Japan Plans Residency Checks for Foreigners With Unpaid Pension and Health Insurance Contributions

Unpaid contributions could affect permission to stay

Japan plans to begin full checks of foreign residents' pension and health insurance payments by June 2027, linking those records to applications to renew or change their status of residence. The health and welfare ministry and the Immigration Services Agency are preparing to share payment information so immigration officials can assess whether applicants have met their obligations.

As of November 5, 2025, the proposed approach is to generally deny applications from foreign residents who ignore requests to pay overdue contributions. Authorities say they will account for people who respond to payment notices, receive approved exemptions or arrange payment plans with their local office.

The figures behind the initiative show substantial gaps. Foreign residents paid 49.7 percent of the pension contributions due in the fiscal year ending March 2025. A survey of 150 local governments found that foreigners paid 63 percent of billed health insurance premiums as of late 2024, compared with about 93 percent among all residents.

Japan is pursuing the changes amid rising medical costs, an aging population and growing numbers of foreign workers and students. Policymakers argue that stronger checks will make the system fairer for people who pay and help local governments avoid deficits linked to unpaid premiums and medical bills.

The proposals also respond to recurring cases of people leaving Japan with medical bills unpaid. Political pressure to address highly publicized cases sits alongside Japan's effort to attract foreign labor and skills. The planned rules would make payment compliance a more routine part of decisions about who can continue living in the country.

What immigration officials would check

The Immigration Services Agency plans to use verified payment records when considering applications to renew a period of stay or change a residence status. A renewal allows a person to remain in Japan longer under their existing status. A change of status concerns the category under which they are permitted to live there, such as moving from study to work.

Foreign residents who disregard requests to settle arrears would generally have their applications denied. Arrears are contributions that should already have been paid. Officials describe the intended focus as chronic, avoidable nonpayment, while allowing for approved exemptions and arrangements to repay overdue amounts.

The checks would expand a practice currently limited to selected visa categories into a standard part of screening for many residence statuses. Officials have signaled that students, family dependents and other residents staying for the medium or long term would come within the wider process.

Payment history would therefore become relevant to more people than those covered by existing checks. For applicants with overdue contributions, responding to a notice or securing an approved payment arrangement would be part of the circumstances authorities consider.

The timetable runs from 2026 to June 2027

The health ministry is preparing systems that would allow payment information to be shared with immigration authorities. Local governments will also need to update databases, many of which do not consistently record an enrollee's nationality or residence status.

The planned sequence combines a possible change to how newcomers pay health insurance with technical preparations for broader immigration screening:

• As early as April 2026: Municipalities could be allowed to request health insurance premiums in advance from newcomers arriving from abroad.
• During 2026: Technical work is scheduled to prepare databases and payment information sharing.
• By June 2027: Officials aim to begin full, coordinated screening using shared payment records.

June 2027 is the target for the coordinated checks, while April 2026 is the earliest proposed timing for the advance payment option. Whether a municipality adopts advance payment would depend on its own ordinance.

Who must join Japan's public insurance systems

Foreign nationals who live in Japan for three months or more are required to enroll in public insurance under Japanese law. The programs provide coverage according to a resident's age and employment circumstances, with foreign residents expected to contribute like Japanese citizens and entitled to the same benefits.

Most salaried employees are enrolled by their employers in company social insurance. This includes health insurance and the Employees Pension. People who are self employed, work short hours or have nonregular contracts, as well as job seekers and many students, enroll through their city or ward office in National Health Insurance and the National Pension.

The National Pension covers residents ages 20 to 59 who have an address in Japan, regardless of nationality. Participants are placed in categories, including people enrolled through municipal offices and people covered through an employer plan. Some visa types are excluded from voluntary coverage.

National Health Insurance is administered by local governments and covers residents who are not enrolled in an employer health plan. Foreigners staying more than three months who are not covered elsewhere must enroll. A person who later starts a job with company insurance should leave the municipal health insurance program to avoid being billed by both systems.

What residents pay and what coverage provides

The National Pension premium for 2025 is 17,510 yen a month. Low income residents can apply for exemptions or partial exemptions, and students can use a special payment system. These arrangements give eligible residents an approved way to address contributions they cannot afford under the usual schedule.

