[Sangetsu]

Everyone who lives in Japan has a resident card. You must apply for this card at your local ward/city office, and get a new one whenever you move. This way the city knows where you live, and where you work.

New cards are being created to fight the problem of counterfeit cards. The new resident cards (and alien registration cards) will have IC card technology built into them, meaning that they carry information on them which can be read by a computer sensor. Drivers licenses in Japan already incorporate this technology.

Rumors are going about saying that police will be able to point a scanner at passers by and be able to tell if they are carrying a resident card/alien registration card.

All of this has come about after several counterfeit document rings were broken up. These rings were selling phony residency cards to people living in Japan illegally.