Japan to allow businesses to pay salaries into app accounts

Sep 14 (Japan Times) - As Japan slowly shifts away from cash, the government is expected to allow businesses to pay salaries into cashless payment accounts, which have gained widespread use in the age of the smartphone.

A subcommittee of the Labor Policy Council, which advises the labor minister, discussed the so-called digital salary payments at a meeting Tuesday.

At the meeting, the labor ministry presented a plan to put a Y1 million cap on the amount of digital salary payments that can be made at one time and the balance of funds in cashless accounts used for such salary payments.

With no major objections raised, the ministry will work on the details of the new method of salary payments. The ministry will make a necessary revision to ordinances by the end of March 2023 after receiving a policy proposal covering the issue from the council.

The labor standards law stipulates that salaries must be paid in cash in principle. But companies are allowed to pay salaries into accounts held at banks and other financial institutions. ...continue reading

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