How to #Vanlife in Japan
So you want to buy a cheap camper / van, and drive it around Japan for a few months? This page will attempt to guide you through every detail and obstacle of the pre-vanlife process. I did vanlife on a student visa, and so can you. Here is a summary of the needed documents and requirements, and the order they should be completed:
You need a student, work, or other “real” visa to buy a car in Japan. (Tourist visa will not work)
You need to register your address at the local city hall. (Your apartment, share house, or even a friend’s house)
You need a “parking certificate” to buy a car in Japan. (This “parking certificate” is not easy to get, but some places don’t require it)
You need to buy a camper / van. (Campers and vans can be bought at a Japanese auction, and the prices are 50% less than the dealership)
How to do #Vanlife
(Student Visa Example)
You have to be “creative” to do vanlife in Japan. I was able to do a 2-part Japanese vanlife adventure with my student visa, and a tourist visa. It was amazing, but I made one big mistake. I bought a super small “KEI” van first, and then later I wanted to buy a small camper, but it was much more stressful than I expected. Buying and selling cars in Japan is hell. So, the following article is a modified / improved version of what I did. TIP: It will take you at least a month to buy a car, so do your research and buy the right camper / van the first time. Also, I would highly recommend getting the 15 month student visa, because the first year of school has 4 long vacations. So that’s 4 big vanlife adventures in the first year, and there’s no school in the last 3 months of your visa. That’s perfect for vanlife. Before your student visa expires, fly to South Korea for a few days, and then fly back to Japan. You can get a 3 month tourist visa on arrival. Boom! That’s 3 more months of vanlife in Japan. At the end of that visa, sell the van, and leave Japan. That’s my plan, and here’s exactly how to do it:
BEFORE JAPAN:
Get a student visa
Get an international drivers permit (post date the permit to activate 6 weeks after you arrive in Japan, because it will take that long to get your camper)
Contact a Japanese car auction company (explain that you’re moving to Japan, and you want to buy a camper / van. Set up an account with them)
BEFORE BUYING:
Register your address at the city hall (After you arrive in Japan, and move into your school dorms, your share house, or your own apartment, go to the city hall, and register your address. The residence certificate is called Juminhyo. You will also need other documents. Watch our video on “how to buy a car in Japan” for more info)
Visit car dealerships (search for vans and campers on https://www.goo-net.com/ and try to visit as many dealerships as possible. The roads and parking spots in Japan are narrow, so choose your van carefully. TIP: You can buy a normal size van ($7000 dealership) a roof-top tent ($1500 amazon) and a 12 volt fridge ($300 amazon). This would be small enough to park, but big enough for longer drives. The dealerships make the car buying process easy, but the auction prices will be much lower.
Get a parking certificate (This is the most important thing, and there are different ways to go about it)
If you’re living in the dorms or a share house, you’ll need to rent a parking space near your house. There are different sizes of parking place, so make sure you rent the correct size for the van you want to buy. Find a “foreigner friendly” real estate office, show them where you live, and the type of van you want to buy. They will find you a parking place, and make a contract. You will sign it, and pay them money. They will create a lease document, and a parking place map document. You need these documents to get a “parking certificate,” and buy a van.
If you are going to rent your own apartment, try to get one that comes with a parking place. Make sure the parking place is big enough for the van you want. Also, remember that you will move out of the apartment at the end of school year, but you must continue to rent a parking place as long as you own the van. You van’s registration is dependent on you renting / having a parking place. Ask the real estate agent if you can continue to rent the parking place after you move out of the apartment. You might have to rent the apartment and parking place separately.
If you want to buy a bigger camper, please read this carefully! If you are living in a big city…sorry, but you can’t own a bigger camper. Trust me, I tried. The problem is the lack of “big” parking spaces, so you’ll never get a “parking certificate.” There are many places, outside of the big cities, that don’t require a “parking certificate” to buy a car. Nago, Nanjo, and Yomitan are three such places in Okinawa. If you live in one of these areas, you can buy whatever you want. Ask your real estate agent what areas don’t require a parking certificate, and perhaps you could get an apartment there)
BUYING PROCESS:
Watch the auctions (Japanese car auctions are very fast paced, so you need check the website every night around 9PM. If you see a good van, email a screenshot to the buyer company, and ask them for details on the vehicle. They will contact to auction house, get more details, and report back to you. There will be new cars everyday, so wait for a good van. Don’t rush into a bad deal. Look closely at the pictures, and only bid on vans that have a license plate. Cars without a license plate can not be driven on the road. This makes it very expensive / difficult to pick up a car at the auction house, and take it to be registered. Wait for a good one, tell the buyer your max bid, and pray)
After winning the auction (When you win the auction, taxes and fees will be added to the final sale price. Expect it to add a few thousand dollars to the price. Don’t worry, you’ll still be paying less than at the dealership) You will transfer money to the auction buying company, and they will arrange to have the car and the documents shipped to your house / parking place)
Register the car (You will take the documents from the auction, the parking place lease, and the parking place map document, to the police station. Read this article. They will create the “parking certificate,” and you will take all the documents, the car, and a Japanese friend, to the DMV. They register the car, and install the license plate.
Get car insurance (Check out the How to buy a car page)
FIRST 12 MONTS:
Weekends (You’ll have weekends to go on adventures)
Vacations (You’ll have a few long vacations during the school year)
LAST 3 MONTHS:
Move out of your home (Move out of your apartment, but keep your parking spot)
Forward your mail (Forward your mail to a friend’s home address)
Explore Japan for 3 months (You can stay in MICHI NO EKIs for free. There are thousands of them all over Japan)
RESET THE VISA:
Park the camper (Put the van in long term parking at NRT airport)
Fly to South Korea (Stay for a day or two, fly back to NRT, and get a tourist visa on arrival)
TOURIST VISA:
Explore Japan for 3 more months
SELL THE VAN:
End the parking certificate (Cancel the lease on the parking place)
Sell the van (Check out the How to buy a car page)
Leave Japan (Mission accomplished)