My Number card in Yamaguchi: how to apply, pick it up and renew it (2026)

This page is general information from official sources. It is not legal advice. For your own case, ask the My Number desk of your city.

Everyone registered as a resident of a city in Japan has a My Number (個人番号, kojin bango), including foreign residents. If you moved from overseas, the city sends you a notice of your number with an application form for the card, according to J-LIS, the national body that makes the cards. The card is a plastic ID card with your photo. You apply for it, then collect it in person at a city counter.

This page compares five cities in Yamaguchi Prefecture: Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi, Ube, Shunan and Iwakuni. It covers help with applying, booking and collecting the card, renewing the electronic certificates, and a forgotten PIN. It also explains a step only foreign residents have: updating the card’s expiry date when your period of stay changes. The city pages we read are in Japanese and do not say whether the counters can help in English.

City	Book to collect?	Weekdays	Evenings and weekends
Shimonoseki	Yes (phone or online)	9:00–16:30	2nd and 4th Sun, 13:00–17:00
Yamaguchi	No	8:30–17:15 (9:00–16:30 from Dec 1)	Usually 2nd Sun, 8:30–12:00
Ube	No (you can book)	9:00–16:30	Thursdays until 19:00
Shunan	No on weekdays	8:30–17:15	Set days, 9:00–12:00, book by phone
Iwakuni	Yes (Card Center)	9:00–17:45	1st and 3rd Thu until 19:00; 1st Sun and 3rd Sat, 9:00–12:00

Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi, Shunan and Iwakuni say days and hours can change because of system maintenance. Check the city page or call before you go.

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1. What do I need to know before I start?

Official rule (Japan)

When your card is ready, the city mails a postcard called the notice of issuance (交付通知書, kofu tsuchisho). It shows where you collect the card. You collect the card yourself; a proxy is only allowed when illness, disability or a similar reason makes it hard for you to come, and work or school is not accepted. Ube and Shunan state this plainly. Children under 15 come with a parent or other legal representative.

At the counter you set four PINs (暗証番号, ansho bango). One is for the signature certificate and uses 6 to 16 capital letters and numbers. The other three are 4-digit numbers, and you can make them the same, according to Shunan City. Decide them before you go.

Yamaguchi, Ube, Shunan and Iwakuni list the residence card (在留カード, zairyu kado) as photo ID that is enough on its own. Bring the original, within its expiry date. Shunan City says staff check the IC chip.

2. How do I apply for the card?

Official rule (Japan)

J-LIS lists four ways to apply with the form you received: by smartphone (scan the QR code on the form), on a computer, at a street ID photo booth, or by mail. Its English pages explain each way. It says the city mails the notice of issuance about one month after you apply.

If you would rather have help, each city offers a free service that takes your photo and sends the application for you. The details are in the city sections below. Some of these services are not open to people who plan to move out of the city within two months. Shimonoseki (booths), Yamaguchi (post offices) and Ube (online counter) state this. Shunan City says the first card is free. A replacement for a lost card costs ¥800, or ¥1,000 with the electronic certificates (Shunan and Iwakuni).

3. My stay has an end date. When does my card expire?

Yamaguchi City, Shunan City, Shimonoseki City

For Japanese nationals and foreign residents without a fixed period of stay, the card is valid for 10 years (5 years under age 18). If your period of stay has an end date, your card expires on that date. This is how Yamaguchi City explains it. Shunan City says you must extend the card before it expires.

1. Renew your period of stay or change your status first. This is done with the immigration bureau, not the city.
2. Take your My Number card and your new residence card to the city counter. You also need the PIN you set when you collected the card. If someone else goes for you, ask the city first, because the documents are different.
3. Ask to update the card’s expiry date. In Japanese this is the card’s validity period change (有効期間変更, yuko kikan henko). In Shimonoseki, the My Number Card Center lists this service for foreign residents.

If your renewal application is still being reviewed and the card is about to expire, Yamaguchi City can extend the card by two months. Bring your card and your residence card with the stamp on the back that shows your application is in progress. If you applied online, the city accepts the completion email instead. You can also apply at the immigration bureau for a Specified Residence Card, which combines the residence card and the My Number card.

4. How do I renew the electronic certificates, or reset a forgotten PIN?

Official rule (Japan)

The card holds two electronic certificates (電子証明書, denshi shomeisho). They let you get certificates at convenience stores and use online services. They expire on your 5th birthday after they were issued, which is separate from the card’s own expiry. You can renew them at the city counter from 3 months before, free of charge. Yamaguchi City says J-LIS mails a reminder about 2 to 3 months before.

If you forgot a PIN or locked it, the counter can reset it. Bring the card and one photo ID. Several cities say you can reset the signature PIN at a convenience store terminal if you still know one of the other PINs. Where to go in each city is in the sections below.

