TAXES IN JAPAN

1 Taxes in Japan

There are about 50 taxes in Japan. These taxes can be divided into two main rates. National taxes paid to the State and local taxes paid to local authorities. For example, national taxes include the income tax "Shotokuzei" and the consumption tax "Shohizei". Local taxes include the "Juminzei" resident tax, the "Jidoshazei" car tax and the "Koteishisanzei" property tax.

Of these, the most important for many will be income tax and resident tax. A certain number of people will also own cars or real estate in Japan. Therefore, I explain income tax, resident tax, car tax and property tax in this article. Of course, it is also necessary to know other taxes such as consumption tax, inheritance tax, gift tax, legal entity tax, etc. and it is not enough to know only these taxes.

2 Income tax "Shotokuzei"

The person who works in Japan and earns income needs to pay income tax. The scope of income tax depends on whether the person has an address in Japan. However, the explanation of this article assumes that a person has an address in Japan.

This tax taxes income from January 1 to December 31. If you are a worker per company, instead of a solitary owner "Kojin jigyonushi", you do not have to file the tax return, since the company pays you your salary after deducting income tax. Companies deduct income tax from monthly wages and pay it to employees. It is not necessary to file the tax return. However, there are some exceptions. For example, employees who earn more than 20 million yen a year are required to file a tax return. In addition, some employees can earn benefits if they make the tax return. For example, people who pay medical expenses of more than 100,000 yen a year may receive tax deductions when filing their tax return. An important aspect of income tax for employees is whether the company makes the appropriate year-end adjustment on employee taxes "Nenmatsu chosei". If the company does not make the year-end adjustment, the worker may not be entitled to the deductions to which he is entitled or may have to pay extra income tax. In order for the company to make the year-end adjustment, employees must normally submit a "Fuyokojoto shinkokusho" deduction declaration document.

If you are a sole owner, you must file the previous year's tax return between February 16 and March 15. When a lone owner files the tax return, it is important to remember that the income is the amount of sales minus the expenses. If you do not deduct expenses and declare your sales as income, your income tax will be high and you will lose a lot of money. Expenses are not just the obvious ones, such as purchase costs, labor costs, rental of sales offices, transport costs, etc. If you have your house as a workplace, then part of the rent of your house and utilities are also expenses. If you also use the car or mobile phone to work, then part of the cost of the car or mobile phone is also an expense. These are just examples. It is especially important that lone owners become familiar with income tax. If you are not familiar with it, it is convenient that you ask for help from a tax advisor "Zeirishi".

3 Resident tax “Juminzei”

The resident tax is the set of taxes of the municipality and the prefecture. The person who is domiciled in Japan on January 1 needs to pay this year's resident tax. The resident tax is paid in the municipality where the address was located on January 1. The amount of resident tax depends on the amount of income from January 1 to December 31 of the previous year.

Like income tax, resident tax is deducted from wages and is paid by the company in the case of employees, while solitary owners have to pay it themselves. The resident tax is paid in June, August, October and January of the following year. It can also be paid in a single payment in June.

4 Car tax "Jidousha zei" and property tax "Koteishisanzei"

The car tax is a tax that imposes people who own a car on April 1. You will receive a payment receipt in early May. Payment must be made by the end of May. Once the payment deadline is missing, the payment cannot be made in Conbini and you have to go to the banks or a tax office. Of course, you will also be charged a late fee.

The property tax "Koteishisanzei" is the tax on land, homes and depreciable assets that are considered fixed assets. For example, the machinery of the factories is amortizable assets that are considered fixed assets. The person registered as the owner of the properties on January 1 is obliged to pay the tax. You will usually receive a tax notification from your city council between April and June. The amount of the tax is determined according to the appraisal value of these goods.

5 overdue taxes

I explain about the tax arrears. Both national and local taxes are subject to an annual late payment rate of around 9% if they are in default. And if the delinquency continues, there is a risk that assets such as salaries, bank accounts and real estate will be seized.

So, what can be done to settle the arrears? Unfortunately, about taxes it is not possible to ask a lawyer to follow legal procedures such as bankruptcy or other legal proceedings. Bankrotty does not exempt you from paying taxes. Although you cannot do a legal procedure, you can advise yourself in the municipalities and sometimes help you pay in installments.

In addition, overdue taxes have a clear negative impact on visas. It has a negative impact on almost all visas. In particular, if you want to become a permanent resident, the tax arrears of the last two years make it difficult to obtain it.