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May 03, 2024
 

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TAXES

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks at a meeting of government and ruling party officials at the Prime Minister's Office on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 26, 2023
Kishida seeks detailed tax cut plan, eyes ¥40,000 per person
Kishida's Cabinet is expected to formalize the economic package on Nov. 2.
Households are unlikely to start feeling the benefits of any possible income tax cut until around next summer at the earliest.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 25, 2023
Government floats ¥40,000 income tax cut to ease inflation pain
Households would start feeling the benefits around next summer at the earliest.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida listens as Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan chief Kenta Izumi speaks in parliament in Tokyo on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 24, 2023
Tough questions for Kishida in parliament over spending plans
Japan’s main opposition party began its scrutiny of Kishida's economic stimulus package as the country struggles with inflation and stagnant wages.
Members of the Ground Self-Defense Force disembark from a CH-47 Chinook helicopter during a live fire exercise in Gotemba, Shizuoka Prefecture, in May 2022.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 23, 2023
Kishida's proposed tax cuts put higher defense spending on hold
The plan to raise defense spending partly through tax hikes has been put on ice. In fact, it was never likely to deliver fast results.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida delivers a policy speech during an extraordinary session of parliament in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN / Politics
Oct 23, 2023
The economy takes center stage in Kishida’s policy speech
"'The economy, the economy, the economy.’ I will focus my attention on the economy more than anything else,” Kishida said in opening remarks.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida visits a supermarket in Tokyo to check the impact of price hikes, on Monday.
BUSINESS
Oct 20, 2023
Kishida asks ruling coalition to consider income tax cut
The prime minister is seeking to make the cut a key feature of an inflation-relief package that his Cabinet plans to formalize on Nov. 2.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida speaks to reporters at the Prime Minister's Office on Tuesday.
BUSINESS
Oct 18, 2023
Kishida to vow to consider returning tax funds amid rising prices
Japan's tax revenue reached ¥71.14 trillion for the 2022 fiscal year, hitting a record high for the third consecutive year.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida at the Liberal Democratic Party headquarters on Tuesday in Tokyo
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
Oct 12, 2023
Why are ruling party lawmakers calling for tax cuts?
As the prime minister prepares for a new economic stimulus package, it's members of his own party who are raising a fuss.
From happōshu to real beer, Japan’s tax changes aim to improve brewing quality and prices.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 6, 2023
Amid rising costs, why is Japan making beer cheaper?
A 350-milliliter can of brew costs drinkers about ¥7 (5 cents) less from October, thanks to changes in the country’s tax system.
A website offering gifts for the furusato nōzei hometown tax program
JAPAN
Oct 1, 2023
Japan hometown tax changes mean donors getting less bang for buck
Local authorities must now keep the total value of gifts and other costs — including shipping fees — below 50% of the donations they receive.
Prices of over 4,500 food items are set to increase in October, with the number falling by half when compared with a year ago, but still adding to the pain already felt by consumers.
JAPAN
Sep 29, 2023
Price hikes and tax-related rule changes await Japan in October
The persisting effects of a weaker yen, which inflates the prices of imported raw materials, are largely blamed for the price hikes.
The new invoice system, which goes into effect Oct. 1, is forcing many freelancers in Japan to choose between raising their prices or suffer a 10% loss in revenue.
COMMUNITY / How-tos
Sep 25, 2023
Freelancers aren’t happy with Japan’s new invoice system
For many freelancers and small businesses, the result will amount to a 10% increase in taxes.
Members of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation, commonly known as Rengo, raise their fists as they cheer during their annual May Day rally to demand higher pay and better working conditions, in Tokyo, in April.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 19, 2023
Japan eyes expanding tax breaks for firms raising wages
The industry ministry will include plans to expand the program in its tax system reform proposal for fiscal 2024, which starts next April.
The Internal Revenue Service headquarters in Washington. A conservative group's charge that a liberal network is abusing its tax-exempt status mirrors similar allegations made against a right-wing activist.
BUSINESS
Aug 16, 2023
U.S. ‘dark money’ donor groups trade accusations of tax evasion
Though the allegations by both sides are partisan, legal experts say the concerns they raise have been taken seriously by the IRS in the past.
People participate in a tour to climb to the top of a 120-meter Daibutsu statue in Ushiku, Ibaraki Prefecture. The tour is offered as a gift in return for donations under the furusato nōzei (hometown tax donation) system.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 1, 2023
Japan's hometown tax donations set record for third year
The value of donations under the furusato nōzei (hometown tax donation) system rose by about 20% from the previous year to ¥965.4 billion.
Tokyo's Asakusa area is crowded with tourists last week.
JAPAN
Jul 24, 2023
More Japan tourist hot spots imposing hotel taxes to fund promotions
Tokyo is considering increasing its tax for the first time since it became the first area in the country in 2002 to implement the system.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
Jul 18, 2023
Local governments in Tokyo spruce up donor gifts
Shinjuku Ward is considering a menu of unique gifts, such as crafts related to local industries including printing and dyeing, and a one-day 'mayor's experience' program.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 12, 2023
Japan’s bid to nurture startups lags global rivals on tax breaks
Struggling with a far lower business entry rate than the U.S. or Europe, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s government in 2022 launched a five-year plan to encourage new ventures.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / FOCUS
Jun 30, 2023
New battery sourcing rules make Japanese EVs ineligible for U.S. tax breaks
The new standards say a certain share of battery parts must be made and assembled in North America, with similar rules for key minerals used as materials for the batteries.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jun 21, 2023
Kishida comes away from parliamentary session with key goals achieved
Out of 60 bills it submitted, 58 became law, a 96.7% passage rate — a slight drop from the equivalent session last year, where all 61 bills received parliament's approval.
Weak yen fattens tourist wallets in Japan
People visit the Ameya Yokocho market in Tokyo's Ueno district during the Golden Week holiday on Tuesday.
Number of vacant homes in Japan hits record high of 9 million
A vacant house in Tokyo is seen demolished in January 2020.
'So hot you can't breathe': Extreme heat hits the Philippines
A pedestrian cools himself with a folding hand fan as he waits for a ride along a road in Manila on Wednesday, as extreme heat hit the Philippines.
Kishida sets sights on energy and climate in South America trip
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will use a policy speech in Sao Paulo to set out his vision for ties between Japan and South America, almost 10 years after former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe advocated for stronger ties between the two in the same city.
Town to block view of Mount Fuji in response to overtourism
The town government of Fujikawaguchiko, Yamanashi Prefecture, decided to set up a 2.5-meter-high screen to prevent tourists from taking pictures of Mount Fuji looming behind a convenience store.
Kishida sets sights on energy and climate in South America trip
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will use a policy speech in Sao Paulo to set out his vision for ties between Japan and South America, almost 10 years after former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe advocated for stronger ties between the two in the same city.
Yellow sand allergy: A health issue made worse by climate change
A screenshot of the Meteorological Agency's satellite image of clouds and yellow sand (in pink) on Sunday.
Climate change, chalky grains and the risks for Japan’s rice farmers
A farmer plants seedlings in Satsumasendai, Kagoshima Prefecture. Japan’s self sufficiency rate for rice is nearly 100%, compared with 38% for food overall, on a calorie basis.
Japan wants you to spend more with ‘luxury tourism’
Performers play a traditional drum unique to Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, in the prefectural capital of Kanazawa on March 16 to mark the extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen line to Tsuruga Station in Fukui Prefecture.
Theaster Gates’ ambitious ‘Afro-Mingei’ brings Black Chicago to Tokyo
Theaster Gates' “A Heavenly Chord” lines up church pews before seven speakers and a Hammond B3 organ, a type of electric organ prevalent in Black American churches.

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