How to get 20,000 yen from Japan’s My Number card, 2nd Mynapoint campaign [UPDATE]

Excuse the clickbait(ish) headline but it is perhaps apt. By dangling in front of us the prospect of 20,000 yen’s worth of ‘mynapoints’ to shop with, the authorities in Japan are essentially trying to bait us into applying for a My Number card. 

[UPDATE] The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications announced Friday (March 31) that it will extend the point application deadline from the end of May to the end of September.

Related: MYNAPOINT 20000 YEN campaign extended! What next for Japan's MY NUMBER CARD?

The government’s Mynapoint initiative first kicked off in 2020 offering My Number social security and tax identification card holders the chance to get up to 5,000 yen in points back from cashless purchases made up to a total value of 20,000 yen.

The initiative was created as a way to address any potential slump in consumer spending in Japan following a 10 percent consumption tax hike in 2019 and any potential slowdown that might have resulted from a 2020 Summer Games hangover. The outbreak of the novel coronavirus ultimately saw the games postponed for a year, but not the rollout of the Mynapoint initiative.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communication, the administrators of Mynapoint, began accepting applications for card holders to reserve and apply for the use of Mynapoints in July 2020, while the points themselves became available for the period of September 2020 through March 2021 - phase one. 

Enter phase two. 

[CC YouTube channel: Mynapoint is back! GET 20,000 YEN through your My Number card]

Subscribe to the channel here: City-Cost on YouTube

In the summer of 2020 My Number card holders could register their cards, in advance, for use in place of health insurance cards - ‘Myna Insurance cards’ - as proof of being enrolled in a state-run health insurance scheme.  

The benefits of doing so, aside from being one card lighter, include easier reception at medical facilities, as well as easier access for patient and medical staff to the patient’s medical history (especially useful in times of disaster such as when requiring medical treatment in the chaotic aftermath of earthquakes, heavy rains, and typhoons), according to the authorities. 

Full rollout of the use of Myna Insurance cards began from October 2021, although as of early May 2022 less than 20 percent of medical facilities in Japan were equipped to handle the new system, according to local news. 

Despite a sluggish start to the Myna Insurance card scheme, the government is pressing on with a second Mynapoint campaign, making up to 20,000 points available to card holders this time around.

(Screenshot of the Mynapoint campaign website taken June 2022.)

How to get 20,000 yen in ‘mynapoints’ with your My Number Card 

There appear to be three components to the second campaign. 

Get your My Number card, get 5,000 points - already underway

Our words, and words to be taken with a pinch of salt. In what essentially appears to be a continuation or re-introduction of the first Mynapoint campaign, phase two invites the public to apply for their My Number card with the promise of 5,000 points in return. 

Applicants who don’t already have a My Number card need to submit their application to get one by the end of September 2022 to qualify.  

[UPDATE - December 22, 2022] The deadline to submit applications for a My Number card in order to qualify for the second phase of the Mynapoint campaign has been extended again.

Applications for cards must be submitted by the end of February 2023. The original deadline had been until the end of September 2022 which was then extended to December.

Announcements about any extensions to the deadline to apply for mynapoints is expected to follow, according to the communications ministry.

(Screenshot from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications' Mynapoint campaign website showing the extension to the My Number card application period in order to qualify for the campaign.)

Reservation and application of the second phase of Mynapoints (to the tune of 5,000 yen) is already underway, having begun in January. Existing and new card holders have until the end of February 2023 to reserve and apply for their points. Those card holders who did this during the first campaign are not eligible for the 5,000 points this time around.

The 5,000 points are acquired through shopping using a pre-selected (by you) cashless payment service. As was mentioned earlier, just as in the first Mynapoint campaign, users get 25 percent back in the form of points on purchases up to 20,000 yen - a maximum of 5,000 points back.   

My Number card holders can reserve and apply for Mynapoints via the Mynapoint smartphone application or software downloaded onto a PC.  

You’ll need the 4-digit pin code created upon applying for your My Number card and a smartphone or card-reader capable of reading the IC chip in the card. After entering your pin and reading your card you can then select (from the around 100 choices available) the cashless service you wish to use to receive and spend your Mynapoints.  After selecting a cashless service you'll be required to enter the payment service's ID and security code. 

Reservation and application of Mynapoints for My Number card holders can also be made at public ‘Mynaspot’ terminals which can be located via the portal site. 

It might also be possible to apply for Mynapoints via the app and website of the cashless payment service you wish to connect with the scheme. In fact, application procedures may vary depending on the service you wish to use. Some services may also offer extra points on top of the 5,000 points that the government is handing out.  Only one service can be registered.  It's not possible to receive the 5,000 points across multiple cashless payment services. 

