How do I make a Zengin file from an Excel table?

In Excel, arrange the columns as bank code, bank name, branch code, branch name, account type, account number, payee name and amount, copy the table and paste it into “Import from Excel or CSV” on this page, then press “Import the pasted table”. Enter the remitter details and press “Download the Zengin file (.txt, Shift_JIS)” to get a file you can import into internet banking. A template CSV is also available.

What is the difference between ｶ) and (ｶ in an account name?

It shows whether kabushiki kaisha comes before or after the name. 株式会社山田 (mae-kabu) is ｶ)ﾔﾏﾀﾞ and 山田株式会社 (ato-kabu) is ﾔﾏﾀﾞ(ｶ. If kabushiki kaisha is in the middle of the name (such as 山田株式会社東京支店), both sides are bracketed: ﾔﾏﾀﾞ(ｶ)ﾄｳｷﾖｳｼﾃﾝ. Godo kaisha (ﾄﾞ), yugen kaisha (ﾕ) and the others are written the same way.

How are a small ッ and the long-vowel mark ー written in an account name?

Small kana can't be used in the Zengin format, so ッ is written ﾂ and ャ, ュ, ョ are written ﾔ, ﾕ, ﾖ. The long-vowel mark ー becomes a hyphen -. For example, ハッピー becomes ﾊﾂﾋﾟ-. This tool converts the hiragana and katakana you type into this form automatically.

Where do I find the remitter code?

It is the 10-digit number (also called the consignor code or company code) your bank gives you when you sign up for the bulk or payroll transfer service. It is shown in the bulk transfer menu of your internet banking and in the contract documents. If you can't find it, ask your bank.

The bank won't accept my Zengin file. What should I look at?

Open the file on the “Check a file” tab. It points out lines that are not 120 bytes, lines with full-width or invalid characters, numeric fields that contain other characters, and places where the trailer's count or total doesn't match the data. A file can also be rejected if its line breaks (CRLF, LF or none) differ from what the bank expects, so the line-break type is shown too.

How do payroll transfer files differ from bulk transfer files?

The structure is almost the same; the header type code is 11 for payroll, 12 for bonus and 21 for bulk transfers. In payroll and bonus data records, customer codes 1 and 2 hold the employee number and department code, and the transfer instruction code and identification flag (EDI) are not used. Internet banking usually imports payroll transfers from a separate menu.

Zengin Format Builder & Checker | Create Japanese Bulk, Payroll and Bonus Transfer Files (120-byte Fixed Length) from Excel or CSV — Half-width Katakana Account Names, Corporate Abbreviations (ｶ) / (ｶ) and File Inspection

The Zengin Format Builder & Checker is a free tool for creating and checking files in the Zengin (Japanese Bankers Association) format that Japanese internet banking accepts for bulk transfers (sogo furikomi, type 21), payroll transfers (type 11) and bonus transfers (type 12) — all inside your browser. Enter the remitter (header) details — the 10-digit remitter code your bank assigned, the transfer date and the debit account — and each payee's bank code, branch code, account type, account number, name and amount, or simply copy a table from Excel and paste it (CSV files work too). The tool writes a Shift_JIS text file in which the header, data, trailer and end records are each exactly 120 bytes. Payee names may be typed in hiragana or full-width katakana: small kana (ッ, ャ, ュ, ョ) are enlarged, the long-vowel mark ー becomes a hyphen, and company types such as kabushiki kaisha, yugen kaisha, godo kaisha, medical corporations and general incorporated associations become Zengin abbreviations like ｶ)ﾔﾏﾀﾞ or ﾔﾏﾀﾞ(ｶ. Digit counts, invalid characters and amount limits are checked as you type, and the count and total are written to the trailer. You can choose the line break (CRLF, LF or none), whether unused numeric fields are filled with spaces or zeros, the transfer instruction code and EDI information (identification flag Y). Open a Zengin file exported by accounting or payroll software to see every record split into fields, check that each line is 120 bytes, that the trailer count and total match, and that no full-width characters slipped in, then save the payees as a CSV for Excel. Nothing is sent to a server.

