Order for Enforcement of the Health Insurance Act

Pursuant to Article 203, paragraph (1) of the Act, the following affairs concerning specially-insured day laborers (including persons who were specially-insured day laborers; the same applies hereinafter) residing in an area designated by the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare are to be performed by the head of the municipality whose district includes that area (in the case of a designated city under Article 252-19, paragraph (1) of the Local Autonomy Act, the ward or general ward):

the issuance and receipt of specially-insured day laborer's insurance books and other affairs concerning specially-insured day laborer's insurance books;

affairs concerning ascertaining which specially-insured day laborers are item (ii) insured persons and which are other specially-insured day laborers.

Pursuant to Article 203, paragraph (2) of the Act, JHIA is to entrust to the municipalities whose districts include the area prescribed in the preceding paragraph the following affairs concerning specially-insured day laborers residing in that area:

the issuance of qualified recipient cards, the indication of confirmation on qualified recipient cards, and other affairs concerning qualified recipient cards;

the issuance of special medical expense cards and other affairs concerning special medical expense cards;

affairs concerning the confirmation of the payment status of premiums necessary for providing insurance benefits (excluding the provision of burial charges) and affairs concerning the confirmation of dependents regarding insurance benefits relating to dependents.

Where, in the case referred to in paragraph (1) or where a municipality carries out the affairs entrusted pursuant to the provisions of the preceding paragraph, the provisions of the Act concerning the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare or JHIA with respect to the affairs prescribed in those paragraphs are to apply to the mayor of the municipality or the municipality as provisions concerning the mayor of the municipality (including the mayor of a special ward, and, for a designated city under Article 252-19, paragraph (1) of the Local Autonomy Act, the mayor of a ward or the mayor of a consolidated ward; the same applies hereinafter in this paragraph) or the municipality, respectively.

The affairs that are to be processed by municipalities pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (1) of the preceding Article are Type I statutory entrusted functions prescribed in Article 2, paragraph (9), item (i) of the Local Autonomy Act.

The circumstances specified by Cabinet Order as referred to in Article 204-2, paragraph (1) of the Act are to be those that fall under all of the following items:

the person liable for payment is in arrears with premiums for the number of months specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare or more;

there is a risk that the person liable for payment is concealing the person's property in order to evade the execution of the dispositions for arrears and other dispositions prescribed in Article 204-2, paragraph (1) of the Act (hereinafter referred to as "dispositions for arrears and other dispositions");

the amount of premiums, etc. (meaning the premiums, etc. prescribed in Article 204-2, paragraph (1) of the Act; the same applies in the following item, Articles 64-4, 64-5, and 64-7, Article 64-8, paragraph (1), and Article 64-9) in arrears of the person liable for payment (where the person liable for payment is in arrears with premiums under the provisions of the Employees' Pension Insurance Act, contributions under the provisions of the Act on Support for Children and Child-rearing, special payment premiums under the provisions of the Act on Special Provisions for Insurance Benefit and Premium Payment in Relation to Employee's Pension Insurance (Act No. 131 of 2007), or other amounts to be collected under the provisions of those Acts, the amount obtained by adding the total sum of those premiums, contributions, special payment premiums, or amounts to be collected under the provisions of those Acts that are in arrears) is the amount specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare or more;

notwithstanding having received dispositions for arrears and other dispositions, the person liable for payment is not found to have a sincere intention to pay the premiums, etc. in arrears.

Where the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare delegates authority for dispositions for arrears and other dispositions pursuant to Article 204-2, paragraph (1) of the Act, the Minister delegates all of it to the Minister of Finance, except for the following:

the notice under Article 138 of the National Tax Collection Act (Act No. 147 of 1959), which is to be governed by the same rules pursuant to the provisions of Article 183 of the Act;

the suspension of the execution of a disposition for arrears under Article 153, paragraph (1) of the National Tax Collection Act, which is to be governed by the same rules pursuant to the provisions of Article 183 of the Act;

the extension under Article 11 of the Act on General Rules for National Taxes (Act No. 66 of 1962), which is to be governed by the same rules pursuant to the provisions of Article 183 of the Act;

the notice under Article 36, paragraph (1) of the Act on General Rules for National Taxes, which is to be governed by the same rules pursuant to the provisions of Article 183 of the Act;

the acceptance of entrustment under Article 55, paragraph (1) of the Act on General Rules for National Taxes, which is to be governed by the same rules pursuant to the provisions of Article 183 of the Act;

the exemption under Article 63 of the Act on General Rules for National Taxes, which is to be governed by the same rules pursuant to the provisions of Article 183 of the Act;

the delivery under Article 123, paragraph (1) of the Act on General Rules for National Taxes, which is to be governed by the same rules pursuant to the provisions of Article 183 of the Act; and

authority specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, in addition to that listed in the preceding items.

