TN 24 (10-22)

RS 02002.065 Detached Worker Rule under the U.S. - Japan Agreement

A. Definition of a detached worker

  • A detached worker is an employee who is sent by his or her employer in one country to work temporarily in the other country for the same employer or an affiliate of that employer; or

  • A self-employed worker who temporarily transfers his or her self-employment activity from one country to the other country.

  • The employee or self-employed person will continue to be covered under the social security system of the first country, and will be exempt from coverage in the host country provided that the period of the transfer is for five years or less.

B. Detached worker rule

1. Qualifying conditions

Under the Agreement, a detached worker remains subject only to the social security laws of the country from which the employer transferred the worker.

However, the worker must meet all of the following conditions:

  • The employer and worker expect the period of employment in the host country to last five years or less. The five-year period begins with the date the employment in the host country begins or October 1, 2005 (the effective date of the Agreement) whichever is later; and

  • The employment relationship existed before the employer transferred the worker from the home country; and

  • If an American employer sends an employee to that employer's affiliate in Japan, there must be an agreement in effect between the American employer and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) under section 3121(l) of the Internal Revenue Code with respect to the affiliate. In such cases, the employer must still obtain a certificate of coverage to establish the exemption from Japanese social security taxes.

NOTE: The detached worker rule may apply even if the worker does not go directly from one country to the other but first works in a third country.

2. Family members of detached workers traveling to Japan

  • Family members who are not Japanese nationals and who accompany an exempted worker to Japan will be subject only to U.S. law and will be exempt from Japanese laws, unless those persons request otherwise.

  • Family members who are Japanese nationals that accompany the exempted worker to Japan will have his or her coverage determined in accordance with Japanese laws.

C. References

  • RS 01901.070, Agreement under Section 3121(l) of the Internal Revenue Code.

  • RS 01901.050C, Employment Outside The United States For An American Employer.

  • RS 02002.095, Certificates of Coverage under the Agreement with Japan.


To Link to this section - Use this URL:
http://policy.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0302002065
RS 02002.065 - Detached Worker Rule under the U.S. - Japan Agreement - 10/25/2022
Batch run: 11/10/2022
Rev:10/25/2022