Refund claims can be submitted even after the tax return deadline

2026年1月30日 2026年1月30日

tsuzukizeirishi

The filing period for tax returns is usually from February 16th to March 15th of the following year.

However, if filing a tax return will result in a refund of income tax, the filing period is extended.

Refund claims can be filed up to five years

If you qualify for a tax refund by filing a tax return,

you can file a tax refund return for five years, starting from January 1 of the following year.

For example, if you are a salaried employee, you can file a tax refund return if:

You forgot to submit income tax deduction documents, such as a life insurance premium deduction certificate, during your year-end tax adjustment.
You have dependents, but did not declare their income during your year-end tax adjustment because you did not know their income.
You made hometown tax donations.
You had medical expenses of 100,000 yen or more.
You left your job mid-year, did not find a new job, and did not file a year-end tax adjustment.

If you qualify for real estate income or business income,

You have lower income than the previous year and your tax payment is lower than your estimated tax payment.

You can file a tax refund return.

If you have business income or real estate income and are eligible for the 650,000 yen (or 550,000 yen) special deduction for blue tax returns,

you must submit your tax return by the deadline (by March 15th).

Please be aware of this if you qualify.

If you would have received a refund if you had filed a tax return in a previous year,

please consider filing a tax return.

If you are eligible for a refund for your tax return from 2021 (Reiwa 3) onwards,

you can file a tax return in 2026 (Reiwa 8).