Japan

House of Representatives House of Councillors

House of Representatives

Political system
Parliamentary system
Structure of parliament
Bicameral
IPU membership
Yes
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Parliamentary mandate

Start and end of mandate

Start of the parliamentary mandate for newly elected members
When the election results are declared
Date of start of mandate for newly elected members
No information available
Start of the parliamentary mandate for appointed members
Not applicable
Date of start of mandate for appointed members
No information available
End of the parliamentary mandate
On the last day of the chamber’s term (including in the case of early dissolution)
Date of end of mandate
No information available

Speaker

Mode of designation of the Speaker
The Speaker is elected from among the members of parliament/chamber
Authority that designates the Speaker when the Speaker is designated from outside parliament.
Not applicable
Rank of the Speaker in the hierarchy of the State
Other

Notes: in accordance with the principle of separation of powers between the legislative, executive, and judicial branches, no provision is made for any order of precedence for the speaker of the house of representatives, the president of the house of councillors, the prime minister, or the chief justice of the supreme court.

Speaker becomes interim Head of State in the event of the latter’s death or incapacity
No
Speaker's mandate continues between legislatures
No

Speaker terms

The term of the Speaker is different from the term of the house
Yes
Speaker's term
4 Years
Fixed election date for the Speaker, if any
No information available

Immunity and code of conduct

Parliament’s authorization is required for the detention or prosecution of members
Yes, except for flagrant delicto

Notes: except for cases involving flagrant delicto or where the consent of the house is obtained, members of both houses are exempt from arrest while the diet or an emergency session of the house of councillors is in session. any member arrested prior to the opening of a session is to be freed upon demand of the house for the term of the session (constitution, art. 50; diet law, art. 33 and 100(1)). the cabinet must request the house’s consent before arresting one of its members and must produce a copy of a written request received from a competent court or judge before issuing the arrest warrant (diet law, art. 34). members of neither house can be held liable outside the house for speeches, debates, or votes cast inside the house (constitution, art. 51). there is, however, no provision that requires the diet’s authorization to prosecute diet members.

There is a Code of conduct for members
Yes

Salaries and allowances

Members are paid salaries by parliament
Yes
(2020)
Basic salary, per year
13,716,400 JPY
(2022)
Basic salary, per year in PPP
140,580
(2022)
Basic allowances
Click for historical data
Basic allowance in PPP
178,518
Names of the basic allowances

Expenses for mail, phone and other communication, transport, and lodging (12,000,000 JPY - tax exempt)

End-of-term allowance (6,285,605 JPY - taxable)

Members pay income tax on salaries
Yes
Members pay income tax on allowances
No information available
Members can have remunerated employment outside parliament
Yes
Members are required to declare income from other employment to parliament
Yes
Additional salaries and allowances provided for leadership positions
Yes

Facilities, services and allowances for constituency work

Personal staff to work directly for the parliamentarian
Yes
Office at parliament
Yes
Constituency office
No
Housing
Yes
Other cash or in-kind allowances for constituency work
Yes

Notes:

Expenses for mail, phone and other communication, transport, and lodging (12,000,000 JPY - tax exempt)

End-of-term allowance (6,285,605 JPY - taxable)

Additional salaries and allowances for leadership positions
List of salaries and allowances for leadership positions
Salary Allowances
Speaker Yes Yes
Committee Chair Yes Yes

Notes:

Speaker: 22,568,000 JPY basic salary, 6,000 JPY additional allowance per day during session, and 10,540,775 JPY end-of-term allowance.

Vice Speaker: 16,473,600 JPY basic salary, 6,000 JPY additional allowance per day during session, and 7,694,280 end-of-term allowance.

Committee Chairs: no additional allowances except 6,000 JPY per day for committee sessions

Salary of the Speaker
22,568,000 JPY
Salary of the Speaker in PPP
220,326
Parliament determines the amount of salaries
Yes
Name of the body (or bodies) in parliament which determines the amount

By Law

Parliament determines the amount of allowances
Yes
Name of the body (or bodies) in parliament which determines the amount

By Law

Name of the institution outside parliament which determines the amount
No information available
The parliamentary salary is determined in reference to another salary scale
Yes
Reference scale used for parliamentary salaries
Ministerial salary

Notes: Prior to independence, under British administration, women were granted the right to vote in 1960, under British administration. This right was confirmed at independence.

Information on salaries and allowances on the parliamentary website
No information available
Year data was last reported

2020

Participation in the government

Members of the government must also be members of parliament
Can be a member of parliament
Number of members of the parliament/chamber who are also members of the government
59
(2023)
Members for whom data is available
465
(2021)
Percentage of members of parliament/chamber who are also members of the government
Click for historical data

Historical data for IPU membership

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Historical data for IPU membership
Year IPU membership
2020-09
List of values for 2020-09
No
2019-04
List of values for 2019-04
No
2018-06
List of values for 2018-06
No