Child-Rearing Support Fund: Raise Awareness of Need for Mutual Support in Society

Editorial

16:18 JST, March 23, 2026

The government is set to start next month collecting contributions for the so-called child and child-rearing support fund, which is intended to alleviate financial concerns among people hoping to start families and households with young children.

The legal framework for this system was established during the Cabinet of then Prime Minister Fumio Kishida with the aim of securing funds for measures to counter the low birth rate and ensuring that society as a whole supports the younger generation. However, the government’s explanations of the plan so far have been insufficient, so it is hard to say that the people have accepted that the burden on them will increase.

It is important for the Cabinet of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to carefully explain the significance of the system and the effects expected from its introduction.

The child and child-rearing support fund will be financed by contributions collected in the form of fees added to public health insurance premiums. The fund will be used to expand child allowances and benefits for pregnant women, among other measures.

The average monthly burden per person will be ¥550 for those enrolled in health insurance associations affiliated with entities such as large companies. The company side will also bear a similar burden. For those covered by national health insurance, such as the self-employed, this monthly burden will reportedly be ¥300 per household.

The payment amount also varies depending on income. A person with an annual income of ¥10 million will be obliged to pay nearly ¥1,000 a month.

Reversing the low birth rate trend is an urgent task. According to preliminary figures from the government’s vital statistics, the number of babies born in 2025 was 705,809, down 2.1% from the previous year, marking a record low for the 10th consecutive year.

For the sake of the nation’s future, there is no choice but to ask a wide range of people to bear the burden of measures to tackle the low birth rate. It seems the government has been rather slow in implementing such drastic measures.

However, this support fund system has not been well received. Some elderly people have complained, saying they will see no benefit from the system. On social media, some have mocked it as “a tax on singles.”

When comprehensive measures against the low birth rate were approved in 2023, Kishida said introducing this system would create no real additional burden on people.

It seems Kishida meant to say that if the people’s burden is reduced through social security spending reforms, and wages continue to rise, the burden from paying for this fund will be offset.

It cannot be denied that this explanation, which could be perceived as sophistry, has fueled public distrust. The fact that the government has casually used the framework of health insurance — originally designed to prepare people for illness and injury — also likely invited distrust.

The challenges facing the social security system are not limited to those associated with the low birth rate. Curbing ever-rising medical costs and securing a workforce for nursing care are serious issues. There will also have to be a discussion about raising the consumption tax and other measures that will increase the burden on people.

However, the Takaichi Cabinet is considering lowering the consumption tax on food items to zero for two years as a stopgap measure until a system of refundable tax credits is introduced. Such an approach only pushes a fundamental solution for social security problems further out of reach.

(From The Yomiuri Shimbun, March 23, 2026)