This subject-review package covers Japanese inheritance tax law for the Zeirishi written exam, focusing on taxpayer and heir classification, deemed property, deductions and reliefs, allocation, valuation judgment, and applied scenarios. The practice format is original worked scenarios, a self-check rubric, and 20 supporting MCQs that check knowledge and application; they are not a simulation of the written exam. The historical 73rd paper shows a two-hour written format with explanation and calculation tasks, but current scope, availability, format, weightings, pass marks, fees, and tax thresholds must be confirmed with the National Tax Agency (NTA). Use a classification-first workflow: identify the taxpayer, entity status, statutory heirs, and each asset's character; apply non-taxable limits and the basic deduction; then apply reliefs, allocation, and any stated surcharge. Show assumptions and formula lines, and verify current law separately from this review material.
Scope and tested skills
A past 73rd paper shows a written inheritance-tax exercise with explanation and calculation components; treat this package as subject review, not a current syllabus.
The 73rd paper states a two-hour answer window and two 50-point questions. Those are historical facts about that paper, not proof of the current format. The visible tasks reward issue-spotting, statutory reasoning, valuation judgment, and clean calculation layout. The MCQs below check supporting knowledge; they do not simulate the written exam. The integrated task section supplies open-task practice.
Preparation should prioritize: classification before arithmetic; statutory heir counting and basic deduction; deemed-property limits; spousal relief and filing; valuation and small residential land eligibility; and special situations. In the written setting, write assumptions and show formula lines so partial reasoning is visible.
Foundations: taxpayer, heirs, basic deduction
The ordinary taxpayer is an individual who acquires property by inheritance or bequest. A non-equity corporation may also be a deemed taxpayer for certain bequests or gifts under the applicable inheritance tax rules, so identify entity status before applying the individual rules.
Worked example: a decedent is survived by a spouse and two children. Count three statutory heirs, so the basic deduction is 30 million + (6 million x 3) = 48 million yen. If one child renounces, the outline says statutory heirs are still counted for the deduction; do not automatically reduce the count. Verify current law and the problem facts.
Filing is a separate issue from whether tax is due. A spouse claiming the spousal deduction must file a return to claim it, even if the spouse's allocable tax is zero. A return may also matter for zero-tax results, but do not assert a current filing rule unless the problem or a verified source supports it. In exam answers, separate the taxable base from the filing obligation.
Corporate deemed-taxpayer issue: if a general incorporated association or similar non-equity corporation receives property from a decedent or a related donor, analyze the special rule raised by 相続税法第66条. Check the entity type, the acquisition route, and the statutory conditions; do not assume the corporation is outside inheritance tax merely because the ordinary taxpayer is an individual. A short conclusion should name the issue, apply the facts, and flag any current-law confirmation.
Classification: deemed property, exclusions, add-back
Classify each asset before adding it. Life insurance and death retirement benefits are deemed inheritance property with special non-taxable limits; graves, altars, and qualifying worship or charitable property are non-taxable; certain pre-death gifts may be added back.
Life-insurance example: proceeds are 25 million yen, and there are two statutory heirs. The outline limit is 5 million x 2 = 10 million yen. Taxable deemed inheritance is 25 million - 10 million = 15 million yen. Do not include the full 25 million. For retirement benefits, do not invent a formula not supplied; identify the special limit and apply the problem's facts.
Gift add-back example: an heir received a covered gift two years before death. The outline treats certain gifts within three years as add-back items. Keep a three-column table: item, statutory character, and amount after limit or exclusion. Debts reduce the estate only if they are the decedent's deductible obligations; the heir's personal debt and inheritance tax itself are not estate debts.
Calculations: spousal relief and allocation
Compute the aggregate taxable estate first; apply reliefs and credits in the order the problem requires; then allocate tax using the stated ratio and add any applicable surcharge.
Spousal example: the spouse actually inherits 180 million yen; the statutory share is 100 million yen. The ceiling is the greater of 160 million or 100 million = 160 million. The deduction is the lesser of actual 180 million and ceiling 160 million = 160 million. The spouse's amount after deduction is 20 million. If actual were 120 million, the deduction would be 120 million, not 160 million.
