Key Facts
• In 2023, 97 million people eligible for employee pensions were only enrolled in national pensions.
• The Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare (MHLW) attributes this to employers avoiding insurance contributions.
• Employee pension coverage is mandatory for all corporate offices and individual businesses with 5+ employees.
• The pension reform law passed in June 2023 removed company size (51+ employees) and income (¥1.06 million+) requirements.
• The insurance premium rate is 18.3%, split equally between employers and employees.
• As of March 2025, 150,000 businesses are suspected of evading pension enrollment.
• MHLW efforts have halved the issue over nine years but significant gaps remain.
Summary
The Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare (MHLW) estimates that 97 million individuals in 2023 met the criteria for employee pension enrollment but were only registered under the national pension system. This discrepancy stems from employers avoiding their share of the 18.3% insurance premium. Despite reforms, including the 2023 pension law eliminating company size and income thresholds, gaps persist. MHLW’s measures have reduced the issue by half over nine years, but 150,000 businesses remain under suspicion of non-compliance as of March 2025. The lack of proper enrollment could significantly reduce retirement benefits for affected individuals.
