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Social insurance · 雇用保険 · koyō hoken

Unemployment benefits in Japan (雇用保険) for foreign workers

If your company goes bankrupt, you are let go or you quit, the Employment Insurance premiums taken from your salary give you the right to temporary support: the basic allowance of Employment Insurance (雇用保険, koyō hoken), usually called unemployment benefits. Who qualifies, how much and for how long, how to claim at Hello Work step by step, where to get help in English — and what it all means for your status of residence.

Step by step

Social insurance overview

Checked against the websites of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Hello Work and the Immigration Services Agency on October 7, 2026 · Quitting or being dismissed · Changing jobs

Insured in the last 2 years — the basic condition12 months

Of your average daily wage, per day50–80%

Wait before payments if you quit7 days + 1 mo

How long payments last, by insured years and age90–330 days

In short

Unemployment benefits in five lines

If you were insured for at least 12 months in the last 2 years (6 months in the last year if you were let go or the company went bankrupt), you can claim benefits at Hello Work (ハローワーク), Japan’s public employment service: 50% to 80% of your former average daily wage, for 90 days or more. If you quit on or after April 1, 2025, payments start after 7 days of waiting plus 1 month (it used to be 2 months). Losing your job does not cancel your visa by itself, but you must tell immigration within 14 days that you have left the company.

  • Register at once. The right to the benefit lasts 1 year from the day after you leave — if you go to Hello Work late, you may not receive all your days.
  • You need the separation notice (離職票, rishokuhyō) from your employer. Check the reason for leaving written on it.
  • Every 4 weeks — you confirm at Hello Work that you are still unemployed and report your job search.
  • Health insurance and pension — switch to the national schemes within 14 days unless you keep the company insurance. People who lost their job involuntarily get reductions.

What is Employment Insurance?

Who is insured and what it costs

Employment Insurance (雇用保険, koyō hoken) is often called unemployment insurance (失業保険, shitsugyō hoken); officially the main payment is the basic allowance (基本手当, kihon teate). It helps people who have just lost their job to live while they look for a new one. It is run by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, and you claim at Hello Work — the public employment office that also helps you find a job in Japan.

The Employment Insurance premium is taken from your salary as a separate line (雇用保険料) — a fraction of a percent, with the employer paying the larger part. How to find it: how to read a Japanese payslip. You are insured if you work at least 20 hours a week and are hired for at least 31 days; full-time daytime students are, as a rule, not insured. From October 1, 2028 the threshold drops to 10 hours a week.

What Rule
Nationality Does not matter: workers of any nationality are insured if they meet the hours and length conditions.
Who is not insured Full-time daytime students (with some exceptions), people who came on a Working Holiday, and foreign civil servants or people clearly covered by their own country’s unemployment scheme.
Your premium, April 1, 2026 to March 31, 2027 0.5% of pay in most industries (employer 0.85%); 0.6% in agriculture, sake brewing and construction.
Premium is based on Your actual pay, including commuting allowance and bonuses.
From October 1, 2028 Threshold of 10 hours a week. A month will count toward eligibility with 6 paid days or 40 hours (now 11 days or 80 hours).

Who can get the benefit?

Insured period, readiness to work, and your status

Hello Work looks at why you left, how long you were insured, your age and other factors. The main conditions:

  • you are willing and able to start work at once and are actively looking, but have not found a job yet;
  • you were insured for at least 12 months in the last 2 years;
  • if the company went bankrupt or let you go, 6 months in the last year are enough.

There is no benefit if you cannot work right now — because of illness, pregnancy or caring for a child — or if you have decided to take a break. If you are not sure whether you qualify, ask your nearest Hello Work.

If you cannot work for 30 days or longer — illness, injury, pregnancy and childbirth, caring for a child under 3 or a relative — the period for receiving the benefit can be extended (受給期間延長, jukyū kikan enchō) by up to 3 years, that is, up to 4 years from the day after you left. Apply at Hello Work as early as possible: if you apply late, you may not receive all your days.

Persuaded to leave “voluntarily”? If you agreed to leave at the company’s request (encouragement to resign, 退職勧奨, taishoku kanshō), for the benefit it counts as leaving for company reasons — with easier conditions. More: quitting or being dismissed in Japan.

On a work visa? The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare publishes no official rule on which status of residence qualifies for the benefit. What is verified: workers of any nationality are insured on the general terms and pay premiums; the benefit is paid only to people ready to start work at once — so your status must allow the work you are looking for. On a Dependent or Student status you may work only with part-time work permission (資格外活動許可), up to 28 hours a week. In a doubtful case, ask Hello Work, and ask immigration about your status.

