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sabina
Joined: 11 Nov 2010
Posts: 75
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 Posted: Thu Mar 24, 2011 11:38 am Post subject: |
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FINALLY got everything cleared up. My 15,000 bill was actually for pension. That is the monthly fee. For anyone who is wondering: it is a good idea to pay into the pension plan if you plan on staying in Japan for more than 2 years. But, (and I have this from the mouth of the head of the pension dept. in my city) there is no penalty for not paying pension, like there is if you don't pay taxes or health insurance. There is no interest rate, or penalty fee. (This is if you plan on staying 2 yrs or less.)
My kkh monthly bill is only 2,600 in case anyone wants to know. |
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Glenski
Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN
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| Posted: Thu Mar 24, 2011 12:14 pm Post subject: |
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Glad you got the insurance thing and mystery bill cleared up.
But there is a penalty of sorts for not paying into a pension plan. It's simply that you will have to wait longer if you want to collect. |
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yamanote senbei
Joined: 28 Jun 2005
Posts: 435
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| Posted: Fri Jun 24, 2011 1:20 pm Post subject: |
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| sabina wrote: |
FINALLY got everything cleared up. My 15,000 bill was actually for pension. That is the monthly fee. For anyone who is wondering: it is a good idea to pay into the pension plan if you plan on staying in Japan for more than 2 years. But, (and I have this from the mouth of the head of the pension dept. in my city) there is no penalty for not paying pension, like there is if you don't pay taxes or health insurance. There is no interest rate, or penalty fee. (This is if you plan on staying 2 yrs or less.)
My kkh monthly bill is only 2,600 in case anyone wants to know. |
I don't see how it could have been cleared up.
If you're an employee, you should not be enrolled in Kokumin Kenko Hoken, neither should be you be even speaking to the head of the pension dept. in your city. If you're an employee, your employer should enroll you in an entirely different system. |
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bluetortilla
Joined: 18 Apr 2006
Posts: 815
Location: Henan
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| Posted: Sat Jun 14, 2014 7:45 am Post subject: |
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[quote="seklarwia"]
| Glenski wrote: |
| Why aren't you paying into pension, too? I know the ward office has separate sections, so they probably don't know, but it's required by law. Plus, you can get back about 3 years' worth when you leave. |
Glensky is filled to the gills again. Check the wiki. If you're self-employed or work for a very small company you don't have to pay (but you can if you want). If you work for a company it will be (or should be) deducted from your paycheck.
I already went through all this years ago. |
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mitsui
Joined: 10 Jun 2007
Posts: 1562
Location: Kawasaki
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| Posted: Sat Jun 14, 2014 8:06 am Post subject: |
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My bill is 690,000.
I just work part-time and it was calculated due to last years' earnings.
I wonder if I can get a refund.
Last edited by mitsui on Sun Jun 15, 2014 1:23 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Maitoshi
Joined: 04 May 2014
Posts: 718
Location: 何処でも
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| Posted: Sat Jun 14, 2014 9:32 am Post subject: |
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| mitsui wrote: |
My bill is 690,000.
I just work part-time and it was calculated due to last years' earnings.
I wonder if i can get a refund. |
You must've made some serious money last year (or included an extra zero). |
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bluetortilla
Joined: 18 Apr 2006
Posts: 815
Location: Henan
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| Posted: Sat Jun 14, 2014 9:35 am Post subject: |
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| mitsui wrote: |
My bill is 690,000.
I just work part-time and it was calculated due to last years' earnings.
I wonder if i can get a refund. |
Yes, I would imagine. (In my experience!) Japan is pretty good about those sorts of things. Of course the economy has taken its toll on social spending so they may be more strict on things these days. That, however was not my experience three years ago. I worked part time as an ALT (not as bad as it sounds actually) and was only taxed for income. |
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nightsintodreams
Joined: 18 May 2010
Posts: 558
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| Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2014 1:11 am Post subject: |
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I'll tell you my story with the pension.
Like you, I came here expecting to stay a year or two and then return to my home country.
So for the first year I got the pension exemption at city hall. When the 2nd year came along I ignored the pension bills. Towards the end of my 3rd year it caught up with me and they sent me threatening letters.
