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The story
The mother of an Asahi Shimbun reporter received certified mail from Mitsubishi UFJ Bank stating it wanted to “confirm her intention to repay ¥23 million.” Her older brother, who lived in Nara, had died leaving debt behind, and as his younger sister, she had become a legal heir. On 5ch, most comments said “just renounce the inheritance” — but others pointed out the real hassle and cost involved, like gathering family register documents and filing with the family court, plus the crucial detail that the renunciation deadline is “3 months from the day you find out,” sparking a broader discussion.
“A letter suddenly arrived from the bank demanding ¥23 million back — what am I supposed to do?” That was the call the reporter, currently on assignment in Tochigi, got in July from their mother back home in Osaka. It turned out their uncle, who lived in Nara, had died carrying debt, and their mother, as his younger sister, had become his heir. Renouncing the inheritance seemed like the only option, but what exactly did that involve? Facing a problem that could ensnare almost anyone, the reporter took it on from afar.
“We would like to confirm your intention to repay ¥23 million.”
In mid-July, a registered letter with that message arrived addressed to the reporter’s mother from Mitsubishi UFJ Bank. Flustered, she suspected it might be a scam. The contact listed was the “West Japan Loan Branch,” but searching online turned up nothing. When the reporter called the bank’s call center, it took a while — perhaps because it’s a little-known department — but they were able to confirm the branch really existed.
Source: asahi.com / Original article here
What people said
Exactly this.
I don't even get what there is to be mad about.
But doesn't it cost like ¥50,000?
The deadline to renounce the inheritance has already passed at this point.
Not really something that needs a whole article.
It's not treating it as some kind of scandal — isn't it just an article laying out concretely how the renunciation procedure works and how much hassle it actually involves?
If the daughter's renouncing it anyway, they should just overhaul the law so that settles the whole thing right there.
Okay or not, once someone's dead there's nothing to be done about it.
Could be intentional, but plenty of people die from illness or accidents with no such intent — that happens too. Can't really be helped, right? For the intentional cases, renouncing the inheritance is the way to go, though if there's still a net-positive estate even after offsetting the debt, it might be worth a second thought.
If you say it's not okay, feel free to bring them back to life then.
I think they mean: if you can't do it yourself, just pay a professional to handle it and that's the end of it.
The "pay a few tens of thousands" part is about the fee for hiring someone like a tax accountant — read more carefully.
If more people did that, lenders would have no choice but to stop lending or jack up interest rates — it's the people honestly trying to pay it back who end up losing out.
Ever heard of collateral? Banks normally won't lend without taking collateral.
You think you can just borrow as much as you want whenever you feel like it?
Are banks even allowed to do that?
Either way, since it'll just get renounced and they can't recover it, I doubt they'd actually pursue it. There's no way you'd get a loan with no collateral anyway — sounds made up.
Legally, yes — though they have to justify it to the local government office. As for the hassle, it includes the original family registers too, so tracing the chain requires pulling multiple family register documents and visiting several government offices.
Qualified professionals like lawyers can view other people's family registers (and residence records), so yes, it's possible.
Isn't it counted from when you find out you have inheritance rights?
I'm pretty sure it's "from when you find out."
Right, from when you find out.
Honestly though, anyone who dies leaving debt behind deserves to rot in hell — don't go causing trouble for people even after you're dead.
They could've just stayed quiet for a few months until it's too late to renounce, then sent the bill.
Because it's counted from the day you learned the inheritance occurred.
It's 3 months from when you find out, so since she found out via this bank notice, the 3 months start from here. For elderly people, hiring a lawyer still feels like a high hurdle — 3 months goes by fast.
Regarding the renunciation deadline, "the moment you learned the inheritance began (the day you found out)" means the moment you learn the deceased has died AND recognize that "you have legally become an heir."
During this 3-month consideration period, you must file the renunciation with the family court within 3 months of this "moment you found out."
Being a landowner would be nice, but being a building owner just costs you money.
In-laws don't have inheritance rights, you know.
For blood relatives though, if there's no one else higher up in the priority order, it can pass down to a cousin.
Ha, so you're just counting the certified-mail fee? (lol)
There's absolutely no way it's just a few hundred yen.
Just the family register copies and other documents alone cost several thousand yen.
The remaining assets just get put up for auction.
It just means the bank's side of the process is done. After that, it's a job for the real estate agents.
It just becomes an unrecoverable loss that everyone has to eat.
Background and Key Points of This Debate
Under Article 915 of Japan’s Civil Code, renouncing an inheritance requires filing with the family court within 3 months of the day you learn the inheritance has begun. Crucially, that clock starts not from “the day you learned of the death” but from “the day you realized you were an heir” — which is why, as in this case, relatives living far away can receive notice at an unexpectedly late stage. It’s also easy to overlook that accepting even part of the estate, or paying off any of the deceased’s debts, can count as “simple acceptance” (単純承認), after which renunciation is no longer possible. While many commenters on the thread said “just renounce it, simple as that,” opinions split over the real-world hassle and cost of gathering family register documents and filing with the family court, as well as how heavy a burden this notice places on elderly recipients. Cases where creditors like banks trace family registers to track down distant relatives are likely to remain common going forward.
※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Breaking News Plus) thread “Megabank Suddenly Demands ‘¥23 Million’ Back — An ‘Aging Society Relatable Moment’.”
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