1. Remitter (header)

The company and account the money is sent from. The remitter code (consignor code) is the 10-digit number your bank gives you when you sign up.

Remitter code (10 digits)Remitter name (up to 40 characters)Transfer date (torikumi-bi)Account type (remitter)

Bank codeBank name (kana, optional)

Branch codeBranch name (kana, optional)

Account number (7 digits)Save the remitter details on this device (payees are not saved)

2. Payees

You can type payee names in hiragana, katakana or with kanji company types (such as 株式会社); they are converted to Zengin half-width katakana. The tool can't read kanji in personal names, so enter those in kana.

Row 1

Bank codeBank name (kana, optional)Branch codeBranch name (kana, optional)Account typeAccount number (7 digits)Payee name (up to 30 characters)Amount (yen)

Customer codes, EDI information, new code

Customer code 1 (up to 10 digits)Customer code 2 (up to 10 digits)EDI information (up to 20 characters)When filled in, the identification flag becomes Y and this replaces the customer codesNew code

Import from Excel or CSV

Column order: Bank code / Bank name / Branch code / Branch name / Account type / Account number / Payee name / Amount / Customer code 1 / Customer code 2 / EDI information. You can paste a table copied straight from Excel (tab-separated) or choose a CSV file (UTF-8 or Shift_JIS). A heading row at the top is skipped.

Choose a CSV file

3. Export the Zengin file

Line breakMatch your bank's specification. If unsure, use CRLF (Windows line breaks). Unused numeric fieldsThe character used to fill the clearing house number and empty customer codes. Transfer instruction codeAutomatically convert names and bank names to Zengin kana

Count

Total amount

¥0

File size

488 bytes

Remitter・Remitter code: Please fill this in
Remitter・Remitter name: Please fill this in
Remitter・Transfer date: Please fill this in
Remitter・Remitting bank code: Please fill this in
Remitter・Remitting branch code: Please fill this in
Remitter・Account number (remitter): Please fill this in
Row 1・Bank code: Please fill this in
Row 1・Branch code: Please fill this in
Row 1・Account number: Please fill this in
Row 1・Payee name: Please fill this in
Row 1・Amount: Please fill this in

Preview of the contents

Header	12100000000000 00000000 000 10000000
Data	20000 000 10000000 00000000000
Trailer	8000001000000000000
End	9

The file uses only half-width letters, digits and katakana, so even in Shift_JIS each character is one byte and each line 120 bytes. The file is created on this device only and never sent to a server.

ABOUT

About Zengin Format Builder & Checker | Create Japanese Bulk, Payroll and Bonus Transfer Files (120-byte Fixed Length) from Excel or CSV — Half-width Katakana Account Names, Corporate Abbreviations (ｶ) / (ｶ) and File Inspection

The Zengin Format Builder & Checker is a free tool for creating Zengin-format (120-byte fixed-length) files for Japanese bulk, payroll and bonus transfers from an Excel table or CSV, and for checking the contents of such files. Enter the remitter code, transfer date and debit account, plus each payee's bank code, branch code, account number, name and amount, and it writes the header, data, trailer and end records to a Shift_JIS text file. Payee names are converted to Zengin half-width katakana and company types become abbreviations such as ｶ) and (ｶ. You can also open a Zengin file exported by accounting software and check that every line is 120 bytes and that the count and total match the trailer.

How to use Zengin Format Builder & Checker | Create Japanese Bulk, Payroll and Bonus Transfer Files (120-byte Fixed Length) from Excel or CSV — Half-width Katakana Account Names, Corporate Abbreviations (ｶ) / (ｶ) and File Inspection

1On “Create transfer data”, choose bulk transfer, payroll transfer or bonus transfer
2Under “Remitter (header)”, enter the 10-digit remitter code your bank gave you, the remitter name, the transfer date and the bank code, branch code, account type and account number of the account to debit
3Enter payees one by one, or copy an Excel table (bank code, bank name, branch code, branch name, account type, account number, payee name, amount, in that order) and press “Import the pasted table”
4Fix any red errors (missing digits, kanji left in a name and so on) and check the count and total
5Choose the line break your bank specifies (CRLF, LF or none) and press “Download the Zengin file (.txt, Shift_JIS)”
6Upload the downloaded file through the “file import” of your internet banking's bulk or payroll transfer service

