What is the difference between Kokumin Nenkin and Kosei Nenkin?

Kokumin Nenkin, the National Pension, is the flat-rate base layer that all residents aged 20 to 59 must join, paying a fixed monthly contribution. Kosei Nenkin, the Employees' Pension, is an earnings-related second layer for company employees, with contributions and benefits scaled to salary. Employees are enrolled in both, the self-employed only in the first.

How much is the full National Pension?

A full National Pension requires 40 years (480 months) of contributions and currently pays roughly ¥816,000 per year, about ¥68,000 per month. Fewer contribution years reduce the benefit proportionally, so 30 years of contributions yields about three-quarters of the full amount. The exact figure is set annually by the government.

How is the Employees' Pension benefit estimated?

The earnings-related portion is roughly your average annual standard remuneration multiplied by a coefficient of about 0.005481 and by your years of enrolment. This tool uses that standard formula. The real figure depends on your full contribution history and revaluation factors, so treat the output as an estimate.

What are iDeCo and NISA?

iDeCo is Japan's individual defined-contribution pension, a tax-advantaged retirement account with monthly contribution limits up to around ¥23,000 for many employees. NISA is a tax-free investment account allowing up to ¥3.6 million of contributions per year. Both supplement the state pension and grow with investment returns until you draw them.

When can I start claiming the Japanese pension?

The standard pension age is 65, though you can claim a reduced amount from 60 or a larger amount by deferring up to 75. You generally need at least 10 years of contributions to qualify for any pension at all. This tool assumes you draw at the standard age; deferral or early claiming changes the amount.

Japan Pension & Retirement Calculator

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Japan’s pension system has two state layers plus generous tax-advantaged private accounts, and many residents underestimate how much each contributes. This calculator projects your retirement income from the National Pension, the earnings-related Employees’ Pension, and optional iDeCo and NISA savings.

How it works

The state pension combines a flat base and an earnings-related portion, while private savings grow with compound returns:

national pension  = ¥816,000 × (contribution months / 480)
employees pension = avg salary × 0.005481 × years enrolled
ideco / nisa      = future value of monthly/yearly contributions at return r
total annual      = national + employees pension

The National Pension is capped at the full amount after 40 years of contributions, and the Employees’ Pension uses the standard remuneration coefficient that Japan’s pension service applies.

Example and notes

A salaried worker with 40 years in both schemes and an average salary of ¥5,000,000 receives roughly ¥816,000 base plus about ¥1,096,000 earnings-related, for around ¥1,912,000 per year, or ¥159,000 per month. Adding ¥23,000 a month to iDeCo for 30 years at a 3 percent return builds a further pot of about ¥13 million. These are estimates using published coefficients; your actual benefit depends on your full contribution record and the figures set each year.