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Income tax in Japan (所得税)

The national tax on income that everyone working in Japan pays, foreigners included. The rate runs from 5% to 45%: the higher your income, the higher the rate. Your employer withholds it, but understanding the calculation helps you check your payslip, claim every deduction and not miss a tax return. Rates, deductions, the 2025 and 2026 reforms, the rules for non-permanent residents and worked examples for salaries of ¥3M, ¥5M and ¥6M.

Worked example

All taxes for employees

Checked against the National Tax Agency website on October 7, 2026 · Resident tax · Deductions · Family and dependents

Rate, rising with income5–45%

Surtax on the tax2.1%

No income tax on a 2026 salary up to¥1.78M

Withheld from a non-resident’s salary, no deductions20.42%

In short

Income tax in three lines

  • Rate: from 5% to 45% depending on income, plus a 2.1% surtax on the tax.
  • Limit: no income tax on a salary of up to ¥1,600,000 for 2025 and up to ¥1,780,000 for 2026.
  • Employees: the employer withholds the tax and recalculates it in December. Others file a tax return between February 16 and March 15. Resident tax (住民税, jūminzei) — about 10% — is paid separately.

What income tax is

Income tax (所得税, shotokuzei) is the national tax on the income of individuals: from work, business, investments and other sources. It is calculated on income for the calendar year, January to December.

Two Japanese words matter. Earnings (収入, shūnyū) are your whole salary before anything is taken off, as in your contract. Income (所得, shotoku) is earnings after the deduction for employment income (給与所得控除) or after expenses. The limits for dependents and the basic exemption are set on income (所得), not on salary. Below we always say which one we mean.

Who pays

Everyone with income in Japan pays

Japanese and foreigners alike. How much of your income is taxed depends on your tax status — and that is not decided by a 183-day rule, as in many countries, but like this:

Status Who Income taxed
Resident (居住者, kyojūsha) has a domicile (the center of life) in Japan, or has lived here continuously for a year or more. If you come for a job that normally lasts a year or more, you are a resident from the day you arrive all income worldwide (after 5 years in Japan — see the next row)
Non-permanent resident (非永住者, hieijūsha) a resident without Japanese nationality who has lived in Japan 5 years or less in total in the last 10 Japanese income + foreign income only if it is paid in Japan or sent to Japan
Non-resident (非居住者, hikyojūsha) everyone else Japanese income only; 20.42% withheld from salary, no deductions

The 183-day rule appears only in tax treaties, for short business trips. Domicile is judged by facts: home, job, assets, family. A person can spend half the year abroad and still be a Japanese resident.

Tax treaties. Japan has income tax treaties with many countries. If two countries both treat you as resident, the treaty decides; it can also exempt some income or let you credit tax paid abroad. Students: some treaties exempt the part-time wages of students (for example those with China, Indonesia, the Philippines and Sri Lanka); others, such as those with India, Vietnam, the US and the UK, only exempt money sent to you from abroad for your studies and living — check the treaty with your country; treaties can change, so check the current text. If you are unsure, ask the tax office or a licensed tax accountant (税理士, zeirishi). More: income from abroad.

Non-permanent residents (非永住者)

Your first 5 years in Japan: foreign income is taxed only when it reaches Japan

Most foreigners who come to work in Japan are non-permanent residents for their first five years. This status changes how income from your home country is taxed.

  • Who: a tax resident without Japanese nationality who has had a domicile or residence in Japan for 5 years or less in total within the last 10 years. Years with Student status count too.
  • Taxed in Japan: all Japanese income, plus foreign income that is paid in Japan or sent to Japan (remitted).
  • Not taxed in Japan: foreign income — interest, rent, dividends, gains on investments abroad — that stays abroad.
  • Salary for work done in Japan is Japanese income, wherever it is paid. If you live in Japan and work remotely for a foreign company, that salary is taxed in Japan even if it goes into a bank account abroad.
  • Remittances count. If you have foreign income in a year and transfer money to Japan, the transfer is treated as that income up to its amount — even if you say it came from old savings. Money sent to Japan first counts against income from work done in Japan but paid abroad, then against foreign income.
  • After 5 years (in the last 10) you become an ordinary resident and are taxed on all your income worldwide, whether it comes to Japan or not.