Contributions for periods covered by an exemption can be paid retroactively for up to ten years. That gives residents a period in which to make those payments later rather than paying the full amount at the original deadline.

National Health Insurance premiums vary according to the municipality and household income. Enrolled patients generally pay 30 percent of the cost when receiving medical care, while the insurance plan covers the rest. Caps apply in cases involving high medical costs.

People who are not Japanese can claim a Lump sum Withdrawal Payment for pension contributions if they leave Japan permanently. The option helps address concerns about contributing to a pension system they may not use in retirement. The Japan Pension Service and municipal offices provide details about contributions, exemptions and the withdrawal payment.

How large are the payment gaps?

Foreign residents' pension payments amounted to 49.7 percent of the contributions due in the fiscal year ending March 2025. In simple terms, less than half of the amount billed was paid.

The health insurance survey covered 150 local governments. Its finding that foreigners paid 63 percent of billed premiums, compared with about 93 percent among all residents, puts the gap at about 30 percentage points. Both figures describe the share of premiums paid.

About 970,000 foreign residents were enrolled in municipal health insurance as of 2023, representing around 4 percent of all enrollees. Local governments administer that coverage and collect the premiums, placing them at the center of the proposed changes.

Officials intend to standardize the information stored by city and ward offices to develop a more accurate picture of compliance before the 2027 screening begins. Missing or inconsistent nationality and residence status fields are among the database issues the technical work is meant to address.

Newcomers may be asked to pay in advance

The health ministry plans to give municipalities the option of collecting health insurance premiums upfront from newcomers arriving from abroad as early as April 2026. One possible arrangement would be a single payment covering a year.

The measure is aimed at reducing cases in which people use medical services and then leave Japan without paying their premiums. Each local government would decide whether to adopt advance collection through its ordinances, so the approach could vary from one municipality to another.

Refund rules would be needed when a resident moves. Premium amounts and billing cycles differ between municipalities, making it necessary to explain how money collected in advance would be handled if someone leaves the area before the covered period ends.

The advance payment proposal concerns how premiums are collected. The planned immigration checks concern payment records when someone applies to renew or change their residence status. Together, the measures seek to collect contributions earlier and give authorities a fuller payment history when reviewing applications.

Employers, tourists and permanent residents face scrutiny

Ministries also plan to check the social insurance payment status of workers on specified skills visas through the organizations that hire them. Companies with serious arrears could be blocked from accepting foreign workers, extending the consequences of nonpayment to employers.

The cabinet has backed steps to deny entry to tourists who left medical bills unpaid during previous visits. That proposal addresses debts from medical treatment, while the residency measures address unpaid National Health Insurance and pension contributions.

Permanent residents already face heightened scrutiny. Under a revised law, willful nonpayment of taxes and social insurance can lead to loss of permanent residence status in certain cases.

Officials say the intended target is chronic, avoidable nonpayment, rather than people who are unemployed or following a verified payment plan with their local office. Approved exemptions and responses to payment notices would also be taken into account in the planned screening.

Fairness and predictable enforcement

Justice Minister Keisuke Suzuki placed the initiative within a wider effort to secure compliance with basic rules during a recent briefing. He said public confidence in immigration management depends on predictable enforcement of residents' obligations.

Japan's planned approach brings insurance administration and immigration decisions closer together. Municipal offices would continue to handle enrollment, premiums and payment arrangements, while immigration authorities would use shared records when deciding applications.

For foreign residents, the practical focus is on being enrolled in the appropriate system, addressing payment notices and obtaining approval for an exemption or repayment arrangement when needed. For the government, the next steps are the proposed advance payment option in 2026, database work that year and coordinated screening targeted for June 2027.

Key Points

• Japan aims to begin full residency screening using shared pension and health insurance payment records by June 2027.
• Residents who ignore requests to pay arrears would generally face denial of applications to renew or change their status.
• Authorities say approved exemptions, responses to notices and verified payment plans will be considered.
• Foreign residents paid 49.7 percent of pension contributions due in the fiscal year ending March 2025.
• A survey of 150 municipalities found health insurance payment rates of 63 percent among foreigners and about 93 percent among all residents.
• Municipalities could request health insurance premiums in advance from newcomers as early as April 2026.
• The wider measures also cover employers with serious arrears, tourists with unpaid medical bills and willful nonpayment by permanent residents.