Your SIM card is lost or soaked after a typhoon. You have no ID with you. The bill is coming.
If you live in a disaster-designated area and use Rakuten Mobile, there are support measures with a deadline: October 31, 2026.
Rakuten Mobile published them on September 30, 2026. This article explains them in plain English, using only that official notice.
One note first. I work for Rakuten Group. I am writing only from the public official notice, not from any internal information. This is my personal view.
The short version
- Who: individual customers whose contract address (or Rakuten Turbo installation address) is in an area where the Disaster Relief Act applies
- 3 measures:
- SIM card reissue fee: free (Sept 30 – Oct 31, 2026)
- At Rakuten Mobile shops, no ID check for many procedures (until Oct 31, 2026)
- The payment due date for the October bill (September usage) is moved to November 30, 2026
- Measures 1 and 3 need you to ask. Deadline: October 31, 2026 (Saturday)
- Phone: 050-5212-6915 (9:00–17:00, every day of the year)
Who is covered
According to the official notice:
- Individual customers of Rakuten Mobile (Rakuten network) or Rakuten Mobile (docomo network / au network)
- Your contract address, or the Rakuten Turbo installation address, is inside a covered area
- “Covered area” means areas where the Disaster Relief Act applies. The notice points to the Cabinet Office disaster information page for the list
- If an area is added in a later report, support starts from the month it was added. It does not go back in time
Not covered:
- Customers who have not paid a bill from before the support month (payment not confirmed)
- Former FREETEL and DMM Mobile customers
I have not checked which areas are on the Cabinet Office list today. Please check the list yourself.
The 3 measures
| # | What | Period |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | SIM card reissue fee is free. eSIM reissue is already free on the Rakuten network, so this applies to SIM cards only | Sept 30 – Oct 31, 2026 |
| 2 | At Rakuten Mobile shops, no ID document needed for various procedures | From the Sept 30 announcement – Oct 31, 2026 |
| 3 | Payment due date for the October bill (September usage) moves to Nov 30, 2026 | Sept 30 – Nov 30, 2026 |
Measure 2: not “no ID for everything”
Even with measure 2, you still need ID for:
- a new voice SIM contract
- a new trade-in purchase contract
- a new installment purchase contract
So “no ID” is for procedures like reissue, not for new contracts. For a foreign resident, keep your residence card with you if you can anyway.
What you must do
| Measure | Need to ask? |
|---|---|
| 1. Free SIM card reissue | Yes — by Oct 31, 2026 |
| 2. No ID at shops | The notice does not say whether you must ask. Ask at the shop counter |
| 3. Later payment | Yes — by Oct 31, 2026 |
Where to ask:
- Rakuten network: phone 050-5212-6915, 9:00–17:00, every day
- docomo / au network: use the dedicated inquiry form on the official site
Language support on this phone line is not written in the notice. If Japanese is difficult, ask someone you trust to help you call, or ask at a shop.
Details that are easy to miss
- If your line is already cancelled as of October 31, measure 1 does not apply
- For measure 1, depending on when you ask, you get either a cancelled charge, or the same amount adjusted from the usage of the month after you asked
- The notice does not say what happens to bills after the November 30 due date, or the details of late payment
My general advice (not an official statement)
- Write down the phone number and the deadline before you forget: 050-5212-6915, October 31
- If your SIM card is damaged or lost, contact Rakuten Mobile before October 31. The free reissue needs a request by the deadline. The notice does not say how the request and the reissue are ordered, so confirm this on the phone
- Do not tap links in SMS messages that claim to be about “typhoon support” or “payment extension.” Check through the official site or the app. For more on this, see the guide on checking suspicious SMS, email and calls
- If you also use an eSIM, remember that eSIM reissue is already free on the Rakuten network
Summary
- Support for Typhoon No. 18 applies to individual customers whose address is in a Disaster Relief Act area
- 3 measures: free SIM card reissue, no ID check at shops for many procedures, and later payment of the October bill (to Nov 30)
- Ask by October 31, 2026 for measures 1 and 3: 050-5212-6915 (9:00–17:00)
- New voice SIM contracts, trade-in contracts and installment contracts still need ID
- Not written in the notice: the current list of covered areas, language support on the phone line
The notice may be updated. Please check the official page for the latest information. This article is based on information as of September 30, 2026 (the notice date), checked on October 19, 2026.
Source: Rakuten Mobile, “Support measures for Typhoon No. 18 of Reiwa 8” (September 30, 2026) https://network.mobile.rakuten.co.jp/information/news/other/3918/
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This article contains machine translation. For official terms, please refer to the multilingual pages on the official Rakuten Mobile website.
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