City in Japan? A Practical Tenkin Checklist

Tenkin (転勤) means an employer-directed transfer to another workplace, often in a different city or prefecture. It may change far more than your office: you may need to negotiate the timing and financial support, end or keep a lease, move your family, update your registered address, and check whether immigration reporting is required.

Do not agree only from a verbal explanation. First, ask for the destination, start date, expected duration, duties, pay, allowances, housing arrangements, and return conditions in writing.

This guide is for foreign employees in Japan—especially workers with a rented home, children, a working partner, or a residence status tied to an organization.

What to check first

Employment: Does your contract or work rule allow transfers, and what exactly will change?
Money: Which moving, housing, travel, and family-separation costs will the company pay?
Family: Can everyone move, or would temporary solo relocation be more realistic?
Procedures: Which municipal, immigration, housing, school, and service notifications apply?

TOC

Tenkin is not the same as every other job move

The first task is to identify what your company is actually asking you to do. Several Japanese terms describe different arrangements, with different consequences for your employer, contract, and residence status.

Tenkin (転勤): transfer to another workplace, usually under the same employer
Haichi tenkan (配置転換): reassignment of duties, department, or workplace
Tanshin funin (単身赴任): the employee lives near the new workplace while the family remains at the original home
Shukkō (出向): temporary assignment to another company while retaining a relationship with the original employer
Tenseki (転籍): movement to another employer, normally involving a change in the employing entity

A move between branches of the same company is not automatically the same as a transfer to another legal entity. Check the company name on your contract, payslip, social insurance records, and proposed transfer document.

That distinction matters. If the employing or affiliated organization changes, your immigration reporting duties may differ from those for an internal branch transfer.

Check the employment documents before discussing the move

Whether a company may direct a transfer depends on the documents and circumstances, not on the word “tenkin” alone. Review the employment contract, notice of working conditions, work rules, collective agreement if applicable, and any transfer policy.

Since April 1, 2024, employers must state both the initial place and duties and the scope of possible changes when clearly indicating working conditions. On an English or bilingual notice, look for “Place of Work,” “Assigned Work,” and “Scope of Changes.” The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare provides a model Notice of Working Conditions showing these fields.

Questions to put in writing

Ask HR or your manager for a written answer to each of these points:

What is the exact workplace address?
Is the move temporary, open-ended, or permanent?
What is the reporting date, and how much preparation time is available?
Will your job title, duties, working hours, remote-work options, or salary change?
Will the legal employer remain the same?
Can you request another destination, a delayed start, or remote work?
Is there a planned return date or a review date?
What happens if you cannot move for family, medical, or immigration reasons?

A broad transfer clause does not answer practical questions about the specific order. Keep the transfer notice, emails, meeting notes, policy pages, and expense rules together.

ここがポイント: A transfer clause is not a complete relocation plan. Before making housing or family commitments, obtain the location, timing, employment conditions, support package, and legal-employer details in writing.

Family responsibilities must be raised early

Tell the employer promptly if relocation would make childcare or family care difficult. Waiting until housing has been booked can reduce the range of workable alternatives.

Japan’s Child Care and Family Care Leave Act requires an employer changing a worker’s assignment and workplace to consider that worker’s situation when the move would make childcare or family care difficult. The Ministry’s current English outline of the Act includes this rule.

This is important, but it should not be read as an automatic right to reject every transfer. “Consideration” may lead to discussion of timing, destination, remote work, commuting, or another arrangement. The outcome depends on the facts and the employer’s obligations.

Give HR concrete information

Instead of saying only that the transfer is inconvenient, explain what the move would change:

a child’s school or nursery placement
pregnancy, disability, or ongoing medical care
regular care of a parent or another family member
a partner’s employment or residence status
an exam period or school graduation date
the lack of suitable housing near the proposed workplace

Provide only the documents reasonably needed for the discussion. Ask what alternatives were considered and request a written summary of the company’s response.

