Summary
Kigenban is a planned app that collects the renewal deadlines of the whole family's documents — driver's licenses, passports, ID card certificates, residence cards, vehicle inspections and more — in one place and reminds you well before each one expires.
At a glance
| Status | Under consideration — not released (not on the App Store yet) |
|---|---|
| For | Anyone with a driver's license, passport or ID card, foreign residents with residence cards, and people who manage their family's documents |
| Main features | Deadlines per document, reminders months or days before, renewal checklists, family members, a list sorted by deadline |
| Devices | iPhone (iOS 26 or later, planned) |
| Languages | English, Japanese and more (planned) |
| Planned pricing | Ad-supported with all features usable (not decided) |
| Data storage | On the device only. Document numbers and photos are not stored |
Who it is for and what problem it solves
Documents are renewed only every few years, so deadlines are easy to forget and people sometimes notice only after a document has expired. In Japan, the electronic certificate on the My Number Card must be renewed every five years, and about 30 million renewals are expected in fiscal 2026.
- A driver's license expires and the process has to start over
- A passport does not have enough validity left right before a trip
- An expired ID card certificate blocks online procedures
- Nobody remembers every family member's deadlines
Screens and features (planned)
Deadline list
- All family documents sorted by nearest deadline
- Days remaining shown as a number and a color (3 months, 1 month, expired)
Add a document
- Choose a type: driver's license, passport, ID card, ID card certificate, residence card, vehicle inspection, car insurance, professional license, or a custom name
- Enter the expiry date. For some documents, rules reduce the work — for example, a Japanese driver's license renewal window is calculated from the birthday (rules are added only after checking official guidance)
- Choose whose document it is
Reminders
- Choose how many months or days before the deadline to be reminded, per document (for example, 6 months before for a passport)
- A reminder also when the renewal window opens
Renewal checklist
- For each document type, where to renew and what to bring, with a link to the official guidance (content follows the official guidance)
How it works (planned)
- Add family members
- Add each document's type and expiry date (or birthday)
- Receive a reminder as the deadline approaches
- Open the checklist and official guidance from the reminder and renew
Input and output
What you enter
- Document type
- Expiry date (or birthday)
- Whose document it is
- Reminder timing
What you get
- A list sorted by deadline
- Reminders before deadlines
- Renewal checklists with links to official guidance
How your data is handled
- Document numbers, portraits and document images are never entered or stored — only expiry dates
- Records stay on the device and are not sent to our servers
- No account or sign-in
How it differs from existing apps
- Different kinds of deadlines (licenses, passports, ID certificates, residence cards, vehicle inspections) in one place
- Document-specific rules such as renewal windows reduce manual entry
- The whole family's documents in a single list
What this app does not do
- It does not renew documents for you or connect to government offices
- It does not create or store copies or images of documents
- Always check the latest procedure in the official guidance of each authority
Frequently asked questions
Is Kigenban available now?
No. It is under consideration and not on the App Store. This page describes the plan.
Is there an app that reminds me before my passport or driver's license expires?
Kigenban is a planned app for that. You enter each document's expiry date and it reminds you ahead of time, with the timing you choose for each document.
Can I manage my family's documents too?
Yes. The plan is to add documents for each family member and see them all in one list sorted by deadline.
Does it store document numbers or photos?
No. It handles only expiry dates; numbers and images are not stored.
Does it work for documents from any country?
Yes, if you enter the expiry date yourself. Rules such as calculating renewal windows from a birthday will start with Japanese documents.
Will it renew my documents for me?
No. It only reminds you and links to official guidance; you complete the renewal yourself.
Other languages
日本語 English 한국어 繁體中文 简体中文 Français Español Português Deutsch Italiano Türkçe العربية ไทย Tiếng Việt Bahasa Indonesia Polski
Last updated: 2026-10-25. This page describes a plan before development. No release date has been set.