Anime industry jobs aren’t exactly the most stable or highest paying, but things seem to have gotten even worse now. The new consumption tax rules in Japan went into effect this month, and these could put many anime studios in danger.
These new consumption tax rules have been discussed since last year. Despite pushback from many Japanese entertainment industry professionals, the new rules were implemented, leading many to fear for their careers.
Japan’s New Consumption Tax Rules, Explained
The popularity of anime continues to be quite high worldwide, though the anime industry continues to see some struggles.
For instance, the Winter 23 season saw lots of major delays. Summer 23 also featured big delays for shows like Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead.
Now, the next problem that anime industry professionals must face is new consumption tax rules. Explaining any sort of tax scheme is difficult, but Full Frontal recently shared a helpful breakdown.
Previously, freelancers and small businesses earning less than JPY 10 million could claim deductions based on their accounting books instead of having to issue invoices.
Under the new rules, though, freelancers and businesses must now issue a qualified invoice to claim deductions.
These new rules don’t mean everyone will have to pay more taxes, but it does add a layer of complexity in tax filing.
This will be difficult for many in the industry, especially given how difficult it already is to work on anime titles.
Given the combination of anime professionals already being overworked, this added tax filing burden is something that many in the industry are worried about.
What’s more, businesses will have to pay the consumption tax again for freelancers who don’t file as taxable entities.
This places an extra financial burden on smaller animation companies that are already working with tight budgets.
RELATED: MAPPA Reportedly Silencing Staff Amid Growing Complaints on Working Conditions
Anime Professionals May Be in Danger Due to New Tax Rules
These new rules have been talked about since late 2022, and despite protests from worker groups, the new rules were implemented at the start of this month.
Anime staff freelancers won’t be the only ones affected here. Voice actors and other workers in the industry are also affected.
Bigger studios like MAPPA won’t be as affected here as the studio raised wages in response (as mentioned by Full Frontal). Sadly, smaller studios can’t easily do the same.
To top it all off, the new tax rules mean information about each freelancer will be made available publicly. This is a concern for manga artists and other professionals who want to retain anonymity.
This might not seem like a huge issue to some, but anonymity is often preferred by creators given how vicious online hate can be from certain sections of anime and manga fanbases.
As the new consumption tax rules have only been implemented recently, there will likely be more reactions to them in the coming weeks and months.
Discover the latest anime news and info by following us on Twitter @epicstreamanime.
READ NEXT: Tonari Animation Job Posting Sparks Online War About Anime Wages
Source: Full Frontal
Explore new topics and discover content that's right for you!