Calculate the real cost before choosing a living arrangement

A company-paid moving truck does not mean the transfer is cost-neutral. The largest risk is often paying for two homes or losing money through lease timing.

Costs to ask the employer about

Company policies vary, so request the applicable ryohi kitei (旅費規程, travel and relocation expense rules) and housing policy. Check whether support covers:

movers and packing
transport to the new city
temporary accommodation
apartment-search travel
lease agency fees, deposit, key money, guarantor fees, and insurance
lease cancellation charges at the old home
company housing or a housing allowance
travel home during a tanshin funin arrangement
shipment or storage of furniture
a spouse’s and children’s travel costs
pet, vehicle, or parking expenses

Ask whether the company pays suppliers directly, reimburses you after submission, or provides a flat allowance. These methods affect how much cash you need before moving.

Tax treatment is not identical for every payment

The National Tax Agency states that fares and relocation payments covering expenses normally necessary for an employee’s employer-directed move are generally not taxed. However, its guidance also says that a continuing post-arrival payment resembling a separation or housing allowance can be treated as taxable salary.

The label used by the employer is not enough by itself. Ask payroll:

which items will appear as taxable salary
which receipts must be retained
whether there are reimbursement limits
when reimbursement will be paid

For a large or unusual package, confirm the treatment with payroll or a qualified tax professional rather than estimating from the gross amount.

Decide whether the family moves together

The practical choice is usually between moving the household, maintaining two homes, or negotiating another work arrangement. Compare the full cost and the human impact, not only the monthly rent near the new office.

Moving the whole household

This may be simpler when the transfer is long-term and suitable housing, schooling, and care are available. Before agreeing, check:

the old lease’s notice period and early-termination terms
move-in costs for the new property
school or nursery availability
the partner’s work and immigration position
access to hospitals, disability support, or family care
whether the company will pay for a later return move

Choosing tanshin funin

A solo assignment may reduce disruption to schooling or a partner’s career, but it can create two rents, repeated travel, and extra household work.

Ask whether the company provides:

a dormitory or company apartment
a taxable separation allowance
paid trips to the family home
flexible arrival and departure times
a fixed end date or regular review

Do not assume that a company allowance will cover the actual cost. Compare the after-tax allowance with rent, utilities, furniture, food, and transport for the second home.

Negotiating a third option

Depending on the job, alternatives might include a delayed start, hybrid work, a different branch, periodic business trips, or a shorter assignment. These are negotiation options, not universal entitlements. Put any agreed exception, review date, and travel arrangement in writing.

Moving procedures: use a deadline-based checklist

Once you decide to relocate, deal with municipal registration first and then update every organization that relies on your address. Rules and required documents can differ by municipality.

Before leaving the old municipality

If you move to another municipality, contact the current city, ward, town, or village office about a tenshutsu todoke (転出届, moving-out notification). Ask whether online submission is available and what each family member must bring.

Also check:

National Health Insurance, if you are enrolled through the municipality
child allowance and child medical subsidies
nursery, school, disability, or long-term care procedures
local tax documents that may still be sent to the old address
seals or certificates registered locally

Moving within the same municipality usually uses a different procedure, commonly called tenkyo todoke (転居届, change-of-address notification). Confirm the local form and deadline.

After arriving at the new address

Mid- to long-term foreign residents must report a new address within 14 days after moving to it. Bringing the residence card to the municipal office and completing the applicable resident-registration procedure normally also satisfies the immigration address-notification requirement. The Immigration Services Agency explains this in its address-change procedure and its multilingual Living and Work Guidebook.

Depending on the household and municipality, you may need:

residence cards for family members
My Number cards
the moving-out certificate, where required
documents proving family relationships
health insurance or benefit documents

Ask the new municipality how to update My Number card address information, municipal insurance, child benefits, school enrollment, and other local services. Do not assume one counter completes every procedure.

