Disability Japan Welfare

Japan Disability Pension Applicants Face Hurdles Proving Medical History

A total of 11.4% of disability pension applicants in Japan were denied benefits in fiscal 2025 because their disabilities did not meet eligibility criteria or because of incomplete documentation, according to Japan Pension Service statistics. Although the rate fell from a record 13.8% in fiscal 2024, concerns remain that applicants can struggle to obtain the medical records and other documentation needed to prove their eligibility, particularly when treatment dates back decades. Medical institutions are generally required to retain medical records for only five years, meaning applicants may have difficulty proving the date of their first consultation or diagnosis when older records have been disposed of. The Japan Federation of Bar Associations has criticized aspects of the certification process and called for fairer disability pension assessments.

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by Michael Gillan Peckitt
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By Barrier Free Japan

October 8 2026

TOKYO – According to FY2025 disability pension statistics published by the Japan Pension Service on October 6th, the proportion of applicants denied benefits, either because the severity of their disability did not meet the criteria or due to incomplete documentation, was 11.4%.

Whilst this is a decrease compared to FY2024 (13.8%), which was the highest on record since data collection began in FY2019, there are still concerns that difficulties applicants face obtaining documentation of their disability is leading some to be unable to receive the appropriate disability pension to which they are entitled.

In January 2026, Japan Federation of Bar Associations (JFBA) said Jan. 30 it had submitted a statement to the Health, Labor and Welfare Ministry calling for fair disability pension certifications call the disability pension system “clearly unreasonable” and criticizing a ministry probe that found no improper handling in cases where initial certification reports were rewritten, discarded and reassessed.

Applications for a disability pension requires the applicant to provide documentation proving the date of first medical consultation and initial diagnosis and whilst article 24 of the Medical Practitioners Act, states that medical records must in principle be kept for five years. If institutions dispose of records in compliance with the law, proving treatment details from decades earlier becomes realistically difficult.

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