On January 1, the amendments (source document in Japanese) to the Law to Amend Personal Information Protection Act and the Act on the Use of Numbers to Identify a Specific Individual in the Administrative Procedure partially took effect. Effective the same day, the Specific Personal Information Protection Commission was reorganized and renamed the Personal Information Protection Commission ("PIPC"). Once the amendments take full effect in 2018, the PIPC will function as the Privacy Commissioner responsible for enforcing the My Number Act (Japanese social security number law) and implementing the various guidelines implemented by the amendment.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.