Act Partially Amending the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Act and Related Laws

Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance (rousai hoken) pays benefits to workers injured or made ill at work, and to their bereaved families. The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) explains that, in view of changes in the employment structure such as greater participation of women in work and more diverse ways of working, the amendment aims to build a broader safety net against occupational accidents.

Under the amendment, a husband no longer has to be aged 60 or over, or in a disability state specified by ministerial ordinance, to be eligible as a bereaved family member for survivors' compensation pensions; that requirement applied only to husbands. Where there is one bereaved family member, the pension amount becomes uniformly 175 days of the benefit base daily amount, abolishing a special amount that applied to a wife aged 55 or over or with a specified disability. Corresponding changes are made to special survivors' pensions under the Act on Asbestos Health Damage Relief.

The amendment also sets out in the Act that organisations through which self-employed persons and others join the insurance under 'special enrolment' must meet requirements set by ministerial ordinance, and allows the government to order them to improve their operations and to end the insurance relationship if an order is breached. The limitation period for claiming benefits is extended from two to five years for diseases, specified by Cabinet Order, for which it is not easy to judge whether they are work-related, and the Labour Standards Act is amended to match. A provisional measure under which certain small agriculture, forestry and fisheries businesses are not compulsorily covered (they could join voluntarily) is abolished.

Sources: [1] [3] [5]

The Cabinet submitted the bill to the Diet on 7 April 2026. It was examined by the Committee on Health, Labour and Welfare of each House, passed by the House of Representatives on 2 June 2026 and by the House of Councillors on 10 July 2026, which enacted it. It was promulgated on 17 July 2026 as Act No. 60 of 2026. On the same day the MHLW Labour Standards Bureau explained the content and effective dates to prefectural labour bureaus.

The workers' compensation insurance subcommittee of the Labour Policy Council has since examined the implementing rules. On 29 September 2026 it found appropriate a draft Cabinet Order setting 1 April 2031 as the effective date of the provisions in Article 1(ii) of the supplementary provisions, which include the abolition of the provisional measure for small agriculture, forestry and fisheries businesses. On 9 October 2026 it found broadly appropriate the draft Cabinet Order and ministerial ordinance implementing the main provisions, which are to take effect on 1 April 2027.

Under those drafts, the diseases eligible for the five-year limitation period are cerebrovascular or heart diseases, mental disorders, and asbestos-related diseases, each as specified by ministerial ordinance. Special enrolment organisations would have to meet requirements including proper handling of insurance premiums and procedures, activities to prevent occupational accidents suited to their members, clear rules on organisation and membership, support and advice to members, and, for organisations covering freelancers in general, at least one year of activity, at least 100 members and offices or consultation spaces available in all 47 prefectures.

1. 2026-04-07 — Bill submitted to the Diet (Cabinet bill) [1] [2]
2. 2026-06-02 — Passed by the House of Representatives [2]
3. 2026-07-10 — Passed by the House of Councillors; enacted [1] [2]
4. 2026-07-17 — Certain provisions take effect on promulgation [1]
5. 2026-07-17 — Promulgated as Act No. 60 of 2026 [1] [2]
6. 2026-09-29 — Council finds the draft effective-date Cabinet Order (1 April 2031) appropriate [6]
7. 2026-10-09 — Council finds the draft implementing Cabinet Order and ordinance broadly appropriate [5]
8. 2027-04-01 — Main provisions take effect [1] [4]

The timeline of related official records below lists the records this dashboard has matched.

Sources: [1] [2] [5] [6] [7]

Confirmed next steps

• 2027-04-01 — The Act's main provisions take effect, as stated in the Act's supplementary provisions and recorded by e-Gov Law Search. [1] [4]
• The Act requires the government to review how the amended acts are working after five years from their entry into force and to take necessary measures based on the results. [1]

Expected procedural steps

The usual procedure for this kind of instrument; not a forecast for this reform.

• After the council's reports, the Cabinet Orders are normally adopted by the Cabinet and promulgated, and the ministerial ordinances issued by the Minister, before the provisions they implement take effect.

Outstanding uncertainties

• When this explainer was verified, the Cabinet Orders and ministerial ordinance examined by the council had not been confirmed as adopted or promulgated; their content may still change.
• 1 April 2031 for the end of the provisional measure is a draft date found appropriate by the council, not yet a fixed date; e-Gov Law Search still lists the Act's outer limit for those provisions (five years after promulgation, July 2031).

The main changes alter the benefits that the insurance pays and who may receive them, rather than creating new reporting duties for most employers. Employers may wish to reflect the new survivor eligibility rules and the longer limitation period for certain cardiovascular, mental and asbestos-related diseases in HR information given to employees and in any company benefit schemes that refer to the statutory benefits.

Organisations that operate special enrolment for self-employed persons and freelancers will have to meet the requirements set by ministerial ordinance, and businesses that engage freelancers may see changes in which organisations can offer special enrolment. Small agriculture, forestry and fisheries businesses currently outside compulsory coverage should expect compulsory coverage, with premium and procedural obligations, from the date the Cabinet Order fixes.

Points to check

• Update HR guidance on survivors' benefits and on the limitation period for claims ahead of 1 April 2027.
• If you engage self-employed persons or freelancers who join through special enrolment organisations, check whether those organisations will meet the new requirements.
• For agriculture, forestry or fisheries operations outside compulsory coverage, follow the Cabinet Order fixing the date when the provisional measure ends.
• Watch MHLW for the promulgated Cabinet Orders and ministerial ordinances.

Sources: [1] [5] [6]