I understand that many of the members are business owners, but are there any who treat the matching fee as a business expense? I was just wondering whether it could be interpreted as a staffing agency expense.

I’m Chikuwa, one of the male members. There’s no way they’re doing that. How would you explain it if you got audited by the tax authorities?

Do you mean something like entertaining multiple people at a dinner party? I wouldn’t want to date a man who tries to claim an ordinary one-on-one relationship as a business expense. That goes beyond tax savings. Meanwhile, I pay my taxes seriously and honestly. Marika

Maezawa from the President’s Office here—I’ll answer this as well. Recently, corporate contracts have become available, making it easier to treat the payments as business expenses. That said, even with a corporate contract, only the individual themselves can use it. You’ll still need the same personal information as with individual registration, such as your driver’s license, along with additional company information. Basically, it’s no different from an individual contract. The only difference is that it will probably involve more work, since you’ll need documents such as the company’s certificate of registered matters. Still, wouldn’t having a corporate contract make it easier to claim the payments as business expenses? That’s what I think. I don’t know which expense category they would fall under, and Universe won’t advise you on how to handle them. We wouldn’t want you to run into trouble if the tax office comes asking questions. In many cases, tax advice can only properly be given by a tax accountant or other qualified professional. Universe’s position is simply that we’ve expanded the available registration options, in case anyone can make use of them for tax-saving purposes. Getting back to the point, some men do claim these payments as business expenses. Incidentally, some tax accountants are very rigid and will insist that it’s absolutely impossible, so I think it would be best to consult your tax accountant first. If they simply say it can’t be done, I’d consider switching to another tax accountant—but people don’t seem very willing to change advisors. Strange, isn’t it?

I’m Papahikōki, a male member. Does anyone actually enjoy doing that?? What kind of idea is that?? Huh? That’s definitely the kind of idea someone unpopular would come up with… It makes me uncomfortable—and I’m sure it does for anyone reading it, too.

I’m Kazu, a male member. Some people may be claiming it as a business expense. I believe it would be classified as recruitment placement rather than temporary staffing, but please ask an accountant or the tax office whether treating it as a business expense is appropriate. Personally, I’m not being introduced to someone to hire at my company—it’s a private matter related to my personal life—so I think it’s only natural to pay for it out of my own pocket.