Waiting period

7 days for everyone, plus a month if you quit

After you apply, the first 7 days of unemployment are not paid (待期, taiki) — for everyone. If you were let go or the company went bankrupt, payments start after that.

If you quit for personal reasons without a justified reason, a benefit restriction (給付制限, kyūfu seigen) is added to the 7 days:

  • 1 month — if you left on or after April 1, 2025 (it used to be 2 months);
  • 3 months — if you were dismissed for serious misconduct or have repeatedly quit for personal reasons in the last 5 years;
  • the restriction is lifted if, on or after April 1, 2025, you take approved education or training (教育訓練).

“Repeatedly” here means 2 or more voluntary resignations in the 5 years before leaving for which Hello Work already decided on a benefit. Some Hello Work pages still show the old 2 months; 1 month has applied since April 2025. Details: Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

Why you left Insured period needed Wait before the first payment How long payments last
You quit 12 months in the last 2 years 7 days + 1 month (from April 1, 2025) 90–150 days (by insured years)
Let go by the company, bankruptcy 6 months in the last year 7 days 90–330 days (by age and insured years)
Dismissed for serious misconduct; quitting again within 5 years 12 months in the last 2 years 7 days + 3 months 90–150 days

How to claim unemployment benefits

Hello Work step by step

What to expect when you go to Hello Work:

Step 1: Bring your documents to Hello Work

  • Separation notice (離職票, rishokuhyō, parts 1 and 2) — the official notice of leaving from your company;
  • My Number Card (マイナンバーカード) — or the notification card with your My Number, or a certificate of residence (住民票) showing it;
  • photo ID: My Number Card, driver’s license or another official photo document, such as your residence card (在留カード);
  • two photos, 3.0 × 2.4 cm (not needed if you show your My Number Card every time);
  • a bankbook or cash card (預金通帳 / キャッシュカード) in your own name. Some banks cannot be used for the payments; Japan Post Bank (ゆうちょ銀行) can.

You hand in the documents at the Hello Work for your address and register as a job seeker at the same time (求職の申込み, kyūshoku no mōshikomi). At the information session you get the Certificate of Eligibility for Employment Insurance benefits (雇用保険受給資格者証), the unemployment certification form (失業認定申告書) and the date of your first check.

Your former employer must issue the separation notice, which states why you left your job. Sometimes companies write a different reason — for example that you quit, when in fact you were let go. This changes the waiting time and how long you are paid, so check it carefully: if you disagree with the reason, say so at Hello Work — it checks the facts with both sides. If your employer does not issue the notice, ask Hello Work.

Step 2: The waiting period

7 days for everyone, and a 1- or 3-month restriction if you quit — details above.

Step 3: Confirming that you are unemployed

First you attend a compulsory information session on Employment Insurance. Then, every 4 weeks, you go to Hello Work on your assigned day for the unemployment certification (失業認定) and report your job search. For each period you usually need at least two job-search actions (one at the first check, three under the 3-month restriction): applying for jobs, consultations at Hello Work, job seminars. The assigned day is hard to change, so plan around it.

Step 4: Receiving the benefit

The benefit is paid into your account for the days Hello Work has certified as days of unemployment. How much in yen and for how many days — next section.

Hello Work in English

  • Employment Insurance is handled only at the Hello Work office for your address. Many offices in areas with many foreign residents have interpreters — English, Chinese, Portuguese, Spanish, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Nepali and others, depending on the office and the day: MHLW list of Hello Work offices with interpreters (August 2026, PDF).
  • Employment Service Centers for Foreigners (外国人雇用サービスセンター) in Tokyo (03-5361-8722), Nagoya (052-855-3770), Osaka (06-7709-9465) and Fukuoka (092-716-8608) help international students and people with professional or technical statuses find work, in English and Chinese. They cannot handle Employment Insurance procedures. More: Tokyo Employment Service Center for Foreigners (English).
  • In English on paper: the Aichi Labour Bureau’s leaflet To Those Who Have Left Their Jobs (PDF) explains the basic allowance, the waiting period and the restriction under the current rules.
  • A question about your work rights rather than benefits? The free MHLW help lines in English and 12 other languages are on your rights at work.

Amount and length

How much, and for how long

The benefit depends on your former pay and your age. First your average daily wage is calculated: your pay for the last 6 months before leaving, divided by 180. The benefit is 50% to 80% of that (45% to 80% at ages 60–64): the lower your pay, the higher the percentage. There is a daily maximum by age group, revised every year on August 1 (current amounts on the Hello Work website).

