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Japan Salary Increase Notice Template (昇給通知書)

Document a pay raise: pre-revision salary, post-revision salary, effective date, and the basis (annual review, promotion, market adjustment, skill or certification). Live increase amount and percentage, annualized impact, and a standard monthly remuneration (標準報酬月額) grade movement note. Preview in Japanese or English, edit inline, export to PDF.

Emmanuel Gendre, Founder of SaiyouTeam
By Emmanuel Gendre
Founder, SaiyouTeam · 12 years recruiting in Japan

Last reviewed: · Aligned with Japan Pension Service guidance on occasional revision (随時改定 / 月額変更)

Salary increase notice generator

2026年5月15日

田中 太郎　様

〒150-0001 東京都渋谷区神宮前2-3-4

〒100-0005 東京都千代田区丸の内1-1-1

株式会社サンプル

代表取締役　山田 花子

昇 給 通 知 書

拝啓　時下ますますご清栄のこととお慶び申し上げます。

このたび、貴殿の日頃の業務遂行を評価し、下記のとおり給与を改定する旨を通知いたします。

敬具

記

  1. 改定前の月給 基本給: ¥380,000 役職手当: ¥20,000 合計（月額）: ¥400,000　／　年収目安: ¥4,800,000
  2. 改定後の月給 基本給: ¥420,000 役職手当: ¥30,000 合計（月額）: ¥450,000　／　年収目安: ¥5,400,000
  3. 増額 月額: ¥50,000　／　年額換算: ¥600,000　／　増額率: +12.5%
  4. 適用開始日 2026年6月1日 より新給与を適用する。
  5. 改定の根拠 年次評価 2025年度通期の業績評価結果（評価ランクA）に基づく昇給。
  6. 標準報酬月額の取り扱い 改定前の等級: 22等級　／　改定後の等級: 24等級。日本年金機構の随時改定（月額変更）の基準に該当する場合は、月額変更届を所定の期日までに提出します。
  7. 賞与・退職金への影響 適用開始日以降の賞与および退職金の算定基礎は、改定後の基本給を反映するものとする。詳細は就業規則・退職金規程に定めるところによる。
  8. お問い合わせ 本件に関するお問い合わせは、人事部 鈴木（電話 03-1234-5678）までお願いいたします。

以上

〒100-0005 東京都千代田区丸の内1-1-1

株式会社サンプル

代表取締役　山田 花子　　印

________________________

Ready to send? Download a PDF of the notice you see above. Your email is used only to receive the file.

How it works

A clean Japanese salary increase notice in 60 seconds

The 昇給通知書 (salary increase notice) is the document an employer issues to record a pay raise. It captures the pre-revision salary, the post-revision salary, the effective date, and the basis. The notice serves both as the employee's confirmation that the change is intended and as the employer's contemporaneous HR record of the compensation history.

1. Pre-revision and post-revision salary, with allowance breakdown

Enter the current monthly base salary, then up to four optional allowance rows (allowance name + amount). Repeat for the post-revision salary. The annual estimate (12 months of base + allowances) is computed live and displayed both in the rail and in the preview.

2. Live increase amount and percentage

As you type the new monthly base, the increase amount (new base minus current base) and the increase percentage update live. The preview shows the monthly increase, the annualized increase, and the rate.

3. Standard monthly remuneration (標準報酬月額) grade movement note

Optional fields capture the current and the new health-insurance / pension grade. If the new grade is 2 or more levels higher than the current grade, the preview surfaces a small note about filing an occasional revision (随時改定 / 月額変更届) with the Japan Pension Service / health-insurance association. This is the trigger that converts a pay raise into a social-insurance event.

4. Effective date and basis

Pick the effective date and the basis (annual review, promotion or grade change, market adjustment, skill or certification, other), and add a free-text basis detail. Both the Japanese and the English version of the basis detail are exported.

5. Edit anything that doesn't match your case

Click Edit on the toolbar above the preview and the notice becomes editable in place. Use this for retroactive adjustments, lump-sum back-pay statements, references to specific Work Rules sections, or any wording the template doesn't anticipate. When you turn editing off, your changes stay; the form fields keep driving only the highlighted variables.

6. Export to PDF

Click Download as PDF, enter your email, and the file generates locally in your browser. Whatever language is currently visible in the preview is what gets exported.

Edge cases worth knowing

  • Retroactive raises: state the retroactive effective date clearly in the basis detail and add a one-line reference to the lump-sum back-pay amount. Pair the notice with the actual back-pay payment.
  • Salary cuts: do not use this template. Salary reductions in Japan are highly restricted (Article 8 of the Labor Contract Act and the rule on disadvantageous unilateral changes). Use the Compensation Revision Notice with the employee's written consent.
  • Promotion-linked raises: pair this notice with the Promotion Notice. The basis field should reference the new title or grade.
  • 2-grade movement: if the standard monthly remuneration grade moves by 2 or more levels and the higher level holds for 3 consecutive months, file the 月額変更届 (occasional revision notification) with the relevant pension office or health-insurance association within the prescribed deadline.

