Aging as a single foreign resident

I want to be a funky, quirky old lady wherever I end up photo Ran Lach

Solo life

In my adult lifetime, I’ve shared homes in my native Canada and Japan with roommates who became dear friends and significant others. In the past five years, I’ve lived alone, learning to enjoy my own space. I don’t feel lonely. When not working, I participate in a Japanese martial arts school and volunteer with education and cultural projects. Sometimes I wonder about my life choices - no progeny and living separately from my partner - but I have a rich experience that keeps me going. And a huge number of people older than me live solo, too.

Aging singles

A recent Mainichi article about population projections indicates that a whopping 10.8 million people will be elderly people living alone by 2050. If I remain alive in Japan by 2050, I’ll be one of those single elders. My partner, too. A lot of the aged Generation X and millennials have no children and will have a diminishing family support network as they had fewer children than their predecessors.

Retirement planning

I’ve been squirreling away savings and investments for decades while working for a private school corporation. A benefit of my employment is Private School Mutual Aid (PMAC), a system that provides welfare and pension for teachers. It’s part of Japan’s three-tiered pension system.

The Japanese pension system requires a lot of research. In preparation for retirement, I’m reading up on various sources in English and Japanese. For a comprehensive English language overview I recommend reading Ben Tanaka’s Retire in Japan, and Mark Kennedy’s Real Gaijin, especially his post about How Much is Enough to Retire in Japan.

Seasons of life

When I first came to Japan, I thought I would only work for a year and go home. However, the culture grew on me, I became a part of communities here, and one year became decades. While old age is a ways off for me, I’m considering my options. Do I stay in Japan to become one of the massive cohort of single elders in Japan? Do I return to my home country or move to a third country when I retire? I've got time to research and plan, but it's never too early to consider where you want to live out your golden years.

Are you single and considering remaining in Japan for the rest of your life? What are the pros and cons for you?