Mail, banks, utilities, and contracts

Japan Post’s relocation and forwarding service forwards eligible mail from the former domestic address to the new one free of charge for one year from submission of the relocation form. This is a safety net, not a substitute for updating each sender.

Notify these organizations directly:

banks, credit card companies, and insurers
mobile phone and internet providers
electricity, gas, and water providers
landlord, property manager, and guarantor company
pension and health insurance contacts, where applicable
driver’s licence and vehicle-registration authorities
schools, clinics, subscriptions, and online shops

Some contracts cannot move with you. Electricity and gas suppliers, internet availability, waste rules, parking registration, and water procedures vary by region, building, and operator.

Immigration reporting depends on what changed

A new workplace does not automatically mean a new residence status, but an organizational change can trigger a notification. Check the legal employer and the activities permitted by your current status of residence.

For certain residence statuses—including some work, study, and intra-company transfer categories—the Immigration Services Agency requires notification within 14 days when an affiliated organization changes its name or location, ceases to exist, or when the resident leaves or transfers to another organization. The applicable categories and events are listed on the agency’s notification page for affiliated organizations.

An internal move between offices may be different from shukkō, tenseki, or reassignment to duties outside the activities allowed by your status. Before accepting a change involving another legal entity or substantially different work:

compare the employer names on all documents
ask HR whether the organization or only the workplace changes
check whether an immigration notification is required
confirm that the new duties remain within your permitted activities

For an individual determination, consult the Immigration Services Agency or a qualified immigration professional. FRESC, the Foreign Residents Support Center, provides access to immigration and labor consultation services.

Common mistakes that make a transfer harder

Most preventable problems come from acting before the terms are clear or missing separate deadlines. Avoid these errors:

signing a new lease before receiving the transfer conditions and support package
assuming all relocation payments are non-taxable
treating a mail-forwarding request as an official address change
forgetting that the old lease may require advance notice
assuming the employer will pay a spouse’s, child’s, pet’s, or vehicle’s costs
overlooking school and nursery application schedules
assuming an internal workplace transfer and a change of employer have the same immigration effect
resigning immediately without first obtaining advice about the contract and transfer order
relying only on a verbal promise about the duration or return location

Keep copies of receipts, approvals, contracts, municipal documents, and immigration submissions. A simple folder organized by “work,” “housing,” “family,” and “government” can prevent reimbursement and deadline problems.

If you believe the transfer is unreasonable

Do not ignore the order, but do not make an irreversible decision before obtaining advice. Ask the employer for the contractual basis, business reason, timing, and written response to your stated constraints.

A dispute may turn on the contract, work rules, established company practice, the purpose of the transfer, the hardship caused, and other case-specific facts. That is why a general article cannot determine whether a particular order is valid.

For labor-condition questions, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare lists multilingual consultation services for foreign workers. As of August 2026, its page lists an English telephone consultation service on weekdays and a free English Labour Standards Advice Hotline outside ordinary government-office hours. Check the page before calling because schedules can change.

For a problem involving both employment and residence status, the FRESC contact page identifies immigration, labor, and legal-information services available through the center.

A practical order of action

Handle the transfer in this order so that one early assumption does not create several later costs.

Obtain the transfer proposal and deadline in writing.
Check your contract, notice of working conditions, work rules, and expense policies.
Confirm whether the legal employer, duties, pay, and residence-status position will change.
Explain childcare, family-care, medical, schooling, or partner constraints promptly.
Compare a household move, solo assignment, and any negotiable alternative.
Calculate both one-time costs and monthly costs after tax.
Obtain written approval for housing, movers, travel, and reimbursements before booking.
End or change the old lease only after the work arrangement is sufficiently clear.
Complete municipal and residence-card address procedures within the applicable deadlines.
Update immigration, school, banking, insurance, utility, and postal records as required.

The most important document is not the moving-company estimate. It is the written record showing where you will work, for how long, under which employer, on what conditions, and who will pay each cost. Secure that record before committing your home or family to the move.

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