Formal to Acquaintance
Cultural · Seasonal
今年もお世話になりました。良いお年をお迎えください。 — Thank you for your support throughout this year. Please have a wonderful New Year. (Cultural · Seasonal, Formal to Acquaintance, JLPT N4)
You
今年もお世話になりました。良いお年をお迎えください。
ことしもおせわになりました。よいおとしをおむかえください。
Thank you for your support throughout this year. Please have a wonderful New Year.
Romaji: Kotoshi mo osewa ni narimashita. Yoi otoshi wo omukaekudasai. / Reply Romaji: Kochira koso, otagai ni yoi otoshi wo.
Reply
こちらこそ、お互いに良いお年を。
こちらこそ、おたがいによいおとしを。
Likewise — may we both have a wonderful New Year.
Gesture & etiquette
Bow at about 30 degrees while saying this phrase. If in person, this often accompanies a final handover of work or gifts. The phrase is used until December 28-30; after January 1, switch to 「あけましておめでとうございます」.
This is the essential year-end farewell in Japan — used from mid-December onward when you may not see someone before the New Year. 「お世話になりました」(thank you for your support) is a cornerstone of Japanese relational maintenance, acknowledging mutual care over the year.