NISA 2026: The Complete Guide to Japan's Tax-Free Investment Account
Since the 2024 reform, Japan's NISA has quietly become one of the most generous tax shelters in Asia: 3.6 million yen per year of contribution room, an 18 million yen lifetime cap, and tax-free growth for life. Here is how the new framework works in 2026, who qualifies, and how to actually open and use one.
What NISA actually is
NISA (Nippon Individual Savings Account) is Japan's answer to the UK's ISA and Canada's TFSA: a personal investment account where dividends, distributions, and capital gains grow entirely free of Japanese income and capital gains tax. Since the 2024 reform, the framework is permanent, the annual room is dramatically higher, and unused contribution capacity can be recycled once you sell.
For 2026, every Japanese resident age 18 and up has access to one NISA account per person. Inside it you can hold Japanese and foreign stocks, ETFs, and eligible mutual funds. Outside NISA, the same investments would be hit with a flat 20.315 percent tax on dividends and gains.
The two quotas explained
Contribution room is split into two annual quotas that sit inside the same NISA account. You can use one, the other, or both in the same year.
| Feature | Tsumitate quota | Growth quota |
|---|---|---|
| Annual limit | ¥1,200,000 | ¥2,400,000 |
| Combined annual room | ¥3,600,000 | ¥3,600,000 |
| Lifetime cap (principal) | Shared: ¥18,000,000 | Shared: ¥18,000,000 (¥12M sub-cap) |
| Eligible products | FSA-approved low-cost funds | Stocks, ETFs, most mutual funds |
| Contribution style | Monthly automatic | Lump sum or scheduled |
| Foreign stocks allowed | No | Yes |
| Leverage / margin allowed | No | No |
Contribution limits at a glance
Read the caps as a two-layer system. The annual layer resets every January 1. The lifetime layer only frees up when you sell, and it does so at the original purchase cost, not the market value.
| Year | Max annual | Max cumulative (if maxing every year) |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | ¥3.6M | ¥3.6M |
| 2025 | ¥3.6M | ¥7.2M |
| 2026 | ¥3.6M | ¥10.8M |
| 2027 | ¥3.6M | ¥14.4M |
| 2028 | ¥3.6M | ¥18M (cap reached) |
If you sell a position worth ¥2M that you bought for ¥1.5M, the ¥1.5M principal returns to your lifetime room in the following calendar year. The ¥500,000 gain is not taxed, but it also does not restore room.
Who can open a NISA
- Any resident of Japan aged 18 or older on January 1 of the opening year
- One NISA account per person across the entire country (not per broker)
- Non-residents lose eligibility and must close or freeze the account when they leave Japan
- Foreign residents on a work visa qualify while their My Number is active
- The account can be switched between brokers once per calendar year
How to open a NISA account
OPENING A NISA IN 2026
- Pick a broker (SBI Securities, Rakuten, or Monex are the standard choices for foreign ETF access)
- Open a standard taxable brokerage account first if you do not already have one
- Submit the NISA application inside your broker's dashboard with your My Number card scan
- Wait 1 to 3 weeks for the tax office (kokuzeicho) to verify you do not already hold a NISA elsewhere
- Once approved, contributions and buys are marked NISA in your order screen automatically
- Set up a monthly Tsumitate order to fill the ¥1.2M quota without thinking about it
Best Japanese brokers for NISA in 2026
SBI Securities
- Widest range of foreign ETFs (VT, VTI, VOO, IEFA)
- Zero commission on NISA trades of US-listed ETFs
- V-point loyalty program on Tsumitate contributions
- Best fit for investors wanting both JP and US stock access
Rakuten Securities
- Rakuten Card auto-invest earns 0.5 to 1 percent points
- Clean mobile app with Japanese and English toggles
- Slightly narrower foreign ETF list than SBI
- Best fit for existing Rakuten ecosystem users
Monex
- Strong US stock research and screening tools
- Real-time US market data included
- Fewer Tsumitate-eligible funds than SBI or Rakuten
- Best fit for individual US stock pickers
What to actually hold inside NISA
The tax shelter is most valuable on the highest-return assets you plan to hold longest, since that is where compounding without tax drag matters most. A common setup for long-horizon Japanese investors: an all-country stock index (eMAXIS Slim All Country or Rakuten VT) in the Tsumitate quota, plus a satellite of individual foreign stocks or thematic ETFs in the Growth quota.
The FSA-approved Tsumitate list is deliberately narrow: only around 300 funds qualify, filtered for low fees, wide diversification, and no distribution loading. In practice that means most people default to one of three families - eMAXIS Slim, SBI-V, or Rakuten Plus - because their All-Country and S&P 500 versions have expense ratios around 0.05 to 0.10 percent, which is competitive with a US-listed VT.
NISA vs iDeCo: which comes first
iDeCo (Japan's defined-contribution pension) also offers tax-free growth, plus an income deduction on contributions, but the money is locked until age 60 and comes out taxable. NISA is more flexible: no lock-up, no deduction, no exit tax. Most self-directed investors fill iDeCo up to the employer-match or income-deduction sweet spot, then route everything else into NISA.
One useful mental split: use iDeCo for the portion of retirement savings you would never touch before 60 anyway, and use NISA for the money you might redeploy toward a house down payment, a career break, or aged-parent care. The 20.315 percent Japanese capital gains tax makes taxable brokerage a distant third for most investors, at least until both shelters are maxed.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Buying a bond fund in NISA - the shelter is worth roughly 20 percent of your annualised return, so save it for equities
- Opening two NISAs in the same year (the tax office rejects the second and delays your buys)
- Forgetting that room only recycles the following January, not immediately after a sale
- Buying leveraged or inverse ETFs - not eligible for NISA regardless of broker
- Assuming the 18M yen cap is per couple - it is strictly per individual
Frequently asked questions
Can foreigners living in Japan open a NISA?
Yes. Any resident with a My Number and a valid residence card qualifies, regardless of nationality. You must be 18 or older on January 1 of the opening year, and you keep the account only while you remain a tax resident of Japan.
How much can I contribute to NISA in 2026?
Up to 3.6 million yen per calendar year: 1.2 million in the Tsumitate quota and 2.4 million in the Growth quota. Both quotas share the same 18 million yen lifetime cap, of which at most 12 million can come from Growth purchases.
Do I have to sell my old NISA holdings?
No. Positions held in the pre-2024 NISA continue their original 5-year (general) or 20-year (Tsumitate) tax-free window. They do not count toward the new 18 million yen lifetime cap, so leave them running as long as they qualify.
Can I move my NISA between brokers?
Yes, once per calendar year. You submit a transfer request between October and December for the following year. Existing positions stay at the old broker as read-only until sold, while new contributions and buys go to the new broker.
Does the room reset if I sell?
Not immediately. Room comes back at the original purchase price, and only starting the next January. If you buy at 1 million yen and sell at 1.5 million yen in March, you free 1 million yen of lifetime room starting January of the following year - the 500,000 yen gain is tax-free but does not restore room.
What happens to my NISA if I move out of Japan?
You lose eligibility. Depending on your broker, the account is either frozen (no new buys, existing holdings stay until you close them) or fully closed and transferred to a taxable account. Plan the exit carefully because Japan's exit tax applies to portfolios above 100 million yen.