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Working-Hours Records and the Burden of Proof

Working-Hours Records and the Burden of Proof decides whether unpaid overtime in Japan gets paid or stays as service overtime.12 If your payslip shows fewer hours than you actually worked, the employer's record duty, your own evidence, and the proof rule for missing records together determine what you can recover.

Confirm current details with official sources

Procedures, fees, and requirements can change. Confirm current details at the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW). This article is general information, not legal, tax, or immigration advice; for your specific case, consult a licensed bengoshi (lawyer) or shakai hoken roumushi (labor and social security attorney) for contested claims or filing questions.

Overview​

This article is for employees who suspect wage theft or hour fraud, on any work-permitting status of residence.31 The 労働基準法 (rōdō kijun hō, "Labor Standards Act") applies irrespective of nationality, and Article 3 bars differential treatment by nationality on wages or hours.3

The rules below are national law, so there is no ward or municipal variance to chase.3 The only location-dependent element is routing: the competent 労働基準監督署 (rōdō kijun kantokusho, "Labor Standards Inspection Office") is the one with jurisdiction over the workplace, not over your home address.14

Employer Duty: Objective Hour Records​

Your employer must confirm and record your start and end time on each workday, then compute hours worked from that record.56 A daily total alone, with no recorded start and end, does not satisfy the duty.

The two permitted objective methods​

The permitted principle methods are two: the employer personally observes and records, or the employer confirms and records based on objective records such as timecards, IC cards, or PC usage-time records.567 The current guideline form dates to 20 January 2017, when the MHLW replaced the 2001 standards and added PC usage-time records to the examples.57

Since April 2019 the work-style reform made objective grasp of working hours a legal obligation, including managers and discretionary-work workers, as a precondition for health management under the Industrial Safety and Health Act.89 Supervisory managers exempt from hour rules under Labor Standards Act Article 41 still fall under this grasp obligation for health-management purposes.89

Self-reporting only as last resort​

Self-reporting may be used only where the principle methods cannot be used and there is no way around it.57 Where it is used, the employer must explain proper reporting to both the workers and the managers in advance.5

The employer must then survey reality as needed and correct discrepancies, especially where entry/exit or PC data diverges sharply from the self-report.5 It must also confirm reports of presence beyond self-reported hours, since time labeled as break or self-study still counts as working hours where it was under the employer's direction.5

No overtime cap may limit what you report

An employer must not cap reportable overtime hours, refuse reports above a ceiling, or keep any measure that blocks proper self-reporting.57 It must also check that internal notices, fixed overtime payments, or customary recording to look compliant with the 36 Agreement ceiling are not functioning as such a block.5

Wage ledger and preservation duty​

Under Labor Standards Act Article 108 and Enforcement Ordinance Article 54, the employer must prepare a wage ledger per workplace recording, per worker, days worked, hours worked, holiday hours, overtime hours, and night hours.35 A ledger left blank on these items, or one with deliberately false hours, is punishable by a fine of up to 300,000 yen under Article 120.5

DocumentWhat it must recordPreservation
Wage ledger (Article 108)Days worked, hours worked, holiday hours, overtime hours, night hours, per worker5 years in the statutory text; 3 years for the time being31011
Attendance records and timecards (Article 109)Start and end times and the underlying objective records5 years in the statutory text; 3 years for the time being31011

The 2020 amendment extended the statutory text from 3 to 5 years alongside the prescription reform, but the effective duty remains 3 years until the transitional measure ends, with no announced end date (as of 2026-09).1011

Terminology​

  • 賃金台帳 (chingin daichō, "wage ledger"), the per-workplace pay and hours record required by Article 108.35

Employee-Side Evidence That Courts Credit​

Courts credit evidence tied to actual work, and they weigh multiple records against each other rather than trusting one source blindly.1212 Build your file from several of the sources below, not from one alone.

Daily personal log and contemporaneous notes​

Start a daily log of actual start and end times today, in a notebook, phone memo, or spreadsheet, and record breaks as taken.12 A contemporaneous note beats a reconstruction months later, so do not wait for the dispute to ripen before you start writing.

Keep every payslip and match each one against actual bank deposits.12 A payslip showing no overtime pay against late nights you actually worked is direct evidence of underpayment. Build a month-by-month sheet of hours worked, overtime owed, deductions, and the unpaid total; accountant-grade precision is not required before you consult the Labor Bureau.2

Secure records before your access disappears

Internal systems, time records, and messages become hard to reach after departure, even though the right to claim survives resignation.113 Download payslips, screenshots, and schedules while you can still open them.

Objective traces: entry exit, PC logs, messages, receipts​

Objective traces carry the most weight: timecards, shift rosters, building entry/exit records, PC login/logout and VPN history, work-app and delivery logs, email and chat timestamps, and manager instructions to stay late or work days off.121213 Ask HR in writing for employer-held IC entry data, timeclock data, and computer logs; the request itself creates a paper trail even if refused.12

Transit IC history, taxi receipts, calendar entries, and family messages corroborate return times where company systems are closed to you.13 Treat these as corroboration rather than standalone proof of work performed, since a timestamped ride home does not by itself show what you did before it.

