What kind of Inkan/Hanko do you have?

[Big Booger]

Is yours kanjified or is it katakanized? I have a kanji hanko. I just think the kanji stamp looks better than a katakana stamp.

Just wondering what kind you have.

[Taro Toporific]

Is yours kanjified or is it katakanized? I have a kanji hanko. I just think the kanji stamp looks better than a katakana stamp.

Just wondering what kind you have.

AVOID the hanko for as long as possible....just signing is easier for unmarried FGs.
I went blissful 8 years without a $%^&*(! hanko. Now I've got a katakana stamp for farmland purchases. Kanji hanko are silly since all Japanese "know" the Western f'ed gaijin don't have kanji names. The only exception I've seen to this is my Japanese college professor friend "Red" Baer, who looks like large furry red bear, and Japanese people immediately say, "Ah so ka, Aka Kuma.

[Taro Toporific]

More recently, I've taken advantage of my gaijinness and just sign whenever I can get away with it.

Yep Ultra, that's what I do. Nine times out ten, a white FG can get away with saying, "Hanko? That's silly, gaijin don't have hanko. I'll just sign it."

[kamome]

Some banks out in inaka might require that you sign with a hanko. I had to use a katakana hanko back when I lived out in the boonies. In four years of Tokyo city life, I've never had to use a hanko for anything. If BB is way out there, he might not be able to avoid one.

Gaijins who want to form a business in Japan generally are advised to have one, although a certificate authenticating your identity from your embassy will usually do the trick.

[devicenull]

i have a few... a japanese name that some friends gave me. a katakana version that i used in class in the states when i was too lazy to write my name on stuff. and now a chop with my chinese name on it. prolly going to stick with the chinese name, maybe change it to japanese characters seeing as it's all in simplified though :P

[canman]

For my inkan or official hanko, here in Hachinohe=sticks, I was forced to have one made with my name in Romaji. The other hanko is in katakana, but for all my official documents, like starting my company when we did the adoption thing I had to use my romaji inkan. I was told that foreigners were not allowed to use knaji for their inkan. As a matter of fact my friend had one made using kanji for his name, and when he went to register it with the city hall they turned him down. He then had to go back to the hanko place get then to file off the kanji and do it in romaji. And Kamome you are right up here in the inaka we have to use it at the bank and other official p[laces they won't take a signature.

[Skankster]

-
-
Katakana

Just got it. Never used it.
I have had no trouble w/o it.

[Big Booger]

I had to have one to open a bank, get a credit card, apply for a small loan, and so on. For daily dilly dally, I seldom use it. I have 2, but they are the same. One's just one of those X-stamper self inking jobs.

The reason I brought this up is I am having the same issue as canman1's friend. When I moved the new city won't recognize my kanji because the kanji is missing 1 syllable in my name.. pathetic.

I now have to either produce some letter with my nickname or get a katakana-ized inkan...

[Skankster]

-
-
I think all banks have "sign" accounts

You just have to ask.

[Blah Pete]

Some banks have sign accounts. I had an old account at Sumitomo Bank and I wanted to convert from my hanko to sign account. Couldn't do it. They said I would have to close the account and open another one. So that is what I did except the account I opned was at CitiBank.

Don't get the Shachihata type (self inking) inkan. They may be OK to use at your company but many places do not accept them as legal. Friend told me they are too easy to copy.

I have 3 different kinds. The wife had them made by a famous hanko maker out of some kind of rare wood.
Two large ones with my name in katakana, Hiragana. One small one with name in katakana. Supposedly one is for land transfers, etc. others are for bank, etc. I can never remember and the wife has explained it to 100 times...

[kotatsuneko]

mines in kana as the ppl at the govt office entered my name on the kozeki shohon & tohon before I entered the country, and was too busy with other stuff myself to think about fancy kanji...

afaik, you can`t have different kanji/kana on your inkan than that of your official documents..

then again a fair few foreigners arent even listed on the family register...

the bank i use (the very friendly Hokkaido bank) requires inkan + signature

[cstaylor]

[tidbits]

[cstaylor]

[GomiGirl]

afaik, you can`t have different kanji/kana on your inkan than that of your official documents..

Well, I'm no expert, but from experience you can use whatever you want as long as its registered to you.

Yes the Chestnut has got it right. You can have ANYTHING you like just make sure it is registered at your local Ku-office. Then whenever you need to submit the registration certificate, you have one printed. My Ku has a handy system using a card with an ATM machine type thing in the front lobby. Just wander in, put in your card along with the Y300 for each certificate and they magically appear.

The only thing that bugs me is.. the certificates are only valid for 3 months. So you have to keep going to get more certificates. Fortunately the ATM thingy is 24 hour but not very user friendly. Lots of nasty kanji...

My Hanko is in Old Style hiragana and phoetically spells my real first name - not family name as I need to keep my identity unique from the other zillions of family members I have in Japan.

I think that Katakana is too pointy and not soft and flowy like the hiragana. Plus I couldn't think of a suitable Kanji for myself.. (Gomi is always in katakana.)