As a JET candidate, you are subject to a 1-5 year(s) contract, growing annual salary, along many other benefits. Salary and benefits are usually the same for all JET except for contract length, which can vary depending on your Board of Education. My personal paystub payout every month and breakdown of taxes.
Contract Details, Length, and Re-contracting
When you become a “short-list” participant, you become part of a Contracting Organizations (COs), which is set up by CLAIR. You do not work directly for the JET Program itself. ALT’s CO is usually the prefecture’s BOE or a specific school. For example, high school teachers are usually hired directly by their school.
As a JET participant, you will sign a contract between you and your CO with all your terms and conditions. This varies depending on your CO and their rules and conditions, but it’s usually the same all around Japan.
Contracts range from 1-5 years:
Most COs let their JETs stay for a minimum of 3 years, which is the amount of time for JET-issued visas. However, you are never guaranteed 3 years by the JET Program; they only guarantee you a one-year contract. In some cases, there are COs that only let their JETs participate for 1-2 years because they like “fresh faces.” Other COs let JETs stay for 5 years with no problems. If a CO doesn’t like you, then they might only keep you for one year. JETs are evaluated annually by their CO.
From personal experience, I stayed 4 years on JET (2013 – 2017). I did not stay for the full 5 years because I was feeling burnt out and was set on graduate school. In my city of Kumamoto and in other places around Kumamoto prefecture, JETs could stay the full 5 years. However, ESID since some cities will feel the need to set high standards for their JETs beyond the 3 years. For example, requiring JLTP N2 or extensive work in school activities. No two places are the same when it comes to contract length.
Working Hours
Working hours are also dependent on your CO. Some prefer 8:30 am – 5:15 pm, 8:15 am – 4:00 pm (that was my hours), 8:00 am – 3:45 pm, and so on. Working hours vary by CO. You will find this out after meeting them in person or through email. Some COs let their ALTs leave work whenever their classes are over! ESID, luck of the draw.
Remember to negotiate your work hours. Yes, you can do this but not your pay. Usually, you negotiate your work times at the start of every year. I did with my BOE.
REMEMBER, OUTSIDE WORK IS PROHIBITED FOR JETs.
NO PART-TIME JOBS OR OTHER PAID WORK.
Driving
Driving is essential for some JET contracts. You might have to drive to work depending on your location. Your CO may be obligated to pay for your transportation (gas money) depending on the stipulation of the contract signed. Not all COs want to pay for this. ESID, again.
Salary
Example of my salary for living expenses broke down
The salary for JETs has changed for 2020. Previously, JET salaries started at 3.36 million yen and were a 1-year contract; now it’s a 10-month contract starting from early September at 2.8 million yen.
- Year 1 (2020): Approx. ¥2,800,000
- Year 2: ¥3,600,000
- Year 3: ¥3,900,000
- Year 4/5: ¥3,960,000
https://jetprogramusa.org/contract-information/
Honestly, because of Covid-19 and the original 2020 Olympics summer schedule, the salary was possibly shortened because of these measures and cancelations: flight cost, JET Orientation cost, etc. I have no official word on the change in salary for 2020. This could be temporary for 2020 and revert from 2021 or 2022 when the Olympics are over.
All my speculation.
Benefits
JET Work Visa
The JET program allows you to bring dependents such as your spouse and children to Japan who is qualified to receive a visa. However, a fiancé(e), common-law spouse, best friend, roommate, etc. are not eligible to apply.
4 Insurance Benefits
The best benefits as a JET are your insurances! JETs have the most amazing healthcare, pension, employment, and accident insurance while in Japan. I won’t go into so much detail for this post.
- National Health Insurance (NHI) – a policy which covers 70% of all medical expenses for injuries and illnesses. It covers prescriptions, dental, doctor visits, check-ups, medical massages, you name it. It’s heavily subsidized, so that 30% is an extremely low co-pay.
- Pension Insurance – money pulled into a retirement plan for when you finish JET or stay in Japan forever. It also covers payment to your family if you are seriously injured or die during your time on JET. Anyways, you can claim up to 3 years after you leave Japan, which is about ¥900,000.
- Employment Insurance – you pay into unemployment benefits. Say you stay in Japan, but you cannot find work right away, you can claim these. Seek out Hello Work for more information.
- JET Accident Insurance – insurance in case of any serious injury, illness, or death. You can claim a ¥5,000 deductible after you go over the 70% cost for NHI. It’s rare that you will exceed the deductible on any regular health visits.
All of these benefits can be viewed in much greater detail, especially NHI and Pension. In my experience, NHI was a lifesaver for cheap medicine and dental check-ups. The Dental was amazingly cheap. I will go into these details in another blog.
Transportation to and from Japan
Once you finish your JET contract, your Contracting Organization will pay for your flight back home. Departures must be within one month of finishing your JET contract, so it gives you some time to travel around the country if you choose to.
Breaking your contract or being disqualified for any reason could result in a required payment to your CO for travel costs. Your terms and conditions will go into greater depth about this topic. You would be surprised that it does happen to some JETs who have to leave Japan.
There are many great benefits to the JET Program. Not all of them are listed here or in great detail. This is just a summary of the various benefits offered. As a JET, you will also have the best benefits compared to other ALTs or English conversation school teachers in Japan.
Remember that being a JET ALT is a privilege.
