Job Discussion Forums

[gwynnie86]

Ok, so I was sure that there was already a thread dealing with this, but I failed to find it.
Today, Interac send me a lovely email including this:

[Inflames]

There's a minimum payment (around 3,000 yen IIRC) your first year for kokumin kenko hoken. After that, your premium is based on your income (for the previous year). As your income is nothing for your first year, you just pay the minimum (which is around 3,000 yen for 10 months).

Go with NHI without a doubt.

[seklarwia]

Depending on where you are, your first years premium might be a whole lot less than 3000/month. I just got my receipt in the post for my first years payment proof which totalled... 13,100 yen for the entire year; just slightly less than the minimum 5,500/month you'll be paying on Interglobal.

[Glenski]

Think you'll be here only a year? That could change.

NHI is about 2500 / month for the first year, and then tenfold higher after that.

I don't know about InterGlobal, but it looks more expensive the first year than NHI, according to seklarwia.

I hope you get an answer about how good the coverage actually is with IG, because my personal recommendation would be to get NHI.

*Cheaper the first year, so if you really don't stay longer, you're better off.
*Probably better acceptance by most hospitals.
*You won't have to make backpayments to NHI if you change your mind and stay longer because you'll already be on the system.

Staying longer may seem like a terrible financial burden to have to pay that much more to NHI, but the Interac message was correct about the government and its policy concerning visa renewals. Problem is, even at this late date, they have not been 100% clear whether another insurance plan would be acceptable. They only said that having NHI is just one of the factors in determining renewal, not an overriding one.

Go with NHI.

[lenoreelux]

I am planning on staying for a long time in Japan and I am opting for the NHI since it seems like the best thing to do and the least expensive.

[tipo]

To gwynnie86. The blurb from Interac is wrong. From April 1st 2010 Inter Global or any other private health insurance plan will no longer be acceptable if you wish to keep your work visa in Japan.

The Kokumen Kenko/Kokumen Nenkin or National Health and Pension Insurance plan is available ONLY to self employed people. Since you are employed by INTERAC then the only option available is the Shakai Hoken. Contributions are made by both the employer and employee. The amount paid by you and your employer is based on your salary. DO NOT allow INTERAC get out of its legal responsibility to you.

DO NOT allow INTERAC tell you that you are not entitled to join Shakai Hoken because you work less 30 hours a week. That will no loner apply from April 1st.

Good luck

[tipo]

There seems to be some confusion as to what is acceptable and what is not so far as health and pension insurance is concerned. Firstly, the Kokumen Kenko/Kokumen Nenkin or National Health/Pension Insurance is available only to unemployed and self employed. So, that excludes most people who are employed. Also, whilst in the first year NHI contributions can be cheap but contributions will shoot up from the second year onwards.

The only recognised health and pension plan available to most people teaching English in Japan is the Shakai Hoken. Here the employer and employee contribute to the plan you both pay 50/50. On a monthly salary of JPY250,000 that's about JPY30,000 a month contribution from both the employee and employer. To get more information about this topic consult with the General Union wbsite. http://www.generalunion.org

DO NOT allow your employer escape its legal responsibilty to you.
DO NOT allow your employer BS you like Interac is attempting to do here.

I hope this has cleared up any confusion.

Tipo

[seklarwia]

[GambateBingBangBOOM]

I think National Health Insurance is a requirement of public employees (although I think the way it works differs). This makes sense when you consider that Shakai Hoken is through the employer and public employees' employer is the government.

I read somewhere that visa renewal won't be tied to health insurance after all. Some lawyers got involved. Can't remember the details (it didn't really apply to me because I have acceptable health insurance).

[tipo]

seklarwia wrote:

'If the government clearly stated what is meant by 29.5 hours and then enforced the rule....'

Firstly, there is no such rule. All the Labor Standards Law says is that no worker shall work more than 40 hours per week. And the Labor Standards Office was generally reluctant in recognising that such a rule existed also. Eikaiwas and dispatch companies came up with this ingenious way in order to avoid enrolling their employees onto Shakai Hoken but if challenged could be over turned if an employee took a complaint to the Labor Standards Office.

Secondly, I personally wouldn't go near Kokumen Kenko/Nenkin (National Health/Pension Inurance) especially if you have lived in Japan more than two years because the local Ward Office could and will make you back enrole which could cost you big time if you have been in Japan some time. If you are a new arrival and you enrole onto the NHI the first year is very cheap but the second year it shoots up experdentially. I was paying JPY 70,000 a month. Once you enrole onto the NHI you are locked in. Finally, as I said before the NHI is for unemployed or self employed people.

So, the best option for most people is the Shakai Hoken where both the employer and employee contribute.


[/b][/list][/quote][/list]

[GambateBingBangBOOM]

[Apsara]

[tipo]

Apsara, I was referring to full-time employees because technically the Kokumen Kenko/Nenkin(NHI) is for the self-employed and unemployed. Full -time employees should either be on Shakai Hoken or Shigaku Kyousai not the NHI.

Now, you raised the issue concerning part-time workers unfortunately for these folk they were shoved onto the NHI because employers refused to enrole them onto the Shakai Hoken or Shigaku Kyousai. For a number of years the General Union lobbied the Social Insurance Agency to clarify the rules regarding PT employees and their health/pension insurance rights. But, never really made any headway until now of course.

[Glenski]

tipo,
The labor laws say far more than just that people shall not work more than 40 hours per week. Perhaps what you meant was that the labor laws say nothing about who should get health insurance. If so, you're right. That's the business of the Social Insurance Agency, which says:

[tipo]

Glenski, thank you for the quote from the SIA's website. It is the last sentence that has caused the greatest amount of confusion i.e "entitlement to SH is based on the number of hours and the number of days they work at the workplace that are generally at least 3/4 of those of ordinary employees of that workplace". I consulted a Union in Osaka seeking a clarification of the above ruling. The Chairman Mr Neo Yamashita told me that the 3/4 rule depended on the number of hours worked per week by the FT employees of that company or industry. Some industries worked more than 40 hours and some worked less than 40 hours a week. As for the education sector Mr Yamashita believed that lesson prep and other duties outside of the classroom constituted time worked. For that reason he believed that the imposition of the 29.5 rule by ECC was pure fiction which later led to the General Union challenging ECC. And ECC backed down followed by the other large eikaiwas such as GEOS and Berlitz.

I believe with the recent change in government that it will be easier for most employees now to be enrolled onto SH.