Workflow Sample: Should A Year-end Adjustment Form Include Individual Number?

There is a "seasonal tradition" in firms in Japan, so-called "Year-end Adjustment", an application for Tax deduction. Employees of a firm are required to fill "family Dependant circumstance" and "situation of personal insurance", etc. into application form, to get a refund of the difference between "amount of withholding" and "income tax to pay". 50 million wage earners in all over Japan would fill in the form document, then stamp a seal, and submit to their firm.

Incidentally, there is a rule that companies collect Income and Local tax on behalf of the government in Japan, which is referred to Tax Withholding Obligation in Income Tax Act.

Eventually, these paper documents won't be delivered to a Taxation office or the National Tax Agency. For the companies, it doesn't matter the rule of "submission in paper", as far as "correct information" could be obtained. However, they must comply with the obligation of storing data for 7 years. As a matter of course, many of the companies have the feeling of "wasting of resources, such as paper, printer, labor of transcription and postage, etc..."

Well, one of these form documents will change its format this year.

As you know at a glance, Individual Number has been added. You may recognize that this document will be upgraded to "Specific Personal Information" from "Personal Information"... (I guess I will need a secure locker...)

[Year-end-tax-adjustment:Dependent Exemption application]

The Workflow above is to generate "Tax deduction for Dependents application form" automatically.

Although it is not corresponding to all of the items, 75 forms will be sufficient for most of the cases. By entering required information, a document PDF that you should submit will be generated automatically. (Automated Step of PDF generation)

Even online interaction in the state in the middle of creation is also possible when there are questions upon entry. Moreover, you will be able to "Start using data" so that input work will be greatly easier for the next year!

True excellence in this Workflow is the remark that "Please do not enter Individual Numbers unless special reason".

First of all, to enter "Individual Number" is very cumbersome for the applicants. It is disgusting when you imagine that you have to look for the Individual Number cards of all your family members every year. Before that, I already have made my Individual Number application along with "Measure of identification".

"Reason why you don't have to enter your Individual Number?"

The reason is described in the following FAQ by the National Tax Agency

FAQ related to Withholding
Q1-9: Can I substitute the entry of Individual Number in the application form for Dependent exemption with describing "Same as the Number which has been submitted to the employer"?

A. Principally, Individual Number cannot be omitted in Dependents exemption application form for 2016, as the Numbers of the employee him/herself and all dependents such as, spouse and child(ren) are required, even if nothing has changed since the application for the previous year.
However, it is permissible even if Individual Number is not described in the application form in the case there is an agreement between the employer and the employee, with description to the effect that "the Individual Number was the same as that has been submitted to the employer" by the employee, and the employer confirmed the Number and described that effect on the document.
Note that, the Number of the employee and the omitted Number must be managed in proper association.

P.S.
Various kinds of Application form documents are available for downloading at the National Tax Agency's website.

However, all of these PDF has been given security lock. You need to unlock them before use. Please see some other articles for the method of unlocking. Incidentally, here is a sample of "Template PDF" for Workflow, which has been unlocked and added forms. (You can use it as it is.)

year-end-adjustment-withheld-tax.base.pdf

P.S. 2
Many Japanese wonders how he or she should fill in relationship of own child.

It is already registered in "Resident Certificate" (Basic Resident Registration Act) and "Family Registration" (Family Register Act). It used to had been registered as "First son", "second son" for legitimate children, whereas "Boy" for an illegitimate child. It is now registered as "Child" in Resident Certificate since March, 1995 for privacy issue. And for Family Registration, description of relationship that enables to identify illegitimate child has been continued from there was a difference of inheritance rights in the Civil Code. However, since December 2013, description of "Boy" for illegitimate child can be modified according to the revision of the Civil Code, which there is no more difference in a legal position.

Therefore, it is proper to enter "Child" to the column of relationship. So the recommended are "Wife, Child, Father, Mother, Brother, Sister", etc. ("Child's wife", not "First son's missis")

(I heard there are some people who fill a column of family relationship like "Mother's Lover". Such family relationship never exists formally. Moreover, that guy isn't in the same household, but is mere a cohabit...)

[Year-end-tax-adjustment:Dependent Exemption application:"1. Register Information" screen]