Terms of Use

1.Acceptance of these terms

By downloading, accessing, or using the Services, you agree to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy. If you don't agree, please don't use the Services.

2.Eligibility

You must be at least 18 (the age of majority in Japan) and able to form a binding contract to use the Services. By using the Services you confirm you meet these requirements.

3.What JPMate is

JPMate provides general information and AI-generated answers to help newcomers and residents navigate life in Japan, including topics like visas, taxes, housing, healthcare, daily admin, and emergency preparedness. It also offers tools such as the Mail Decoder, the Emergency Guide, Safety Check-in, and Saved Answers. The Services provide information, not a transaction or representation with any government or third party.

4.Not professional advice

JPMate does not provide legal, tax, immigration, financial, medical, or other professional advice. Answers are generated by AI from available sources and may be incomplete, out of date, or incorrect. Rules in Japan change and depend on your specific circumstances. Always verify important matters with the relevant official authority or a qualified professional before acting. You are solely responsible for decisions you make based on the Services.

5.Emergency-information disclaimer

JPMate is not an emergency service. The Emergency Guide, Safety Check-in, shelter locations, maps, and preparedness content are for general reference only and may be inaccurate, incomplete, delayed, or unavailable, and notifications may fail to send or arrive. They are not a substitute for official alerts or instructions from local authorities. In an emergency, contact the local emergency services (in Japan: 119 for fire/ambulance, 110 for police) and follow official guidance. Do not rely on the App where doing so could put safety at risk.

6.Your account

If you create an account, you're responsible for keeping your credentials secure and for activity under your account. Tell us promptly at support@jpmate.app if you suspect unauthorized use. The information you provide must be accurate and kept up to date.

7.Subscriptions & payments

JPMate is currently free to use. If we introduce paid features in the future:

• Purchases will be processed by the app store you bought from (Apple or Google) under their terms; we don't receive your full payment details.
• Subscriptions auto-renew unless cancelled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel anytime in your app-store account settings.
• Except where required by law or app-store policy, payments are non-refundable. Refunds for app-store purchases are handled by the relevant store.
• We may change prices or features prospectively, with notice where required.

8.Acceptable use

You agree not to:

• Use the Services for anything unlawful, harmful, or fraudulent;
• Submit content you don't have the right to share, or that infringes others' rights or privacy — including adding another person as an emergency contact without their permission;
• Attempt to reverse engineer, scrape, overload, or disrupt the Services or their security;
• Resell, sublicense, or commercially exploit the Services without our permission;
• Use the Services to build a competing product or to train other AI models.

9.Your content

You keep ownership of the questions, photos, and other content you submit ("Your Content"). You grant us a limited, worldwide, royalty-free license to host and process Your Content solely to operate and improve the Services, as described in our Privacy Policy. You're responsible for Your Content and confirm you have the rights to submit it.

10.Intellectual property

The Services, including software, design, text, and the JPMate name and logo, are owned by us or our licensors and protected by law. We grant you a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to use the Services for your own non-commercial use, subject to these Terms. All rights not granted are reserved.

11.Third-party services

The Services rely on and may link to third parties (e.g. app stores, maps, AI providers, LINE for Safety Check-in notifications, and official sources). We aren't responsible for third-party content or services, and your use of them may be governed by their own terms.

12.Disclaimers

To the maximum extent permitted by law, the Services are provided "as is" and "as available", without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy, and non-infringement. We don't warrant that the Services will be uninterrupted, error-free, or that information will be accurate or current. Some jurisdictions don't allow certain disclaimers, so parts of this section may not apply to you.

13.Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, JPMate and its operator and suppliers will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or for lost profits, data, or goodwill, arising from your use of (or inability to use) the Services. Our total liability for any claim is limited to the greater of the amount you paid us in the 12 months before the claim or JPY 5,000. Nothing in these Terms limits liability that cannot be limited by law, including for death or personal injury caused by negligence, or fraud.

14.Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold JPMate harmless from claims, damages, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising from your misuse of the Services, your violation of these Terms, or your infringement of any third-party right.

15.Termination

You may stop using the Services at any time and delete the App. We may suspend or terminate your access if you breach these Terms or to protect the Services or other users. Sections that by their nature should survive termination (e.g. content licenses you granted, disclaimers, liability limits, and governing law) will survive.

16.Governing law & disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of Japan, without regard to conflict-of-law rules. Disputes will be resolved in the Japanese court having jurisdiction over the operator's place of residence, except where mandatory consumer-protection law in your country gives you the right to bring a claim locally.

17.Changes to these terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. We'll update the "Last updated" date and, for material changes, give reasonable notice. Continuing to use the Services after changes take effect means you accept the updated Terms.

18.Contact

Questions about these Terms? Email support@jpmate.app. A postal address is available on request and is listed with the app stores.