• Japan’s National Police Agency plans to limit ATM withdrawals and transfers to 300,000 yen daily for people aged 75 or older.
• This measure responds to a rise in special fraud cases targeting the elderly, with losses reaching 72.1 billion yen last year.
• The Osaka Prefectural Assembly enacted a stricter ordinance, capping transfers at 100,000 yen for those 70 or older who haven’t used ATMs recently.

Japan’s National Police Agency is considering limiting ATM withdrawals and transfers to a total of ¥300,000 ($3485) per day for people aged 75 or older after a sharp increase in the number of special fraud victims, the Yomiuri Shimbun has learned.

The agency is co-ordinating with the Japanese Bankers Association and other entities to revise regulations related to a law aimed at preventing the transfer of criminal proceeds.

Currently, each financial institution sets their own ATM usage limits on a voluntary basis, with examples including “¥500,000 per day for withdrawals” and “¥1 million per day for transfers”. This would be the first time that a uniform limit is systematically imposed.

Japan considers a uniform ATM withdrawal, transfer limit for those aged 75 and older. Photo / 123RF

Criminal organisations have been using telephones in the commission of special frauds for a long time, using them to lure elderly people and others to ATMs to transfer money into designated accounts.

The damage is becoming more serious every year, with last year’s preliminary special fraud losses increasing 1.6 times from the previous year to about ¥72.1 billion, the worst on record.

Elderly people are particularly targeted, with 9415, or about 45%, of last year’s 20,951 victims, excluding corporations, being 75 or older.

Following the sharp increase in the number of special fraud victims, the Government announced that it would promote putting restrictions on ATM usage for the elderly and strengthen financial institutions’ monitoring of their accounts, at a meeting of relevant ministers on measures against crimes in June last year.

However, some financial institutions that are consolidating their branches are concerned about a possible increased burden on their teller operations. Also, the limit could lead to users experiencing a decline in convenience.

For this reason, the police agency is eyeing a cap of ¥300,000 per day, which takes into account pension payment amounts and other factors. It is also considering exempting sole proprietors and others who receive and make large payments.

“We’ll continue to discuss the matter so that the users’ convenience can be taken into consideration and the burden on financial institutions can be reduced,” a senior police official said.

The Osaka Prefectural Assembly this week passed and enacted an amendment to an ordinance, limiting ATM transfers to ¥100,000 per day for people 70-plus who have not sent money through the machines in the past three years.

The revised ordinance also bans elderly people from using an ATM while talking on a cellphone and requires businesses to take necessary measures to enforce that. It is the first time a ban has been placed on phone calls in Japan.