Age when you leave Daily maximum from August 1, 2026
under 30 ¥7,450
30–44 ¥8,270
45–59 ¥9,110
60–64 ¥7,830
Minimum for everyone ¥2,562

Bonuses are not included in the average daily wage. If you quit, you are paid for 90 to 150 days depending on how long you were insured; if you were let go or the company went bankrupt, for 90 to 330 days depending on age and insured years. You must receive the benefit within a year of the day after you leave: if you go to Hello Work late, you may miss some payments.

If you quit: days by insured years

Insured period Days of benefit
under 10 years 90 days
10–20 years 120 days
20 years or more 150 days

If you were let go or the company went bankrupt: days by age and insured years

Age under 1 year 1–5 years 5–10 years 10–20 years 20 years or more
under 30 90 90 120 180 —
30–34 90 120 180 210 240
35–44 90 150 180 240 270
45–59 90 180 240 270 330
60–64 90 150 180 210 240

Worked example

Salary ¥300,000, you quit

You are 32, worked 4 years at one company on an Engineer / Specialist in Humanities / International Services status with a fixed salary of ¥300,000 a month, and quit on October 30, 2026.

Step Calculation
Average daily wage ¥300,000 × 6 ÷ 180 = ¥10,000
Benefit per day by the MHLW formula from August 1, 2026: 10,000 × 0.8 − 0.3 × (10,000 − 5,480) ÷ (13,490 − 5,480) × 10,000 = ¥6,307 (63%); below the maximum for ages 30–44 (¥8,270)
Length insured under 10 years, you quit — 90 days
Total 90 × ¥6,307 = ¥567,630; Hello Work sets the exact amount
Had the company let you go at 32 with 1–5 insured years — 120 days (¥756,840), without the month of restriction
  1. October 31 – November 13 — city office and immigrationHealth insurance, National Pension and the notification that your contract has ended — within 14 days.
  2. November 9, 2026 — Hello WorkRegistration and documents. Your right to the benefit lasts until October 30, 2027.
  3. November 9–15 — 7 days of waitingNot paid.
  4. November 16 – December 15 — 1-month restrictionYou quit, so these days are not paid either.
  5. From December 16 — paid daysEvery 4 weeks, certification at Hello Work and a job-search report. With continuous payments, the 90 days end on March 15, 2027.

Found a job early

Re-employment allowance and paid training

  • Re-employment allowance (再就職手当, saishūshoku teate). If you find a job while you still have benefit days left, you get part of the remaining days: 70% if at least two thirds of the days are left, 60% if at least one third is left. Conditions: the new job is expected to last more than a year; you started after the 7 waiting days; under the restriction, in the first month after the waiting days only through Hello Work or a licensed placement agency.
  • Example. 60 of 90 days left (exactly two thirds), benefit ¥6,000 a day: 60 × 70% × ¥6,000 = ¥252,000. With 40 days left: 40 × 60% × ¥6,000 = ¥144,000.
  • Education and training benefit (教育訓練給付, kyōiku kunren kyūfu) — part of the fee for approved courses is refunded: general courses 20% (up to ¥100,000), specified general courses 40% (up to ¥200,000), professional courses 50% (up to ¥400,000 a year), more if you gain a qualification and a job after the course. Apply at Hello Work; ask there how long you must have been insured for your course.

Health insurance and pension while unemployed

What to arrange in the first 14 days

What How Deadline
National Health Insurance (国民健康保険) At the city office for your address. Company insurance ends from the day after you leave. 14 days
Or keep the company insurance (任意継続) You pay the whole premium, for up to 2 years. 20 days from the day after leaving
National Pension (国民年金) At the city office, if you are 20–59. 14 days from the day after leaving
  • National Health Insurance reduction. If Hello Work has recognized that you left involuntarily (特定受給資格者 or 特定理由離職者) and you are under 65, your premium is calculated as if last year’s salary were 30% of what it was. The reduction runs from the month of the day after you left to the end of the next fiscal year (March 31). Bring the Certificate of Eligibility for Employment Insurance benefits and ID to the city office (example: Shinjuku City).
  • National Pension exemption. After losing a job you can apply for an exemption or postponement of premiums, and your own last-year income is not counted. Attach a copy of the separation notice or the Certificate of Eligibility. More: the Japanese pension.
  • All the health insurance options: health insurance in Japan.

