Job Discussion Forums

[mushroomyakuza]

Hi all

I'm really stuck here. I'm going to Japan in March (it's getting alarmingly close now) and I am still so confused about the health insurance issue.

Right, as I understand it, all English teachers are required by law as part of their visa, to have health insurance with in Japan. However, as of April 1st 2010 (from what I've read on these forums), a new law will be enacted where all ELTs need to be on the government scheme of health insurance, not just with any old health scheme.

My problem is, I'm going to work with Shane. Shane currently offer health insurance with Interglobal, which according to the aforementioned threads, is not counted as official or legal health insurance and could affect the validity of my work visa.

I may have the above information wrong, and if so please correct me, but right now, I'm just plain confused. Could can someone please tell me in no uncertain terms what health insurance I need, how to get it, and what actions my employers need to take to make this possible (if any)?

Deeply grateful to any and all replies - help is really, really needed here.

EDIT: I just read this article: http://www.generalunion.org/News/526 confirming the above and a thought struck me - the possibility of back-pay for the previous two years would only apply in the case of me already being in Japan for two years, right? I mean, they couldn't possibly ask me to pay the past two years insurance when I wasn't even in the country could they?

Seeing as I don't think Shane offer shakai hoken/shigaku kyosai, which forces me to sign up on kokumin kenko hoken, I'm pretty much boxed in in terms of my available options here. Help

Thanks

[Apsara]

[Glenski]

1. Backpayments to national health insurance are required if you have not previously been on NHI since your stay here. That is, if you stay a year without being on it, then decide to join, you owe a year's worth of NHI premiums. The maximum they will charge you is 2 years' worth.

2. Don't let Shane or anyone else tell you that you have to join their company insurance plan. NOVA tried doing that, too. The bottom line is that the employer gets a cut of it, so you are essentially paying your employer something on top of getting paid for work. Since the issue has not fully been resolved yet whether private insurance like Shane's will be accepted, take the safe route and get on NHI. If they say you can't, tell them to take a hike. It's not a law to take the company's plan; they just want a cut.

Bully you further? Tell them that after a year or two, if you decide to move on, you will either have a lucky break in landing a job with a company that goes by the law and makes copayments into shakai hoken, or you will still face the onus of paying into NHI and its backpayments, so you want to be safe and avoid the latter.

[mushroomyakuza]

Glenski, as ever, you are our sage and chief advisor. Many thanks.

The only follow up to this would be, Shane have told me I need to be covered for health insurance AS SOON AS I get to Japan - which seems to me like a rather convenient way of them getting me on their insurance scheme.

However, being as I'd come to Japan for roughly a week before I start work, would I be able to get into the country on a tourist visa and on holiday insurance, then collect my work visa and change onto kokumin kenko hoken as soon as I can.

Incidentally, how do you do this? The website says to go to your "nearest ward office" - how would I know where this is? At the moment, I don't know where in Japan I'm going to be placed, but once I do, what's the easiest way to locate my "ward" office, and what exactly is one for that matter?

[seklarwia]

You will have to go to your local city office when you do your ARC registration anyway. If you are allowed, you can sign up for NHI at the same time as you do your registration. If not (as was the case for us here), you just visit the same office and sign up when you go to pick up your ARC.

[Pitarou]

I've been in touch with Shane about exactly the same matter. I asked: