Unemployment Benefits (Shitsugyo hoken) 【Hello Work】 in Japan.

Quitting your job in Japan ? No worries, Hello Work got you covered !

Do not fear about quitting your job for choosing your own way of life.

The unemployment benefit insurance in Japan, koyou hoken / Shitsugyou hoken  (雇用保険/失業保険), exists for people who have paid into the system and need support while looking for their next job. Anyone who has worked in Japan for six months and made insurance payments is eligible for benefits. It is run by the Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare, but to access it you must apply through an organization called [Hello Work].

Who can enroll?

To claim unemployment insurance benefits, you must, of course, have first paid into the system. Anyone who has worked in Japan for six months and made insurance payments is eligible to apply.

If you’ve paid enough into the system to benefit from it, you then have to prove that your circumstances warrant these payments. At the Hello Work office, they want applicants to prove that they are looking for work and are sending out job applications. It’s important to remember that the insurance is designed to help those who are between jobs and not those who are unemployed for long stretches of time.

It’s important to remember that the insurance is designed to help those who are between jobs and not those who are unemployed for long stretches of time.

First visit to Hello Work

Make sure you bring the following items:

–Rishoku-hyo, the official “letter of separation” from your previous job
(If you can not get Rishoku-hyo from your previous company for some certain reasons, you can still do pre-registration for the benefits.)
–Residence card
–Bank book or Bank Account Card
–Hanko
–Two passport-sized photos, 3 cm x 2.5 cm, or by presenting [My Number card] this can be avoid

COVID-19

This is the official guide book in English from Hello Work

https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/000678122.pdf

How do you collect the money?

Once you have submitted all the paperwork, there is a seven-day stand-by period where you are expected to support yourself. After this, benefit payments will start to be calculated. 28 days after your first meeting, you will be expected to return to discuss how you have been looking for work. If you miss a meeting without calling ahead, your application will be held back — potentially for a month.

In exchange for your unemployment insurance payments, you will need to show proof of application to at least two jobs per month, meet with a Hello Work staffer every 28 days or enroll in some form of education.

In order to fulfill these obligations, when you meet with your caseworker, you will need to fill out a form indicating what jobs you have sent applications for and to which companies you have gone for job interviews. The Hello Work staff will follow up from there by contacting the companies you have listed.