The Japan Agricultural News found out on November 8 that the Government and ruling parties are making final adjustments so as to work out a special measure to expand eligibility requirements for application of an agricultural income insurance scheme.
One of the main eligibility criteria required for participants in the income insurance scheme is that applicants of farmers can show that they have continuously filed “blue” income-tax returns for the past five years.
With a view to facilitating farmers’ participation in the scheme, the Government and ruling parties are considering the special measure to approve application of farmers who have filed a blue income-tax return only for a previous year when they make the application.
The special measure is expected to be useful to make more farmers be insured under the scheme, although a maximum level of guaranteed farm income will be lowered for farmers who are to be benefited by the measure.
The agricultural income insurance, which is scheduled to be launched in 2019, would guarantee that farmers maintain a certain level of their average annual income with insurance money to be paid when they suffer farm income losses.
When a trial scheme of agricultural income insurance was implemented, the applicants were required to submit copies of blue income-tax returns for the past five years so that an average farm income could be properly calculated.
As of the year of 2014, however, a total number of farmers filing blue income-tax returns were limited to only 430 thousand.
Under such conditions, the administration and ruling bloc have been considering how they can expand farmers’ eligibility requirements for participating in the agricultural income insurance.
It is expected that they will decide to accept applications of farmers with a one-year record of filing a blue income-tax return. Their applications for the insurance scheme are to be made every autumn.