This is an English translation of our Japanese article. The Japanese version, the Saitama City portal and the official Saitama City Minna no App site are authoritative. Terms change without notice and campaigns end early once a budget is exhausted, so check the official notices before relying on any figure here.
Last updated: 30 August 2026. Based on the Saitama City portal and the news releases and published material on the official Saitama City Minna no App site.
The short answer. What sets Saitama's Sai Coin apart from other local currencies is that points land the moment you top up, before you buy anything. Top up from a credit card or bank account and you get 3% back in "Tamapon" points; top up in cash and you get 2%. This applies to top-ups made on or before 31 March 2027. And because Sai Coin also settles municipal and prefectural tax, property tax, national health insurance premiums and water bills, paying those alone effectively returns 3%.
"3% even if you never spend it" is an unusual design
The first article in this series covered Shibuya's Hachi Pay. That scheme pays a higher headline rate — 8% all year — but only rewards you when you pay a merchant, and it caps out at 8,000 points a month.
Sai Coin awards points at a different moment entirely. 3% of the amount lands the instant you load the wallet. It is settled before you ever set foot in a shop. The rate looks modest next to 8%, but there is no requirement to shop your way to a ceiling, and — as below — the balance can go toward taxes and water bills, which makes it easy to use up in ordinary life.
The Saitama City Minna no App launched on 31 July 2024 and runs the first digital local currency operated by a government-designated city. It is managed by Tsunagu Co., Ltd., a regional trading company set up with investment from Saitama City and local business bodies. By 27 April 2026 it had passed 380,000 users, with more than 3,000 participating merchants.
First, tell the three kinds of money apart
| Type | How you get it | Where it works |
|---|---|---|
| Sai Coin | Electronic money topped up from a designated bank account, credit card, Seven Bank ATM, or a post office counter in the city | All participating merchants |
| Tamapon | Points earned by topping up Sai Coin and other means. One point equals one yen | Only merchants with a sales floor of 1,000 square metres or less, or a company headquartered in the city or a shop run by a resident |
| Administrative points | Points received as a benefit from the city | Eligible merchants, goods and services are set separately for each benefit scheme |
This is the catch. Sai Coin works at every participating merchant, but Tamapon does not work at large stores. The stated aim is to support local shops, so the points are confined to floors of 1,000 square metres or less, or businesses headquartered in the city or run by a resident. Take the 3% you earned to a large supermarket and it will be rejected.
The top-up rebate: terms and what comes back
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Rate | Credit card or financial institution account: 3% / cash: 2% |
| Eligible period | Top-ups made on or before 31 March 2027 |
| When points land | By the following day as a rule |
| Prerequisite | My Number card authentication is required to top up |
| Amount per top-up | 1,000 to 49,000 yen, in units of 1,000 yen (bank account top-ups) |
| Tamapon expiry | 180 days from the last award or last use |
| Topped up over a year | Card or account (3%) | Cash (2%) |
|---|---|---|
| 120,000 yen (10,000 a month) | 3,600 points | 2,400 points |
| 360,000 yen (30,000 a month) | 10,800 points | 7,200 points |
| 600,000 yen (50,000 a month) | 18,000 points | 12,000 points |
| 1,200,000 yen (100,000 a month) | 36,000 points | 24,000 points |
Avoid topping up in cash. The same 100,000 yen returns 3,000 points by card or account and only 2,000 in cash — a 1,000-point gap. Card top-ups also earn your card's own points, widening the difference further.
There are four routes: a designated bank account, a credit card, Seven Bank ATMs, and post office counters within the city. From 27 August 2026 direct debit from a Japan Post Bank account was added (app version 163 or later required).
The best use is paying tax and utility bills
Sai Coin has an "invoice payment" function: scan a payment slip issued by Saitama City with your phone and settle it in Sai Coin. The range of eligible items is unusually wide, and this is where the app earns its keep.
| Public charges payable with Sai Coin (as of 1 April 2026) | |
|---|---|
| Municipal and prefectural tax, forest environment tax (ordinary collection) | Property tax and city planning tax (land and buildings) |
| Property tax (depreciable assets) | Light vehicle tax (type levy) |
| National health insurance tax | Long-term care insurance premiums (ordinary collection) |
| Late-stage elderly medical insurance premiums (ordinary collection) | Childcare fees |
| After-school club fees | Cemetery management fees |
| School lunch fees | Japan Sport Council parental contributions |
| Municipal housing rent | Municipal housing parking fees |
| Water and sewerage charges | Contributions and handling fees, among others |
Municipal housing rent and parking fees were added in April 2026 and apply to slips issued from that month. The function requires app version 125 or later.