Limit what you take to what is needed to verify hours and pay, and avoid removing trade secrets or personal data, which creates separate liability.13

Terminology​

  • サービス残業 (sābisu zangyō, "service overtime"), unpaid overtime worked but not recorded or paid.1

Burden of Proof in Wage-Theft Litigation​

The asserting and proving responsibility for actual hours rests on the plaintiff worker, who must specify start and end times and show labour was provided between them.14 Articles 108 and 109 alone do not formally reverse that burden onto the employer.14

The employee states hours, the employer must rebut​

In practice, where the worker makes a prima facie showing of hours and the employer offers no effective and appropriate counterproof, courts certify hours on the worker's materials.1412 Timecard-recorded start-to-end time carries a factual presumption that the worker was engaged in duties between those points.12 The presumption is rebuttable: where the employer shows the time was spent privately, courts decide from whether the time was under the employer's direction.8

An employer arguing otherwise faces a heightened counterproof burden grounded in evidence, not assertion.12 Multiple records are weighed relatively: an employer timecard can lose credibility while a worker PC log wins it, or the reverse, depending on which ties more credibly to actual work.12

What happens when the employer kept no records​

Where the employer neglected proper hours management, courts do not simply deny all overtime; they weigh the employer's failure against the employer when evaluating proof.1412 Missing records lower the practical hurdle for the worker's showing without formally moving the burden.

In one Tokyo District Court judgment of 25 February 2022, the court accepted estimation from the average of provable-period hours for a period with no timecards, where duties had not changed, no seasonal swing existed, and the employer submitted no counterproof materials.14 In another line of cases, courts certified hours from email send/receive timestamps most favorable to the worker within scheduled hours, where the employer's system recorded only scheduled times and management had been neglected.12

Weak employer records do not prove every claimed hour

Courts still need some objective material from which to infer hours; a bare assertion with nothing behind it does not clear even the lowered bar.14 Keep at least one objective trace per claimed period, however thin, alongside your log.

Claiming Unpaid Overtime: Labor Bureau Then Court​

Most cases resolve in the first two steps below; the court step is the backstop, not the starting point.1 Move through them in order and keep every document.

Step 1: written demand and calculation sheet​

Send a written demand stating the unpaid months, your calculation, and a reply deadline, by email and, where possible, registered or content-certified mail, and preserve every reply.1215 Keep the tone factual: months, hours, rates, total.

Dismissal or other disadvantageous treatment for reporting a Labor Standards Act violation to the inspection authorities is prohibited.12 On separation, if you request it, the employer must pay wages and return money and goods within 7 days under Article 23, including any undisputed portion where part is disputed.32

Step 2: Labor Standards Inspection Office complaint​

Any worker may report a Labor Standards Act violation to the inspection authorities under Article 104; the service is free and anonymous complaints are accepted.3116 A named complaint generally produces stronger results than an anonymous one, since inspectors cannot negotiate a settlement on your behalf without knowing who you are.1

Inspectors can compel the employer to produce work rules, agreements, rosters, wage ledgers, and attendance records, and they issue correction recommendations where violations are confirmed.116 Before or alongside a complaint, the prefectural Labor Bureau's General Labor Consultation Corner offers free consultation and mediation where both sides agree to participate.14

The inspection office does not collect wages for you

The office enforces the statute through supervision and correction; it does not act as your agent to collect wages, and a penalty against the employer still does not itself pay you.416 Treat a correction recommendation as leverage, then move to the court step if the employer still does not pay.

Step 3: Labor Tribunal, small claims, or civil suit​

If the employer still does not pay, the forums are Labor Tribunal proceedings, a small-claims suit, an ordinary suit, a demand for payment, or civil conciliation, chosen by amount and circumstances.415 Claims of 1.4 million yen or less go to summary court, and claims above that go to district court.15 The small-claims procedure (600,000 yen or less) generally concludes in a single hearing but requires evidence prepared in advance.15

Wage claims prescribe 3 years from each monthly payday for wages due on or after 1 April 2020, with 2 years for wages due before that date (as of 2026-09; confirm current figures with the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare).114 Retirement allowance claims prescribe 5 years.114 The statute writes 5 years in principle with 3 years for the time being for ordinary wages, and the court-ordered additional payment under Article 114 follows the same transitional period.11

Premium-wage context for your calculation: at least 25 percent for overtime, 35 percent for statutory-holiday work, 25 percent for night work from 22:00 to 05:00 with stacking, and 50 percent for monthly overtime beyond 60 hours, which applies to all employers since April 2023.12

Good to know​

Collect evidence while still employed​

Internal systems, time records, and messages become hard to reach after departure, so secure everything while you are still employed even though the right to claim survives resignation.113 Workers who resign first and then try to claim face the same legal standard with a thinner file, since the employer's systems close behind them.1

Self-reported company hours are not the final word​

A company system showing only scheduled start and end times, with no real recording, does not determine actual hours where other traces show longer work.12 Relying solely on the employer's recorded hours is risky because those records may understate actual work, so keep a parallel personal log from today.112

