Aid to Be Cut for 67 Pct of Japanese Households on Welfare

December 23, 2017

Tokyo- The welfare ministry said Friday that 67 pct of all households on welfare in Japan will see cuts in livelihood aid chiefly to cover food and utility costs, starting from October 2018.

Of the single-member households on welfare, which account for some 80 pct of all welfare recipient families, 78 pct will face aid cuts.

The ministry reviews the standard amounts of the livelihood aid every five years. In deciding the cuts, the ministry took into account consumption spending at low-income families not on welfare.

The cuts, to be implemented in stages and completed in October 2020, is expected to save a total of 21 billion yen in welfare costs borne by the central and local governments.

The ministry set the maximum margin of cut at 5 pct, taking into account the negative effects on recipients' lives.

Recipients living in major cities are generally more likely to take reductions.

After the cuts are completed, the aid will be reduced by 5 pct, to some 76,000 yen from about 80,000 yen, for a single-member household of a 65-year-old person.

For a couple in their 40s with an elementary school kid and a junior high school student, the aid will be lowered by 4.5 pct, to 196,000 yen from 205,000 yen.

Meanwhile, households on welfare outside major cities will tend to see aid increases.

The aid will be raised by 7 pct to 131,000 yen from 122,000 yen for a single parent in his or her 30s with an elementary school child and 9.7 pct to 106,000 yen from 97,000 yen for a couple in their 50s. Jiji Press