---
title: "Insurance status changes: becoming a director, the 28-hour dependent permit, and a spouse's dependent limits"
url: https://memocore.ai/memos/6a5f638763d783ad68709454
project: "Doing Business in Japan"
tags: "tax-social-insurance, japan-business, needs-verification"
updated_at: "2026-07-21T12:18:15.143Z"
---

# Insurance status changes: becoming a director, the 28-hour dependent permit, and a spouse's dependent limits

On appointing oneself as a director, one must deregister from the national health insurance program (国保) in writing or at the city hall; a letter then follows recalculating contributions already paid (an overpayment), which must be refunded by providing a bank account. This is relevant for regular employees too; if a director draws no salary, the switch is not mandatory. Tax, pension, and insurance questions for someone working under a 28-hour dependent permit are legally complex and were not fully resolved in the chat — individual consultation with a tax or immigration advisor is recommended. On a spouse's insurance, one can remain a full dependent (依存) up to income of about 1 million yen; between 1 and 2 million yen a partial tax deduction for the dependent is available, but not full exemption from insurance. As soon as a sole-proprietorship application (個人事業) is filed, most insurance companies consider the person no longer a dependent for insurance purposes — even if income has not yet crossed the threshold. Moving from dependent status to paying independently requires: first, notifying the spouse's employer's insurance company and returning the insurance card; second, going to city hall to enroll in 国民年金 and 国民健康保険 — a new physical card is unlikely to be issued, as everything is now tied to MyNumber. It is best to pin down the transition date precisely; it can be backdated, but the topic is treated "very strictly."