Health Insurance - Working->Student

[oakx]

Hi,

I've been working in Japan for 2 years but I left my job to start a post-grad degree from April.

I signed up for the government-run health insurance scheme (ﾂ坂?倪?督ｯﾅ停?卍康窶｢ﾃ崘陳ｯ) because I told it was mandatory for all students studying here for longer than a year (and it seemed like a good idea).

The problem is that it seems the rate is based on my tax amount from Last year. So while I'm not earning now, and won't be once I start my degree, they're going to charge me Y50,000 a month for insurance.
(Side note: I was paying Y25,000 a month at the company and the company paid the other half.)
Also one other oddity, I noticed for the first year I was here, I was still paying 25,000 yen a month, even though they wouldn't have had last year's tax to calculate my insurance rate.

Does anyone know if there's a way around this?
Private health insurance, somehow getting them to "update" my tax stuff based on the fact I'll be on a student visa, anything.
I really don't want to spend Y50,000 a month for 12 months while not earning :S

 

[orochi]

Are you sure it is 50,000 JPY per month? The health payments are usually chopped up into less logical bits like 8 per year. So maybe it's 50,000 JPY every 1.5 months or so?

And it's probably worth talking to your local city office about your lack of income for the year.

 

[oakx]

Thanks for the reply. Yeah it's actually 50,000 yen per payment for 6-months worth split into 4 payments. So that's about 33,000 yen a month.

I tried talking to them today about the health insurance and basically they said I'm screwed. It's based on the tax, tough luck. They (un)helpfully said I could pay it in 8 installments instead of 1, but that the total is still the same (duh).
I'm trying to talk to the tax office now so I can get my tax stuff updated to reflect that I'll no longer be earning. Then maybe I can get them to charge me based on my more recent income.

I'm clutching at straws really. I can't afford to pay 200,000 every 6 months :S

 

[Glenski]

50,000 is very steep even for Japan. Do you have a family to support on that? Are you over 40? Your description of how it is "chopped up" is strange. If you pay about 33,000 yen on kokumin kenko hoken, that's normal after the first year under various circumstances.

Usually, you can negotiate to reduce your payments but you have to have a valid reason. Kokumin is based, as you should know already, on last year's salary in Japan, but if they see you are on a student visa, they may have mercy. Just keep your temper in check, and ask for someone to give you a second opinion at the ward office. No guarantees.

 

[riverdaniel]

Health insurance is the one that pays for your medical expenses should you incur one. While health care program is designed for the continuity better living despite health disability.. Long Term Health Care Program is best be planned ahead.