This is a translation of the Japanese original. The Japanese version is authoritative; figures follow Japanese tax law.
If you keep working past 60 while enrolled in the Employees' Pension, your pension is reduced by part of the amount by which your salary and pension together exceed a set line. This is the Old-Age Pension for Working Seniors (zaishoku rorei nenkin), and from April 2026 (Reiwa 8) the threshold was raised from 510,000 yen to 650,000 yen. If your pension is 100,000 yen a month, not a single yen is cut until your monthly salary plus bonus averaged per month reaches 550,000 yen. Most of the people who used to hold back their working hours because the pension would be cut no longer have a reason to. Here are the formula, a quick-reference table by combination of monthly salary and pension amount, what is excluded, and how bonuses are treated, organized from Japan Pension Service materials.
Summary: if your monthly pension plus your monthly salary equivalent is 650,000 yen or less you receive the full amount; half of any excess is suspended
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Effective date | April 1, 2026 (from the pension for April; the first actual transfer is the June payment) |
| Threshold (suspension adjustment threshold) | Before the revision 510,000 yen to 650,000 yen after (the fiscal 2026 figure; revised every fiscal year with wage movements) |
| Formula | If the basic monthly pension amount plus the total monthly remuneration equivalent is 650,000 yen or less, the pension is paid in full. If it exceeds that, suspended amount = (basic monthly pension amount + total monthly remuneration equivalent − 650,000 yen) / 2 |
| Basic monthly pension amount | The annual Old-Age Employees' Pension (earnings-related portion) divided by 12. The dependent addition and the Old-Age Basic Pension are not included |
| Total monthly remuneration equivalent | The standard monthly remuneration for that month plus the total of standard bonus amounts over the past 12 months divided by 12 |
| Who is covered | People aged 60 or over who receive the Old-Age Employees' Pension while enrolled in the Employees' Pension (the calculation is the same under 65 and from 65) |
Source: Japan Pension Service, The Old-Age Pension for Working Seniors has been revised [Japan Pension Service]
What is suspended is only the Old-Age Employees' Pension. The Old-Age Basic Pension (the National Pension portion) is not reduced no matter how much you earn. In the Japan Pension Service's own example, someone with a basic monthly pension amount of 100,000 yen and a total monthly remuneration equivalent of 460,000 yen had 25,000 yen a month suspended before the revision, but after it the total of 560,000 yen is 650,000 yen or less, so the pension is paid in full.
Quick-reference table: how much is suspended, by monthly salary and monthly pension
Treating the total monthly remuneration equivalent as salary plus bonus averaged per month, the monthly amount of pension suspended works out as follows. A dash means no suspension (paid in full).
| Monthly pension (basic monthly amount) / Total monthly remuneration equivalent | 400,000 yen | 500,000 yen | 550,000 yen | 600,000 yen | 700,000 yen | 800,000 yen |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 80,000 yen | — | — | — | 15,000 yen | 65,000 yen | Fully suspended |
| 100,000 yen | — | — | — | 25,000 yen | 75,000 yen | Fully suspended |
| 120,000 yen | — | — | 10,000 yen | 35,000 yen | 85,000 yen | Fully suspended |
| 150,000 yen | — | — | 25,000 yen | 50,000 yen | 100,000 yen | Fully suspended |
| 200,000 yen | — | 25,000 yen | 50,000 yen | 75,000 yen | 125,000 yen | 175,000 yen |
Note: suspended amount = (monthly pension + total monthly remuneration equivalent − 650,000 yen) / 2. If the suspended amount exceeds the monthly pension, the whole pension is suspended. Under the previous 510,000 yen threshold, a person with a 100,000 yen pension and 500,000 yen of total remuneration had 45,000 yen suspended.
How it is calculated: bonuses ride on every month as the past 12 months divided by 12
The total monthly remuneration equivalent is the standard monthly remuneration for that month plus the total of bonuses received over the past 12 months divided by 12. Your pension is not cut only in the month a bonus is paid; the bonus rides thinly on every month for a full year.
