News & Blog

November 20, 2017

Is there a minimum wage in Japan?

In general, employers and employees are given expansive freedom to agree to any type of employment contract they wish.  However, the Labor Standards Act contains a series of protections for employees that restrict employers’ ability to draft unfair employment agreements.  The minimum wage is among these protections.  Even if an employee agrees to a salary below the minimum wage, labor law demands that the salary be raised to the minimum level.
November 17, 2017

Can I prevent a third party from filing for a patent in Japan?

When someone is trying to patent something in Japan that is not unique or for some other reason should not be patentable, third parties are allowed to intervene in the patent application process to argue against granting the patent.  These interventions can even be filed anonymously and, if successful, will prevent the granting of a patent for products that are not unique or not patentable for some other reason.
November 15, 2017

Does Japan maintain any double taxation treaties for inheritance?

Japan has only one estate tax treaty, signed with the United States in 1955.  The treaty is designed to prevent double taxation for inheritances that involve both US and Japanese inheritance tax law.
November 10, 2017

How does the Japanese government collect debts?

When someone owes a tax burden in Japan, the government will first issue a series of warning letters.  If the debtor ignores these letters and continues to neglect payment, the tax authorities will issue another warning letter stating that, if payment is not made, they will forcibly collect the debt through compulsory execution. At this point, if the debtor still does not pay, the government can claim his or her assets in Japan through compulsory execution.  These assets can include bank accounts or real property in Japan.