5. Which city counter should I use?

Each city

You collect the card at the place written on your postcard. If you want another place, ask the city first. Iwakuni needs at least 7 working days, and Yamaguchi needs 5 working days for a Sunday pickup at the main building.

If you can go on a weekday, Yamaguchi, Ube and Shunan do not need a booking. For an evening after work, Ube is open until 19:00 every Thursday, and the Iwakuni Card Center until 19:00 on the 1st and 3rd Thursdays. For a Sunday, book first in Shimonoseki and Iwakuni, and check the next Sunday date in Yamaguchi.

6. Shimonoseki City My Number Card Center

Shimonoseki City

You must book a time before you collect your card. Book by phone with the counter on your postcard, or online through the city’s pickup booking system (マイナンバーカード受取予約システム). At night and on holidays, use the online system. People in the main city area collect at the Card Center on the 5th floor of Daimaru Shimonoseki. People in branch office areas collect at their branch office. It takes about 20 minutes.

The Card Center is open on weekdays 9:00–16:30, and on the 2nd and 4th Sundays 13:00–17:00 (last entry 16:40). In November 2026 the Sunday dates are November 8 and 29. The city also lists extra hours at the Card Center: Wednesdays 17:00–19:00 and the 2nd and 4th Sunday mornings 9:00–12:00.

Photos for the application are taken only at the Card Center, not at City Hall or the branch offices. From October 2026, the city also runs free help booths in shopping centers, 10:00–16:00. Coming dates include Youme City on October 24–25 and November 21–23, Sunmart Toyota on November 14–15, and Sunmart Kikugawa on November 28–29. You can renew the electronic certificates at the Card Center, the Citizen Services Division of City Hall, and the branch offices, but not at the booths.

If you drive, use the Seamall car park: 3 hours are free if you bring the parking ticket. Address: Daimaru Shimonoseki 5F, 4-4-10 Takezaki-cho, Shimonoseki. Phone: 083-227-4178. Google Maps

Name	Shimonoseki City My Number Card Center
Address	Daimaru Shimonoseki 5F, 4-4-10 Takezaki-cho, Shimonoseki
Hours / Closed	Collection by reservation. Weekdays 9:00–16:30, 2nd and 4th Sundays 13:00–17:00 (last reception 16:40). Extra slots on Wednesdays 17:00–19:00 and 2nd and 4th Sundays 9:00–12:00. Sunday dates in November 2026: November 8 and 29. Closed Saturdays, public holidays, and December 29–January 3
Phone	083-227-4178
Map	Open in Google Maps ↗
Official site	Open the official site ↗

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7. Yamaguchi City Hall, Family Register and Resident Division (山口市 戸籍住民課)

Yamaguchi City

No booking is needed. You collect the card on the 1st floor of the City Hall main building (Yamaguchi General Branch Office, 山口総合支所), or at the branch office on your postcard. Hours are weekdays 8:30–17:15. From December 1, 2026, the hours change to 9:00–16:30. It takes about 10 minutes per card.

The Sunday counter opens once a month, usually on the 2nd Sunday, 8:30–12:00, at the main building only. The coming dates are November 8 and December 13, 2026, and January 10, February 7 (a 1st Sunday) and March 14, 2027. You can collect the card, reset a PIN, update details after a move, and renew the electronic certificates there.

For help applying, book by phone. The main building helps on weekdays 9:00–11:00 and 14:00–16:00 until March 12, 2027. In addition, 39 post offices in the city take your photo and send the application, with no booking, on weekdays 9:00–17:00 until March 31, 2027. You then collect the card at the nearest branch office, about 1 to 2 months later. Certificate renewal is not possible at post offices; it is done at the main building, the branch offices, and six community centers.

Name	Yamaguchi City Hall, Family Register and Resident Division (Yamaguchi General Branch Office)
Address	2-1 Kameyama-cho, Yamaguchi
Hours / Closed	Weekdays 8:30–17:15 (9:00–16:30 from December 1, 2026). Sunday counter: in principle 2nd Sunday 8:30–12:00 (November 8 and December 13, 2026). Closed Saturdays, public holidays, and New Year holidays
Phone	083-934-2927
Map	Open in Google Maps ↗
Official site	Open the official site ↗

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8. Ube City Hall, Citizens Division (宇部市 市民課)

Ube City

You can go without a booking, but you can also book a time. Online booking is open 24 hours, for the applicant only, up to 5 days before (not counting weekends and holidays). Otherwise book by phone. You collect at the place on your postcard, on weekdays 9:00–16:30. The City Hall main building stays open until 19:00 every Thursday. The city does not list weekend collection.

For applying, the online counter near window 3 on the 1st floor of City Hall works on weekdays 9:00–16:30 (Thursdays until 19:00). No booking is needed. An operator on screen fills in the form for you, and the photo is taken there. Post offices in the city can also take your photo and help with the form.