Great for

Make the month-end bulk transfer file from a list of suppliers kept in Excel
Create payroll transfer (type 11) data at a small company that has no payroll software
Convert payee names to Zengin half-width katakana and corporate abbreviations (ｶ), (ｶ, ﾄﾞ) and so on) in one go
Find out why the bank won't accept a Zengin file exported by accounting software
Turn the contents of a Zengin file into a CSV you can open in Excel
Check the layout and field lengths of the Zengin header, data, trailer and end records

Good to know

The Zengin format is the transfer data format defined by the Japanese Bankers Association (Zenginkyo). Bulk, payroll and bonus transfer files all use 120-byte fixed-length records: a header (data type 1), one data record (2) per transfer, a trailer (8) holding the count and total, and an end record (9) that marks the end of the file.
The type code is 21 for bulk transfers, 11 for payroll transfers and 12 for bonus transfers. The code type is 0 for Shift_JIS or JIS. The transfer date (torikumi-bi) is written as four digits, month and day (1025 for 25 October); for payroll and bonus transfers it is the payment date.
Numeric fields (N) are right-aligned and padded with zeros on the left; character fields (C) are left-aligned and padded with spaces. An account number with six digits or fewer gets leading zeros to make seven digits. Even if Excel has dropped the leading zeros of bank or branch codes, this tool pads them back with zeros.
Only half-width digits, uppercase letters, katakana (ｱ to ﾝ, ｦ, plus the voiced marks ﾞ and ﾟ), spaces and the symbols ( ) . - / ｢｣ \ , can be used. Small kana (ｧｨｩｪｫｬｭｮｯ) are written as full-size kana and the long-vowel mark ｰ as a hyphen -. Voiced marks count as one character each, so ｶﾞ is two characters.
For companies, the type of corporation is abbreviated and its position is shown by the direction of the parenthesis: ｶ)ﾔﾏﾀﾞ at the start of the name, ﾔﾏﾀﾞ(ｶ at the end and ﾔﾏﾀﾞ(ｶ)ｼﾖｳｼﾞ in the middle. Kabushiki kaisha is ｶ, yugen kaisha ﾕ, godo kaisha ﾄﾞ, gomei kaisha ﾒ, goshi kaisha ｼ, medical corporation ｲ, general incorporated association ｼﾔ, general incorporated foundation ｻﾞｲ, school corporation ｶﾞｸ, social welfare corporation ﾌｸ, specified non-profit corporation (NPO) ﾄｸﾋ and sales office ｴｲ.
Write the payee name exactly as the account holder's name is read. If the name does not match, the transfer may be returned (kumimodoshi) and charged a fee even if the bank accepts the file. This tool can't know how kanji are read, so enter personal names in kana.
Customer codes 1 and 2 identify the payee in bulk transfers, and hold the employee number and department code in payroll and bonus transfers. If you enter EDI information (up to 20 characters, such as a payment notice number) in a bulk transfer, the identification flag becomes Y and the 20 digits of customer codes 1 and 2 are used as EDI information, which reaches the payee's bank.
Details such as whether lines end with a line break, whether unused numeric fields are spaces or zeros, whether the transfer instruction code is required and which symbols are allowed can differ between banks and internet banking services. The first time, try a small amount or compare with your bank's import specification.
The data you create and the files you open are handled only inside your browser and never sent to a server. The remitter details are saved on this device only when you tick the box (payees are never saved).