An example

Priya came to Japan in April 2023 and has lived here since; before that she never lived in Japan. Until spring 2028 she is a non-permanent resident. The rent from her apartment in Bangalore that stays in her Indian account is not taxed in Japan. If in 2026 she transfers ¥500,000 from that account to Japan, up to ¥500,000 of that year’s rent is taxable in Japan, and she files a tax return for it (a credit for tax paid in India may apply). From spring 2028 all her rent is taxable in Japan, transferred or not.

You declare foreign income yourself. Your employer’s year-end adjustment covers only your salary. Foreign income that is taxable in Japan is declared on a final tax return (確定申告, kakutei shinkoku); an employee with one employer must file once such other income is over ¥200,000 a year. Keep bank statements of your transfers. How to file: Tax return.

How the tax is calculated

The tax is on taxable income, not on your whole salary

  1. Income. Salary, business, rent, investments. From a salary the deduction for employment income (給与所得控除, kyūyo shotoku kōjo) is taken off first — it depends on the salary.
  2. Deductions. The basic exemption, pension and health insurance premiums, exemptions for dependents, medical expenses and others.
  3. Taxable income (課税所得, kazei shotoku) — income minus deductions, rounded down to ¥1,000. The rate table applies to it.
Taxable income Rate Amount subtracted
¥1,000 – ¥1,949,000 5% ¥0
¥1,950,000 – ¥3,299,000 10% ¥97,500
¥3,300,000 – ¥6,949,000 20% ¥427,500
¥6,950,000 – ¥8,999,000 23% ¥636,000
¥9,000,000 – ¥17,999,000 33% ¥1,536,000
¥18,000,000 – ¥39,999,000 40% ¥2,796,000
¥40,000,000 and more 45% ¥4,796,000

Tax = taxable income × rate − amount subtracted. A 2.1% surtax (復興特別所得税, special income tax for reconstruction) is added to the tax for income from 2013 to 2026. From 2027 income it is split in two: 1.1% for reconstruction (extended to 2047) and 1% for the new defense surtax (防衛特別所得税). The total stays 2.1%.

Example with the table: taxable income ¥7,000,000 → ¥7,000,000 × 23% − ¥636,000 = ¥974,000; with the 2.1% surtax about ¥994,000 a year.

The main deductions

Deduction for employment income and the basic exemption

Every employee gets these two. The deduction for employment income is applied automatically; for the basic exemption you fill in one line on the year-end adjustment form (the four-deductions form, starting with the Application for Basic Exemption of Employment Income Earner). Both went up with the 2025 and 2026 reforms.

Deduction for employment income (給与所得控除)

Salary for the year (収入) 2025 income 2026–2027 income
up to ¥1,900,000 ¥650,000 ¥740,000 (up to a salary of ¥2,200,000)
¥1,900,001 – ¥3,600,000 30% + ¥80,000 from ¥2,200,001: 30% + ¥80,000
¥3,600,001 – ¥6,600,000 20% + ¥440,000 the same
¥6,600,001 – ¥8,500,000 10% + ¥1,100,000 the same
¥8,500,001 and more ¥1,950,000 (maximum) the same

Basic exemption (基礎控除, kiso kōjo)