From October 1, 2026, four post offices renew the electronic certificates and reset PINs: Ube, Ube Nakano, Tokonami and Higashi-Kiwa. They work on weekdays only, and a proxy cannot do it for you. For a PIN reset at the Citizens Division or a community center, the city asks you to book first.

Address: 1-7-1 Tokiwa-cho, Ube. Phone (My Number desk): 0836-34-8264. Google Maps

Name	Ube City Hall, Citizens Division
Address	1-7-1 Tokiwa-cho, Ube
Hours / Closed	Weekdays 9:00–16:30, Thursdays until 19:00. Closed weekends, public holidays, and December 29–January 3
Phone	0836-34-8264
Map	Open in Google Maps ↗
Official site	Open the official site ↗

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9. Shunan City Hall, Citizens Division (周南市 市民課)

Shunan City

On weekdays you can collect the card without a booking, 8:30–17:15. Bring the postcard, photo ID, and your notification card or Individual Number Notice (通知カード／個人番号通知書).

The holiday counter is for collecting the card only, 9:00–12:00, and you must book by phone. The next date is Sunday, October 25, 2026; book by Thursday, October 22. Places are first come, first served. The city says dates from November are not decided yet.

Staff at the Citizens Division and the branch offices can take your photo with a tablet and help you apply. You can renew the electronic certificates there without a booking. If you know one of your PINs, you can reset the other at a convenience store; if you know neither, go to the counter.

Name	Shunan City Hall, Citizens Division
Address	1-1 Kizan-dori, Shunan
Hours / Closed	Weekdays 8:30–17:15. Holiday counter (collection only, phone reservation required) 9:00–12:00 on Saturday, November 21 and Sunday, December 27, 2026. Normally closed weekends, public holidays, and New Year holidays
Phone	0834-22-8339
Map	Open in Google Maps ↗
Official site	Open the official site ↗

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10. Iwakuni City My Number Card Center

Iwakuni City

The Card Center is on the 6th floor of Fuji Grand Iwakuni, not at City Hall. Since August 4, 2025, the Citizens Division at City Hall no longer handles card services. The exception is when you update the card at the same time as an address change there.

Collecting at the Card Center needs a booking: online by 12:00 the day before, or by phone by 15:00 the day before. It is open on weekdays 9:00–17:45, on the 1st and 3rd Thursdays until 19:00, and on the 1st Sunday and 3rd Saturday 9:00–12:00. The branch offices and the Kuga branch office take no bookings and are open on weekdays 8:30–17:15.

The Card Center and the branch offices help with the photo and the application; you must come in person. You can renew the electronic certificates at the Card Center, the branch offices and the Kuga branch office without a booking, but not at the smaller local offices.

Name	Iwakuni City My Number Card Center
Address	Fuji Grand Iwakuni 6F, 2-9-8 Marifu-machi, Iwakuni
Hours / Closed	Collection by reservation. Weekdays 9:00–17:45 (reception until 17:30), 1st and 3rd Thursdays 9:00–19:00 (reception until 18:45), 1st Sunday and 3rd Saturday 9:00–12:00 (reception until 11:45). Closed other weekends, public holidays, and December 29–January 3
Phone	0827-33-3141
Map	Open in Google Maps ↗
Official site	Open the official site ↗

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Common questions

I lost the postcard. What do I do?

Shunan City asks you to contact the Citizens Division. Iwakuni City says the application help desk can reissue an application form if you do not have one.

How long does it take to get the card?

About one month from application to the postcard, according to J-LIS, Ube and Iwakuni. Yamaguchi City says 1 to 2 months when you use its help desk or a post office.

Can I use the Sunday counter for anything else?

In Yamaguchi, the Sunday counter only handles My Number card matters, not resident certificates or moving notices. Shunan’s holiday counter is for collecting the card only.

Do I need a booking to renew the certificates?

No, in Yamaguchi, Shunan and Iwakuni. In Ube, booking is suggested for a PIN reset at the counter.

Sources (checked October 2026)

6 pages we checkedShow

• J-LIS: Individual Number Card (English) and How to apply (English)
• Shimonoseki City: Collecting the card (updated November 7, 2025), November 2026 holiday dates, the My Number Card Center, electronic certificates, help booths (updated September 16, 2026)
• Yamaguchi City: Collecting the card (updated September 10, 2026), Sunday counter, help with applying, post offices, renewing certificates, card expiry for foreign residents with a period of stay (updated June 19, 2026), ID documents
• Ube City: Collecting the card, booking, ways to apply, online counter, post offices from October 2026, forgotten PIN
• Shunan City: Collecting the card, holiday counter (updated August 24, 2026), renewing the card and certificates, help with applying, PIN reset at convenience stores
• Iwakuni City: Collecting the card, the My Number Card Center, help with applying, renewal, PIN reset