Hello, I’m using a throwaway account to post this, sorry if that’s not OK.
I’ve been trying to find the answers to these questions for quite a while and I either get no answers or conflicting answers. So I thought I’d ask here and hope that someone either knows the answer or can point me in the direction of a reputable source.
1. Basically, I lived in Japan for about 6 years, teaching English. There was one period of about 3 months where I was between jobs and didn’t pay into the pension, no one had told me I should and I only found out about it a couple of years later on my way out. Since I’m out of Japan and looking to claim the lump sum withdrawal, what, if any, consequences are there for me not paying for those 3 months? Can they reduce the amount I receive or deny me entirely?
2. After leaving Japan, I got married. But my spouse still lives in Japan now. We had thought that they could be my tax representative, but we can’t find any information on how our marriage might affect things, if it does at all. Could my spouse in Japan act as my tax representative? Would there be a penalty for them? Would the marriage make me a resident of Japan somehow? My spouse is currently working in Japan and we are concerned it would affect their visa or their job, but it seems like we are the first to be in this situation. Any resources regarding this would be greatly appreciated.
3. How much will I actually receive? I’ve seen the calculators saying I could get around ¥1,500,000 total and I’ve seen people say the total is my average monthly salary plus a percentage for each year, so, for example, ¥275,000 + 50% = ¥412,000 that’s quite the difference. So which is it? Or is there another formula?
4. I now teach English in Europe, but I am from the US, and prefer to do my banking in dollars when possible. Even though I am in Europe, can the Japanese pension service send my lump sum withdrawal to my American account in dollars? Or does it need to be sent to my European account in euros?
Thank you in advance for any and all assistance. If there are resources I’ve missed in my searches before posting here, I would greatly appreciate anyone pointing them out.
by Pension_throwaway