How to Cash US Stimulus Check in Japan: Step 1

    The other day I squealed with excitement as I opened my mailbox to reveal a check from the US Treasury, ready to be deposited into my American bank account. There's just one problem with that. I don't have an American bank account anymore.

    Like most Americans, even living abroad does not remove me from eligibility regarding the stimulus/economic impact payment/CoVid relief benefits. Not filing taxes and/or not having an American bank account to receive these benefits with will do that.

    The first of these checks is being sent as a tax refund and covers the first two checks US citizens received in 2020. If my 2019 US taxes had gone through correctly in 2020, I would have received these in the mail last year. Since I only found out that they had not gone through properly when I filed my 2020 taxes this year, I am only receiving this now that the taxes have been processed. Another check, the third US economic impact payment, came a couple of weeks later.

    I assumed for some reason that banks still cash checks and that Japanese banks would have no more trouble with this than they had with international remittances which I remember requiring at least 45 minutes even at a branch where I had done remittances before. I was wrong on all counts.

    We went to the three banks where I have accounts, starting with the smallest. Like some tedious adult fairy tale, each bank told my husband and me that they were too small to cash such an international check and they were trying to stop dealing with checks anyway. The final bank, Japan Post Bank, actually stopped to check with other branches, confirming that this was a larger problem for more people than just me and that there was absolutely nothing they could do to help. The US Treasury, it turns out, is not a bank and that had something to do with there being no options at any of our banks here.

    I turned to the US Embassy website which gave a nicely worded version of "sucks to be you."


"Just have a US bank account" isn't helpful for me.

    Anyone with a US Paypal account can cash these checks easily online, but only if the check address matches the shipping address on their account, which CANNOT be located outside the US.

    One reddit thread was full of people having this problem last year and one person gave advise I could use. Apparently one bank in Japan will cash these but you have to open an account and if you don't keep around $2000 in foreign currency in the account, you will be charged 2000 yen per month in maintenance fees.

    I looked to see if the bank had any branches near me. It doesn't. It doesn't have any branches in ALL OF TOHOKU. Nothing between Tokyo and Hokkaido.

I called the number listed on the website and waited to speak to someone in English. The wait was long, so if you're in a similar pickle but have decent Japanese or someone with Japanese willing to help, use that language instead. Finally, the guy told me that I could set up an account via the internet. I had to fill out the application on the website and wait for official forms in the mail. I was instructed to call when I receive them and verify how I was filling the rest out and everything I needed to send in.

    Another problem I have is that I never bothered to change my name with the Social Security Administration. I didn't think it was a big deal since it only means that my taxes and absentee ballots need to be in my maiden name, but it does mean something now that I have checks for a decent amount of money made out in a name I don't have any current ID to match. There is a form I will need to get from city hall confirming my former name and current name. This will need to be sent in with my application forms. When I call back, they will verify which exact form I need a copy of and then I will be able to move forward with the getting of a bank account and my stimulus money.

<How to Cash US Stimulus Check Part 2: Paperwork Hustle>