The rebate is already locked in at top-up. Because the 3% attaches when you load the wallet, nothing changes depending on what you then spend it on. Settle your property tax or national health insurance premiums in Sai Coin and the 3% on that top-up is simply yours. Paying 200,000 yen of city tax a year via an account top-up returns 6,000 points, with no shopping required.
The slip must carry the wording for Sai Coin invoice payment on the reverse. Slips without a barcode, or without that wording, cannot be used.
Some things are excluded. Premium digital vouchers cannot be used at ward and city office counters or for tax and public charges paid through the invoice function (Sai Coin can). For school collections, schools in the city using the Sukupei service have accepted Sai Coin since 1 June 2026 (app version 146 or later required).
What is running in 2026, and until when
| Offer | What you get | Period and conditions |
|---|---|---|
| Top-up rebate | 3% of the amount (2% in cash) | Top-ups made on or before 31 March 2027 |
| Receipt Quest | Tamapon for photographing and submitting shopping receipts | From 1 August 2026. Part of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism's 2026 smart city implementation support programme. App version 159 or later required |
| MOM UP PARK tie-in | 30 points per video watched plus survey, 50 points for five or more, 30 points for adding the LINE account | 21 August to 12 November 2026, 23:59. First come, first served; ends once one million points are awarded. Points expected end of November 2026 |
| Surveys | Points for answering in-app surveys | Issued irregularly |
| Stamp rallies | Points at participating events | Per event |
| Premium digital vouchers | 50% premium (5,000 yen buys 7,500 yen of value) | The 2026 round has closed. The usage window ran 17 April to 31 August 2026 |
The premium vouchers are not simply there for the asking
- Open to Saitama City residents. Applying and buying require the app and My Number card authentication
- 5,000 yen a set, worth 7,500 yen (a 50% premium)
- Up to four sets per person; 800,000 sets in total
- Applications ran 24 February to 10 April 2026, purchases 17 April to 14 May, and use 17 April to 31 August
- Applications reached 807,314 sets against the 800,000 cap, so allocation went to a lottery (208,975 applicants)
Applications were not first-come, but losing the lottery meant no vouchers, and there were no reserve draws. Whether a similar round runs next year has not been announced. Purchases could be made by credit card, Seven Bank ATM or post office counter; direct debit, Sai Coin and Tamapon were not accepted.
Campaigns end early when the budget runs out. Saitama has previously run a large rebate on payment amounts that was cut short more than a month before its scheduled end, once the total rebate hit its one billion yen ceiling. The MOM UP PARK tie-in above likewise states that entries close once one million points have been awarded. If you intend to use one of these, move early.
How people outside the city can get in
The app is open to non-residents. There is also a furusato nozei thank-you gift aimed at them: "Furusato Tamapon", launched on 1 June 2025.
Donations range from 3,000 to 200,000 yen. The points work at Tamapon merchants inside Saitama City, excluding some, covering more than 300 restaurants, accommodation providers and similar businesses (as of end of April 2026). The eligible list is selected in line with Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications criteria and is updated periodically.
- Donate to Saitama City through a furusato nozei portal (Furusato Choice, Furunavi, JRE MALL, au PAY, ANA and many others participate)
- A gift code sized to your donation arrives at the email address you registered
- Register the code in the Saitama City Minna no App and the points become usable
Our complete guide to furusato nozei covers the wider mechanics.
