Rent Guarantee Companies in Japan: Fees, Screening, and the Costs That Continue After Move-In

2026年8月20日

A foreign resident checks apartment guarantee fees with a real estate agent in Japan.

Rent Guarantee Companies in Japan: Fees, Screening, and the Costs That Continue After Move-In

A rent guarantee company pays the landlord if a tenant misses covered payments, then seeks repayment from the tenant. It does not erase the tenant’s debt, and it is mainly designed to protect the landlord.

For many private rentals in Japan, using the company selected by the landlord or property manager is a condition of approval. A common fee pattern is an initial charge equal to about 50% of the monthly housing cost, followed by ¥10,000–¥20,000 each year. Actual plans vary: some charge a higher initial percentage, some collect a monthly fee, and some include payment-processing or support services.

This guide is for foreign residents, students, workers, and families comparing private rental homes in Japan.

What to know first:

The guarantee company is often chosen by the landlord or property manager, not the tenant.
“50%” may be calculated from rent plus management fees and other recurring charges—not rent alone.
Passing the company’s screening does not guarantee that the landlord will approve the application.
A guarantee renewal charge is separate from a lease renewal fee, rental insurance, and any agency fee.
If the company covers unpaid rent, the tenant normally must repay the company.

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What a rent guarantee company actually does

The company takes on specified payment risks for the landlord, but the tenant remains responsible for the rental contract.

The Japanese term is yachin saimu hoshō gyōsha (家賃債務保証業者), commonly shortened to hoshō gaisha (保証会社). The tenant signs a guarantee service agreement in addition to the lease and pays the stated fee.

If a covered payment is missed, the company may pay the landlord under its agreement. It can then contact the tenant and request reimbursement. Depending on the product, coverage may include more than basic rent:

Rent and management or common-area fees
Parking charges included in the monthly contract
Certain restoration or disposal expenses
Legal expenses related to recovering possession
Other amounts specifically listed in the agreement

Coverage differs by company and plan. The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) publishes details for registered providers, including their main coverage and service areas. These details matter because the word “guarantee” does not mean every cost arising from a tenancy is covered.

ここがポイント: A rent guarantee contract protects the landlord against specified losses. It is not insurance that frees the tenant from paying rent or repaying an amount advanced on the tenant’s behalf.

Guarantee company, joint guarantor, and emergency contact are different

These roles are easy to confuse:

Rent guarantee company: A business that covers specified obligations under a paid contract.
Joint guarantor: A person who may have legal responsibility for the tenant’s obligations within the terms of the guarantee.
Emergency contact: A person contacted if the agent cannot reach the tenant. Being listed as an emergency contact does not automatically make that person a guarantor.

Some properties accept a guarantee company instead of a personal guarantor. Others require both. Ask the agent to identify every required role before applying, especially if your relatives live outside Japan.

How much the guarantee service can cost

Budget for the initial fee and the continuing charge before judging whether a property is affordable.

MLIT material for housing providers serving foreign tenants gives examples of initial fees ranging from 50% to 80% of the monthly rental amount, with an annual continuing fee of ¥10,000 in the illustrated plans. UR’s practical housing guidance describes an initial fee of about 50% and an annual fee of roughly ¥10,000–¥20,000 as a common market pattern. These are useful benchmarks, not mandatory prices.

A simple cost example

Suppose a contract has:

Rent: ¥80,000 per month
Management fee: ¥5,000 per month
Guarantee fee base: ¥85,000
Initial guarantee rate: 50%
Annual continuing fee: ¥10,000

The initial guarantee fee would be:

¥85,000 × 50% = ¥42,500

If the tenant remains for three years and the company collects ¥10,000 at the start of each later guarantee year, the guarantee-related total could be:

Initial fee: ¥42,500
First continuing fee: ¥10,000
Second continuing fee: ¥10,000
Three-year total: ¥62,500

This example does not include rent, deposit, key money, agency commission, insurance, lock replacement, cleaning charges, or a lease renewal fee.

Three charging patterns to look for

Guarantee plans commonly use one of these structures:

Initial fee plus annual charge
A percentage is paid at the beginning, followed by a fixed amount each year.
Initial fee plus monthly charge
The first payment may be lower or higher, with an additional percentage or fixed charge collected every month.
Larger one-time or multi-year fee
A plan may collect more at the beginning for a stated guarantee period. Check what happens when that period ends or the lease continues.

A low move-in price is not always the cheapest plan over several years. Compare the total for the period you realistically expect to stay.

Ask what amount the percentage uses

The fee base may include:

Base rent
Management or common-area fees
Parking or bicycle-space charges
Fixed water charges
Other recurring payments collected with rent

If an advertisement says only “guarantee fee: 50%,” request the yen amount. That exposes both the calculation base and any minimum charge.