I called the pension office and told them I couldn't pay it all back at once, so they let me pay back one unpaid month each month.
I haven't been fined and I haven't had to pay any interest or anything like that.
I have another friend who's been here over three years, he never went to city hall to register for the pension. He still hasn't received a single pension bill. |
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bluetortilla
Joined: 18 Apr 2006
Posts: 815
Location: Henan
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| Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2014 4:25 am Post subject: |
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| nightsintodreams wrote: |
I'll tell you my story with the pension.
So for the first year I got the pension exemption at city hall. When the 2nd year came along I ignored the pension bills. Towards the end of my 3rd year it caught up with me and they sent me threatening letters.
I have another friend who's been here over three years, he never went to city hall to register for the pension. He still hasn't received a single pension bill. |
Can we ask where you were you were working (or at least the relative size of the company?) In my twenty plus years in Japan no one has ever said a word to me about pension. My (now ex) wife has paid it voluntarily as she plans to use it, and I've heard many debates among Japanese citizens on whether to pay it or not, as many believe it to be doomed. I doubt the latter is true but from what I'm hearing they must be really cracking down in recent years. |
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nightsintodreams
Joined: 18 May 2010
Posts: 558
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| Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2014 5:22 am Post subject: |
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I worked for a large ALT company, but I believe that to be largely irrelevant. The letters and threats I got were from the Japanese government and there didn't seem to be any link with my company.
I know another guy who's lived in Japan for about ten years, he was recently caught out too and ordered to pay the last ten years of pension. Maybe you've been lucky or maybe they will catch you on their system eventually and order you to pay the last 20 years worth of pension.
If that does happen, you'll only have to pay back one month at a time so my advice to anyone is to not bother paying until you're caught out. |
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bluetortilla
Joined: 18 Apr 2006
Posts: 815
Location: Henan
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| Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2014 7:38 am Post subject: |
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| nightsintodreams wrote: |
I worked for a large ALT company, but I believe that to be largely irrelevant. The letters and threats I got were from the Japanese government and there didn't seem to be any link with my company.
I know another guy who's lived in Japan for about ten years, he was recently caught out too and ordered to pay the last ten years of pension. Maybe you've been lucky or maybe they will catch you on their system eventually and order you to pay the last 20 years worth of pension.
If that does happen, you'll only have to pay back one month at a time so my advice to anyone is to not bother paying until you're caught out. |
But the law clearly states that pension is an option if you're self-employed (which I was) or if you work for a very small company (which I did too). The fact that you worked for a large company is why you were obligated. Most companies however should have taken care of that for you. If they didn't you were unlucky.
I don't think I'm lucky. I didn't break the law. I think people here need to distinguish between the groups required to pay and those not. In fact, I was enrolled to pension for a while and quit (I don't remember about getting my money back- I wasn't enrolled for very long). |
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mitsui
Joined: 10 Jun 2007
Posts: 1562
Location: Kawasaki
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| Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2014 7:47 am Post subject: |
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My bill is for my wife and me. I could pay it all at once but I would rather pay by the month.
I stopped paying for the pension in April. If I go back to the US it won`t matter. |
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Maitoshi
Joined: 04 May 2014
Posts: 718
Location: 何処でも
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| Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2014 11:16 am Post subject: |
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| Somehow I get the feeling that the Japanese pension scheme is optional, as city hall asked me if I was going to participate. I opted to, but also accepted a six month waiver. The Kokumin Hoken wasn't optional, though. Mine was about 1.5 万 for the first year, without a monthly option. |
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nightsintodreams
Joined: 18 May 2010
Posts: 558
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| Posted: Sun Jun 15, 2014 1:42 pm Post subject: |
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I don't know what the case was many years ago, but if you're unsure then go down to the pension department in city hall and ask. They even have an information sheet in English and Japanese and it clearly states that anyone who is in employment (part time or full, for a small company or large) is legally obligated to be on the system.
There's nothing morally wrong with not being on it in my opinion, but it is a legal requirement...now at least. |
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nightsintodreams
Joined: 18 May 2010
Posts: 558
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