Sickness and Injury Allowance Calculator (Japan Shobyo Teatekin)

Enter your average standard monthly remuneration and total days off work to estimate the sickness and injury allowance (shobyo teatekin) paid by Japanese health insurance. Accounts for the 3-day waiting period and the lifetime cap of 1 year 6 months.

Last updated: 2026-10-18

What Is Sickness Allowance (Japan Shobyo Teatekin)

This free tool estimates the sickness and injury allowance (shobyo teatekin) paid under Japan's health insurance system, based on just two numbers: your average standard monthly remuneration and the total number of days you were off work. It automatically factors in the 3-day waiting period, which is excluded from payment, and the lifetime cap of 1 year and 6 months on the benefit period, so you can quickly get a realistic sense of how much you might actually receive.

Sickness allowance is a benefit defined in Japan's Health Insurance Act, designed to support the income of insured people who cannot work because of a non-occupational illness or injury. The formula behind it — average standard monthly remuneration divided by 30, then multiplied by two-thirds — along with the waiting-period rule can feel complicated at first glance, but entering just two figures here lets you see the full breakdown instantly.

Sources used in this calculation

Statutory figures such as tax and insurance rates come from the public bodies listed below. They change when the law is revised, so please also check the primary source before relying on the result for an important decision.

Sickness allowance benefit rate and payment period — Japan Health Insurance Association (全国健康保険協会・協会けんぽ) Effective from 2022-01 ／ Last checked 2026-10-18

How we source and maintain these figures

How to Estimate Your Sickness Allowance

Enter your average standard monthly remuneration Check the average standard monthly remuneration for the 12 months before your benefit start date, using the notice issued by your employer or health insurance union.
Enter your total days off work Enter the number of days you were unable to work, counted from the first day of your inability to work, including the 3-day waiting period.
Review the calculated breakdown The daily allowance amount, waiting period, number of eligible days, and estimated total are all displayed automatically.
Check whether the benefit cap applies If your absence is long, check the results section to see whether the cumulative 1-year-6-month cap on the benefit period has been applied.

Tips for getting more out of it

Your standard monthly remuneration isn't shown on your pay stub — check the "standard monthly remuneration determination notice" issued by your employer or health insurance union if you're unsure of the figure.
The 3-day waiting period can include weekends, holidays, or paid leave — it just needs to be 3 consecutive days. If the days aren't consecutive, the waiting period doesn't complete.
Since the January 1, 2022 reform, the benefit period is cumulative — if you return to work and later take leave again for the same illness, the days you were back at work don't count against the cap.
The maternity allowance (paid during maternity leave) shares the same two-thirds rate as the sickness allowance, but covers a different reason for leave and a different maximum benefit period.

Common Use Cases

Planning finances before taking leave

Before going on extended leave for illness or injury, use it to gauge roughly how much income the allowance will replace and plan your household budget accordingly.

Tracking household finances during leave

If your leave looks likely to run long, estimate the eventual total based on eligible days and the benefit cap to help plan ahead.

Comparing with maternity allowance

Since the maternity allowance shares the same two-thirds payment rate, this is a useful reference point for understanding how the two benefits differ in eligibility and conditions.

Explaining benefits in HR and payroll roles

HR and general affairs staff can use it to walk employees through a rough estimate when they have questions about benefit amounts during leave.

Glossary

Standard monthly remuneration: A figure derived by placing an insured person's salary into fixed brackets, used as the basis for calculating social insurance premiums. It appears on the "standard monthly remuneration determination notice," not on a regular pay stub.
Waiting period: A period of 3 consecutive days off work immediately before sickness allowance payments begin. These 3 days are not eligible for payment.
Eligible days: The number of days actually covered by sickness allowance payments, calculated as total days off work minus the 3-day waiting period.
Cumulative 1 year and 6 months: The benefit period cap introduced in the January 1, 2022 reform. Periods during which the insured person had returned to work are excluded from this cumulative total.
Maternity allowance: A benefit paid by health insurance during maternity leave. It shares the same two-thirds payment rate as sickness allowance but applies to a different reason for leave.
Health Insurance Act: The Japanese law that establishes the health insurance system, including the legal basis for sickness allowance under Article 99.

FAQ

The sickness allowance is paid by health insurance for non-occupational illness or injury. Work-related or commuting injuries are covered by workers' accident compensation insurance instead, and the sickness allowance is not paid in those cases.

It is 3 consecutive days, starting from the first day you were unable to work, and can include weekends, holidays, or paid leave. Those 3 days are not eligible for payment — the allowance begins on the 4th day.

For the same illness or injury, it is paid until a cumulative total of 1 year and 6 months has passed since the start date. Since the January 1, 2022 reform, periods when you had returned to work are excluded from that cumulative total.

Yes, if you had continuous health insurance coverage for at least one year up to your resignation date and were already receiving or eligible to receive the allowance on that date, you can continue to receive it after leaving your job.

Side Note — Why the sickness and maternity allowances share the same two-thirds rate

The two-thirds rate for the sickness allowance reflects the idea, built into the Health Insurance Act, of replacing a portion — not all — of lost income during a period of inability to work. Covering the full amount could reduce the incentive to return to work, so the design deliberately leaves a partial gap. This same rate was later adopted for the maternity allowance, unifying the benefit rate across both programs within the same legal framework.

The 3-day waiting period exists partly because paying benefits for every brief cold or minor illness would place too much strain on the insurance system's finances. Three days is treated as a rough benchmark for how long most minor conditions take to resolve on their own, and the rule has been kept in place since the health insurance system was first established.

The move to a cumulative benefit period in the January 1, 2022 reform was driven by consideration for patients undergoing long-term treatment with repeated hospital stays and returns to work, such as cancer patients. Before the reform, periods back at work still counted against the 1-year-6-month cap, which meant some patients had little benefit period left by the time of a relapse. Making the period cumulative means only the days actually spent on leave are counted, giving long-term patients stronger income support.

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