What screening usually examines

Screening mainly asks whether the applicant can be identified, contacted, and reasonably expected to make the required payments.

There is no single national pass mark used by every guarantee company. Each provider has its own process, and the landlord or management company can conduct a separate review.

An application may ask for:

Passport and residence card
Current address and Japanese telephone number
Employer or school information
Employment type and length of employment
Monthly or annual income
Recent payslips, employment certificate, or other income evidence
Bank account or payment-method information
Expected move-in date and reason for moving
Emergency contact details
Information about other occupants

Students, new employees, self-employed applicants, and people who have recently arrived in Japan may be asked for different evidence. A school, employer, scholarship certificate, savings record, employment offer, or support organization may help explain the applicant’s ability to pay, but acceptance depends on the provider and property.

Expect a confirmation call

The company may telephone the applicant, employer, school, or emergency contact to confirm submitted information. A missed call does not necessarily mean rejection, but it can delay the application.

Prepare the people listed on the form:

Tell them which company may call.
Make sure names and telephone numbers are correct.
Explain that an emergency contact is not being asked to promise payment unless separate documents clearly say so.
Ask the agent whether multilingual screening is available if a Japanese call would be difficult.

MLIT maintains a list of registered rent guarantee companies that provide language support for foreign residents. The list can help confirm available languages, but it does not mean that tenants can freely substitute one of those companies for the provider required by a particular property.

Why an application may not proceed

A company may decline or pause an application without publishing a detailed scoring formula. Practical problems that can weaken or delay an application include:

Income that appears too low for the total monthly housing cost
Missing, inconsistent, or unreadable documents
An employer, school, or contact who cannot be reached
A telephone number or address that does not match the application
Unclear employment or enrollment status
A proposed payment method the applicant cannot set up
Previous payment problems known to the provider or its screening network

Do not guess when a form asks for information you do not yet have. Ask the real estate agent what alternative document is accepted and submit a short, consistent explanation.

The application process, step by step

The best time to examine the guarantee contract is before paying or signing, not after the apartment has been approved.

1. Confirm the condition before applying

Ask the agent:

Is a guarantee company mandatory?
Which company and plan will be used?
Can the tenant choose another provider?
Is a personal guarantor also required?
Is multilingual support available?

In many private rentals, the property manager specifies the provider. UR notes that tenants generally have little opportunity to choose the guarantee company attached to a private property.

2. Request the full fee schedule in yen

Obtain written figures for:

Initial guarantee fee
Annual or monthly continuing fee
Rent collection or direct-debit fee
Any tax added to service charges
Fees triggered by a failed payment or bank transfer
Charges payable when the lease or guarantee term continues

Ask for the date of each payment. “Annual” could mean one year after move-in, on a fixed company schedule, or at another contractually defined point.

3. Prepare consistent documents

Use the same spelling and order of your name where possible. Foreign residents can have problems when a passport, residence card, bank account, employer record, and application use different name formats.

If the forms cannot hold your full legal name, ask the agent how the company wants it entered. Do not shorten it without confirmation.

4. Complete screening and respond promptly

Keep your telephone available and check messages. If the company offers language support, confirm the language and contact method before the call.

Passing this screening is only one stage. The landlord may still make the final decision about whether to accept the tenancy.

5. Read both contracts

The lease and guarantee agreement are connected, but they are not the same document. Check:

What payments are guaranteed
When the guarantee starts and ends
Whether it renews automatically
How continuing fees are collected
What happens if rent is late
Who contacts the tenant after nonpayment
How cancellation works after moving out
Whether a change of occupant, rent, or payment method affects the fee

Keep copies of the application, fee schedule, guarantee agreement, lease, and payment receipts.

Renewal costs: do not confuse two separate charges

A guarantee renewal charge and a lease renewal fee pay for different arrangements and may both appear in the same year.

The guarantee company’s continuing charge keeps the guarantee service in force under its terms. A lease renewal fee, often called kōshinryō (更新料), concerns continuation of the rental lease and depends on the property and contract.

You may also see:

Rental insurance renewal
A lease renewal administration fee
A monthly guarantee or collection fee
A separate payment to update support services

Before signing, build a calendar covering at least two or three years. List the due month and amount of every recurring charge. This is especially important when the lease and guarantee service run on different cycles.

Does moving out cancel the next charge automatically?

Do not assume it does. Follow the property manager’s move-out procedure and confirm that the guarantee service will end. Ask for written confirmation if a charge is scheduled close to the move-out date.

The lease, property management account, bank debit, and guarantee agreement may be administered by different organizations. Giving notice to one party may not complete every required step.