Pitfalls worth knowing before you start
What works
- Non-residents can register and use it
- The 3% is settled at top-up, with no shopping required
- Municipal tax, property tax, health insurance and water bills can all be paid by invoice payment
- Card top-ups earn your card's own points as well
- Library card, waste collection calendar and disaster app integrations are built in
- Post office counters in the city accept cash top-ups and help with first-time registration
What does not
- Only merchants inside Saitama City accept it
- Tamapon does not work at large stores (1,000 square metres or less, or locally headquartered)
- Tamapon expires after just 180 days
- Topping up requires My Number card authentication
- Cash top-ups drop the rate to 2%
- Campaigns end early once the budget is exhausted
Watch how the 180 days are counted. Tamapon expires 180 days from the last award or the last use. Top up or spend regularly and the clock keeps resetting, but leave it for about half a year and the balance is gone. Shibuya's Hachi Pay allows a full year, so this expires at twice the pace.
- Download the Saitama City Minna no App and register
- Complete email, SMS and My Number card authentication (only name, address, date of birth and gender are read from the card)
- Top up from a credit card or bank account; cash drops the rate to 2%
- Spend Tamapon within 180 days. It does not work at large stores, so pick a local shop in advance
- When a tax or water bill arrives, check the reverse for the Sai Coin invoice payment wording
- Many campaigns are first-come or by lottery — check the official notices regularly
If you get stuck, every ward office hosts a Saitama City Minna no App advice counter (Monday to Friday, 9:00 to 17:00, last reception 16:30). Every post office in the city also helps with first-time registration.
Frequently asked questions
How long does the 3% for topping up last?
It applies to top-ups made on or before 31 March 2027. Tsunagu Co., Ltd. confirmed continuation for fiscal 2026 in a notice published on 1 April 2026. Credit card and bank account top-ups earn 3%, cash top-ups 2%, and points land by the following day as a rule. Nothing has been published about fiscal 2027 onward, so watch for announcements from the city and the operator.
What is the difference between Sai Coin, Tamapon and administrative points?
Sai Coin is electronic money topped up from a bank account, credit card, Seven Bank ATM or a post office counter in the city, and it works at every participating merchant. Tamapon are points earned by topping up Sai Coin and other means, worth one yen each, but usable only at merchants with a sales floor of 1,000 square metres or less or run by a company headquartered in the city or by a resident. Administrative points are received as benefits from the city, with eligible merchants, goods and services set separately for each scheme.
Can I pay city tax and water bills with Sai Coin?
Yes. Scanning a payment slip with the app's invoice payment function settles municipal and prefectural tax and forest environment tax (ordinary collection), property tax and city planning tax, light vehicle tax, national health insurance tax, long-term care and late-stage elderly medical premiums, childcare fees, school lunch fees, and water and sewerage charges. Municipal housing rent and parking fees were added in April 2026. The slip must carry the Sai Coin invoice payment wording on the reverse, and the function requires app version 125 or later.
How long do Tamapon last?
180 days from the last award or the last use. Keep topping up or spending and the clock resets, but leave it about half a year and the balance lapses. That is short next to local currencies with a one-year window such as Shibuya's Hachi Pay, so decide where to spend soon after the points arrive. Remember too that Tamapon do not work at every merchant: only at floors of 1,000 square metres or less, or businesses headquartered in the city or run by a resident.
Can I use it if I do not live in Saitama City?
Yes. The app is open to non-residents and the top-up rebate applies to them too, though it only works at merchants inside Saitama City. Premium digital vouchers are limited to residents, determined from the address read during My Number card authentication. For people outside the city there is the furusato nozei gift Furusato Tamapon, available at donation levels from 3,000 to 200,000 yen.
Sources
- Saitama City, "What Sai Coin, Tamapon and administrative points are"
- Saitama City, features of the Saitama City Minna no App
- Saitama City, recruiting participating merchants
- Saitama City, the 50%-premium digital voucher
- Saitama City Minna no App, top-up rebate continues in fiscal 2026
- Saitama City Minna no App, Japan Post Bank top-ups begin
- Saitama City Minna no App, public charges payable by invoice payment
- Saitama City Minna no App, 380,000 users and 3,000 merchants
- Saitama City Minna no App, MOM UP PARK tie-in campaign
- Saitama City Minna no App, Receipt Quest from 1 August 2026
- Saitama City Minna no App, Furusato Tamapon portals expand
- Saitama City Minna no App, Sai Coin added to Sukupei
This article is general information based on published material and does not recommend any particular app or municipality. Rates, periods, caps and eligible items change without notice and can end early, so check the official Saitama City and operator sites before acting.