Total income (合計所得金額; with only a salary: salary minus the deduction for employment income) 2025 income 2026–2027 income
up to ¥1,320,000 ¥950,000 ¥1,040,000
¥1,320,000 – ¥3,360,000 ¥880,000 ¥1,040,000
¥3,360,000 – ¥4,890,000 ¥680,000 ¥1,040,000
¥4,890,000 – ¥6,550,000 ¥630,000 ¥670,000
¥6,550,000 – ¥23,500,000 ¥580,000 ¥620,000
¥23,500,000 – ¥24,000,000 ¥480,000 ¥480,000
¥24,000,000 – ¥25,000,000 ¥320,000, then ¥160,000 (in two steps) the same
over ¥25,000,000 ¥0 the same
  • The 2026 amounts take effect on December 1, 2026, but they apply to all 2026 income.
  • The higher basic exemption is for residents only. A non-resident gets at most ¥580,000 (2025) and ¥620,000 (2026).
  • From 2028: the minimum deduction for employment income becomes ¥690,000 and the basic exemption ¥620,000 (¥990,000 if total income (合計所得金額) is up to ¥1,320,000). After that both are reviewed every 2 years in line with prices.
  • Other deductions — social insurance premiums (in full), medical expenses, life insurance, iDeCo, the working student deduction — are on Tax deductions.

Income walls

The 2025 and 2026 reforms: the ¥1.6M and ¥1.78M walls

An “income wall” (年収の壁, nenshū no kabe) is the yearly salary at which a person starts paying tax or premiums, or their family starts losing deductions.

For years the main one was the ¥1.03M wall: basic exemption ¥480,000 plus the minimum employment deduction ¥550,000. As minimum wages and prices rose, students and part-time workers cut their hours to stay under it. The 2025 reform raised the limit to ¥1,600,000 (¥650,000 + ¥950,000), the 2026 reform to ¥1,780,000 (¥740,000 + ¥1,040,000). All amounts per year:

Item Until 2024 2025 income 2026 income
Minimum deduction for employment income ¥550,000 ¥650,000 ¥740,000
Basic exemption at a modest income ¥480,000 ¥950,000 ¥1,040,000
Salary with no income tax up to ¥1,030,000 up to ¥1,600,000 up to ¥1,780,000
Salary of a dependent or spouse for the family’s exemption up to ¥1,030,000 up to ¥1,230,000 up to ¥1,360,000
Salary of a working student for the working student deduction (勤労学生控除) up to ¥1,300,000 up to ¥1,500,000 up to ¥1,630,000

Resident tax and social insurance have their own walls

  • Resident tax starts earlier: its basic exemption stayed at ¥430,000, and in Tokyo there is no tax only up to a salary of ¥1,100,000 (2026 tax). Details: resident tax.
  • The ¥1.06M wall — when a part-time worker joins the employer’s insurance. The pay requirement (¥88,000 a month) is abolished from October 2026. The other conditions stay: 20+ hours a week, a job of more than 2 months, not a student, an employer with 51+ insured employees (36+ from October 2027, lowered step by step until 2035).
  • The ¥1.3M wall — the expected income up to which you can stay a dependent (被扶養者, hifuyōsha) in your spouse’s or parent’s health insurance (and, if you live together, under half of their income). For dependents aged 19–22 (not spouses) the limit is ¥1,500,000 since October 1, 2025.

The result: on a salary of ¥1,500,000 a year there is no income tax, but a small resident tax. The ¥1.06M wall does not apply to students — see Student taxes and insurance.

Worked example

Income tax on salaries of ¥3M, ¥5M and ¥6M for 2026

A single employee with no dependents and only salary income. Pension, health insurance and Employment Insurance for an employee under 40 in Tokyo come to about 14.7% of salary; we use 15% to keep it simple.

Step ¥3M ¥5M ¥6M
Salary for the year (収入) ¥3,000,000 ¥5,000,000 ¥6,000,000
− deduction for employment income ¥980,000
(30% + ¥80,000)		 ¥1,440,000
(20% + ¥440,000)		 ¥1,640,000
(20% + ¥440,000)
= employment income (所得) ¥2,020,000 ¥3,560,000 ¥4,360,000
− basic exemption 2026 ¥1,040,000 ¥1,040,000 ¥1,040,000
− social insurance premiums (15%) ¥450,000 ¥750,000 ¥900,000
= taxable income (課税所得) ¥530,000 ¥1,770,000 ¥2,420,000
tax by the table 5% = ¥26,500 5% = ¥88,500 10% − ¥97,500 = ¥144,500
with the 2.1% surtax (rounded to ¥100) ¥27,000 ¥90,300 ¥147,500
for comparison: the same for 2025 ¥35,200 ¥117,900 ¥184,200
  • The 2025 tax is higher because the basic exemption was smaller: ¥880,000 at a ¥3M salary and ¥680,000 at ¥5M and ¥6M. At ¥5M the taxable income was then ¥2,130,000, and part of it fell into the 10% bracket.
  • For salaries under ¥6.6M the exact employment deduction comes from a table in ¥4,000 steps, so calculators can differ by a few hundred yen.
  • Resident tax is calculated separately and paid the following year — example on resident tax. Everything together: the take-home pay calculator.