What happens if rent is late

Contact the property manager and guarantee company immediately; silence makes a payment problem harder to resolve.

If the company pays the landlord, the tenant can still be required to reimburse that amount. Additional charges may apply if the contract provides for them.

Take these steps:

Confirm the unpaid amount and due date.
Ask which organization must receive payment.
Request written payment instructions.
Keep the receipt or transfer record.
Confirm whether the next automatic debit will proceed normally.

Do not pay the same arrears twice—once to the landlord and again to the guarantee company—without checking who currently holds the claim.

MLIT also warns registered providers not to use clauses equivalent to provisions stopped by a 2022 Supreme Court judgment, including unrestricted clauses allowing the provider to cancel the lease without notice after payment delay or treat a home as surrendered while the lease still exists. A tenant facing lockout, removal of possessions, or pressure to leave should obtain advice promptly rather than relying only on the company demanding payment.

National registration does not mean every company must register

Japan has a national registration system, but registration remains voluntary.

MLIT created the system in 2017 to publish information about companies meeting specified requirements. As of March 31, 2026, its online list reported 123 registered providers. The governing registration rules were most recently amended in 2025, with the amendment taking effect on October 1, 2025.

Registration gives tenants and landlords a useful point of reference. It is not a government guarantee of approval, price, or payment on behalf of a tenant. A company can also operate without registering.

When checking a provider, look for:

Its name and MLIT registration number, if registered
Main guarantee coverage
Areas served
Complaint or customer-service contact
Available language support
The exact legal entity named in your agreement

Options when the required plan is unsuitable

The realistic choice is often between properties or rental systems, not between guarantee companies.

If the required fee is too high or the screening process is not workable, ask whether the agent has another property with different conditions. Possible alternatives include:

A property using another guarantee plan

The same agency may manage homes under several landlords, with different providers and fee structures. Compare the total move-in cost and recurring fees rather than the guarantee percentage alone.

Employer or school housing support

An employer may rent the home in its own name, offer company housing, or assist with a guarantor. A university may have affiliated housing or a support scheme for international students.

For workers with Specified Skilled Worker (i) status, the accepting organization or its registered support organization must provide housing-related support under the applicable support framework. The Immigration Services Agency explains that this can include acting as a guarantor, arranging company housing, or renting housing for the worker. Ask what assistance your organization’s approved support plan provides.

UR rental housing

UR rental housing does not require a guarantor or a guarantee-company fee, although applicants must meet UR’s eligibility and financial requirements. It is a genuine alternative in locations where suitable UR properties are available, but it should be compared on rent, deposit, location, building age, and commuting costs—not on the guarantee fee alone.

Registered housing support organizations

Some residents may qualify for help from a local housing support organization, known as a 居住支援法人 (kyojū shien hōjin). Services and eligibility vary by prefecture and organization, so check the list and local conditions rather than assuming that financial assistance is included.

Common mistakes to avoid

Most expensive surprises come from reading one percentage and overlooking the rest of the contract.

Calculating from rent alone: The fee base may include management, parking, and other fixed charges.
Treating the fee as a refundable deposit: A guarantee service fee is generally a service charge, not money held for return like a deposit.
Assuming the company pays rent for the tenant: Any covered amount advanced to the landlord can still be collected from the tenant.
Confusing annual guarantee fees with lease renewal fees: Both may be due during the same period.
Believing a personal guarantor always removes the company requirement: Some properties require both.
Choosing a property before checking payment methods: A plan may require a Japanese bank account, direct debit, or an approved card.
Ignoring name-format differences: Inconsistent names can delay identity and bank checks.
Assuming a residence status alone decides approval: Income, documents, contacts, property rules, and company criteria can all matter.
Paying before receiving written terms: Ask what is refundable if the landlord or guarantee company does not approve the application.

Questions to ask before you pay

A short written checklist gives you something concrete to compare across properties.

Send these questions to the agent:

What is the exact initial guarantee fee in yen?
What monthly amount is used to calculate it?
Is there an annual, monthly, or multi-year continuing fee?
Are collection or bank-debit fees separate?
Is the guarantee company mandatory, and can it be changed?
Is a personal guarantor or emergency contact also required?
Which languages can the screening and customer-service teams use?
What documents are accepted for my employment, school, or income situation?
What happens to money already paid if screening fails?
When and how does the guarantee agreement end after moving out?

The figure that matters is not “50%” on the listing. It is the total yen cost over your expected stay, together with the documents, payment method, and continuing obligations written into the actual plan.

As of August 2026, the practical next step is to request the guarantee company’s name, fee base, initial charge, continuing charge, and cancellation terms before committing to a property. If any answer is only verbal, ask for it in writing before transferring money.

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