Taxes on Part-Time Work for International Students in Japan: Withholding Tax, Resident Tax, Year-End Adjustment, Tax Return and the Working Student Deduction

When you start a part-time job, tax may be taken out of your pay. Some people are surprised on payday when the amount paid into their account is smaller than they expected. This guide explains what happens with tax when an international student works part-time, based on official information.

We checked the official pages listed below on 9 November 2026. Tax rules can change from year to year. In particular, for 2026 (Reiwa 8), the amounts of the basic deduction and other items change from December. This guide writes only the figures and conditions we could confirm, and for anything we could not confirm it says "check with the tax office or your local government." This guide does not guarantee the amount of your tax. For your own case, please ask at the tax office or the city, ward, town or village office.

This guide covers tax only. For permission to work part-time and the 28-hours-a-week rule, see the part-time work guide.

What to know first

• Income tax may be taken out of your part-time pay first. (More exactly, this is income tax and the special income tax for reconstruction; in this guide we call both "income tax.") This is called "withholding" (源泉徴収). Depending on your income and the documents you submit, the amount taken out can be 0 yen.
• "Resident tax" (住民税) is a tax charged by the city, ward, town or village where you live. It is a different tax from income tax.
• At the end of the year, your employer may recalculate your tax. This is called "year-end adjustment" (年末調整).
• In some cases you need to report to the tax office yourself. This is called a "tax return" (確定申告).
• Even if tax has been taken out, it may come back to you later. But whether it comes back depends on the person.

1. What is income tax withholding?

The explanations in this guide (Column Kou and Column Otsu, the deduction amounts, the 1.78 million yen guideline) are mainly for people treated as "residents" of Japan. For people who are not residents, the withholding method and deductions are different. If you do not know which one you are, check with your employer or the tax office (see chapter 7 for details).

According to the National Tax Agency, when a company or other payer pays wages, it must deduct income tax each time it pays and pay that tax to the state. This is called withholding. A company or person with this duty is called a "withholding agent" (源泉徴収義務者). Your employer pays the deducted tax to the state. However, if a tax return shows that the tax was not enough, you may have to pay the rest yourself.

The amount deducted is decided by the National Tax Agency's "withholding tax table" (源泉徴収税額表). The amount applied to the table is your pay after social insurance premiums, such as health insurance and employment insurance premiums, are subtracted.

Please remember two columns here. According to the National Tax Agency, they work as follows.

When you start a part-time job, your employer may ask you to submit this declaration. The tax taken out changes depending on whether you submit it and which column is used. If you do not know how to fill it in, ask your employer. If you work in two or more places, you submit this declaration, in principle, to only one main employer. At your other employers, Column Otsu may apply. The employer that receives this declaration is treated as your main employer for withholding. Be careful not to submit it to two or more employers at the same time.

For short-term part-time jobs

According to the National Tax Agency, if you are paid by the hour or by the day and your fixed contract period is two months or less, Column Hei (丙欄) of the "daily table" may be used. If the contract is extended and goes over two months, Column Hei can no longer be used from the day it goes over two months. Check your contract period with your employer.

About tax rates

According to the National Tax Agency, income tax rates have seven steps, from 5% to 45%. The lowest rate, 5%, applies to the part of taxable income up to 1,949,000 yen. This "taxable income" is not your income itself. It is the amount left after you subtract the "deductions" explained below from your income.

2. Income and a guideline for the amount that is not taxed

Income tax is not charged on all of your income. Some amounts are subtracted from your income, and tax is charged on the rest. For the 2026 (Reiwa 8) tax year, these are the figures we could confirm on National Tax Agency pages.

The minimum guaranteed amount of the employment income deduction is 650,000 yen for 2025 (Reiwa 7), and 740,000 yen for 2026 (Reiwa 8) and 2027 (Reiwa 9). The basic deduction is 950,000 yen for 2025 (Reiwa 7), and 1,040,000 yen for 2026 (Reiwa 8) and 2027 (Reiwa 9) (for 2026, when total income is 4.89 million yen or less).

"1.78 million yen" is this guide's calculation

If you have no income other than pay, no other deductions, and are treated as a resident of Japan, 1.78 million yen (740,000 yen plus 1,040,000 yen) is a guideline for the upper limit of income on which no income tax is charged for 2026. National Tax Agency No.1800 also gives 1.78 million yen for 2026 and 1.6 million yen for 2025 as a guideline for people with only part-time income and no other income. However, this guide explains it for international students with the assumptions stated.

For 2025, it is 1.6 million yen, which is 650,000 yen plus 950,000 yen.

