The annual update of labour insurance premiums (estimated and finalized) — when, what, and how do you calculate?

In short: The annual update of labour insurance is the procedure, each year from 1 June to 10 July, of settling the previous year's finalized premium and declaring and paying the current year's estimated premium (Act on Collection of Labour Insurance Premiums, Articles 15 and 19). The premium is "total wages x premium rate," and the amount changes with which wages you include in the total. If the estimated premium is above a certain amount, deferred payment (three installments) is available. Once you hold the figures in a table, judging whether to run it in house or ask a Shakai Hoken Roumushi also becomes easier.

What is the annual update of labour insurance, and by when do you file it?

The premium for labour insurance (industrial accident insurance and employment insurance) is paid, at the start of the insurance year (1 April to 31 March of the next year), as an estimate, and settled once the year-end is finalized. Doing this "settlement of the previous year" and "declaration of the current year's estimate" together is the annual update.

The employer of a continuing business declares and pays the estimated premium within 40 days from 1 June of that insurance year — that is, by 10 July (Act on Collection of Labour Insurance Premiums, Article 15, paragraph 1). Together with this, the previous insurance year's finalized premium is also declared and paid within the same period (Article 19, paragraph 1). In practice, the two are processed on a single annual-update declaration form.

Item	Content
Subject	Premiums for industrial accident insurance and employment insurance (declared together as labour insurance premiums)
Covered period	Insurance year = 1 April to 31 March of the next year
Declaration/payment period	Each year, 1 June to 10 July
Content	Settlement of the previous year's finalized premium + declaration/payment of the current year's estimated premium

If you miss the deadline, the government may determine the premium amount and impose an additional charge (Article 21). What to file and by when in the year of incorporation is organised in once you have set up a company, by when must you file what; the treatment of the finalized premium when closing a company is in when you close a company, what do you do about social and labour insurance.

How are the finalized and estimated premiums calculated, and from which wages?

Both are calculated as "total wages x premium rate." The difference is which period's wages you use.

• Finalized premium = the total wages actually paid in the previous year x the previous year's premium rate
• Estimated premium = the total wages expected to be paid in the current year x the current year's premium rate

For the estimated total wages, if the outlook is not much different from the previous year, you use the previous year's finalized total wages as they are. Specifically, if the estimate falls within 50/100 to 200/100 of the previous year's finalized amount, you use the same amount as the previous year for the estimate.

The premium rate is the sum of the industrial accident insurance rate (which differs by type of business and is borne entirely by the employer) and the employment insurance rate (shared between labour and management). Because the rates are revised by year and by industry, confirm them in that year's official leaflet (the specific rate figures are not fixed in this article; confirmed 31 August 2026).

The order of calculation is as follows.

1. Aggregate the wages paid in the previous year month by month to obtain the finalized total wages
2. Finalized total wages x previous year's rate = finalized premium. Compare with the estimated premium already paid and settle the difference
3. Current year's expected total wages x current year's rate = estimated premium
4. Pay (the shortfall on the previous year's settlement + the current year's estimate) by 10 July

Which allowances are included in or excluded from total wages, and where does the judgment split?

The "wages" in total wages means everything the employer pays to the worker as remuneration for labour (Act on Collection of Labour Insurance Premiums, Article 2, paragraph 2). Whether to include or exclude splits on this "is it remuneration for labour." Count the amount before deducting tax and social insurance premiums.

Included (examples)	Excluded (examples)
Basic pay / fixed pay	Directors' remuneration (to a director who is not a worker)
Commuting, overtime, family, housing and other allowances	Retirement allowance, and payments on account of retirement
Bonuses / lump sums	Congratulatory or condolence gifts and other benevolent, discretionary payments
Commuter passes and coupons provided in kind	Business travel and lodging expenses and other reimbursement of actual expenses

What splits most easily is an item that is nominally an allowance but is strongly reimbursement in nature (business travel expenses, etc.) and benevolent benefits. Getting this wrong shifts the total wages, and the premium is over- or under-stated. Even for a director, the wage portion of a working director who also has the character of a worker is treated in a way that splits, so caution is needed. The relationship between directors and industrial accident insurance is organised in an owner gets no industrial accident benefits — and alone, cannot even take special enrolment. The final application of whether a particular allowance is a wage is judged in line with reality.

When the payment is large, how far can you split it (deferred payment)?

When the estimated premium is above a certain amount, deferred payment (installments) is available (Article 18). The requirements and the number of installments are as follows.

Category	Content
When deferral is available	The estimated premium is 400,000 yen or more (200,000 yen or more for a business where only one of industrial accident or employment insurance has arisen), or the labour insurance affairs are entrusted to a labour insurance affairs association
Number of installments	Three installments (for a continuing business at the annual update)
Payment deadlines of each installment (in principle)	1st = 10 July, 2nd = 31 October, 3rd = 31 January of the next year
Where entrusted to an association	The deadlines for the 2nd and 3rd installments are extended (in principle to 14 November and 14 February)

Where a deadline falls on a weekend or public holiday, it shifts to the next business day, so confirm the actual date in that year's official leaflet (confirmed 31 August 2026). Entrusting labour insurance affairs to an association is also the premise for special enrolment of small and medium-sized business owners; whether to entrust is the business's own decision.