A rehired employee on 380,000 yen a month (standard monthly remuneration 380,000 yen) with 960,000 yen of annual bonus, whose Old-Age Employees' Pension is 1,440,000 yen a year (120,000 yen a month)
Total monthly remuneration equivalent: 380,000 yen + 960,000 yen / 12 = 460,000 yen
Basic monthly pension amount + total monthly remuneration equivalent: 120,000 yen + 460,000 yen = 580,000 yen, which is 650,000 yen or less, so the pension is paid in full (before the revision, (580,000 yen − 510,000 yen) / 2 = 35,000 yen was suspended)
The same person on 500,000 yen a month with 1,200,000 yen of annual bonus
Total monthly remuneration equivalent: 500,000 yen + 100,000 yen = 600,000 yen, for a total of 720,000 yen
Suspended amount: (720,000 yen − 650,000 yen) / 2 = 35,000 yen. The pension becomes 85,000 yen a month
The standard monthly remuneration is not your salary itself but an amount set by grade. Because the revision raised the threshold, far fewer people now need to negotiate a lower salary to keep their pension from being cut. For working life after retirement age as a whole, see the money roadmap around retirement age.
What counts and what does not
Counted and subject to reduction
- The earnings-related portion of the Old-Age Employees' Pension (the basic monthly pension amount)
- Salary and bonuses from an employer where you are enrolled in the Employees' Pension
- People aged 70 or over are still covered if they work at a workplace covered by the Employees' Pension (they pay no premiums, but the calculation is the same)
Not counted and not reduced
- The Old-Age Basic Pension, the dependent addition, and the transitional addition
- Income from ways of working outside the Employees' Pension (sole proprietors, part-time work under 20 hours a week, an unpaid advisory role at a company, and so on)
- Rental income, dividends, and iDeCo withdrawals
- The Employment Insurance continued employment benefit for older workers (a separate adjustment suspends part of the pension)
Sole proprietors and people working under contract are not enrolled in the Employees' Pension, so no matter how much they earn they are not subject to the Old-Age Pension for Working Seniors. Working means your pension gets cut applies only to ways of working that come with Employees' Pension enrollment.
No procedure is needed; the calculation is redone automatically from the April payment
You do not have to file anything for the revision to apply. The Japan Pension Service recalculates from the standard monthly remuneration information it receives from your employer and pays under the new threshold from the pension for April 2026 (the June payment). Anyone whose suspended amount changes receives a notice of change in the payment amount.
The threshold is reviewed every fiscal year in line with movements in nominal wages. The 650,000 yen figure is the fiscal 2026 amount and may move slightly in later years. For how this relates to deferral, which delays the start of your pension, see early and deferred pension claiming. Note that the portion being suspended does not count toward the increase from deferral.
What to do today
- Check the annual amount of your Old-Age Employees' Pension on your pension record notice or Nenkin Net, and divide it by 12. That is your basic monthly pension amount.
- Add the past 12 months of bonuses divided by 12 to your monthly salary (standard monthly remuneration). If the total with your basic monthly pension amount is 650,000 yen or less, the pension is paid in full.
- If it exceeds 650,000 yen, half of the excess is suspended. Compare the suspended amount against your take-home pay to judge whether changing your hours or how you take bonuses is worth it.
Summary
- From April 2026, the threshold for the in-service old-age pension rises from 510,000 yen to 650,000 yen.
- If the basic monthly pension amount plus the standard total monthly remuneration is 650,000 yen or below, the full pension is paid; half of any amount above that is withheld.
- For someone with a monthly pension of 100,000 yen, no reduction occurs as long as monthly salary plus the monthly-converted bonus stays at or below 550,000 yen.
- Only the old-age employees' pension is withheld. The old-age basic pension, and income from work not covered by employees' pension such as self-employment, are not affected.
- No procedures are required — recalculation happens automatically starting with the April portion (paid in June).
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Reference links (sources)
This article is based on the following materials. Because the threshold is revised each fiscal year, please check the latest guidance.
Note: this article is general information. The quick-reference table is approximate, and the actual amount varies with your standard monthly remuneration grade and whether you receive the dependent addition. Please confirm individual amounts with your pension office.