Life in Fukuoka "English"

【Community Cat Activities】

February 22 is nyan nyan no hi or Cat Day, a day established to express gratitude for the happiness of living alongside cats and to celebrate this joy together.
Have you ever heard of "community cats"? You may have seen them! Community cats are stray cats that are managed and cared for within a specific area. These cats undergo spay or neuter surgeries and are often marked with a small notch on their ear or a tag as an identifier. If you see one of these cats on the street, it’s likely a community cat loved and cared for in that neighborhood.
Leaving stray cats unmanaged can lead to issues like noise or waste, creating problems in the local
environment. In any community, there are people who love cats and want to help care for stray cats, but there are also individuals who may have allergies or are simply not fond of cats. Regardless of how they feel about cats personally, most people share a desire to prevent issues caused by stray cats and to keep the population from growing uncontrollably.
One solution to this problem is "community cat activities."
This approach treats stray cat issues as a community environmental concern. With the agreement and participation of residents, community members take the lead in spaying/neutering the cats, providing food under specific guidelines, and managing litter areas. Rather than eliminating stray cats, the goal is to gradually reduce the number of unowned cats in the community over several years.
The success of community cat activities relies on the cooperation and understanding of local residents. To ensure everyone in the area can live comfortably, why not take a closer look at the community cat activities happening near you?

【Fukuoka City Information】

Filing City and Prefectural Taxes

I'm pretty sure that most of you have received your tax forms to file in Reiwa 7, notices and forms
have been sent out.
The deadline for filing is Monday, March 17th. The tax department of the ward office will accept your tax return in person, however the counters there may be crowded so please consider filing your tax returns by mail or online.
Those who need to file taxes with Fukuoka City include anyone who, as of January 1, 2025, has an address in the city and earned income during 2024. However, individuals who submit a tax return to the tax office or those whose only income is from salary and have already completed year-end adjustments through their employer do not need to file.
When filing, you need your My Number card or a document that shows your number and a driver's license, passport or resident card to show proof of identity.
Documents, such as withholding slips that show your income from 2024 and any documents for deductions made during 2024 are also necessary.
For information on what documents are needed and anything else about filing your taxes, please visit your local ward offices website. The websites support English, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and Nepali. If there is anything that you don't understand, please use the telephone translation hotline to call the ward offices. The hotline supports 23 languages including English , Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and Nepali. The number is (092-753-6113). 

That phone number is for a interpretation center, so after speaking to a representative you will be connected to your local ward office. Make sure you tell them which ward you live in and that you want help with filing taxes. If you go to your ward office in person, you can also use your phone and this service to help you with interpretation, so don't hesitate to use it!