The 3-year clock runs per payday​

Prescription is measured from each monthly payday, so older months expire first while you wait (as of 2026-09).413 A written demand by certified mail can defer completion, but a follow-on filing such as tribunal or suit proceedings is then needed within 6 months.13

The Labor Bureau does not collect wages for you​

A correction recommendation may move the employer to pay voluntarily, but full recovery of long-period claims often still requires tribunal or court action.16 Filing at the inspection office and the consultation corners is free, while court filings require revenue stamps and postage scaled to the claimed amount, plus eventual counsel costs for large or contested cases.15

See also​

References​

Footnotes​

  1. TreeGlobalPartners / Sakurai Yuki. "Unpaid Overtime in Japan: How Foreign Workers Can Claim What They Are Owed." 2026-04-23. https://treeglobalpartners.com/en/articles/unpaid-overtime-how-to-claim/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12 ↩13 ↩14 ↩15 ↩16 ↩17 ↩18 ↩19 ↩20 ↩21

  2. LO-PAL / Kanaya Taku. "How to Recover Unpaid Wages in Japan Before 3 Years Run Out." 2026-03-17 (updated 2026-03-26). https://lo-pal.app/guide/en/recover-unpaid-wages-japan ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11

  3. Japanese Law Translation (Ministry of Justice). "Labor Standards Act" (労働基準法), Act No. 49 of 1947, as amended. https://www.japaneselawtranslation.go.jp/en/laws/view/3567/en ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9

  4. Japan Legal Support Center (Houterasu). "Workplace and Labor" English FAQ, esp. Q07 (unpaid wages: prescription, enforcement, forums). https://www.houterasu.or.jp/site/english/workplaceandlabor.html ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7

  5. Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare. 「労働時間の適正な把握のために使用者が講ずべき措置に関するガイドライン」 (Guidelines for Measures to Be Taken by Employers to Properly Monitor Working Hours), Labor Standards Bureau Notification 0120 No. 3, 20 January 2017, with summary points. https://jsite.mhlw.go.jp/saitama-roudoukyoku/library/saitama-roudoukyoku/seido/kijun/roudoujikan-guideline.pdf ; https://wwwtb.mlit.go.jp/kinki/content/000009703.pdf ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10 ↩11 ↩12

  6. Ius Laboris / Anderson Mori and Tomotsune. "Employer essentials for Japan's working time regulations." 2025-06-20. https://iuslaboris.com/insights/employer-essentials-for-japans-working-time-regulations/ ↩ ↩2

  7. Lexology / Anderson Mori and Tomotsune. "Japan releases stricter working hours monitoring guidelines for employers." 2018-04-05. https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=eff1d14b-8b13-409b-9f78-85e269d942e5 ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4

  8. Bengoshi-hojin ALG and Associates. 「労働時間の把握が義務化に!客観的な記録方法や罰則について」 (Objective grasp of working hours obligated from April 2019). https://www.avance-lg.com/corporate_contents/roumu/workingtime/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  9. Japan Lawyer (foreign-worker legal support). "Labor Law in Japan: Is there an obligation to keep manager's attendance record?" 2019-02-05. https://japan-lawyer.com/2019/02/05/106/ ↩ ↩2

  10. HR NOTE. 「労働基準法第109条の重要な書類の保存期間は何年?法改正や経過措置、違反した場合の罰則を解説」 2023-01-26. https://hrnote.jp/contents/roumu-rodokijunho-109jo-20230126/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3

  11. Japan Institute for Labour Policy and Training. "Proposal on Extinctive Prescriptions of Claims for Wages." Japan Labor Issues, Vol. 4 No. 24, July 2020. https://www.jil.go.jp/english/jli/documents/2020/024-04.pdf ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  12. Kakitsubata Management Law Office / Higuchi Yosuke. 「裁判所はここを見ている!最新裁判例に学ぶ労働時間管理と残業代請求の実務対応」 (court presumptions from timecards; email-record certification where management was neglected). 2026-03-27. https://www.labor-management.net/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/20260327_higuchi.pdf ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7 ↩8 ↩9 ↩10

  13. DailyDrops. 「残業代請求は自分でできる?時効3年・証拠集め・退職後の手順を解説」 2026-07-05. https://daily-drops.com/articles/unpaid-overtime-claim ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6 ↩7

  14. Shishikado Sogo Law Office. 「タイムカードのない期間の労働時間について、労働時間を特定可能な期間の平均値で推計することが認められた例」 (burden of proof; estimation from averages accepted, Tokyo District Court 25 Feb 2022 Hanshin Kyodo Sagyo case). 2022-08-26. https://shishikado.jp/a/692 ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5 ↩6

  15. Roudou Bengodan (Labour Lawyers Association of Japan). 「賃金未払いの相談例」 (demand by content-certified mail; suit forums by amount; small-claims 600,000 yen ceiling). https://roudou-bengodan.com/faq_category/case04/ ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4 ↩5

  16. Daishoyasan labour-law commentary. 「賃金未払い・残業代・労災｜労働基準監督署への申告・相談後の対応」 (LSIO report effects and limits; correction recommendations; no direct collection power). https://daishoyasan.jp/lm/p-keep/pkpC-06.html ↩ ↩2 ↩3 ↩4