This is a translation of the Japanese original. The Japanese version is authoritative; figures follow Japanese tax law.
The Child Rearing Allowance (児童扶養手当) pays in full up to ¥1,900,000 of employment income if you have one child. From the April 2026 payment the full amount is ¥48,050 a month. Above that line it falls in ¥10 steps, and payment stops at an annual income of ¥3,850,000. With two children the full amount runs to ¥2,443,000 and payment stops at ¥4,325,000. But 80% of any child support you receive is added to your income, and a parent you live with can stop the payment entirely. Start with the "amount after the employment income deduction" on your withholding slip.
The short answer: the full-amount ceiling and the cut-off, by number of children
These figures assume employment income only and no child support. In law the limits are set on income (所得); the annual pay figures are reference values converted for an employee[Children and Families Agency].
| Children | Ceiling for the full amount | Income at which payment stops | Monthly amount when paid in full |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ¥1,900,000 | ¥3,850,000 | ¥48,050 |
| 2 | ¥2,443,000 | ¥4,325,000 | ¥59,400 |
| 3 | ¥2,986,000 | ¥4,800,000 | ¥70,750 |
| 4 | ¥3,529,000 | ¥5,275,000 | ¥82,100 |
| 5 | ¥4,013,000 | ¥5,750,000 | ¥93,450 |
The monthly amount is ¥48,050 in full plus ¥11,350 for each child from the second onwards (from the April 2026 payment)[Okayama City].
Child support shifts the whole picture to the left. Deadlines and paperwork are covered in the annual status report for the Child Rearing Allowance.
The official limits are on income; the annual-pay table is a converted guide
Municipalities assess income, not annual pay. Check every time which of the two is meant.
| Dependants | Limit for the full amount (income) | Same, as annual pay | Cut-off limit (income) | Same, as annual pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | ¥690,000 | ¥1,520,000 | ¥2,080,000 | ¥3,343,000 |
| 1 | ¥1,070,000 | ¥1,900,000 | ¥2,460,000 | ¥3,850,000 |
| 2 | ¥1,450,000 | ¥2,443,000 | ¥2,840,000 | ¥4,325,000 |
| 3 | ¥1,830,000 | ¥2,986,000 | ¥3,220,000 | ¥4,800,000 |
| 4 | ¥2,210,000 | ¥3,529,000 | ¥3,600,000 | ¥5,275,000 |
| 5 | ¥2,590,000 | ¥4,013,000 | ¥3,980,000 | ¥5,750,000 |
Source: the income limit table in the Children and Families Agency's "Support for single-parent families", April 2026 edition[Children and Families Agency]
The number of dependants is how many people you claim on your tax return. If you have two children but claim only one, you are assessed as one. From the sixth person onwards ¥380,000 is added for each[Okayama City].
The income is worked out differently from tax (you cannot deduct the single-parent deduction)
This is the biggest trap. The income used for the Child Rearing Allowance is calculated separately from the income on your tax return.
Amount after the employment income deduction − ¥100,000 − ¥80,000 (flat, in lieu of social insurance premiums) − other deductions + child support × 0.8
Source: the Children and Families Agency's worked example (pay of ¥1,810,000 with ¥300,000 a year in child support gives an income amount of ¥1,220,000)[Children and Families Agency]
Social insurance premiums are a flat ¥80,000, not the actual amount. And the father or mother receiving the allowance can deduct neither the ¥350,000 single-parent deduction (ひとり親控除) nor the ¥270,000 widow deduction (寡婦控除)[Okayama City]. Both are allowed in tax, so applying the tax rules as they stand makes your estimate ¥350,000 too generous.
| Type of deduction | Father or mother receiving it | Relative liable to support or caregiver living with you |
|---|---|---|
| Flat deduction from employment income | ¥100,000 | ¥100,000 |
| In lieu of social insurance premiums (flat) | ¥80,000 | ¥80,000 |
| Single-parent deduction | Not allowed | ¥350,000 |
| Widow deduction | Not allowed | ¥270,000 |
| Special disability / ordinary disability / working student | ¥400,000 / ¥270,000 / ¥270,000 | Same |
| Medical expenses, casualty loss, small-scale enterprise mutual aid contributions | The amount deducted | Same |
| Child support received | 80% added to income | — |
The deductions on the tax side are sorted out in the single-parent deduction and the disability deduction. The same name can work in a different place.
Go a little over the limit and the allowance falls by only about ¥1,000 a month
Exceed the full-amount limit by even ¥1 and you move to partial payment. The fall is gentle. The two fiscal 2026 formulas simply multiply the excess income by a small coefficient[Okayama City].
First child = ¥48,040 − [(income amount − full-amount limit) × 0.0264029]
Second and later children = ¥11,340 − [(income amount − full-amount limit) × 0.0040719]
The main allowance falls more than six times faster than the add-on.
- ¥1,670,000 after the employment income deduction − ¥100,000 − ¥80,000 = income amount of ¥1,490,000
- ¥40,000 over the full-amount limit of ¥1,450,000 (so partial payment)
- First child ¥46,980 + second child ¥11,180 = ¥58,160 a month
- Only ¥1,240 a month below the full ¥59,400
This site applied the formulas in the official materials. The amount actually granted depends on the municipality's assessment.
Pay rises by ¥57,000 and the allowance falls by barely ¥15,000 a year. Cutting your hours to stay under the limit is a clear loss.
The floor is often misunderstood too. Partial payment bottoms out at ¥11,340 for the first child; it does not slide towards zero[Okayama City]. With one child you reach the floor at ¥3,850,000 of annual pay, and above that the allowance stops altogether.
