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Thread: How much does it cost to live in Japan for 1 Year?

  1. #1
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    Default How much does it cost to live in Japan for 1 Year?

    I didn't know where to post this but I think it qualifies as "culture" so I'll put it here.

    I'm thinking about training in Japan for a year but I would like to know how much it costs to live there. Preferably in current US dollars. I know there probably isn't one answere but I'm trying to get a ball park so that I know how to budget.

    Thanks to all!
    Regards,

    Jeffrey Luz-Alterman

  2. #2
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    Jeffery,

    You will probably get a better response if you are more specific. Tokyo for example is about 30% more expensive than NY city but that is really meaningless. People get by in NY for under $20K per year.

    What part of the country? Living in Okayama is different from Osaka and Tokyo.
    What kind of living standard do you want to maintain?

    What kind of diet are you willing to eat? Do you want native Japanese dining or Americanized diet? One costs more than the other.

    There is plenty of online information available too. Try a google search for "Japan cost of living - fill in blank- "

    If this doesn't get response, I'll move this to members lounge and see if anyone will read there.

  3. #3
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    Neil's right here. cost of living is different depending on what part of the country you choose to reside and what type of foods you choose to consume. Believe it or not your choice of food is a factor.

    The cost of living in Los Angeles,CA is twice as much as the cost of living in Lubbock,TX. Same country different locations. Therefore, to give a ballpark will be difficult without more pertinent information as Neil has pointed out.
    Dale Joseph
    Jinenkan Butoku Dojo

    With "Justice and Unity" as our motto, the Jinenkan will continue to emphasize the fundamentals, faithful to the Densho, in pursuit of natural movement which is as unforced as the flow of clouds and water"... - Manaka Unsui Sensei

  4. #4
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    First of all, the only way a non-permament resident/citizen can live here for as long as a year is to have a valid visa, either working or student.

    Visa-providing jobs have a defacto minimum salary, because Immigration will not issue visas for employers that can't provide a living wage. This is generally about 200,000 yen/month, or a bit less if the employer covers housing and the like. 200,000 yen a month is not a lot, but it's certainly enough to live and train, and goes further the more frugal you are.

    With student visas, the school that provides the visa should be able to tell you how much money you'll need for tuition and living expenses.

    If you want to train here, you have to first decide how you're going to get over here, and then from there figure out how much money you need to save.
    Josh Reyer

    Swa sceal man don, žonne he ęt guše gengan ženceš longsumne lof, na ymb his lif cearaš. - The Beowulf Poet

  5. #5
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    Default Thank you

    Thank you for the responses.

    I will probably get a non-working visa (they offer cultural or artistic visas according to the embasy here) and I will likely be residing in Chiba.

    I'll eat whatever I can I guess. I'm not all that picky.

    I thank you for your advice.

    Cheers,
    Regards,

    Jeffrey Luz-Alterman

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