Deadlines, and what happens if you miss them

What When If you miss it
Registering at Hello Work as soon as possible; the right lasts 1 year from the day after leaving after a year the payments stop, even if days are left
Unemployment certification every 4 weeks, on your assigned day the day is hard to change — tell Hello Work in advance
Extending the period (illness, birth, care) as early as possible after 30 days of being unable to work if you apply late, you may not receive all your days
National Health Insurance and National Pension 14 days from the day after leaving premiums are charged back, and treatment before you join is paid in full
Notification to immigration 14 days after leaving a fine of up to ¥200,000

What about my status of residence?

Unemployment benefits and your visa

Losing your job does not automatically cancel your work visa. But there are compulsory steps and deadlines:

Linked to your visa.

  • within 14 days of leaving, notify the Immigration Services Agency that you have left the organization (Notification of the Contracting Organization, 契約機関に関する届出, for Engineer / Specialist in Humanities / International Services, Specified Skilled Worker and other contract-based statuses; Notification of the Accepting Organization, 活動機関に関する届出, for the other work statuses) — online, by mail or in person; after you start a new job, file another notification within 14 days;
  • if you do not do the activity your status allows for 3 months or longer without a good reason, your status can be revoked. Actively looking for work after leaving a job can count as a good reason — keep proof (Hello Work records, job applications);
  • the new job must fit your status (for example Engineer / Specialist in Humanities / International Services, 技術・人文知識・国際業務). If it does not, you need a change of status of residence.

Notifications to immigration · Changing jobs · Extending your period of stay

The 3-month rule does not apply to permanent residents, and spouses of Japanese nationals and of permanent residents have a different period — 6 months. Details: Immigration Services Agency.

If you have a family

Spouse, children, parents: what changes

A dependent for tax and a dependent for health insurance are two different things with different income limits. All the rules for families: Family and dependents.

  • Dependents in your company health insurance (被扶養者) lose it together with you. National Health Insurance has no dependents: every family member is insured separately, and the head of the household pays. Enroll everyone within the same 14 days.
  • A spouse aged 20–59 who was your dependent in the pension system (Category III insured person, 第3号) also switches to the National Pension within 14 days. For the unemployment exemption, the spouse’s and the household head’s income still count — only the income of the person who lost the job is left out.
  • A spouse and children on a Dependent status (家族滞在) live in Japan as the family of the worker who supports them. Extending their status will need a certificate from your new job, so a long gap without work affects them too. More: Dependent visa.
  • Caring for a child under 3 or a relative is a reason to extend the period for receiving the benefit (above).

FAQ

Questions about unemployment benefits

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Ask us a question

Can foreigners get unemployment benefits in Japan?

Yes, if they were insured. Workers of any nationality who work 20 hours a week or more and are hired for at least 31 days pay Employment Insurance premiums. You need 12 insured months in the last 2 years, or 6 months in the last year if you were let go, and you must be ready to start work at once.

There is no official rule by status of residence. The benefit is paid only to people ready to start work at once, so your status must allow the work you are looking for; in a doubtful case ask Hello Work. Keep looking for work and notify immigration within 14 days of leaving, because 3 months without work and without a good reason can lead to revocation.

As a rule, no. Full-time daytime students are not insured under Employment Insurance, with some exceptions, so a part-time job while studying usually gives no right to the benefit. People who came on a Working Holiday are not insured either.

50% to 80% of your average daily wage (45% to 80% at ages 60 to 64), the lower your pay the higher the percentage, up to a daily maximum: from August 1, 2026 it is ¥7,450 under 30 and ¥8,270 at 30 to 44. With a salary of ¥300,000 a month it is about ¥6,307 a day.

7 days of waiting plus a 1-month restriction if you left on or after April 1, 2025. If you were let go or the company went bankrupt, only the 7 days. The restriction is 3 months after dismissal for serious misconduct or after repeated resignations within 5 years.

Many Hello Work offices in areas with many foreign residents have interpreters on certain days, and the Employment Service Centers for Foreigners in Tokyo, Nagoya, Osaka and Fukuoka help with job search in English. Benefits, however, are handled only at the Hello Work office for your address, not at those centers.

You may get the re-employment allowance: 70% of the remaining days if at least two thirds are left, 60% if at least one third is left, provided the job is expected to last more than a year and you found it after the waiting days.

Sources

Where this information comes from

Rates, limits and deadlines on this page were checked against the official websites of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Hello Work, the Japan Pension Service, city offices and the Immigration Services Agency on October 7, 2026. Amounts are in Japanese yen. When a rule changes we update the page and the date above.

This page is general information. Your employer, the health insurance association, the Japan Pension Service and your city office decide your actual premiums and benefits. A Labor and Social Security Attorney (社会保険労務士, sharōshi) can help with a dispute.

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