Reference

What each section means

Salary increase notice (昇給通知書)

The formal written notice issued by the employer to record a pay raise. Captures the pre-revision salary, the post-revision salary, the effective date, and the basis. Functions as both the employee's confirmation and the employer's HR record.

Standard monthly remuneration (標準報酬月額)

The notional monthly compensation amount used for health-insurance and pension premium calculations. Mapped to a grade table (1-50 grades). When a pay raise moves the grade by 2 or more levels and the higher level holds for 3 consecutive months, an occasional revision (随時改定) is required.

Occasional revision (随時改定 / 月額変更)

Mid-cycle recalculation of the standard monthly remuneration when a fixed-wage change moves the grade by 2 or more levels for 3 consecutive months. Filed via 月額変更届 (occasional revision notification) with the Japan Pension Service or relevant health-insurance association.

Regular revision (定時決定)

Annual recalculation of the standard monthly remuneration based on April / May / June compensation, filed by July 10 each year via 算定基礎届. Smaller raises that don't trigger an occasional revision feed into the next regular revision.

Compensation revision notice (給与改定通知書)

Broader template covering any compensation change: increases, decreases, allowance restructuring, fixed / variable shifts. Use the salary increase notice for clean upward changes and the compensation revision notice for everything else.

Frequently asked

Common questions about Japanese salary increase notices

Does a salary increase trigger a social-insurance recalculation?

Yes, if the increase causes the employee's standard monthly remuneration (標準報酬月額) to move by 2 or more grades and the higher level holds for 3 consecutive months. This triggers an occasional revision (随時改定 / 月額変更). Smaller increases just feed into the next regular revision cycle (定時決定) in September.

Does the employee need to consent to a salary increase?

No. Increases are favorable changes and take effect on the employer's notice. Best practice is still to have the employee acknowledge receipt of the notice for record-keeping, but consent is not legally required.

When should the notice be issued, before or after the effective date?

Best practice is to issue the notice on or before the effective date. Issuing after the fact is allowed but creates a gap where the employee may not know the new amount until the first paycheck reflects it. Pre-effective-date notice is the cleanest pattern.

What's the difference between shokyu (昇給) and kyuyo kaitei (給与改定)?

Shokyu (昇給) specifically means a pay increase. Kyuyo kaitei (給与改定) is the broader term covering any compensation change, including increases, decreases, restructuring of allowances, and shifts between fixed and variable components. Use the salary increase notice for clean upward changes; use the compensation revision notice for everything else.

Should retroactive raises be issued by salary-increase notice?

Yes. State the retroactive effective date clearly and include the back-pay amount (lump-sum adjustment) if applicable. The notice and the payment go together. Retroactive cuts, in contrast, are highly restricted and generally invalid.

How do I know if the new grade moves by 2 or more levels?

Compare the current health-insurance / pension grade against the new grade based on the new total monthly compensation (base + fixed allowances). If the difference is 2 grades or more and the higher level is expected to hold for 3 consecutive months, an occasional revision (随時改定) is required and the employer must file a 月額変更届 (occasional revision notification) with the Japan Pension Service / health-insurance association.

Do bonuses and severance reflect the new base from the effective date?

Generally, yes for forward-looking bonus and severance calculations tied to the monthly base. The effective date in this notice becomes the cut-off. For pro-rated calculations crossing the effective date, follow the formula in the Work Rules / retirement allowance regulations.

About the author

Emmanuel Gendre, Founder of SaiyouTeam
Emmanuel Gendre
Founder, SaiyouTeam · TechieCV K.K.

Emmanuel advises small and mid-sized companies (SMBs) on HR and recruiting in Japan. He brings 12 years recruiting in Japan as a Recruitment Consultant placing IT professionals, plus prior experience hiring engineers across EMEA as a Google recruiter. The compensation workflow, including drafting salary increase notices (昇給通知書) at annual review or after a promotion, is something he handles regularly with his SMB clients in Japan, so he built this template as part of that advisory work and uses it himself when those conversations come up.

For case-specific HR matters, Emmanuel works with licensed Japanese professionals (社会保険労務士 and 弁護士). This template is a planning tool used in those conversations, not a substitute for professional advice on an individual case.

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Official sources

This page is built on the following primary Japanese government sources. Open each link to verify the underlying rule against the issuing authority.

Important. This template provides a generic Japanese salary increase notice (昇給通知書) structure for general information only and is not a substitute for legal or labor-law advice. Edge cases, especially retroactive raises, salary cuts disguised as restructuring, and grade movements that interact with the social-insurance schedule, can have meaningful payroll and filing consequences. Before issuing this notice in any non-routine situation, have the final wording reviewed by a Certified Social Insurance and Labor Consultant (社会保険労務士) or a qualified labor lawyer (弁護士).