This guideline is about income tax only. Resident tax, being a dependent of a parent or spouse, and social insurance have their own separate rules. This guide does not cover social insurance or dependents.

For 2026, the amount is settled in the December year-end adjustment and similar procedures

According to the National Tax Agency Q&A, the increase in the basic deduction and the increase in the minimum guaranteed amount of the employment income deduction take effect on 1 December 2026 and apply from the 2026 income tax. On the other hand, withholding on pay up to November 2026 is done in the same way as before. For this reason, for 2026 your tax for the whole year is recalculated and settled in the December year-end adjustment (or in a tax return). For pay that is due to be paid on or after 1 January 2027, the revised withholding tax table is used.

3. Resident tax

According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, individual resident tax is a kind of "community membership fee," and it is charged by the city, ward, town or village (and prefecture) where you live on 1 January of that year. It has an "income-based part" (所得割) that depends on income (the basic rate is 10%, made up of 4% prefectural tax and 6% municipal tax; designated cities differ) and a "per-capita part" (均等割) that is a fixed amount regardless of income (the basic amounts are 1,000 yen prefectural tax and 3,000 yen municipal tax; from fiscal 2024, a further 1,000 yen of forest environment tax (a national tax) is collected together). The income-based part is calculated on income from 1 January to 31 December of the previous year. However, prefectures and municipalities can set their own rates.

This means resident tax is billed in the following year, based on last year's income, not this year's. For example, a person who came to Japan in October 2026 and started part-time work may be subject to resident tax based on their 2026 income if they live in a city, ward, town or village on 1 January 2027. Whether you are actually charged depends on the amount of your income.

According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, people with low income are exempt from resident tax under certain conditions. The income level for exemption differs by local government, so this guide does not give it. Check the information from the city, ward, town or village where you live.

There are two ways to pay. One is "special collection" (特別徴収), where the company deducts it from your pay. The other is "ordinary collection" (普通徴収), where you pay yourself with a tax notice sent by the city, ward, town or village.

4. Year-end adjustment

According to the National Tax Agency, year-end adjustment is a procedure that settles the difference between the total income tax deducted from your monthly pay and the income tax you should pay for the year. If too much was deducted, the difference is returned through your employer. On the other hand, if too little was deducted, more may be taken from your pay later.

Year-end adjustment applies to certain people who have submitted the "Declaration of Dependents Exemption and Other Changes" by the day the year-end adjustment is done. People covered by the year-end adjustment done in December are those who worked for the whole year, and those who started work during the year and are still working at the end of the year.

People who leave a job during the year cannot, in principle, receive year-end adjustment. The National Tax Agency page also mentions exceptions. For example, the rules for someone who left a job and is not expected to receive pay from another employer in the same year have detailed conditions, so check with the tax office. A person who did not receive year-end adjustment makes a tax return to get back tax that was deducted too much.

5. Tax return

A tax return is a procedure in which you calculate your income and tax for the year from 1 January to 31 December and report them to the tax office. According to the National Tax Agency, the filing period is, in principle, 16 February to 15 March of the following year. You can prepare and submit it from home using the "Tax Return Preparation Corner" (確定申告書等作成コーナー) on the National Tax Agency website.

Most people who receive pay have their tax settled by year-end adjustment, so they do not need a tax return. According to the National Tax Agency, examples of when a tax return is needed are as follows.

• People whose annual pay is over 20 million yen.
• People who receive pay from two or more places, and whose pay that did not go through year-end adjustment plus other income is over 200,000 yen. However, depending on the conditions, a return may not be needed.
• People who receive pay from one place, and whose income other than pay and retirement pay is over 200,000 yen.

Also, according to the National Tax Agency, when you receive pay from two or more places, the pay other than the main pay (the secondary pay) cannot, in principle, go through year-end adjustment. Depending on the amount of pay that did not go through year-end adjustment and your other income, you will have to make a tax return yourself to settle it. Check the conditions above or ask the tax office to see whether you need one. If you have several part-time jobs at the same time, please be careful.

Even if it is not required, if too much tax was taken out, or if you left a job during the year and did not receive year-end adjustment, making a tax return may bring tax back to you. Whether tax comes back and how much differ by person. This guide does not guarantee a refund. The National Tax Agency Q&A also says that if the tax withheld was zero, there is no tax to get back even if you make a tax return.

6. Working student deduction

The working student deduction (勤労学生控除) is a system that lowers income tax for students who work. According to the National Tax Agency, the deduction is 270,000 yen, and it applies to people who meet all three of the following conditions on 31 December of that year.

