山伏
キウイ
Advice about using hanko stamps online in Japan
This week I had to use my Hanko stamp, a stamp used in place of a signature in Japan, for two things; one an invoice, and one a receipt.
I had been told that you don’t need to print these out, that you can just put a .png image of your stamp in red where you would normally stamp it on actual paper. At least in practice.
Turns out you can and you can’t. For the receipt, it worked fine and I didn’t need to do anything else. For the invoice, I was told it had to be done on real paper and then scanned and emailed in. Long story short, they ended up sending me a physical letter to stamp and then send back in the mail. Much more trouble than it’s worth (well, it’s not a small amount).
I can be slightly to blame for this though. For the invoice I think I accidentally sent back an excel file rather than a .pdf, if I had sent in a .pdf they probably would not have noticed, and I would have been ok.
Japan has some ridiculous rules that can really do your head in (don’t get me started on their primitive banking practices). But if you keep in mind a few tricks, there are ways around some parts. You just have to be a bit cognizant of things.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Hi, I’m Tim Bunting AKA the Kiwi Yamabushi, a New Zealander who became a Yamabushi Ascetic in the Dewa Sanzan mountains of north Japan. I’m part of the Yamabushido team, and we host life-altering Yamabushi training on the Dewa Sanzan (website link). People come to us for the ultimate mindfulness experience, to reach the next level, or simply connect with nature and themselves.
I’m on a mission to summit all 100 Famous Mountains of Yamagata Prefecture to spread the splendour of this fabulous location, and in dedication to all those who lost their lives out in nature, including my father.
On my daily blog I post thoughts of a practicing Yamabushi that I hope people can use to better themselves and live as fulfilling a life as possible.
Sign up to the weekly Mountains of Wisdom newsletter, follow me on social (Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, TikTok, Clubhouse, all @kiwiyamabushi), or send me an email via the link below to stay in touch.
Tim.
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