If you do not defer, you pay the settlement of the finalized amount and the full estimated amount together by 10 July. If you are thinking about cash flow, confirming early whether you meet the requirements widens your options.

What changes between doing the calculation and filing in house and asking a Shakai Hoken Roumushi?

The annual update is a procedure you can file in house if you can aggregate the wages correctly. In fact, many establishments handle it in house. What bites when doing it in house is the accuracy of aggregating total wages, and confirming that the rates and forms are up to date.

What changes when you ask a Shakai Hoken Roumushi is the following.

• Organising the inclusion/exclusion of total wages in line with reality
• Preparing the declaration form, including the settlement of the difference between estimate and finalized amount and the need for deferral, and acting as agent
• Handling the wage data in a single flow together with payroll and social insurance procedures

Preparing and submitting another's labour insurance declaration for remuneration is the business of a Shakai Hoken Roumushi. A company's accounting and corporate tax are the domain of a tax accountant, and the assignment divides from the calculation of the labour insurance premium. Our office's involvement is limited to labour and social insurance procedures; tax matters are pointed to a tax accountant, and individual disputes to a lawyer. A guide to fees is organised in the fee schedule.

Frequently asked questions

Q. From when to when must the annual update be filed?
A. For a continuing business, each year from 1 June to 10 July you settle the previous year's finalized premium and declare and pay the current year's estimated premium (Articles 15 and 19). The two are processed on a single annual-update declaration form. If you miss the deadline, you may become subject to a government determination of the premium and an additional charge.

Q. Do commuting allowance and bonuses go into total wages?
A. Commuting, overtime, family and other allowances and bonuses are paid as remuneration for labour, so as a rule they are included in total wages. On the other hand, retirement allowance, benevolent congratulatory or condolence gifts, and reimbursement such as business travel expenses are not included. Judge by "is it remuneration for labour," not by the name, and count the amount before deducting tax and social insurance premiums.

Q. The premium is large. Can I pay in installments?
A. If the estimated premium is 400,000 yen or more (200,000 yen or more for a business where only one of industrial accident or employment insurance has arisen), or the affairs are entrusted to an association, you can pay in three installments (Article 18). The deadlines are, in principle, 1st on 10 July, 2nd on 31 October, and 3rd on 31 January of the next year; where entrusted to an association, the 2nd and 3rd are extended. Because the actual dates shift with weekends and holidays, confirm in that year's leaflet.

Q. Is the premium rate the same every year?
A. The industrial accident insurance rate is set by type of business and, together with the employment insurance rate, is revised by year and by circumstances. It is not necessarily the same rate as the previous year, so at each annual update, confirm the latest rate in that year's official leaflet before calculating. This article does not fix the specific rate figures.

Sources

• Act on Collection of Labour Insurance Premiums, etc. (Act No. 84 of 1969), Article 15, paragraph 1 — the employer of a continuing business must, each insurance year, declare and pay the estimated premium within 40 days from 1 June of that insurance year (or within 50 days from the date the insurance relationship arises, if it arose mid-year)
• Same Act, Article 19, paragraph 1 — declaration and payment of the finalized premium. The previous insurance year's finalized premium is declared and paid within 40 days from 1 June of the next insurance year, etc. The difference from the estimated premium already paid is settled
• Same Act, Article 2, paragraph 2 — "wages" means wages, salary, allowances, bonuses and everything else, whatever the name, paid by the employer to the worker as remuneration for labour (the basis for the scope of total wages)
• Same Act, Article 18 and its enforcement ordinance — where the estimated premium is 400,000 yen (200,000 yen for a business where only one of industrial accident or employment insurance has arisen) or more, or the labour insurance affairs are entrusted to an association, the estimated premium may be deferred (three installments)
• Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, labour insurance annual-update leaflet and how to fill in the declaration form — the annual-update declaration/payment period is 1 June to 10 July each year. The deadlines of each deferred installment (in principle) are 1st on 10 July, 2nd on 31 October, 3rd on 31 January of the next year; where entrusted to an association, the 2nd and 3rd are extended. Actual dates shift with weekends and holidays. Premium rates are revised by year and industry (confirmed 31 August 2026)
• Public materials and provisions confirmed on 31 August 2026. Whether a particular allowance is a wage, and whether the deferral requirements are met, are applications that vary with reality and the year's handling. This article is limited to introducing the framework and does not judge individual permissibility

四葉不動産株式会社, 四葉行政書士事務所 and 四葉社会保険労務士事務所 each undertake work as independent businesses, under separate contracts. When we introduce another professional, we arrange for you to contract directly, and our office receives no referral fee. What our office supports on the annual update is organising total wages, preparing and filing the declaration as agent, and confirming the need for deferral. A company's accounting and corporate tax are pointed to a tax accountant, and individual disputes and litigation to a lawyer. For fees, see the fee schedule; for frequently asked questions, see the FAQ.

This article is general information. Individual judgments, in light of the latest primary sources (Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, e-Gov, etc.), are made by a qualified professional after a consultation. Written by Joji Uramatsu (Shakai Hoken Roumushi, Gyoseishoshi, Registered Real Estate Transaction Specialist).