80% of child support counts as income. At ¥50,000 a month the full-amount line drops to ¥1,420,000
80% of the child support you receive is added to your income[Okayama City]. ¥50,000 a month is ¥600,000 a year, and 80% of that, ¥480,000, is added on. That is the same as the limit falling by ¥480,000, so the boundary moves a long way down.
| Household with one child | No child support | Child support ¥50,000 a month | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ceiling for the full amount (annual pay) | ¥1,900,000 | ¥1,420,000 | ¥480,000 lower |
| Income at which payment stops | ¥3,850,000 | ¥3,250,000 | ¥600,000 lower |
A guide this site worked back from the limit table.
"Taking child support leaves you worse off" is too hasty. The allowance falls so gently that receiving it always leaves you with more in hand.
- No child support: an allowance of ¥48,050 and nothing else
- Child support of ¥50,000 a month: income becomes ¥1,550,000 and the allowance falls to ¥35,370
- The allowance falls by ¥12,680 a month, but ¥50,000 a month comes in
- A net gain of ¥37,320 a month
This site applied the formulas in the official materials.
If a parent you live with is at or above the limit, the whole allowance stops
If you have moved back in with your parents, they are assessed too. Lineal relatives and siblings living with you count as relatives liable to support, and if their income is at or above the limit the allowance stops in full, whatever your own income is[Okayama City].
| Dependants of the relative liable to support | Limit (income) | Annual pay guide |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | ¥2,360,000 | ¥3,725,000 |
| 1 | ¥2,740,000 | ¥4,200,000 |
| 2 | ¥3,120,000 | ¥4,675,000 |
| 3 | ¥3,500,000 | ¥5,150,000 |
Source: the Children and Families Agency's limit table for relatives liable to support (¥380,000 is added for each person from the fourth onwards)[Children and Families Agency]
If your parents claim nobody as a dependant, the allowance is zero at an annual pay of ¥3,725,000. Talk to your municipality before you move your registered address. Note that the Child Allowance has no income limit of this kind at all.
The amount changes in April; the income line changes in November
Twice a year, for different reasons, the amount paid into your account changes.
- From the April payment: the unit amounts are revised in line with prices. From the April 2026 payment the full amount goes from ¥46,690 to ¥48,050 and the add-on from ¥11,030 to ¥11,350[Okayama City].
- From the November payment: the income used for the assessment moves on by one year. The annual status report filed in August is reflected.
- Paid in odd-numbered months: January, March, May, July, September and November, in six instalments covering the months up to the previous one[Child Rearing Allowance Act].
Even when the amount changes from the November payment, the money comes later. A revision following the annual status report is fixed to reach you from the January payment[Children and Families Agency].
- 1–31 August: file the annual status report. Leave it unfiled for two years and the right to the allowance lapses[Edogawa City].
- October onwards: the result of the review arrives. If you continue, a certificate is sent to you.
- The following January: November and December are paid together at the new amount.
There is also a rule that halves the allowance after five years of receipt (seven years from the date you first qualified). It does not apply if you report employment, job-hunting, a disability or a similar reason. Only 0.4%, about 3,000 of some 790,000 recipients, are actually on half[Children and Families Agency]. What to fear is not the rule but forgetting to file.
The allowance is tax-free. At ¥2,000,000 the resident tax treatment changes too
No tax is charged on the allowance you receive. Article 25 of the Child Rearing Allowance Act forbids levying tax or other public charges on the basis of the allowance[Child Rearing Allowance Act]. You do not report it, and it does not affect the following year's limit assessment.
Tax has reliefs of its own. The single-parent deduction is ¥350,000 for income tax[NTA No.1171] and ¥300,000 for resident tax. On top of that, a single parent whose total income for the previous year is ¥1,350,000 or less pays no resident tax[Local Tax Act].
Total income of ¥1,350,000 is ¥2,000,000 of employment income. That is ¥100,000 above the full-amount line of ¥1,900,000 for one child. In the band between ¥1,900,000 and ¥2,000,000, the allowance, resident tax and nursery fees all move at once. The conditions are in who counts as a resident-tax-exempt household.
One thing to do next. Take the "amount after the employment income deduction" on your withholding slip, subtract ¥180,000, add 80% of any child support, and compare the result with the income table.
Summary
- The full amount from the April Reiwa 8 (2026) payment onward is ¥48,050 a month. With one child, full payment continues up to ¥1.9 million in salary income and stops at ¥3.85 million.
- With two children, full payment continues up to ¥2.443 million and stops at ¥4.325 million. The official measure for determination is income, not gross annual salary.
- Income is calculated by subtracting ¥100,000 and ¥80,000 from the amount after the employment income deduction. The recipient themselves cannot claim the single-parent deduction.
- 80% of child support payments received is added to income. Even so, receiving it still increases net take-home amount.
- If a cohabiting parent's income exceeds the limit, payment stops entirely. The annual status report must be filed between August 1 and 31.
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Reference links (sources)
- Children and Families Agency, Support for single-parent families (April 2026)——the limit table and the partial payment formulas
- Okayama City, income limits for the Child Rearing Allowance and how partial payments are calculated——amounts from the April 2026 payment, the two coefficients, the list of deductions
- Edogawa City, Child Rearing Allowance——payment dates and the annual status report period
- Child Rearing Allowance Act——payment months, the ban on public charges
- Local Tax Act——the scope of exemption, the ¥300,000 single-parent deduction
- National Tax Agency No.1171, the single-parent deduction——the conditions for the ¥350,000 income tax deduction
The fiscal 2026 amounts are shown as estimates in the Children and Families Agency's materials, while municipalities announce the same figures as fixed. Confirm the final assessment with your municipal office.