ChildcareChild Allowance System
Child Allowance System
Childcare Allowance
The childcare allowance is provided to a child's father, mother, or the person providing childcare for the child in place of the father or mother in order to provide assistance and build stability and independence for households where children are being raised but where a father or mother’s means of livelihood is not available. It is also provided in instances where a father or mother is present but suffers from a serious disability as designated by government ordinance.
1. Candidate children
- Children whose mother and father have divorced (including dissolution of common law marriages).
- Children whose father or mother has died.
- Children whose father or mother suffers from a serious disability as designated by government ordinance.
- Children whose fathe or mother is in danger of dying.
- Children who have been abandoned by their father or mother for 1 year or more.
- Children whose father or mother has been imprisoned continuously for 1 year or more for legal reasons.
- Children whose father or mother has been imprisoned continuously for 1 year or more for legal reasons.
- Children who were born out of wedlock.
- Abandoned children and other children whose father or mother is unknown.
A child is defined as...
- A child who has not yet reached the 31st of March following their 18th birthday.
- A person under 20 years of age who suffers from a disability of moderate severity or worse as designated by government ordinance.
2. Situations where the allowance will not be provided
- If the person eligible to receive the childcare allowance (i.e. the mother, father or person raising the child - henceforth referred to as “applicant”) or the child does not have an address in Japan.
- If the child is under the care of foster parents
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If the child is admitted to a child welfare institution*.
*Excluding mother and child life support facilities, day care centers, and kindergarten facilities.
- If the child is being raised by the applicant’s (the mother or father’s) spouse. (“Spouse” includes those who are not listed as having a marital relationship on the family register, but who have the same living arrangements as a married couple.) However, this excludes cases where the spouse has a certain level of disability as designated by government ordinance.
- In the event that the applicant is the mother or the person raising the child instead of the child’s parents, if the child is living together with his/her father. However, this excludes cases where the father has a certain level of disability as designated by government ordinance.
- In the event that the applicant is the father, if the child is living together with his/her mother. However, this excludes cases where the mother has a certain level of disability as designated by government ordinance.
In the event that applicants who are able to receive a public pension etc. will receive a pension amount that is lower than the Childcare Allowance, it is now possible to receive the difference between the two amounts as Childcare Allowance.
Previously, applicants receiving a public pension etc.（※） were unable to receive Childcare Allowance. However, as of December 2014 part of the Childcare Allowance regulations has been revised and in cases where applicants will receive a pension amount that is lower than the Childcare Allowance, it is now possible to receive the difference between the two amounts as Childcare Allowance.
※Public pension etc., --- survivor’s pension, disability pension, old-age pension, workers’ pension, bereavement compensation etc.
【Concerning the start month of the allowance】
Payment of the allowance will begin the month following your application.
An applicant is defined as...
- The mother of a child who has custody of the child
- The father or mother of a child who lives with the child or provides a means of livelihood for the child.
- The person raising the child in place of the child’s parents.
3. Income Limit Amounts
In the event that the income of the applicant or person obligated to provide care exceeds the income limit amounts listed in (Chart 1), the allowance will not be paid.
※The person obligated to provide care refers to the applicants spouse, or direct blood relative or sibling who live off the same livelihood income or the foster parents of an orphan.
If the allowance is provided
Income of the applicant or person obligated to provide care - (1) deduction amount < relevant amount of (Chart 1) + (2) Sum amount
Income refers to...
The amount remaining from a person’s annual salary after income deductions are made. In the event that the applicant is the father or mother, the amount after adding 80% of the corresponding amount of childrearing expenses (expenses necessary for the child’s upbringing) that the child or the applicant has received from the child’s father or mother.