Allocation example: total tax is 6 million yen; A's taxable value is 30 million and B's is 10 million. A's ratio is 30/40 = 75%; allocated tax is 6 million x 75% = 4.5 million yen. Then apply any surcharge stated by the problem. Avoid computing progressive rates separately for each heir before aggregation unless the question tells you to.
Valuation and small residential land judgment
Land problems are usually classification problems disguised as arithmetic. Identify the use at death, the acquirer, continuation facts, and the applicable valuation route before applying a reduction.
For small residential land, build a checklist: Was the parcel used for a residence? Whose residence? Does the heir fall into a qualifying category? Does the heir continue to own or use the property as required? Is there a separate business or rental use? Apply the special after ordinary valuation and only if every requirement is met.
Worked judgment: a spouse inherits a parcel used as the decedent's and spouse's home and keeps living there. This is the strongest pattern for specified residential land, assuming the other facts fit. If a parcel is rented to an unrelated business, do not assume the residential special applies merely because land is inherited. If a relative lived there, analyze household, relationship, and heir category; do not rely on kinship alone.
Applied problems: insolvency, generation-skipping, filing choices
Applied questions test whether you can state a conclusion, identify the governing issue, and keep calculations conditional on facts.
Generation-skipping example: a grandchild receives property in a way that skips the child's generation. If the grandchild's allocated tax before surcharge is 1 million yen and the problem states a 20% surcharge, the total is 1 million + 0.2 million = 1.2 million yen. The 20% is a problem assumption, not a claim about current law unless verified.
Insolvent estate: if deductible obligations exceed assets, the taxable base may be zero, but do not jump to no filing without checking the governing rules. Document debts, deductible funeral expenses, and exempt or non-taxable items. For filing choices, separate the return needed to claim a relief from the return needed because tax is due.
Integrated practice task and self-check rubric
Use this original scenario to practice both explanation and calculation. Do not look at the rubric until you have written your answer.
Scenario: T dies survived by spouse S and child C. T's statutory heirs are S and C. Assets: bank deposit 80 million yen; death life insurance 24 million yen payable to S; residential land 60 million yen used as T and S's home; deductible debts 10 million yen; deductible funeral expenses 4 million yen. T's will leaves 20 million yen to grandchild G, skipping C's generation. S continues to live in the home and owns it through the filing deadline. Tasks: (a) count statutory heirs and compute the basic deduction; (b) compute the life-insurance non-taxable limit and taxable amount; (c) compute the taxable estate before spousal relief; (d) state whether S must file to claim the spousal deduction; (e) identify the small residential land issue; (f) identify the generation-skipping issue. Use the problem's assumptions and verify any current rule you rely on.
Self-check rubric, one point each: correct heir count; basic deduction 42 million; insurance limit 10 million and taxable 14 million; gross taxable base 140 million before basic deduction (80 + 14 + 60 - 10 - 4) and 98 million after basic deduction; notes that S must file to claim the spousal deduction; does not apply the residential special before checking use and continuation; identifies G's skip issue and any stated surcharge; shows formula lines and flags unsupported assumptions. If you missed a point, rewrite only that step.
Practical study sequence
Build a six-pass sequence that moves from vocabulary to timed integrated work.
Pass 1: make a one-page map of taxpayer, entity status, heir, basic deduction, and filing. Pass 2: classification drill—for 30 assets, label taxable, deemed, non-taxable, debt, or gift add-back. Pass 3: calculation templates for insurance, basic deduction, spousal ceiling, allocation, and surcharge. Pass 4: land checklist; write 10 short conclusions with reasons. Pass 5: 45-minute open-task practice using original scenarios; show formulas. Pass 6: error audit—reclassify mistakes as law, reading, arithmetic, or layout and redo only those steps.
Use the MCQs as a diagnostic, not a score predictor. For each wrong answer, write the rule, the fact trigger, and a corrected one-line calculation. Check current official sources before relying on any threshold, rate, deadline, or format; a past paper is a reference, not a current rulebook.
References and further reading
Use these references to explore the concepts and check the latest information from the relevant organizations.