Workers' compensation (rosai) in Japan for foreign workers

Workers’ accident compensation insurance (労災保険, “rosai”) covers you as a foreign worker in Japan whatever your nationality. If you are hurt or fall ill because of your job or your commute, treatment at a designated hospital is free, and from the fourth day off you receive 80% of your daily basis amount (60% benefit plus 20% special allowance). Your employer pays the premiums. You file with the labor standards inspection office (労働基準監督署), and you have 2 years for most claims. All as of October 2026.

Who is covered?

The ministry’s guidebook says rosai applies to foreigners working in Japan regardless of nationality. That includes people with a work-permitted residence status, and also, for example, a student who is hurt at a part-time job.

• It applies to any business that has at least one worker, of any size.
• Part-time (パート), side-job (アルバイト) and temporary workers are covered. The employment form does not matter.
• Employers pay the premiums (the ministry says costs are in principle met by employer premiums).
• If your employer never enrolled in rosai, you can in principle still receive benefits for a work or commuting injury.
• Since November 2024, certain freelancers can join through special enrolment (特別加入). That is a separate, voluntary scheme.

Rosai is separate from health insurance. The ministry states that health insurance cannot be used for work injuries, so tell the hospital the injury came from work or the commute.

What counts?

What does rosai pay?

How the leave amount works. The basis amount (給付基礎日額) is your average wage: the 3 months of pay before the accident divided by calendar days. The guidebook’s example is a 200,000 yen monthly wage, which gives about 6,522 yen a day as the basis and about 5,217 yen per day while off work.

Days 1 to 3. Rosai pays nothing for the first three days. For a work accident, your employer must pay 60% of your average wage for those days. For a commuting accident, the law does not set that duty.

If you have two jobs, the basis amounts of both employers are added together.

How do you claim?

You need a bank account in your name to receive payments. If you plan to leave Japan, see closing a bank account when leaving Japan before you close it.

What if my employer will not cooperate?

Procedures are in principle done by the injured person. The ministry says that even if your employer refuses to certify the form, you can still claim. Go to the prefectural labor bureau or the nearest labor standards inspection office.

• If your employer says the accident is not covered, or that rosai is not enrolled, you can still ask the office. Benefits are possible in principle even if the employer did not enrol.
• If you quit, or the company has closed, you can still claim. The office may ask for the names and addresses of the employer and coworkers.
• If the company already paid some compensation (treatment costs, leave pay, damages), rosai may pay less or nothing for the same part.
• Under Article 12-5 of the rosai law, your right to benefits does not change because you retire from the job.

For problems at work in general, see your labor rights as a foreign worker.

Deadlines

Missing the limit means you cannot receive that benefit, so claim early.

If you leave Japan

The guidebook warns that some benefits cannot be received after returning to your home country. For claims made from outside Japan:

• Amounts are converted at the foreign exchange selling rate on the day of the decision.
• Treatment abroad is covered if the content is judged appropriate.
• Aftercare, prosthetic and assistive devices, post-surgery treatment and the school support allowance for children in Japanese schools are limited to Japan.

If you are mid-claim, ask the office before you leave. Survivors abroad can claim too; the guidebook lists a death certificate and proof of relationship, and accepts proof of blood relationship if your country has no family register.

Getting help in your language

The labor ministry runs free lines for foreign workers. Details can change.

Both also cover Chinese, Portuguese, Spanish, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Nepali, Myanmar, Korean, Thai, Indonesian, Khmer and Mongolian, on set days. Some labor offices also have in-person foreign worker counters. These lines give general advice on working conditions; for your claim itself, the labor standards inspection office decides.

If the injury came with a dismissal, read being dismissed in Japan. For a long absence from work, see how your health insurance works, since it is separate from rosai.