RetireJapan

Does anyone know about Idoku Nenkin 遺族年金?
3 years ago when I was 65 my wife and I went to the pension office. They said they needed to know how long I have been in Japan and I had to order (I forget from where), the list of all the time periods I have been in Japan because they had to confirm that I had been here long enough.
I actually came to japan in 1975 for 3 months, then from 1992 til now. But the document was insane and have all the dates that I have entered and left Japan, even if it was just for a week or two. Anyway, I don't have the document now unfortunately. I want to go back to the pension office and I am hoping I won't have to order this again, since now I have been here 3 more years than last time (which was 2019). I don't really understand how long I have to have been in Japan for this Idoku Nenkin to kick in and so that if I die my wife can keep receiving the pension and visa versa.

onyourmark2021 wrote: ↑Thu Nov 10, 2022 9:10 am Does anyone know about Idoku Nenkin 遺族年金?
3 years ago when I was 65 my wife and I went to the pension office. They said they needed to know how long I have been in Japan and I had to order (I forget from where), the list of all the time periods I have been in Japan because they had to confirm that I had been here long enough.
I actually came to japan in 1975 for 3 months, then from 1992 til now. But the document was insane and have all the dates that I have entered and left Japan, even if it was just for a week or two. Anyway, I don't have the document now unfortunately. I want to go back to the pension office and I am hoping I won't have to order this again, since now I have been here 3 more years than last time (which was 2019). I don't really understand how long I have to have been in Japan for this Idoku Nenkin to kick in and so that if I die my wife can keep receiving the pension and visa versa.

1st thing is you need to setup a nenkin net account.

https://www3.idpass-net.nenkin.go.jp/n ... 0602SCR.do

This will display all you payment history and information.

Do you have a MyNumber card? That is the easiest route to setup an account.

..................................................................

2nd Survivor rules are fairly straightforward I think?

Scroll down to Survivors' Basic Pension https://www.nenkin.go.jp/international ... nsion.html

Thanks. I do have a mynumber card. It has an IC chip I think as well as a QR code.
I went to the mynumber site and it says I need to download the app. I did that and tried to scan the QR code on the card but my phone then says
Failed to scan the QR cod. Please scan the QR code displayed on the website, not on the back of your Individual Number Card.
Do you know where I am supposed to scan on the website?

Also, regarding the Survivor rules, thank you for the link. It seems to give info about the case where the survivor is taking care of a child though. My wife and I are not taking care of a child.

PPS.
"If your husband dies after contributing for at least 10 years* as the Category Ⅰ insured person and if he has received neither Old-age Basic Pension nor Disability Basic Pension as of the previous day of his death, you can receive the Widow’s Pension while you are aged 60 to 64. To qualify, you need to have been married to him for at least 10 years and have been financially supported by him at the time of his death."
Doesn't this seem to imply that the husband can not have received any pension, in order for the wife to receive anything?

onyourmark2021 wrote: ↑Thu Nov 10, 2022 9:58 am Thanks. I do have a mynumber card. It has an IC chip I think as well as a QR code.
I went to the mynumber site and it says I need to download the app. I did that and tried to scan the QR code on the card but my phone then says
Failed to scan the QR cod. Please scan the QR code displayed on the website, not on the back of your Individual Number Card.
Do you know where I am supposed to scan on the website?

Also, regarding the Survivor rules, thank you for the link. It seems to give info about the case where the survivor is taking care of a child though. My wife and I are not taking care of a child.

You will need a phone with an NFC reader or if you're using a PC, a smart card reader. The later is 1000 yen or so.

Thank you. I guess my phone doesn't have the reader. Do you think this will do the trick?
https://www.amazon.co.jp/Manhattan-1020 ... 09&sr=8-12

onyourmark2021 wrote: ↑Thu Nov 10, 2022 11:30 am Thank you. I guess my phone doesn't have the reader. Do you think this will do the trick?
https://www.amazon.co.jp/Manhattan-1020 ... 09&sr=8-12

Maybe this one? It says it's specifically for Japan and my number cards.

https://amzn.asia/d/c1i9Sl3

The RetireWiki has a fairly detailed description of survivors' benefits for both Japanese public pensions. Survivors' pensions have a basic 25-year contribution requirement, although that period is reduced depending on one's payment status at the time of death and whether or not one is a woman instead of a man.

Two types of survivors' benefits exist: the Survivors' Basic Pension, which normally involves dependent children and applies to Category 1 insured persons, and the Survivors' Employees' Pension, which applies to Category 2 insured persons (i.e., those enrolled in kōsei nenkin). Depending on eligibility, benefits can be claimed under both.

The Survivors' Basic Pension contains a separate provision for a Widow's Pension for dependent spouses of Category 1 insured persons as long as the widow is between 61 and 64 years old (eligibility ends when the widow can claim her own Basic Pension). The requirements for this pension -- including 10 years of contributions as opposed to the basic requirement of 25 years -- have been summarized in the post above, and they are also described in the wiki. The widow can claim a lump-sum payment instead of the pension, with conditions attached.

Survivors' Employees' Pension benefits are more generous and apply to a wider range of surviving dependents. This pension has supplementary benefits for surviving wives which include not only a conditional pension available between the ages of 40 and 64 but also a special transitional supplement for women born on or before April 1, 1956.

Long as it is, this is only an outline of a complex topic, and even the pension office may have trouble explaining it fully, but that is the place to go for advice pertinent to your own situation.