Questions this tool answers

Use Zengin Format Builder & Checker | Create Japanese Bulk, Payroll and Bonus Transfer Files (120-byte Fixed Length) from Excel or CSV — Half-width Katakana Account Names, Corporate Abbreviations (ｶ) / (ｶ) and File Inspection for searches like these:

Create a Zengin bulk transfer file from a payment list in Excel
Create payroll transfer data in the Zengin format
Convert account names to Zengin half-width katakana and corporate abbreviations
Understand the difference between ｶ) and (ｶ in company account names
Check the contents of a Zengin file and find where the error is
Learn the Zengin header, data and trailer record layout
Convert a Zengin file to CSV to open it in Excel

FAQ

What is the Zengin format?: It is the file format for transfer data defined by the Japanese Bankers Association (Zenginkyo). Bulk, payroll and bonus transfer files consist of 120-byte fixed-length lines (records) of four kinds: header, data, trailer and end. Most Japanese internet banking “file import” functions and the transfer data exported by accounting and payroll software use this format.
How do I make a Zengin file from an Excel table?: In Excel, arrange the columns as bank code, bank name, branch code, branch name, account type, account number, payee name and amount, copy the table and paste it into “Import from Excel or CSV” on this page, then press “Import the pasted table”. Enter the remitter details and press “Download the Zengin file (.txt, Shift_JIS)” to get a file you can import into internet banking. A template CSV is also available.
What is the difference between ｶ) and (ｶ in an account name?: It shows whether kabushiki kaisha comes before or after the name. 株式会社山田 (mae-kabu) is ｶ)ﾔﾏﾀﾞ and 山田株式会社 (ato-kabu) is ﾔﾏﾀﾞ(ｶ. If kabushiki kaisha is in the middle of the name (such as 山田株式会社東京支店), both sides are bracketed: ﾔﾏﾀﾞ(ｶ)ﾄｳｷﾖｳｼﾃﾝ. Godo kaisha (ﾄﾞ), yugen kaisha (ﾕ) and the others are written the same way.
How are a small ッ and the long-vowel mark ー written in an account name?: Small kana can't be used in the Zengin format, so ッ is written ﾂ and ャ, ュ, ョ are written ﾔ, ﾕ, ﾖ. The long-vowel mark ー becomes a hyphen -. For example, ハッピー becomes ﾊﾂﾋﾟ-. This tool converts the hiragana and katakana you type into this form automatically.
Where do I find the remitter code?: It is the 10-digit number (also called the consignor code or company code) your bank gives you when you sign up for the bulk or payroll transfer service. It is shown in the bulk transfer menu of your internet banking and in the contract documents. If you can't find it, ask your bank.
The bank won't accept my Zengin file. What should I look at?: Open the file on the “Check a file” tab. It points out lines that are not 120 bytes, lines with full-width or invalid characters, numeric fields that contain other characters, and places where the trailer's count or total doesn't match the data. A file can also be rejected if its line breaks (CRLF, LF or none) differ from what the bank expects, so the line-break type is shown too.
How do payroll transfer files differ from bulk transfer files?: The structure is almost the same; the header type code is 11 for payroll, 12 for bonus and 21 for bulk transfers. In payroll and bonus data records, customer codes 1 and 2 hold the employee number and department code, and the transfer instruction code and identification flag (EDI) are not used. Internet banking usually imports payroll transfers from a separate menu.

ARTICLES

Guides for Zengin Format Builder & Checker | Create Japanese Bulk, Payroll and Bonus Transfer Files (120-byte Fixed Length) from Excel or CSV — Half-width Katakana Account Names, Corporate Abbreviations (ｶ) / (ｶ) and File Inspection

How It WorksWhat Is the Zengin Format? How to Build Japanese Bulk and Payroll Transfer Files (120-Byte Layout)When a company in Japan sends dozens of bank transfers at once through internet banking, the bank usually asks for a file in the Zengin format. The Zengin format is the transfer-data layout defined by the Japanese Bankers Association (Zengin-kyo): fixed-length text where every line is exactly 120 bytes, built from four record types — header, data, trailer and end. This guide covers the difference between bulk transfers (sogo furikomi), payroll and bonus transfers, every field and its byte position, the rules for writing payee names in half-width katakana and the corporate abbreviations ｶ) and (ｶ, how to convert Japan Post Bank account numbers, how to build the file from Excel or CSV, and what causes import errors — in the order people actually get stuck.

Special Thanks

SOLO GUILD | サービス作るAIエンジニア

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