Fraud help in Japan: take the first steps
An investment approach, fake recruitment letter or caller posing as a public official may use urgency and language barriers to discourage independent checks. If you paid or disclosed personal details, keep the original Japanese messages as well as any translations. This fraud help guide for Japan brings together practical steps and official resources so you can decide whom to contact and what information to prepare.
Start with the most immediate risk. If money or bank access is involved, contact your bank promptly. Keep the original messages and documents, and write down what happened while it is fresh in your mind. You can ask for help before you have gathered every piece of evidence.
Use the right reporting service
Japan’s prefectural police handle reports of suspected crime. The police consultation service can help with non-emergency concerns, while NCAC and local consumer centres provide consumer guidance. Foreign tourists have a dedicated NCAC information service. Start with the official reporting guidance for Japan, then follow the relevant sections below for banking, identity protection and consumer complaints. Keep copies of reports and reference numbers so you can follow up consistently.
Check suspicious letters and payment requests
A real company name, familiar logo or official-looking document is not enough to establish authenticity. Read our guide to company letterhead security and impersonation scams, and learn how secure business communication can help organisations make correspondence easier to verify.
Contact the claimed sender through details you find independently before taking further action. Be cautious of unsolicited recovery offers that demand an advance payment or promise guaranteed results. For incidents involving another jurisdiction, visit the country-by-country Fraud Help directory.
1. Stop Further Losses
If someone is in immediate danger or urgent emergency assistance is needed, call 110 for urgent police assistance. Use the police reporting routes below for non-emergency complaints.
Stop communicating with the suspected scammer and do not send more money. Contact your bank immediately if money, card details or account access are involved. Save messages, payment records and suspicious documents. If someone has remote access to your device, disconnect it from the internet and contact your bank from another trusted device.
2. Contact Your Bank or Payment Provider
Use your bank’s official app or a trusted telephone number. Explain whether a payment was unauthorised or you were deceived into approving it. Ask about securing cards and online banking, tracing transactions and any available recall or dispute process. Keep a written record of your notification and the bank’s response. Do not send money to a caller’s supposed “safe account”. Recovery depends on the circumstances and is not guaranteed.
Tell the bank which credentials or identification methods were exposed, whether you installed remote-access software and whether you approved any payment. Ask for a case reference and written instructions. If you disagree with its response, request its formal complaint procedure and the relevant dispute-resolution route.
3. Report the Fraud to Police
For a non-emergency fraud concern, contact the nearest police station or the police consultation service on #9110 in Japan. The National Police Agency directs urgent police matters to 110. Explain the payment and any continuing threat, and ask how to lodge a formal complaint. Ask about interpretation if you cannot explain the incident in Japanese.
Prepare a short timeline, payment records, recipient account details, original messages, website addresses and copies of suspicious documents. Explain how the contact began and what money or information you shared. Keep the complaint reference and any instructions for providing additional evidence.
4. Report Cybercrime and Online Fraud
Use the National Police Agency’s contact guidance to find the relevant prefectural police or cybercrime consultation route. Preserve messages, platform accounts, transfer records and the address of any fraudulent website. A consultation may need a separate formal complaint or police-station follow-up; ask what is required in your case.
Keep original evidence and use a trusted device to secure affected accounts. Do not send passwords, one-time codes or full payment-card details in an incident report.
5. Protect Your Identity
Notify every bank, lender, telecom provider or online platform where your identity was misused. Dispute unfamiliar accounts or debts in writing and keep the replies. Change compromised passwords from a trusted device, secure your email first and enable two-factor authentication. If an identity document is lost or stolen, contact its issuing authority about reporting, blocking or replacement.
Report suspected criminal identity misuse to police and list the affected accounts or contracts. Notify the issuer of any compromised digital identity or electronic signature. Keep unfamiliar credit notices and invoices, and dispute fraudulent agreements directly with the organisation concerned.
6. Protect Your Credit
CIC explains how to request disclosure of the credit information it holds: https://www.cic.co.jp/credit-report/. Check the current identification, application and fee requirements. Review unfamiliar entries and dispute suspected errors with the lender and information provider. A CIC report does not cover every possible debt or create a universal credit freeze.
7. Consumer-Protection Resources
NCAC provides consumer information and routes to local consumer consultation. Foreign tourists can consult its dedicated multilingual Consumer Hotline for Tourists information at https://www.cht.kokusen.go.jp/en/index.html. Check eligibility and current contact arrangements. Consumer advice is separate from a police complaint and a bank payment dispute.
National Consumer Affairs Center of Japan (NCAC): https://www.kokusen.go.jp/
For a purchase dispute, keep the order confirmation, receipts, advertised terms and correspondence. Ask your payment provider about any available dispute or chargeback process without waiting for a regulator’s response. Recovery depends on the circumstances.
8. Employment and Immigration Fraud
Verify the employer through independently sourced contact details. Keep the job advertisement, offer letter, recruiter messages and payment requests. Report fraudulent adverts to the hosting platform. If you paid money or shared identity documents, contact your bank and police and follow the identity-protection steps above. For immigration claims, confirm the procedure and official fees with the responsible authority or consulate; a professional-looking letter does not prove that it is genuine.
Do not receive or forward money through your personal account for an unverified employer. For a claimed job or permit in Japan, independently contact the employer and the responsible government authority or consulate. Preserve forged offers and payment requests for police.
Official Contacts and Telephone Numbers
Emergency assistance: 110 for urgent police assistance.
Non-emergency police consultation in Japan: #9110.
Police or formal complaint guidance: https://www.npa.go.jp/goiken_index.html
Cybercrime or technical incident guidance: https://www.npa.go.jp/goiken_index.html
National Consumer Affairs Center of Japan (NCAC): https://www.kokusen.go.jp/
Report the Fraud
Japanese prefectural police; National Police Agency guidance
Official Sources
Received a suspicious business document?
Check whether a document issued through VerifiableLetter is authentic.
Important: This guide provides general information, not legal, financial or emergency advice. Procedures and contact details can change. Confirm requirements with the relevant authority. Reporting does not guarantee investigation, reimbursement or recovery.