Japan Press Weekly

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2022 November 16 - 22 [POLITICS]

Tax rates become lower for those with annual income of over 100 million yen

Japanese Communist Party Koike Akira at a meeting of the Upper House Financial Affairs Committee on November 17 raised the issue of the "barrier of 100 million yen" in which the tax burden rate decreases for annual incomes of more than 100 million yen.

Financial Minister Suzuki Shun'ichi admitted that the contribution rate for high-income earners is lower than that for low-income earners.

According to the data the government Tax Commission released in October, the combined rate of income tax and social security premiums for the wealthy is lower than that for even middle-income earners with annual incomes of 100 million yen as a dividing line.

Koike blamed the regressive tax system, the system establishing health insurance premiums and the flat-rate national pension premium system, in addition to the preferential securities tax break policy for the present unfair situation. He said, "The government must reformulate these systems and policies."

Showing a graph submitted by the government tax panel, Koike said, "There is nothing like Japan's '100 million yen barrier' in, for example, the United States and Britain. Relatively high rates are levied on higher-income brackets in these countries. Japan should use their systems and policies as a reference."

The tax bureau chief said, "We may need to pay attention," to the 34.8% tax on high-income earners in New York State for example.