FEATURED EVENT

DIVISIONS & AWARDS

Entries will be judged in three age divisions:

• Junior: Ages 0-11
• Youth: Ages 12-17
• Adult: Ages 18+

Award Categories:

• One First Place and one Runner-Up in each division
• Addional Honorable Mentions for: Most Creative, Most Traditional, and JICC Staff Favorite.

First-place winners will each receive a fukubukuro, a customary Japanese “lucky bag” of assorted goodies to celebrate the New Year. All qualifying entries will be displayed at the JICC throughout January 2026.

To see your art featured on the JICC’s Instagram, tag your post with #2026JICCNengajo.
(Please note: Applicants residing outside the U.S. are not eligible for prizes but may still participate and be featured in the gallery.)

DESIGN REQUIREMENTS

Your 4 x 6 inch (or 6 x 4) nengajo design must include:

• A horse (your own original creation)
• The kanji 午 (for the eto, or zodiac sign, Horse)
• The year 2026 / Reiwa 8 (令和八年)

Designs must be original artwork. Any entries containing copyrighted, plagiarized, or AI-generated material will be disqualified without notice.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

• Format: .jpg, .jpeg, .png, or .pdf only (.HEIC not accepted)
• Quantity: One (1) entry per person
• Email to: jicc@ws.mofa.go.jp

Include the following information in your email:

• Name (First and Last)
• Age
• City, State, and Country
• If under 13: Written parental or guardian consent

Submissions that do not follow these guidelines may be disqualified. To protect participant privacy, only first names and last initials will be displayed when entries are published.

When saving your file, please try to use the following naming convention (not required but greatly appreciated):

Example: John_S_30_DC → FirstName_LastNameInitial_Age_Location
(Location may be a U.S. state or country.)

You will receive a confirmation email once your entry is received. If you do not receive one within 72 hours (or by the deadline), please contact us. The JICC is not responsible for late, lost, or misdirected entries.

※ Note for Teachers/Educators (先生方へのお願い)

We are deeply grateful to educators who encourage student participation! Due to the growing number of class submissions, when possible, we ask teachers to submit entries as a group to help ensure proper formatting and processing.

To coordinate a class submission, please contact us in advance at jicc@ws.mofa.go.jp.
(This is not a requirement. Individual entries from students or teachers are also welcome!)

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

Entrants retain ownership of all intellectual property rights in their artwork. By entering, participants grant the JICC a royalty-free, non-exclusive, worldwide license to use, reproduce, and publicly display their nengajo (with attribution) for promotional and cultural purposes, including on the JICC website, social media, and in gallery exhibitions.

QUESTIONS

For questions or clarifications, please email the JICC at jicc@ws.mofa.go.jp.