Frequently asked questions

Yes. Before a profile goes live we check a government-issued photo ID to confirm the person is real and is an adult, and we record their written consent to appear here and to write letters. Profiles that haven't cleared that check cannot be published — it's enforced by our system, not just by policy. We never publish AI-generated or fictional people.

Yes. This is paid work, not a favour and not volunteering. Penpals are paid for every correspondent they write to each month, and paid separately for each one-off first letter. During our launch period they also have a guaranteed monthly minimum, so nobody is left writing for nothing while the service is still small. They choose how many people they write to, and can stop at any time.

Those are good services and if they suit you, use them — genuinely. They work by matching volunteers who write when they feel like it, so what you get is a lottery: a card from a stranger, a reply that may never come, or a wait of several months. What you're paying for here is the opposite of a lottery. You choose one specific person, they are contracted and paid to write to you every month, and if a letter doesn't go out we refund it. Reliability is the product. If you don't need it to be reliable, the free options are a better deal and we'd rather say so.

Our operations team reads correspondence in both directions before passing it on. We do this to keep contact details and money requests out of the letters and to step in if something goes wrong — but you should know it means your letters are not private between you and your penpal. We don't sell, publish or share what you write, and we never put your address in front of your penpal. If that trade-off isn't one you want, this isn't the right service for you.

You choose one real person living in Japan. Every month they write you a handwritten letter and tuck in a few small things from where they live — stationery, a postcard, something seasonal. It arrives by post. You are never expected to reply; if you do, there is a reply box in your account and your penpal will read it.

Yes — by a person, holding a pen. Typically two to three A5 pages, written for you and nobody else. No AI-written text, no autopen or handwriting robot, no printed script made to look handwritten, and no mass-copied form letters. Using AI to write or draft a letter is banned outright in the agreement every penpal signs, so it is a contractual matter rather than a suggestion — a penpal who does it stops writing for us. Other services in this space do use these things; we don't, and we think you should be told the difference rather than left to guess.

No. Replying is always optional. But if you do reply, your penpal can read your message and continue the conversation in their next letter. Plenty of people never write back and simply enjoy reading — the letters keep coming exactly the same either way.

Your reply goes to your penpal before they start your next letter, so the next one answers you rather than starting from scratch. Over a few months this compounds: they remember what you told them, follow up on things you mentioned, and the letters get noticeably more personal. There is a reply box in your account, and you can also write to us on paper with your Penpal Code.

Yes. You choose one penpal and that same person keeps writing to you. This is not a rotating letter club and you will not get a different stranger each month. If you ever want to change, you can — see the question about switching penpals below.

Not for a one-off purchase. A First Letter or a Japan Pack can be paid with a debit or credit card on the payment page — you never have to create a PayPal account. The monthly and yearly memberships are different: recurring billing runs through PayPal, so those do need a PayPal account. If you would rather not have one, order Japan Packs whenever you feel like it instead — the contents are chosen for you either way.

A small parcel of things from Japan that your penpal picks out for you — not a standard box that every customer gets. Because they have read your letters, the contents follow what you have actually talked about: the sweets from a region you asked about, a sticker sheet because you mentioned your cat, the coffee they drink themselves. They tell you in the letter why they chose each thing. It ships from Japan as its own parcel and the price includes that shipping.

Yes — that is the whole point of how we set it up. A Personal Japan Pack is a one-off purchase, not part of your membership. Order one in the months you feel like it and skip the rest; nothing repeats unless you ask again. Your penpal chooses what goes in it based on what the two of you have been writing about, and it arrives as its own small parcel rather than inside your letter.

There are two clocks. First we write and post your letter — usually within 7 days for a first letter. Then it travels. Japan Post's published average transit for letter-post airmail is around 12–14 days to the UK, Canada, Germany and Australia, and about 18 days to the United States. Those are averages, not guarantees, and standard mail is not tracked, so we never claim an arrival date. We do always show you the date your letter was posted. Full table and sources are on our Refund & Delivery Policy page.

It depends on your plan. Letters is personal correspondence, not goods — no customs form, no duty, no VAT, no courier handling fee. If a carrier ever bills you for a letter, contact us and we'll cover it. A Japan Pack contains real goods, so it travels as a small parcel with a customs declaration we fill in for you. Whether a small import charge applies depends on your country's rules for low-value parcels; if you are ever asked to pay one, contact us and we'll sort it out together.

Anywhere Japan Post delivers, which is almost everywhere. You enter your postal address when you sign up, and postage is included in the price wherever you are. If Japan Post has suspended service to your country when your letter is due, we'll contact you and hold or refund that month rather than let the letter sit in a warehouse.

A handwritten letter — typically two to three A5 pages — inside a sealed envelope addressed to you by name, posted from Japan with Japanese stamps. No printed inserts, no invoice, no paperwork. If you have ordered a Personal Japan Pack that month, that travels separately as its own small parcel; we never put goods inside the letter itself, because that would turn it from correspondence into a dutiable package.

No. Your address and your penpal's address are both private. Every letter is routed through our operations office in Tokyo.

Yes. Write to our operations office in Tokyo using your Penpal Code and we'll pass your letter on. You never write to your penpal's home address. The full mailing address is shown in your account.

Yes. Each penpal is a separate membership, so you can write with more than one person at the same time.

Each penpal accepts a limited number of members so every letter stays personal. When someone is full, their profile shows 'Currently Full' and new memberships are closed until a spot opens.

Then you don't pay for that month. If 21 days pass after a billing date and we haven't posted your letter, we refund that period — you don't have to notice it or chase us for it. Penpals are real people with jobs and lives, so an occasional slow month is possible; you carrying the cost of it is not.

Life happens. If a penpal becomes unavailable, we'll contact you and offer options — pausing, a replacement penpal you choose, or a refund. We never move you to a different penpal without your agreement.

Yes. Cancel your current membership and start one with whoever you'd like — there's no penalty and no waiting period. We don't transfer your correspondence history across, because your letters belong to the conversation you had with that particular person.

Update your address under your account and we'll use the new one for every letter posted after that. A letter already in the post can't be recalled, so change it before your next letter is due if you can.

No — they're two separate purchases. The First Letter is a one-time letter with no subscription attached, so if you subscribe afterwards, your membership starts fresh from that point. We'd rather say this plainly up front than have it be a surprise on your statement.

Yes. The First Letter works well as a one-time gift — buy it and enter the recipient's postal address as the delivery address, and their letter arrives from Japan with nothing about the price in the envelope. For a monthly membership, note that the reply link is tied to the account that signed up, so the account should be the person who'll be writing back.

Payments are processed by PayPal, so the charge appears through PayPal rather than under a separate merchant name. Monthly memberships renew automatically until you cancel, and PayPal emails you a receipt each time.

Not through the letters. Private contact details are kept out of the correspondence so that both sides stay protected while they get to know each other, and so that we can step in if something goes wrong. See our Community Guidelines.

Yes, anytime. Cancel from your account before your next renewal and you won't be charged again. Your cancellation affects future billing; letters already paid for are still sent.

Not at all. Choose English, Japanese or bilingual letters when you sign up. Many members use the letters as gentle Japanese practice.

My Japanese Penpal is run by Junji Fukumoto, based in Shibuya, Tokyo. It's a small operation — the same people who read your reply are the ones who check and post your letter.