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Running out of money to pay rent? What to do before your life falls apart.

By on June 5, 2020

The global pandemic has resulted in cascading economic impacts to people who have lost part or all of their income with little to zero savings left to fall back on. Families are unable to continue paying rent, tuition, utility bills, food, etc. In this time of uncertainty, we’d like to focus on real issues affecting or soon-to-affect the lives of foreigners in Japan.

We’re all in this together and Japan has your back.

According to the Statistics Bureau of Japan, 1.89 million people are unemployed in April 2020, an increase of 130 thousand from the previous year which puts the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate to 2.6%. If more people emerge from the current crisis with neither money, nor jobs, nor access to health care, and if these people become hopeless and desperate, societies could begin to collapse. This is why the main tenets of Prime Minister Abe’s stimulus measures worth 40% of its GDP, the world’s largest virus-response package, targeted all sectors that make up Japan’s society – from businesses and households to students and healthcare. Japan’s record stimulus is aimed to keep them afloat from the cascading shocks of the pandemic.

We’re down to very little savings in the bank. Since we don’t know for sure how long the situation is going to last, are foreign residents eligible for a rent subsidy? Our visas are running out, my job is suspended and won’t be able to cover the next rent.

If you’re worried about where to get money to pay rent this month and next, especially if you’re among those on social media or chat groups asking for solutions, you’re likely faced with such pressing issues. We spoke to two foreign residents who have successfully qualified to receive a rent subsidy.

Conrad works in sales for a small company in Toranomon impacted by the pandemic. In March, he and 3 of his work colleagues had been furloughed by the company for an indefinite period starting April due to coronavirus. For him, that means a heavily reduced income in the coming months until he is asked to report back by his employer. With a family (wife and kids ages 5 months and 3 years old) to feed and ¥160,000 in monthly rent to pay, his savings went from ¥1,200,000 to ¥450,000 in just a matter of 3 months. Worried about how he will be able to cover the rent for June and later months without taking it out from his now dwindling savings, he asked for rent subsidy in May from the Shuuro Shien Center of the Minato ward. He is due to get ¥86,000 rent subsidy from the government from June to August 2020. The subsidy is wired directly to the bank account of the landlord or the landlord-authorized agent. This means ¥74,000 of the ¥160,000 rent still has to come from his own pocket every month.

RENT SUBSIDY BY THE JAPANESE GOVERNMENT (住居確報給付金）

One-person household             ¥69,800

Two-person household             ¥75,000

Three-person household          ¥81,000

Four-person household            ¥86,000

Five-Six person household       ¥91,000

7- person & above                    ¥97,000

The rent subsidy is one of the most useful policies within the stimulus package put together by the Japanese government. It is available to all people, foreigners included, who have lost their jobs (temporarily or permanently), or for those whose income have been reduced or diminished as a result of the pandemic. The exact literal English translation of the subsidy is Housing Security Subsidy. This means you can also apply if you are not renting but having problems with covering your monthly mortgage. The subsidy’s initial approval is for 3 months with option to renew for another 3 twice or a total of 9 months – provided  circumstances haven’t changed.

Amount of Savings Allowed At The Time of Application

One-person household             ¥504,000 or less

Two-person household             ¥780,000 or less

Three-person household       ¥1,000,000 or less

Four-person household         ¥1,000,000 or less

Sonia, a single mom who works for a theme park under a working visa, lives with her 21-year old daughter in a ¥120,000-a-month rented Yokohama apartment. Like Conrad, her work is closed indefinitely with no clear re-opening date. Sonia who has been in Japan for close to 12 years working for the same company, receives ¥250,000 a month in gross pay. Together with the money her daughter (dependent status) earns as part-time sports coach, they make ¥350,000 a month in gross household income. But since the school she works for has been temporarily closed since March, both of them have practically 0 income. Despite her visa expiring in July, and 0 bank balance, she qualified for the 3-month rent subsidy. She has also applied for an emergency no-interest loan of ¥600,000 from another welfare fund payable in 120 months just to get by. (More on that in a separate article.)

In both of the cases above, they had to call the office first and make an appointment.

The documents they submitted to be eligible for the subsidy –

  1.  Application form available at the Shuuro Shien Center with jurisdiction over your ward. The form is in Japanese but may be filled up with assistance from the assisting staff on the day of the appointment.
  2.  Zairyu card (health insurance, MyNumber card will do).  Bring the original.
  3.  Seal or signature (Seal if you used it to open your bank account. If not, signature works just fine.)
  4. Copy of the latest utility bill in lessee’s name (bill or receipt is acceptable.)
  5. Copy of bank account balance (Bring the passbook)
  6. Copy of lease agreement (name of applicant for subsidy and lessee should be the same). Bring the original lease agreement too.
  7. Copy of 1 residence certificate (with name/s of dependent/s included) obtained from your ward office.
  8. A one-page form supplied by the Shuuro Shien Center filled up and signed by the landlord (or kanri gaisha) as official lessor with whom your rental agreement was signed. The form contains the company representative, address and official bank account details through which lessor agrees to receive the subsidy payment. Also include a copy of the agreement between lessor and guarantor company.
  9. Processing time:  Depending on the municipality where one lives, the process could take anywhere between 3 weeks to a month.

If you are a foreigner on work visa and lost a job due to coronavirus but would like to ask for rent subsidy, please consult the Shuuro Shien Center in Japanese (or through a translator) just the same.

If you are a foreign resident with financial issues or stories related to coronavirus, please share it with others. Write to editor@tokyofamilies.net

 

About Ted Tanaka