On the City-Cost YouTube channel there is a video which takes a closer look at the reservation and application process for the 5,000 Mynapoints.  The procedure has changed slightly since this video was made but the content can provide a little more insight into the original campaign: 

How to get 5,000 yen from Japan's My Number Card: Myna Point

Register My Number card as your health insurance card, get 7,500 points

From June 30, 2022 My Number card holders who have registered the card for use as their health insurance card can claim 7,500 mynapoints. The points are also available for those card holders who register and apply until the end of February 2023. 

Registering a My Number card for use as an insurance card looks to be fairly straight forward. Rather than the Mynapoint application, this time you'll need to download and use the Mynaportal application or software.  Mynaportal is the base from which My Number card usage can be managed.  You'll need your My Number card, 4-digit pin code and smartphone or card-reader capable of reading the IC chip in the card ready at hand.  

This video on the City-Cost YouTube channel takes a closer look at the procedure:

How to combine Japan's My Number Card & health insurance

Those who don’t already have a My Number card will need to apply by September 2022 to be eligible for this component of the campaign. 

After completing the registration, 7,500 points can be applied for and received via the Mynapoint app or software.  Have My Number card, 4-digit pin code and smartphone or card-reader capable of reading the IC chip in the card ready at hand.  After scanning / reading your card and entering the pin you can select which of the points (original 5,000 points, insurance card points, bank account points) you wish to apply for.  With a cashless service already registered you then proceed with the terms and conditions and confirmation. 

Time taken to receive points varies depending on the cashless service used.  Early reports of experiences with well-known services suggest just one to two days to receive points. 

Register bank account with My Number card, get 7,500 points

Call it increasing convenience for the holder or increasing a stranglehold on the public via the card but as of March 2022 My Number card holders can register a bank account with their card. In doing so the card holder can more easily register to receive financial benefits, such as the emergency one-off 100,000 yen cash handout issued during the coronavirus pandemic. Receipt of other benefits through the registered account might include pensions, childcare allowances, and income tax refunds.

If handing over your bank account details to the government doesn’t appeal, perhaps the prospect of 7,500 points will offer some encouragement.

To get the full 20,000 points out of the second Mynapoint campaign, card holders need to register this bank account through their My Number card. Again, this is done via the Mynaportal application or software.  Registration of a Japan Post Bank account is possible.

Application for the 7,500 points takes the same procedure as with Myna Insurance.  In fact, points for all parts of the campaign (original 5,000 points, insurance card points, bank account points) can be applied for at the same time via the Mynapoint app.

Application period begings from June 30 and needs to be completed by the end of February 2023.  

As before, those who don’t already have a My Number card will need to apply by September 2022 to be eligible for this component of the campaign. 

Campaign organizers are warning that city and ward offices could be particularly busy during the early stage of the campaign as people submit My Number card applications. Cards can take around one month to be issued. 

Whether we like the idea or not, the government appears to be keen on expanding the use of the My Number card. 

As of May 15, 2022, the cumulative number of My Number cards issued was approximately 56.11 million, or 44.3 percent of the population, according to the Minister of Internal Affairs and Communications Yasushi Kaneko, speaking at a press conference on May 17.  

As of May 8, 2022, approximately 8.55 million people, 6.7 percent of card holders, had registered to use their health insurance cards, and approximately 1.31 million people, or 1.0 percent of card holders, had registered a bank account to receive financial benefits.

“The entire government is working to spread the use of the system, aiming to have cards used by most residents by the end of FY2022,” Kaneko told the press conference. 

The ministry plans to ramp up efforts to spread the use of My Number cards by encouraging local governments to expand opportunities to make applications and to provide information on the safety and usage of the card, among other measures. The ministry also plans to send out a pamphlet containing information about the card along with an application form to those people who have not yet obtained one.

“We are aware that there are some concerns among those people who have not yet obtained the card, such as the complicated procedures, having to visit the municipal office in person at least once when applying, concerns about the leakage of personal information, and the difficulty in feeling the need to obtain the card,” the minister said. 

Whether or not those people who are reluctant to get a My Number card will continue to have difficulty in feeling the need to obtain one could well become irrelevant as the government looks to increase the scope of its use, potentially making it all but essential. 

The government has begun to consider the possibility of including in its annual Basic Policy on Economic and Fiscal Management and Reform, a proposal to promote the use of the ‘Myna Insurance card,’ with the aim of abolishing the current health insurance card in principle in the future, according to news reports published in May.

In October 2020 the government announced plans to start linking My Number cards with driver's licenses.

Related:

Mynapoint deadline extended, what's next for Japan's My Number card?

My Number card, assessing the benefits of Japan’s Individual Number ID

Gov’t considering plan to automatically link bank accounts with My Number system

Japanese gov’t eyes linking My Number card to event ticket sales

How does the latest Mynapoint 20,000 yen campaign sound to you?  Will it be enough to see you apply for a My Number card, or have you do so already?  Let us know in the comment.