Japan’s New Year Closures: Offices Shut 29 Dec, Banks 31 Dec

Updated: October 14, 2026. I added Lawson Bank’s ATM hours and withdrawal limit for cards issued overseas.

Japan does not close for New Year all at once. Government offices stop on Tuesday 29 December 2026, banks stop two days later on Thursday 31 December, and both reopen on Monday 4 January 2027 — because two different legal rules set the two holidays. Museums, post offices and ATMs each follow their own schedules on top of that.

It is easy to read that “Japan shuts down for New Year” and stop there. Inside Japan the split is familiar enough that it rarely gets explained. It is written into law, which means it can be checked rather than guessed. Here is what each rule says, what it means for the 2026–27 holiday, and which parts of daily life it does not cover.

For most visitors, the honest summary is that this barely matters: the closures hit counters and desks, and Seven Bank and E-net say their ATMs take overseas cards 365 days a year. It matters if you need a bank counter, a ward office, or an immigration desk, if you planned a museum day for late December, or if you rely on Japan Post Bank ATMs late in the evening.

Two rules, two start dates

Government offices and banks close on different days because they are covered by different laws.

• Government offices: Article 1 of the Act on Holidays of Administrative Organs lists Sundays and Saturdays, national holidays, and “the days from 29 December to 3 January of the following year” as days when government offices, in principle, do not work.
• Banks: The Banking Act says bank holidays are limited to Sundays and days set by cabinet order. Article 5 of the Banking Act Enforcement Order lists those days as national holidays, “the days from 31 December to 3 January of the following year”, and Saturdays.

Only 1 January is a national holiday under the National Holidays Act. 2 and 3 January are closed days because of these two separate rules, not because they are public holidays.

Here is how it falls in 2026–27:

That is six closed days in a row for government offices and four for banks.

Cash and ATMs: the counters close, the machines mostly don’t

The bank rule closes bank branches, not every cash machine. If you need anything done at a bank counter, Wednesday 30 December 2026 is the last day.

ATMs run on their own schedules. For cards issued outside Japan, the four networks I checked say this:

• Seven Bank (the ATMs in 7-Eleven stores) says on its overseas card page that its ATMs can be used 365 days a year. Visa and Mastercard cards issued overseas can be used 00:00–24:00; UnionPay, American Express, JCB, Discover and Diners Club have short breaks around midnight. The limit is ¥100,000 per withdrawal with an overseas card, or ¥30,000 if the transaction uses the magnetic stripe.
• Japan Post Bank lists separate hours for cards issued outside Japan on its International ATM Service page. Its ATMs at post offices run 7:00–21:00 on Sundays, holidays, 31 December and 1–3 January (7:00–23:00 on other days). Its small ATMs in FamilyMart and similar shops run 0:05–23:55 Monday to Sunday (from 7:00 on the third Monday), but that table lists no hours for them on holidays such as 1 January. The limit is ¥50,000 per withdrawal. It also warns that ATM hours over long holidays such as New Year may differ from what its website shows. Its 2025–26 New Year notice, dated 20 November 2025, was written for its own account holders; it said the small in-shop ATMs kept running over the holiday. Its 2026–27 notice had not been published when I checked on 14 October 2026.
• E-net (ATMs in FamilyMart, Don Quijote and other shops) says on its overseas card page that Visa, Mastercard, UnionPay and JCB cards issued overseas can be used 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. It adds that some stores do not have its ATM.
• Lawson Bank (the ATMs in Lawson stores) says on its International ATMs page that credit and debit cards issued overseas can be used 24 hours a day, except for about 15 minutes between 3:00 and 4:00 for maintenance. The limit is ¥50,000 per withdrawal, in steps of ¥10,000, and some Lawson stores do not have an ATM that takes overseas cards. The page says nothing about New Year hours.

1. Count the days.Work out how much cash you need for 31 December to 3 January.
2. Plan the withdrawals.If that is more than one withdrawal allows, plan several: the limit per withdrawal with an overseas card is ¥100,000 at Seven Bank and ¥50,000 at Japan Post Bank and Lawson Bank.
3. Mind the post-office hours.If you use Japan Post Bank’s post-office ATMs, go before 21:00 from 31 December to 3 January.

Ward and city offices: set by each town

City and ward offices follow their own local ordinances, not the national act. The Local Autonomy Act says local government holidays are set by ordinance and are to cover Saturdays and Sundays, national holidays, and “days at the end or beginning of the year set by ordinance” — it leaves the year-end dates to each town.

The two cities I checked use the same dates as the national rule. Chiyoda City in central Tokyo states that its offices are closed on weekends, national holidays and over the year-end and New Year period, “from 29 December to 3 January of the following year” (page updated 3 September 2026). Sapporo says its City Hall main building is closed on weekends, national holidays and over the year-end and New Year period (29 December – 3 January) (page updated 2 May 2025). I did not check every town, so look up the office you need.

For long-stay residents: the phone line of the Immigration Services Agency‘s information centre lists its hours as 8:30–17:15, excluding weekends, national holidays and the year-end period of 29 December–3 January.

Museums follow neither rule

Museums set their own closing days, and they differ even among national museums in the same city:

• Tokyo National Museum says on its visitor information page that it will be closed from Saturday 26 December to Thursday 31 December 2026, and will open on Friday 1 January 2027 (opening hours not yet set). From 22 to 25 December 2026, only the Gallery of Hōryūji Treasures and the Kuroda Memorial Hall will be open.
• The National Museum of Western Art lists 28 December – 1 January among its closed days on its visitor information page.

So one national museum in Ueno is open on 1 January and another nearby is closed. Neither follows the 29 December or 31 December rule. Check each place’s own calendar.

If you are spending 1 January with a Japanese family rather than at a museum, the holiday food has its own risk — see my guide to mochi at New Year.

What I could not settle

Quick answers

Do I need to finish my sightseeing before 29 December?

No. The 29 December date applies to government offices, not to sights, shops or ATMs. Unless you need a bank counter, a ward office or an immigration desk between 29 December 2026 and 3 January 2027, the two legal rules will hardly affect you. Check opening days for the specific sights you plan to visit, since museums set their own.

Why do banks stay open on 29 and 30 December when offices don’t?

Because they are governed by different rules. The Banking Act Enforcement Order starts the New Year closure for banks on 31 December. The Act on Holidays of Administrative Organs starts it on 29 December for government offices. Neither law gives a reason in the text, and I have not found an official explanation of why the dates differ.

Do Japan Post Bank ATMs charge a fee for overseas cards?

Sometimes. Japan Post Bank’s International ATM Service page says an ATM usage fee of ¥220 (tax included) per use may apply with certain cards issued abroad, and your card issuer may add its own fee. It does not list which cards are charged, so check the amount on the screen before you confirm.

Laws, opening days and ATM hours checked on 14 October 2026.

— ko, writing from Niigata