Doing business or investing in Japan requires a solid understanding of the country’s tax laws. For many non Japanese speakers, however, even finding the right information can be challenging — and navigating Japan’s complex tax rules is even harder without professional support.
After around 20 years with Big 4 firms and international law offices, multilingual licensed tax accountant (Zeirishi) Miyuki Ueda launched her own practice to offer high quality services at accessible prices.
services
Corporate Taxation
In addition to preparing annual corporate tax returns, she provides English-language advisory services on a wide range of issues that arise in the day to day operations of companies doing business in Japan. Her services cover not only corporate income tax and consumption tax matters, but also withholding tax implications on cross border transactions, analyzed from the perspective of applicable tax treaties.
Personal Income Taxation
She provides comprehensive tax compliance services for individuals, including the preparation of annual personal income tax returns, overseas asset reports, and worldwide assets and liabilities reports. She has supported clients with overseas real estate investments, a wide range of global financial assets, and asset holding structures involving foreign trusts and special purpose companies in low tax jurisdictions. As a result, she has extensive experience handling highly complex personal tax filings.
Inheritance and Gift Taxation
Japan’s inheritance tax system is based on unique kinship concepts under the Civil Code, and the tax liability for each heir is calculated through a highly specialized and complex method. As a result, only a limited number of tax accountants are experienced in international inheritance matters. She has prepared inheritance tax returns for non Japanese residents in Japan who inherited assets located both within and outside the country.
Compensation Tax Specialist
She has established herself as a leading specialist in compensation‑related taxation. Her experience includes designing stock‑based compensation plans for Japanese listed companies and start‑ups, as well as supporting Japanese subsidiaries of multinational corporations with the implementation of global compensation programs. She also advises on M&A transactions and change‑of‑control situations, providing insights from both compensation and HR tax perspectives.
Pre‑Investment and Pre‑Immigration Consulting
(Including Estate Planning)
Japan continues to attract investors and relocating individuals, yet its tax rules vary significantly for non‑residents, permanent residents, and non‑permanent residents. Exit taxation depends on visa status, and inheritance and gift tax exposure is influenced by factors such as nationality, visa type, and the current or past residence of you and your family members. Because planning options become limited once Japanese residency is established, early preparation based on a clear understanding of Japan’s tax system is essential.
CFC Taxation Advisory
Japan’s anti–tax haven rules apply to both corporate and individual shareholders of controlled foreign corporations (CFCs), and tax authorities have intensified their scrutiny of individuals in recent years. She has experience assisting individual taxpayers through CFC‑related tax audits and navigating the associated compliance requirements.
Foreign Trust and Foundation Advisory
Although trusts and foundations serve as effective estate‑planning tools in many jurisdictions, they do not necessarily produce the same outcomes under Japanese tax law. She advises on the Japanese tax treatment of foreign structures to help clients avoid unexpected tax consequences during future audits, where the actual implications may differ significantly from initial expectations.
profile
Miyuki passed the national Zeirishi examination in 1994 and began her career at Coopers & Lybrand, later joining White & Case. She subsequently relocated from Japan for family reasons and spent a decade living in Germany, the United States, and Brazil—an experience that strengthened her ability to work effectively with clients and professionals from diverse cultural and business environments. After returning to Japan, she spent over eight years with Ernst & Young in Tokyo before establishing her own practice. She holds a BA in Political Science and an LLM from Waseda University, and studied as an exchange student at the University of Brussels. She later continued her legal studies in Germany, earning an LLM in Munich and completing her Doctorate in Frankfurt.
