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Pension Refund FAQs
This is a collection of FAQs that I and other PAs have come across over the years. A HUGE thank you to the PA of Kumamoto Prefecture for submitting many of the sources and answers for these questions!
Q. Who is my tax rep? My supervisor?
A. Your supervisor certainly can be your tax rep, but it isn't required or part of their job as your supervisor. Since your tax rep will be handling a hefty bit of your cash for you, we recommend you appoint someone who you can trust, and who you can contact easily.
Your tax rep can be any resident of Japan - native or foreigner - but keep in mind that they should have a decent command of Japanese.
Source: Past JETs' experiences
Q. Do I have to go back to my home country to claim the refund?
A. Not necessarily. Of course, there have been JETs who have moved to a different country after they finish JET; it seems that the SIOC (Social Insurance Operation Centre) will send your refund to whatever bank account you designate, no matter the origin.
Same goes for sending the initial application for the refund; it just has to be sent from anywhere in the vast, mysterious land of Gaikoku.
Source: PA community, past JETs' experiences, Pension Refund Walkthrough
Q. Nobody took my gaikokujin card at the airport. Is this going to interfere with getting my pension refund?
A. In most cases it doesn't affect the process, as long as you get your visa stamped as departed when you leave customs. Just in case, I recommend you clearly declare to the customs official when you are leaving, "this is my final departure. I'm no longer a resident of Japan."
Source: PA community, past JETs' experiences
Q. I plan to leave a couple of weeks early, before the official end date of my contract. Is this going to affect my pension refund?
A. In most cases it doesn't, but in the past there has been some confusion with cases like this, because it appears as though you didn't officially complete your contract. Just to be safe, CLAIR recommends you get a written, hanko-ed note from your CO declaring that yes, you have finished your contract, and any discrepancies between your stamped date of final departure and final contract day can be accounted for with nenkyuu.
Q. Where do I find the different pension numbers I need for section 5 (Claimant’s pension handbook data) of the pension refund claim form?
A. You only need to enter the “Basic Pension number” in this section. This number can be found in your blue pension handbook. It is the number at the top of the page with your name and birthday.
Reference: 2010 GIH p. 205, Pension Book
Q. My bank doesn’t have a certified bank stamp. What should I do?
A. In this case, you will need to submit documentation from the bank verifying the bank name, branch name, branch address, account number and account holder’s name (account holder must be you). It's fairly easy to get a document with all this information; just ask your bank.
Reference: Lump-sum Withdrawal Payment Claim Form, Past JETs' experiences
Q. I am filling in the History section on page 2 of the claim form. Which type of pension was I enrolled in, and what dates should I list for the enrollment period?
A. All JETs are enrolled in (2) Employees’ Pension Insurance. For enrollment period, list the beginning date of the appointment of your first JET year and ending date of the appointment of your last JET year. Note: this may be different for those who worked in Japan before JET.
Reference: 2010 GIH p. 55-59, 203, 任用団体用マニュアル p. 65
Q. I noticed the GIH and Social Insurance Agency site only list refund amounts for up to 36 months of enrollment. Does the amount continue to increase beyond 36 months?
A. No, you can only have up to 36 months worth of pension payments refunded. This is a Social Insurance Agency regulation.
Reference: Lump-sum Withdrawal Payment Claim Form
Q. Can I apply for the pension refund from Japan?
A. No, only those who have left Japan (and in doing so cancelled their alien registration by handing over their Alien Registration Card at the airport when departing) may apply.
Reference: Lump-sum Withdrawal Payment Claim Form, GIH p. 203
Q. How much time will it take to get the lump-sum refund?
A. On average, it takes 3-6 months from submission of the claim form. However, sometimes it takes even longer, particularly if some of the information supplied is missing or incorrect.
Reference: Past JETs’ experiences, GIH p. 205
Q. I didn’t designate a tax representative before I left Japan. Is it possible to do so from my home country?
A. Yes, it is possible. You do not have to be present when the form is submitted to your local tax office. Find someone in Japan willing to be your tax representative and, upon filling in the necessary information, send them the tax representative declaration form. They will then take it to the local tax office when they submit the claim for the tax refund.
Reference: Lump-sum Withdrawal Payment Claim Form, GIH p. 207
Q. Does the tax representative declaration form need to be submitted to MY local tax office?
A. Yes, it should be submitted to the tax office with jurisdiction over the address where you filed for alien registration. You'll be notified of your official tax office at the regional meetings in April, but contact your PA if you are unsure of which tax office you belong to.
This is a particularly important note to bring up to your tax representative, who, regardless of where he or she may live, still has to do business at YOUR tax office.
Note: tax offices are not always at city/town/village halls.
Reference: 国税庁：所得税・消費税の納税管理人の届出手続き
Q. Is it possible to change your Tax Rep after you leave Japan - i.e. your Tax Rep is leaving Japan before you've claimed your refund?
A. Yep, it is possible. In order to change tax reps, the JET or the current tax rep will need to file a document which releases the current tax rep from the position. This document is called the 所得税・消費税の納税管理人の解任届出書 (shotokuzei/shouhizei no nouzeikanrinin no kainin todokedesho). It should be sent to the same tax office as the original tax rep declaration form. It can be find on the National Tax Agency site here:
http://www.nta.go.jp/tetsuzuki/shinsei/ ... 200007.htm
After filing this form, the JET or the new tax rep will need to file another tax rep declaration form to establish the new tax rep.
Q. Which receipt (Notice of Lump sum withdrawal payments) should I send to my tax rep in Japan: one says 'remittance' and one says 'entitlement'.
Send the original ‘entitlement’ form (the bigger one).