A practical guide to employer pension obligations in Japan, covering public pension enrolment, corporate plans, benefit changes and key contractual issues.
Japan operates a well-structured but multilayered public pension system that applies to residents in Japan aged 20 to under 60 – including foreign nationals. With mandatory enrolment, shared contributions, and a growing range of voluntary corporate pension options, employers operating in Japan need to understand both their legal obligations and the strategic choices available to them.
A System Built on Two Tiers
Japan’s public pension system is built on a two-tier structure. The first tier is the National Pension (‘kokumin nenkin’), which covers all residents aged 20 to under 60. The second tier is the Employees’ Pension Insurance (‘kosei nenkin hoken’), which generally applies to private-sector employees and certain public-sector workers.