Withholding from salary

Withheld every month, recalculated in December

Your employer withholds tax from each salary and pays it to the tax office — withholding at source (源泉徴収, gensen chōshū).

  • The amount comes from the National Tax Agency tables (月額表 for monthly pay, 日額表 for daily and weekly pay). The table is read with your pay after social insurance premiums.
  • Column 甲 (kō) — if you gave this employer the dependents form (Application for (Change in) Exemption for Dependents of Employment Income Earner, 扶養控除等申告書). With no dependents there is no tax on pay after premiums of under ¥105,000 a month (2026 table; from 2027 under ¥111,000).
  • Column 乙 (otsu) — a second job, or no dependents form: much higher tax, even on small pay — 3.063%.
  • Column 丙 (hei) — day laborers and people hired for 2 months or less on daily or hourly pay.
  • From January to November 2026 withholding did not change: the new basic exemption is applied at the December 2026 year-end adjustment, the new tables from January 2027.

Year-end adjustment (年末調整)

Usually with the December salary your employer recalculates your tax for the year — the year-end adjustment (年末調整, nenmatsu chōsei): it takes into account your family, life insurance and other deductions, and refunds an overpayment or withholds the rest. Most full-time employees never need to file a tax return. There is no year-end adjustment if your salary for the year is over ¥20 million, if you left a job and had no new one by the end of the year, or for a second job. Which forms to fill in: Year-end adjustment.

Tax return

Who files a final tax return (確定申告) themselves

The return for a year is filed between February 16 and March 15 of the next year. The easiest way is online with e-Tax and a My Number card.

You must file if

  • your salary for the year is over ¥20 million;
  • your other income (a side job, business, crypto and so on), after expenses, is over ¥200,000 a year;
  • you work for two or more employers and the salary not covered by the year-end adjustment plus other income is over ¥200,000;
  • Japanese tax was not withheld from all or part of your salary — for example a foreign company pays you from abroad; then the ¥200,000 rule does not apply: you must file whenever there is income tax to pay for the year, and in any case declare the income to the city for resident tax;
  • you are a sole proprietor or freelancer and tax was not withheld.

You may file to get money back

If you left a job mid-year and there was no year-end adjustment, if you had medical expenses, made hometown tax donations to more than 5 municipalities, or it is the first year of the housing loan deduction. A return for a refund can be filed for 5 years from January 1 of the next year. A refund exists only if tax was withheld: if your withholding record shows ¥0, there is nothing to get back. How to file: Tax return.

What When If you miss it
Return and payment for 2025 February 16 – March 16, 2026; direct debit on April 23, 2026 a 5% penalty if you file late on your own, more after an audit, plus delinquency tax (延滞税)
Return for 2026 normally February 16 – March 15, 2027; the NTA has not announced the dates yet the same
Return for a refund 5 years: for 2025 — until December 31, 2030 you lose the right to the refund

Tips for newcomers

  • Keep the withholding record (源泉徴収票, gensen chōshūhyō) from every employer, receipts for medical costs and proof of insurance premiums.
  • Tell your employer about your family on the dependents form — when you are hired, at the start of each year, and when something changes.
  • In a complex case, ask the tax office or a licensed tax accountant (税理士, zeirishi).

