Survey on Streamlining Foreign Pension Proof-of-Life Procedures

In July 2025, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications notified the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare of the results of a survey on actual proof-of-life procedures for each foreign pension and how municipalities handled proof-of-life certificates, with the aim of reducing the burden on foreign pension recipients and municipalities. The notification called for consultations with foreign pension operating institutions and others on methods such as attaching a copy of a resident record instead of municipal authentication.

The background included cases in which people receiving foreign pensions after returning to their home countries were required to have proof-of-life certificates authenticated by third parties such as municipalities, as well as administrative consultations reporting difficulties obtaining authentication and municipal opinions about the difficulty of understanding foreign-language forms and the burden of translation.

In Germany, it was confirmed that when Japanese public institutions and others do not accept proof-of-life certificate authentication procedures, embassies in Japan and others respond using copies of resident records, and that an app-based proof-of-life verification system has been introduced.

The Japan Pension Service website added links to the websites of the Swiss and German embassies in Japan, which posted information including proof-of-life certificate forms with Japanese translations.

To receive a foreign public pension, it is necessary to submit a proof-of-life certificate prescribed by each country to the foreign pension operating institution. When authentication by a third party such as a municipality is required, whether to provide that authentication is left to the municipality's discretion.

This first follow-up confirmed the status of improvement measures taken by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. After the July 2025 notification, consultations were held with five countries on matters including attaching copies of resident records, and measures were also advanced to publish information on proof-of-life certificate forms and Japanese translations.