Where the provisions of Article 100-5, paragraphs (6) and (7) of the Employees' Pension Insurance Act apply mutatis mutandis pursuant to Article 204-2, paragraph (2) of the Act, the phrase "locality of the place of business or office" in those provisions is deemed to be replaced with "locality of the place of business or office (in the case of an applicable place of business under Article 34, paragraph (1) of the Act, the locality of the place of business or office designated by the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare from among the two or more places of business or offices that became one applicable place of business pursuant to that paragraph)".

The Commissioner of the National Tax Agency delegates all of the authority delegated pursuant to the provisions of Article 100-5, paragraph (5) of the Employees' Pension Insurance Act as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to Article 204-2, paragraph (2) of the Act, to the regional commissioner having jurisdiction over the locality of the place of business of the person liable for payment (in the case of an applicable place of business under Article 34, paragraph (1) of the Act, the locality of the place of business designated by the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare from among the two or more places of business that became one applicable place of business pursuant to that paragraph; the same applies in the following paragraph).

A regional commissioner, when finding it necessary, delegates all of the authority delegated pursuant to the provisions of Article 100-5, paragraph (6) of the Employees' Pension Insurance Act as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to Article 204-2, paragraph (2) of the Act, to the district director having jurisdiction over the locality of the place of business of the person liable for payment.

The cases specified by Cabinet Order as referred to in Article 204-6, paragraph (1) of the Act are the following cases:

where a person liable for payment who has received a demand pursuant to the provisions of Article 180, paragraph (2) of the Act has made a request to the effect that the person wishes to pay premiums, etc. at a pension office prescribed in Article 29 of the Japan Pension Organization Act (Act No. 109 of 2007) (referred to as a "pension office" in the following item and paragraph (2) of the following Article);

where a person liable for payment who has received notice of payment of premiums with the due date advanced, owing to falling under any of the items of Article 172 of the Act, has made a request to the effect that the person wishes to pay premiums at a pension office;

where an employee of the Japan Pension Service (hereinafter referred to as "JPS") that carries out the receipt under Article 204-6, paragraph (1) of the Act, appointed pursuant to the provisions of Article 100-11, paragraph (2) of the Employees' Pension Insurance Act as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to Article 204-6, paragraph (2) of the Act (referred to as a "receiving employee" in item (v) and Article 64-9), who has also been appointed as a collection official under Article 204-3, paragraph (1) of the Act pursuant to the provisions of Article 100-6, paragraph (2) of the Employees' Pension Insurance Act as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to Article 204-3, paragraph (2) of the Act (hereinafter referred to as an "employee" in this item and the following item), visits a person liable for payment prescribed in the preceding two items in order to collect premiums, etc., and that person liable for payment requests that the employee receive the premiums, etc.;

where an employee has obtained money, in order to collect premiums, etc., through a disposition listed in Article 204, paragraph (1), item (xv) of the Act that is governed by the same rules as dispositions of a national tax delinquency;

in addition to the cases listed in the preceding items, cases specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare as cases where receipt of premiums, etc. by receiving employees contributes to the convenience of persons liable for payment, or other cases where receipt of premiums, etc. by receiving employees is appropriate and effective.

When the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare has JPS carry out the receipt of premiums, etc. pursuant to the provisions of Article 204-6, paragraph (1) of the Act, the Minister must give public notice to that effect.

When the public notice referred to in the preceding paragraph has been given, JPS must, without delay, make public the names and locations of pension offices and other matters necessary for the receipt of premiums, etc. as specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare; the same applies when it has changed them.

JPS may receive premiums, etc. belonging to each fiscal year of the national government only up to April 30 of the following fiscal year.

When JPS has carried out receipt under Article 204-6, paragraph (1) of the Act with respect to premiums, etc., it must issue a receipt to the person who paid those premiums, etc., as specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. In this case, JPS must, without delay, report to the revenue collection officer of the Pension Special Account that it has carried out that receipt, as specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

When the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare establishes the Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare prescribed in the preceding paragraph, the Minister must consult the Minister of Finance in advance.

JPS must keep books concerning the receipt of premiums, etc. by receiving employees and the remittance to the Bank of Japan of the premiums, etc. so received, and must record in them the matters concerning the receipt and remittance of those premiums, etc.

In addition to what is provided for in Article 64-4 through the preceding Article, matters necessary for receipt by JPS pursuant to Article 204-6 of the Act are specified by Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare.

When the Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare establishes the Order of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare prescribed in the preceding paragraph, the Minister must consult the Minister of Finance in advance.