What the What?! Do I really need $5000.00 to move to Japan!?No. You need more than that.
Ideally you should really move to Japan with at least 500,000￥.
At this point most people are like what the heck?! I am moving there to make money, not to spend all of it! Well, it's a trade off. It's crappy I know, but you need money to start a new life somewhere, anywhere.
Don't want to buy in?
If you don't want these money worries, my advice is to move to Korea. The EPIK program is nice and generous and pays for your flights (they pay a set fee so if you get a cheap flight, you really tend to make money - I think my flight was $480.00 and they reimbursed me somewhere around a grand). In addition they house you for free and give you three free meals a day during training. I apologize, I can't seem to remember if they pay you for the training or not... But they DO they pay you exactly a month from when you start. They also provide you with free housing and furnishing for your entire time in Korea. Sometimes, as in cases like mine, they even pay for your bills; that is because the place I stayed in was so cheap that they had to find a way to use the rest of my budget for housing. However, if you place costs more than the housing budget, then you may end up paying a little bit extra a month. I am talking like a hundred dollars or less.
So what do I need all these monies for?
The biggest thing you need money for is your apartment. It costs a nice handsome price for something that could equal a New Yorker's closet space. Why does it cost so much? Japanese apartments have a lot of hidden fees and such. You have to pay for things like key money, insurance and a few months rent ( just in case).
So now I have a place what about the rest of the money?
You need it to furnish your place. Some places and contracts, especially ones with Leopalace, will have furnishings including: a TV, bed frame, TV stand, table, microwave, fridge, and washing machine. Please note that if you want to go with your own place you have to buy all these things. If that is the case, you can find pretty sweet deals at the local recycle shop. But overall, the majority of these appliances can be pretty expensive in Japan. With that being said I still bought my toaster oven at a recycle shop for 1,500￥.
Furnishings check.
Apartment check. Furnishings check. Everything else check.
Now what?
After that, and perhaps most importantly, you need a phone. You are require to have one so that your company can contact you in a pinch. Sure, you can get a pay as you go one, but if you are planning on staying in Japan longer, I personally really recommend getting something with a bit more snazz. Japanese smart phones have truly unlimited data, also you can use them to pay your bills by simply walking in a store (however, I think this may be an android only service), or use them for a nifty app that tells you exactly when trains arrive and the fastest route from point A to B (Jorudan). Overall they are just really useful.
Can't I just use my old phone?
Short answer. NO. You can absolutely not use your old phone. Also Japanese stores do not sell only the SIM cards either. So quit asking. I swear that is like the first thing that people fresh off the boat ask. Can I buy a cheapo phone and switch the SIM card? Still a neg. The SIM card you buy has to match the functions of your phone (ie: data plans). This leaves you with two choices, go cheap or go all the way. Personally, I have an iPhone. They had a deal for Japanese citizens that made it free when they purchased it. NOT being a Japanese citizen I paid 46,000￥ for it. However, my monthly rate is cheaper.
OK so now for a break down of your start up costs:
Apartment Total: 198200￥
- Key Money (non-refundable deposit): 50,500 ￥
- Key Exchange Fee: 3,150 ￥
- Fire Insurance (good for 2 years): 20,000 ￥
- Data Entry Fee: 2,100 ￥
- Rent for August (Partial): 12,410 ￥
- Rent for September : 55,020 ￥
- Rent for October : 55,020 ￥
Furnishings at recycle shop prices! 57,000 ￥
- Toaster oven 1,500￥
- Microwave 5,000￥
- Rice cooker 3,500￥
- Fridge 8,000￥
- Washing machine 12,000￥
- Bed 8,000 ￥
(find online or at sayonara sales) - TV 10,000￥
(for whatever reason even the analog ones are still expensive!) - Kotatsu 9,000 ￥
(including table and kotatsu futon)
(new its pretty hard to fund used)
Apartment oddities 30,600
- Dishes 6,300￥
(pots, pans, utensils, plates, bowls, mixing bowls, spatula, ladle, chopsticks) - Futon x2 10,000￥
- Sheets 3,000￥
- Towels 1,200￥
- Bathroom supplies 800￥
(toilet paper, scrubber...) - Shower supplies2,600 ￥
(shower rack, shampoo, conditioner, tooth brush, tooth paste, soap...) - Kitchen supplies 800￥
(trash cans, soap, sponge...) - Cleaning Supplies 1,500 ￥
- Closet stuff 1,400 ￥
(coat hangers/organizers) - Shelving 500 ￥ per
- Fan 2,500 ￥
Phone (varies)
- iPhone 46,000 ￥
- pay as you go4,000 ￥
What do you do with all the left over money?
Eat.
Pay bills.
Transportation.
These are all things you need to consider as well. Since you are not going to get paid for possibly 2 months. But you get paid for training? Yes this is true...However this will come with your first pay check. For most that pay check comes the month after they start working. Hypothetically, say you start working in April. You will not get paid until the end of May. Therefore, if you come over in March for training, you need to make sure you have enough money to cover food expenses (which are higher) until you get paid. Personally I go through about a 10,000￥ a week. I cook all of my meals. You can of course pay much less. Also since you pay for three months of your apartment, you clearly don't have to worry about paying that, say for three months, but you do need to worry about paying for the gas, electric, and water bills for each month. In addition to those bills, you will also get your phone bill too. And on top of that, there is your insurance that you need to pay every month.
And I know some of you right now might be saying 'but they said I will get paid for transportation'. And you will. But it is a reimbursement. You get reimbursed the exact amount that you spend for transportation. AFTER you spend it. So you need to have enough to make it to your first pay check and then they will reimburse you for all the money that you previously spent on transportation. Also, they say up to 20,000￥ they will typically not go too far over it, and on the flipside they will only pay you for how much it costs you to get to your schools and get home from them (so no funny business!). If that means it is only 6,000￥ then they only reimburse you for 6,000￥.
Since Japan is just so expensive, please do not fool yourself into thinking that once you obtain 500,000￥ that that is the end all and you are set to go off to Japan. Please notice I did not cover a single before-cost in this blog. This is largely because I did not come from America, or the U.K. or any place that could be useful to you. I came from Korea. And as such my process was very different from your own. But for curious readers I highly recommend checking out The Rising Daikon's breakdown of the monetary units required for that.
NOW!
With all that being said, and for people still freaking out about Japan's pricetag, companies, like Interac, will often give you a cash advance and can help you out a bit (which you pay off bit by bit via your paycheck in an amount that you find convenient). Other companies, like JET, will pay for your plane ticket over, as well as part of your housing. Additionally, you can choose things like cheap housing, only eatting things from the dollar store, minimizing your furnishing (you don't need that toaster), sleeping on the floor (Japanese style!), which are all valid and available options to a penny pincher looking for adventure. But my advice, make the most of your time here...whatever that means...Just live and don't regret it!
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