Notes on Individual Rules under the Japan-Slovak Republic Social Security Agreement

In the case of a detached worker who has concluded an employment contract only with an employer in Japan, only the Japanese system shall be applicable during the period of five years from the date of beginning of the detachment, even if the period of detachment is expected to exceed five years.

In case a detached worker who has concluded an employment contract with an employer in the Slovak Republic in addition to an employment contract with an employer in Japan and the said worker is under the direction of the Japanese employer, only the system of Japan, the sending country, shall be applicable during the period of five years from the date of beginning of the detachment.
Additionally, only the Japanese system shall continue to be applicable to and the Slovak system shall be exempt for a detached worker, who had initially concluded an employment contract only with an employer in Japan, also concludes an employment contract with an employer in the Slovak Republic after starting the temporary detachment. In such case, please submit in advance an application for the certificate of coverage to the Japan Pension Service and receive it. Please note the period of detachment (the period the worker is exempt from the Slovak system) in this case shall expire five years from the date the worker was originally detached to the Slovak Republic, not the date on which the worker concluded an employment contract with employer in the Slovak Republic.
Furthermore, the same shall apply to the workers who are temporarily detached to Japan from the Slovak Republic.

The applicable social security system under the Agreement is as follows:

• As for Japan, only public pension system is covered by the Agreement.
• As for the Slovak Republic, the Agreement covers not only Pension Insurance system* but also Sickness Insurance*, Unemployment Insurance*, Accident Insurance*, Guarantee Insurance* and Solidarity Reserve Fund*, which are applied or exempted in an integrated manner as undivided social insurance coverage.

For workers sent from Japan to the Slovak Republic shall be exempt from these Slovak systems for five years on condition that they are covered by the Japanese pension system. For those who have been already sent and started working in the Slovak Republic prior to entry into force of the Agreement, the Slovak system shall be exempted five years from the date of entry into force of the Agreement until the expiration of the period of five years from that date.
Please note, Slovak Health Insurance is not subject to the Agreement, i.e., a detached worker from Japan who is covered by the Japanese pension system will not be exempt from Slovak Health Insurance system.

* English names of Slovak public insurance systems are the same as those used in the Slovak Social Insurance Agency website.

Under the Act on Slovak Social Insurance, Slovak workers’ compensation insurance is applied in an integrated manner together with the pension system. Therefore, a worker who is temporarily detached from Japan to the Slovak Republic and only covered by the Japanese pension system shall be also exempted from Slovak workers’ compensation insurance in addition to the Slovak pension system. Also, Japanese workers’ accident compensation insurance shall not compulsorily applied to workers who are employed by an employer in Japan and detached overseas. As a result, the compulsory workers’ accident compensation insurance shall not be applicable in either Japan or the Slovak Republic.
For workers employed in Japan who will be detached overseas, they can be prepared for work-related accidents by enrolling in Japanese workers’ accident compensation insurance through a special enrollment system or a workers’ accident compensation insurance program provided by a private sector company. As for inquiries related to the special enrollment system for Japanese workers’ accident compensation insurance, please direct them to the Workers’ Compensation Administration Division of the Labour Standards Bureau, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

In the case of a person working on board a sea-going vessel flying the flag of one of the contracting countries, the pension system of the contracting country where the employer of that person is located shall be applied. Additionally, in the case of a self-employed person, only the legislation of the contracting country in which the person ordinarily resides shall be applied.

If a person needs to continue to work as a detached worker or a self-employed person beyond five years, the person can continuously be covered only by the system of the detaching country, provided that the total period of initial detachment and extension does not exceed eight years and the competent institutions of both countries agree on such extension on an individual basis.

If a person does not have enough periods of coverage under the Slovak legislation to fulfill the requirements for receiving Slovak benefits, the period of coverage under the Japanese system can be totalized with the Slovak period of coverage in order to fulfill that requirements insofar as there is no overlap in periods of coverage of both countries.

Regarding the timing where it is possible to apply for the Slovak old-age pension, no special provision has been set. However, it is recommended that the person concerned apply as soon as they reach the age eligible to receive benefits, since confirmation of eligibility for receiving Slovak old-age pension benefits requires detailed information up to that age.

Payment of the Slovak pension can be made retroactively up to three years.

As for those residing in Japan, they can receive the Slovak pension through a bank account in Japan.

For detached workers or self-employed individuals from Japan who have started working in the Slovak Republic prior to the date of entry into force of the Agreement, they shall be exempted from the Slovak system from the date of entry into force of the Agreement until the expiration of the period of five years from that date. Please submit an application for the certificate of coverage to the Japan Pension Service on or after the date of entry into force of the Agreement, and then receive the said certificate. Thereafter, through the employer in the Slovak Republic, please present the certificate of coverage to the Social Insurance Agency (SIA), and then take the necessary procedures to withdraw from the Slovak System.

If you receive Japanese pension benefits in the Slovak Republic, your Japanese benefits are subject to income tax in the Slovak Republic and exempt from Japanese income tax.
To be exempt from Japanese income tax under this rule, you must submit two completed "Application form for Income Tax Convention (Form 9)" to the Headquarters of Japan Pension Service. You can download the form from the Japanese National Tax Agency website.（外部リンク）