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Deduction amounts for the applicant or person obligated to provide care
Flat deduction 80,000 yen
Special disability deduction 400,000 yen
Disability/working student deduction 270,000 yen
Widow/Widower exemption 270,000 yen (Not deducted if the applicant is the father or mother)
Widows special deduction 350,000 yen (Not deducted if the applicant is the father or mother)
*casualty, small scale business mutual aid funds, medical fees, spouse special exclusion actual amounts
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Income Limit Amounts sum amount
Principal
Spouse eligible for elderly deduction ※ 100,000 yen per individual
Elderly support family ※ 100,000 yen per individual
Special support family (19～22 years old) ※ 150,000 yen per individual
Special support family (16～18 years old) ※ 150,000 yen per individual
Person obligated to provide care
Elderly support family ※ 60,000 yen per individual
（If all of the relatives, etc., providing care are age 70 or older, 1 person will be excluded）
(Table 1) Income Limit Amounts (Units: Yen)
| Number of family supported | Income of the applicant | Income of the person obligated to provide care | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total payment | Partial payment | ||
| 0 | 190,000 | 1,920,000 | 2,360,000 |
| 1 | 570,000 | 2,300,000 | 2,740,000 |
| 2 | 950,000 | 2,680,000 | 3,120,000 |
| 3 | 1,330,000 | 3,060,000 | 3,500,000 |
| 4 | 1,710,000 | 3,440,000 | 3,880,000 |
| 5 | 2,090,000 | 3,820,000 | 4,260,000 |
*The allowance amount from July of last year to August of the current year is calculated based on the previous year’s income.
*The amount of income and number of family supported that are used will be those recorded in the resident tax department ledger.
4. Allowance Amount
- Addition for 2nd children is 5,000 yen and 3,000 yen for each additional child over the 3rd.
- If the term of receipt of the allowance exceeds 5 years (if the child is 3 years of age at the time of approved claim, then at the time when the child turns 8), a portion of the allowance will cease to be paid. However, if the recipient has begun working or is looking for work, or is disabled, and submission is provided, no portion of the allowance will be terminated. Relevant parties will be notified beforehand, so please follow the appropriate procedures.
Total payment 42,330 yen
Partial payment 42,320 ～ 9,990 yen
Allowance calculation method
＝42,320 yen -（Income of the applicant - Income Limit Amounts* Above table 1 (Total payment)）× 0.0186879
※ Partial payment amounts will be rounded off to the nearest 10 yen.
5. Authorization/Payment Methods
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Consultation
Consultation with the Child Welfare Unit of your local ward office/branch office/Hokushin office.
Explanation of the childcare allowance system and required materials.
▼Application
Compile all required materials and apply.
▼Authorization
Application materials are reviewed and notice of determination is sent
(It will take roughly 2-3 months for the final decision to be made.)
▼Payment
In the event of authorization, the amount will be paid starting from the next month’s amount following the month of application.
Payments are made 3 times per year (The 11th of December, April, August) with the allowance amount for the previous 4 months transferred to the designated bank account.In order to correctly provide the childcare allowance, an audit will be carried out once each year after authorization (in August) to ensure that the conditions for receiving the allowance are still being met, and it is necessary for the applicant to submit a statement of current conditions for the purposes of this audit.
! CAUTION !
- *Please send notification as soon as possible in the event that the recipient loses the qualification to receive payment due to marriage registration, or in the event that there is a change in the amount to be received based on a change in the number of children. Please be duly aware that in the event that overpayments have been made, the overpaid amount must be paid back. Further, this includes cases of “de-facto marriage” in which the recipient is effectively living in circumstances that are identical to marriage, although there may be no change to the legal family register. Even if the couple does not live together, depending on the circumstances there are cases where they can judged to be in a state of de-facto marriage. (Pregnancy, identical certificate of residence (juminhyo) for member of the opposite sex outside of one’s immediate family, etc.)
- *A confirmation (report) is required for cases including when one’s actual residence differs from the one registered on the certificate of residence (juminhyo). There are cases where recipients lose the ability to receive payment, depending on the circumstances.
- *In the event that a recipient has received payment of the allowance by falsehoods or other unjust methods, the recipient will be required to return all payments, and will also be penalized via imprisonment of 3 years or less or a fine equal to or less than \300,000.
Inquiries
| Ward Office, Child Welfare Official | Higashinada | 078-841-4131 |
|---|---|---|
| Nada | 078-843-7001 | |
| Chuo | 078-232-4411 | |
| Hyogo | 078-511-2111 | |
| Nagata | 078-579-2311 | |
| Suma | 078-731-4341 | |
| Kita Suma Branch | 078-793-1313 | |
| Tarumi | 078-708-5151 | |
| Kita | 078-593-1111 | |
| Kita Ward Kitakami Branch Office | 078-981-1748 | |
| Nishi | 078-929-0001 | |
|
Child and Family Bureau, Child and Family Support Division |
078-322-5214 | |
The translation is based on the data available as of July, 2015. Please note that new systems, system changes etc. may have been introduced after this date. Responsibility for the linked websites lies with their creators. Kobe City accepts no responsibility for their content etc.