Japan Pension Lump-Sum Withdrawal When You Leave (2026)
Key takeaways
- The Lump-sum Withdrawal Payment is available to non-Japanese nationals who paid pension contributions for six months or more and no longer have an address in Japan.
- You must apply within two years of the day you cease to be covered (in practice, the day you leave Japan and your residence record is removed).
- The calculation currently counts a maximum of 60 months of contributions, so long stayers are not fully reimbursed.
- A flat 20.42% income tax (including the Special Income Tax for Reconstruction) is withheld from the Employees’ Pension Insurance (厚生年金) portion.
- You can reclaim most of that withheld tax by appointing a tax representative (納税管理人, nōzei kanrinin) in Japan and filing an income tax return under Article 171.
- Taking the lump sum erases those coverage months permanently — if a totalization agreement could one day give you an actual pension, claiming the cash may be the worse deal.
What the Lump-sum Withdrawal Payment is
Japan runs two public pension schemes that foreign residents pay into: the National Pension (国民年金, kokumin nenkin) for the self-employed and non-employed, and Employees’ Pension Insurance (厚生年金, kōsei nenkin) for company employees, which sits on top of the National Pension. Because most foreign workers leave Japan long before they reach pensionable age, the government allows them to recover part of what they paid through the Lump-sum Withdrawal Payment. The Japan Pension Service (JPS) publishes the scheme in English on its Lump-sum Withdrawal Payments page, with application forms in 14 languages.
It is important to understand what this payment is not. It is not a full refund of your contributions, and it is not a pension. It is a one-off statutory payment designed to give departing foreigners a partial return, calculated from a fixed formula rather than from the exact yen you paid in.
Who can claim, and the two-year deadline
According to the Japan Pension Service, you can claim if you meet all of the following: you do not hold Japanese nationality; you paid coverage contributions (National Pension and/or Employees’ Pension Insurance) for six months or more; you no longer have an address in Japan; and you have never been entitled to receive a Japanese pension (including a disability pension). The application must be filed within two years from the date you stop being covered — effectively, from the day you leave Japan and your jūminhyō (residence record) is removed. See the JPS Leave Japan guidance for the full departure checklist.
A practical timing point: you can only submit the claim after you have filed your moving-out notification and lost your residence registration. Many people post the completed form from abroad once they have left. Do not let the two-year window slip — late claims are rejected outright.
How the amount is calculated (and the 60-month cap)
The two schemes are calculated differently. For the National Pension portion, the payment is a fixed amount that steps up in six-month bands according to how many months you contributed. For the Employees’ Pension Insurance portion, the payment is your average standard monthly remuneration during the covered period multiplied by a statutory rate and a coefficient tied to the number of contribution months.
The crucial limitation is the cap on contribution months. The calculation reflects a maximum of 60 months (five years) of contributions — a ceiling raised from 36 months for coverage periods falling on or after April 2021. If you worked in Japan for longer than five years, the months beyond the cap are simply not reimbursed through this route, which is one reason long-term residents often reconsider whether to claim at all. Always check the current figures on the official Japan Pension Service page, as the bands and the cap are periodically revised by legislation.
The 20.42% withholding tax — and how to get it back
When the Employees’ Pension Insurance portion of your lump sum is paid, the Japan Pension Service withholds income tax of 20.42% (this includes the 2.1% Special Income Tax for Reconstruction) at source. You receive the payment net of that tax. The National Pension portion is not subject to this withholding.
The good news is that this withholding is usually far more than your actual liability, and most of it can be reclaimed. Japan’s National Tax Agency (NTA) explains the procedure on its page No.12005 For those who can receive lump-sum withdrawal payments. Because you are a non-resident by the time you are paid, you file a tax return under Article 171 of the Income Tax Act through a tax agent (tax representative) in Japan, enclosing the “Notice of the Lump-sum Withdrawal Payment (Entitlement)” that the JPS sends you after payment. The tax office with jurisdiction over your last place of tax payment processes the refund and pays it to a Japanese bank account — which is why keeping one account open until the refund clears is sensible.
The sequence therefore is: (1) claim the lump sum from the JPS; (2) receive the net payment and the entitlement notice; (3) have your tax representative file the Article 171 return; (4) receive the refund of the over-withheld tax. See also the NTA’s general guidance No.12004 Income tax information for an individual who will leave Japan for how tax agents are appointed.
Why leaving can be suboptimal: totalization agreements
Claiming the lump sum permanently cancels the coverage months it is based on. Once cancelled, those months can never again count towards a Japanese pension — or towards a pension in your home country under a social security agreement. Japan has concluded social security (totalization) agreements with 24 countries as of December 2025, described on the JPS International Social Security Agreement pages, with the in-force list on Status of Agreements in Force.
These agreements do two things: they prevent double contributions while you are seconded, and — for many partner countries — they let you totalize (add together) your coverage periods in Japan and abroad so you can qualify for a benefit you would otherwise miss. Some agreements (for example with the United States and Germany) allow totalization; others only eliminate dual coverage. If your destination is a totalization country and you may build a long combined career, holding on to your Japanese record — rather than cashing it out for a capped lump sum — can be worth far more over a lifetime. Once you take the lump-sum withdrawal, that option is gone for those months. This is a genuine trade-off, and it is worth taking professional advice before you claim.
How Flyto can help
Flyto moves households from Japan to Europe and worldwide, door-to-door, and we coordinate the timing of your move with the administrative deadlines that matter — from your residence record removal to your pension claim window. While we are not tax advisers, we help you sequence the departure so nothing is missed; get a quote.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to have left Japan before I can claim the lump sum?
Yes. The Japan Pension Service requires that you no longer have an address in Japan and are no longer covered by the pension systems before you apply, and the two-year clock runs from that point. See Source.
How long do I have to make the claim?
You must apply within two years of ceasing to be covered — in practice, within two years of leaving Japan and having your residence record removed, per the Source.
Why was 20.42% taken off my payment?
That is income tax (including the Special Income Tax for Reconstruction) withheld at source from the Employees’ Pension Insurance portion. You can reclaim most of it by filing under Article 171 through a tax agent, as the National Tax Agency explains at Source.
Do I really need a tax representative to get the withholding refunded?
Yes — as a non-resident you file the refund return through a tax agent (tax representative) in Japan, enclosing the entitlement notice. The National Tax Agency sets this out at Source.
Does claiming the lump sum affect a future pension?
Yes. The coverage months used for the lump sum are cancelled permanently and can no longer count towards a Japanese pension or be totalized under a social security agreement. See the JPS Source.
Is the whole period I worked reimbursed?
No. The calculation currently counts a maximum of 60 months of contributions, so anything beyond five years is not reflected. Confirm the current cap on the official Source.
Sources
- Japan Pension Service — Lump-sum Withdrawal Payments
- Japan Pension Service — Leave Japan
- Japan Pension Service — International (English)
- Japan Pension Service — International Social Security Agreement
- Japan Pension Service — Status of Agreements in Force
- National Tax Agency — No.12005 For those who can receive lump-sum withdrawal payments
- National Tax Agency — No.12004 Income tax information for an individual who will leave Japan