Non-residents and leaving Japan

When the rules are different

  • Non-resident: 20.42% is withheld from Japanese salary, with no deductions. Tax is due on Japanese income only.
  • Leaving for good: your employer does the year-end adjustment up to your departure. If you need a tax return, file it and pay before you leave, or appoint a tax agent (納税管理人, nōzei kanrinin) — the notification goes to the tax office.
  • Leaving in 2026 before December 1: a year-end adjustment at departure (if your last salary was paid by November 30) and a return filed by November 30, 2026 use the old basic exemption. From December 1 you can file a return — or, if you already filed, a request for correction (更正の請求) until December 1, 2031 — and get the new exemption.
  • Resident tax when you leave: resident tax; getting pension contributions back and the 20.42% tax on that refund: Lump-sum Withdrawal Payment (the pension refund).

Linked to your visa.

  • For permanent residency you need a certificate from the tax office that you owe no national taxes, income tax included (納税証明書（その３）). A late payment counts against you even if the debt is paid by the day you apply.

Taxes and your visa · Permanent residency

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.

  • Spouse (legal marriage only): an exemption of ¥380,000 if your income (所得) is up to ¥9 million and your spouse’s salary for 2026 is up to ¥1,690,000 (2025: up to ¥1,600,000). Above that it shrinks and ends at ¥2,070,000 (2025: ¥2,015,999). Details: your spouse.
  • Children and other dependents with income (所得) up to ¥580,000 (2025) or ¥620,000 (2026): ¥380,000 per person aged 16 or older, ¥630,000 at ages 19–22, ¥480,000 at 70 and older; ¥580,000 for a parent of you or your spouse aged 70+ who lives with you. No exemption for children under 16.
  • A child aged 19–22 earns above the limit — since 2025 parents no longer lose the exemption at once (特定親族特別控除, special exemption for specified relatives): up to ¥630,000, shrinking gradually until the child’s salary reaches ¥1,970,000 (2026).
  • Relatives abroad give an exemption only with documents proving the relationship and bank transfers, and for people aged 30–69 only with transfers of ¥380,000 a year or more, if they left Japan to study abroad, or with a disability. Details: relatives abroad.

FAQ

Income tax questions

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What is the income tax rate in Japan?

From 5% to 45% depending on taxable income, plus a 2.1% surtax on the tax. Taxable income is your salary minus the deduction for employment income, the basic exemption, social insurance premiums and other deductions — not your whole salary.

A salary of up to ¥1,600,000 for 2025 and up to ¥1,780,000 for 2026, if it is your only income. Resident tax starts earlier — in Tokyo above ¥1,100,000 a year.

A tax resident without Japanese nationality who has lived in Japan 5 years or less in total in the last 10. Such a person pays tax on Japanese income and on foreign income only if it is paid in Japan or sent to Japan. After 5 years all worldwide income is taxed.

If you are a non-permanent resident and had foreign income that year, a transfer to Japan is treated as that income up to the amount transferred, even if you say it came from savings. If you had no foreign income that year, a transfer of savings is not income. After 5 years in Japan your foreign income is taxed whether you transfer it or not.

Yes. Salary for work done in Japan is Japanese income wherever it is paid, so a resident pays Japanese tax on it. Because no Japanese tax is withheld, the ¥200,000 rule does not apply: you must file a tax return whenever there is income tax to pay for the year, and declare the income to your city for resident tax in any case. Your status of residence must also allow the work.

Probably because you did not give the employer the dependents form (扶養控除等申告書), or it is your second job: then tax is withheld at the higher column 乙, at least 3.063%. Hand in the form to your main employer; overpaid tax comes back at the year-end adjustment or with a tax return.

Usually not for people who live and work in Japan. Some treaties exempt part-time wages of students (for example those with China, Indonesia, the Philippines and Sri Lanka); others, such as those with India, Vietnam, the US and the UK, only exempt money sent to a student from abroad. Treaties can change, so check the current treaty with your country or ask the tax office.

Sources

Where this information comes from

Rates, limits and deadlines on this page were checked against the official websites of the National Tax Agency, the Ministry of Finance 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, not tax advice. Your city office and the tax office decide your actual tax. For a complex case — income from abroad, a business, leaving Japan — talk to a licensed tax accountant (税理士, zeirishi).

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