• You have income from work, such as pay.
• Your total income is 850,000 yen or less, and your income other than income from work is 100,000 yen or less. From the Reiwa 8 (2026) tax year, 850,000 yen changes to 890,000 yen.
• You are a student or pupil of a "designated school."

What is a "designated school"?

According to the National Tax Agency, besides elementary schools, junior high schools, high schools, universities and colleges of technology, it also includes those courses of vocational schools (専修学校) and miscellaneous schools (各種学校) set up by the state, local governments, school corporations and others that meet certain requirements. Those requirements include conditions on the length of study and class hours. Whether a Japanese language school qualifies depends on the school. Check at the office of your school. Students of vocational schools and miscellaneous schools need to get a certificate from the school and attach it to the return or show it. However, if a person who receives pay claims the deduction in the year-end adjustment, this certificate is not needed.

How to apply

A person who receives pay writes the working student deduction items on the "Declaration of Dependents Exemption and Other Changes" and submits it to the employer. If you file a tax return, you write it on the return and submit it.

How much it helps

According to the National Tax Agency, for a person who qualifies as a working student, one person is added to the number of dependents in Column Kou of the withholding tax table, and the tax deducted each month changes.

On the other hand, by this guide's calculation, the pay that qualifies for the working student deduction for 2026 is up to 1.63 million yen, which is 740,000 yen plus 890,000 yen. This amount is smaller than the 1.78 million yen above, so if you have only pay, the income tax calculation may show little difference even without the working student deduction. This calculation is a guideline for people with no other income or deductions. For the effect on resident tax and whether you qualify, check with your school, the tax office and your city, ward, town or village office.

7. Whether you are a resident, and when you leave Japan

According to the National Tax Agency, under the Income Tax Act a "resident" is an individual who has a "domicile" (住所) in Japan, or who has continuously had a "residence" (居所) in Japan for one year or more. Domicile is judged by where the centre of your life is. People who are not residents are treated differently, for example the maximum basic deduction is lower (from 2026, the maximum is 620,000 yen). Which one an international student is depends on the situation, so check with the tax office. In the year you return home, it is safer to ask your employer, the tax office and the city, ward, town or village office early about the procedures.

8. When you have trouble with the procedures

• Ask the person in charge at your workplace about the Declaration of Dependents Exemption and Other Changes and how withholding is done.
• Ask the school office about the certificate for the working student deduction.
• For tax questions, go to the counter at your nearest tax office.
• For resident tax, go to the counter at the office of the city, ward, town or village where you live.

If you do not understand something at the counter, showing a note in Japanese can make it easier to be understood. For other places to ask for help, see the guide on where to get help.

FAQ

Is tax taken out of my part-time pay even if I have just arrived in Japan?

When pay is paid, the employer does withholding. According to the National Tax Agency, the withholding method changes depending on whether you have submitted the Declaration of Dependents Exemption and Other Changes. The amount taken out is decided by your employer and the tax table.

If too much tax was taken out, will the money come back?

It may. It is settled by year-end adjustment or a tax return. But whether it comes back differs by person, and this guide does not guarantee it.

When do I pay resident tax?

According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, resident tax is charged by the city, ward, town or village where you live on 1 January and is calculated on the previous year's income. You pay either by deduction from your pay by the company (special collection) or by paying yourself with a tax notice (ordinary collection). The timing may differ by city, ward, town or village.

If I quit my part-time job during the year, do I need a tax return?

According to the National Tax Agency, people who leave a job during the year are, in principle, not covered by year-end adjustment. If you want to get back tax that was deducted too much, you make a tax return. For 2026, people who received their last pay on or before 30 November 2026 and had year-end adjustment, and people who left during the year and did not have year-end adjustment, may need to make a tax return to use the revised deductions (National Tax Agency Q&A).

Can students of Japanese language schools use the working student deduction?

It depends on the school. The National Tax Agency advises you to check at the office of the school you attend.

What to do next

Before you start a part-time job, ask your employer whether you should submit the "Declaration of Dependents Exemption and Other Changes," and how pay is paid. Also ask your school whether you qualify for the working student deduction. At the end of the year, or when you quit your part-time job, keep documents you receive from your employer, such as the withholding tax slip (源泉徴収票), in a safe place. You can see the whole picture of costs in the cost guide. For the first procedures after you arrive, see the guide to your first 7 days in Japan. You can compare each school's conditions in the list of Japanese language schools. If you have questions about how to use this site, please contact us. You can contact us, but we do not guarantee admission or a visa. This site is free to use.