In Japan, welfare applicants must sell their cars to receive state money

Do poor people have the right to own a car? The question arises in Japan where people applying for subsistence social assistance sometimes have to sell their vehicle before receiving their check. But the state is starting to wonder if this measure is not a little too severe.

Japan does have very strict conditions when distributing some of its social assistance. There is less aid than in France. People in need especially ask for what is called "seikatsu hogo", that is to say the minimum solidarity income, which helps to pay for their housing, food and even clothing. It is calculated according to each person's situation: professional status, employed or not, marital status, divorced or not, household situation, whether there are children or not and the city of residence. The authorities define the amount necessary to live decently and pay each month the amount needed to reach this threshold.

To receive this money, there is an investigation by social services. They go to the homes concerned to check the exact state of finances. This is where they look to see if there are any goods deemed useless that could be sold. To receive aid, you have to get rid of everything that can be seen as a luxury, anything that is not useful to everyday life. These are stocks on the stock market, precious metals, or a car, for example. After the investigation, social services will, in most cases, ask you to sell it because it represents a fixed cost in maintenance, sticker, fuel which is not considered compatible with the generosity of the State. For the moment, there are a few exceptions, for people with disabilities for example. The others must get rid of their vehicles.

But this rule is starting to be called into question. The Ministry of Health has just announced that it is considering relaxing this rule for only some of the people who receive this minimum solidarity income. This category concerns single parents, often mothers who struggle to get the alimony owed by their ex-husband paid. They work, they manage the children. Outside of big cities, far from good public transport networks, they find it very difficult to do everything without a car. Often, they cannot work as much as they would like. So, from now on, the ministry could authorize them to keep their vehicle but only if they prove that this car allows them to have higher income than what they receive by using public transport.