In a recent question about filing tax returns, someone wrote, “It’s hard for the tax office to catch people who don’t file. Some people go decades without filing and never get caught.” If I file a tax return only this year for the money I received from my papa (a male supporter), but don’t file next year, will the tax office find it suspicious and ask, “You filed last year, so why aren’t you filing this year?”

This is Joe. It seems like all the answers have already been covered, but I’ll add my two cents. The first thing you should do is check your employer’s work regulations. Filing a tax return is something the papa should be doing. If you’re going to file one yourself, have them keep it to at least ¥2 million—¥1.99 million is more advantageous. And don’t forget to keep the necessary documents and claim your expenses. If you file a tax return this year, you might receive an inquiry from the tax office sometime next year or later. But I don’t think you need to worry too much. The tax office is busy, after all. The cleanest? option would be to have the money treated as a gift and file the tax return yourself. You’d get a little firsthand experience with how taxes work, and you wouldn’t have to worry unnecessarily. Though, of course, the papa probably wouldn’t like that.

Maezawa from the CEO’s office here. I’ll answer your question. Thank you for reaching out. You do have a proper written contract, correct? If not, you should make one. Also, I think it would be a good idea to prepare a work report once a month, give it to your papa (a male supporter), and keep a copy for yourself. That way, the payment can be treated as compensation for work. Of course, this assumes that you’re actually doing the work and can prepare a report. For example, if it’s a consulting contract, even something very simple like: “[Date] — Monthly consulting meeting at the lounge of [Hotel]. Time spent on research before the meeting: [X] hours this month.” I think having something like that is better than having nothing at all. You mentioned that you plan to report the income this month. Since I believe this would be income rather than a gift, you may also be able to include related expenses. If you consider it working from home, you could calculate the work-time ratio and claim part of your electricity and internet bills as business expenses. Since you’re even claiming expenses, it will look more clearly like proper compensation for work—and your taxes will be reduced by the amount of the expenses. You can continue filing tax returns next year and beyond. However, if your relationship with your papa has ended, that’s essentially the same as the work contract ending, so there shouldn’t be anything particularly strange about no longer filing next year. If you’re worried, you could submit a business commencement notification—although submitting one now might seem a little odd—and then file a business closure notification when your relationship with your papa ends. That should make it easier for the tax office to understand why you stopped filing.

You’re not in the wrong, but tell your papa not to claim the roughly ¥1.3 million a year as a business expense. Marika

I’m Kazu, a male member. If a papa claims the allowance as a business expense and it’s discovered, it could be considered tax evasion. However, that’s the papa’s issue, so as long as you report your income, it’s not something you need to worry about. Even if you stop filing tax returns, I don’t think anyone will contact you. More importantly, filing a tax return could lead your employer to inquire about your local resident tax amount. I think you should check whether your workplace prohibits side jobs.

I’m Paper Airplane, a male member. Does this mean the money from your papa (a male supporter) is being processed as a business expense rather than coming out of his personal pocket? If you’re properly receiving it as payment for work, that’s fine. But if not, then it isn’t really legitimate papa-katsu (compensated dating in Japan). It could even be pointed out as the company’s tax evasion. Cases like that are easy for the tax office to flag during an audit—you can assess the full ¥1.3 million. For you personally, if it’s around ¥1.3 million, your taxable income would only be about ¥200,000—or possibly nothing, depending on your deductions. If officials spend time dealing with taxes like that, it would be a waste of taxpayers’ money. They’d probably find it easier to assess the entire amount against the company and meet their targets. They’ll want to bring home a nice “souvenir” of around ¥1 million, after all.

I’m Date◎Yume, a male member. If your income exceeds a certain amount, you have to pay taxes. If you don’t file, the tax office will contact you later, so I think it’s better to file. You won’t lose all of your income, so don’t worry. Of course, your taxes will go up.