An Individual Number (個人番号, kojin bangō), also known as My Number (マイナンバー, mai nambā), is a twelve-digit ID number automatically issued to all citizens and residents of Japan (including foreign residents) used for taxation, social security and disaster response purposes.
The numbers were first issued in late 2015.
[1][2][3] The Individual Number is the de-facto Japanese equivalent to a U.S Social Security Number, and is required when applying for a Japanese bank account.
There are pros and cons regarding efficiency when using Basic Resident Registers Network and Number System [ja].
This article related to government in Japan is a stub.