CLAIR News April 2023
As of March 13, the government’s recommendation for the use of masks has been relaxed and mask usage is now in general to be treated as a matter of individual choice both indoors and outdoors. Please note however that mask usage is still recommended in certain situations (such as on busy trains and in medical institutions), and your individual contracting organisations may also have their own guidelines for the use of masks.
Moreover, further changes are expected to the classification of COVID-19 under the Infectious Disease Law in the coming months, so please continue stay up to date with the latest information.
For further information, please refer to the national and local governments’ official websites.
Cabinet Secretariat website:
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare website:
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/seisakunitsuite/bunya/0000164708_00001.html
The latest information about guidelines for use of masks is available online from the Ministry of Health, Labour & Welfare:
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/seisakunitsuite/bunya/0000164708_00079.html
Information about COVID-19 vaccinations and the process for applying for them is available on the page below:
https://www.mhlw.go.jp/stf/covid-19/vaccine.html
CLAIR requests that each JET Programme participant register for the Safety Confirmation System (Emergency Call) and Contact Information Survey. These are two separate systems. Please register to both using the links below.
Safety Confirmation System:
https://asp2.emc-call.jp/clair/index_en.html or
https://asp2.emc-call2nd.jp/clair/index_en.html Your login ID and password are both the final nine numbers of your JET Number, omitting the first two digits (20).
* If your contracting organisation has changed, please register your new address.
Contact Information Survey: https://goo.gl/u1gVT2
Login ID: JET Number (11 digits beginning with 20)
Password: Date of birth (YYYYMMDD)
* If your contracting organisation has changed, please register your new address.
Emergency Pocket Guide for JETs
To ensure your safety in Japan, please take the opportunity to ensure that you are prepared in case a disaster occurs.
CLAIR has compiled an Emergency Pocket Guide for reference in the event of a disaster. Please keep it with you at all times. Please ensure that you fill out the important parts and keep it with you in case of a disaster.
*CLAIR distributes the Emergency Pocket Guide during orientation for new arrivals.
https://jetprogramme.org/en/emergency-support/
In the event of a disaster CLAIR will confirm the safety of JET Programme participants using the Safety Confirmation System (Emergency Call). It only takes a few moments to confirm your safety via the email you receive. Please make sure you respond regarding your safety situation when a safety confirmation email arrives, as it otherwise takes time for Host Prefectures/Designated Cities to confirm the safety of each individual JET Programme participant in the affected area(s).
In any given year in Japan, there will be somewhere which has had an emergency warning issued. The country is also prone to large earthquakes. At the moment Japan is entering a period of increased chance for emergency warnings to be issued as a result of heavy rain and typhoons. Because of this, we are asking JET Programme participants and supervisors at each contracting organisation to confirm information registered with the Safety Confirmation System and to check how to respond to a safety confirmation request should an email arrive.
Once again, if you receive a safety confirmation request email, please respond to it right away. Safety Confirmation requests are sent out based on Host Prefecture/Designated City, so participants may receive safety confirmation requests even when they are not physically near the site of a disaster. In this case, a response is still required from each individual to whom the request is sent.
With the aim of enhancing mental health support for JET Programme participants, CLAIR offers the JET Programme Mental Health Counselling Assistance Programme. This programme provides a partial subsidy (50%, up to 30,000 yen per year) for counselling costs incurred through consultation with mental health professionals not covered by health insurance.
The coverage period for this year is from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024. Applications for the 2022-2023 fiscal year must arrive at CLAIR by April 7th (Friday), so please make any such applications as soon as possible.
JET Programme participants can also receive free counselling offered by CLAIR via Web Mail and Skype. If you wish to use these services, please access them using the URLs below, input the ID/password, and follow the instructions for registration. Up to 7 Skype sessions are available between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024. We recommend starting with web mail, which has no limits on usage.
Web Mail and Skype Counselling
Website: https://jetcounseling.com/
Login Information:
User name: jet
Please check the email edition of CLAIR News for the latest password.
The 2023-2024 TEFL/TESOL grant will be announced in April. Please look for an announcement through your contracting organizations, or check the following page on the JET Programme site.
Before applying, please carefully read the TEFL/TESOL grant overview and guidelines.
For enquiries regarding the grant, please use our new grant email address, grant@clair.or.jp.
https://jetprogramme.org/en/tefl/
The 2023-2024 JLPT grant for passing the N3 to N1 levels will be announced in April. Please look for an announcement through your contracting organizations, or check the following page on the JET Programme site.
https://jetprogramme.org/en/jlpt/
In addition, the application period for the 2 July (Sunday) JLPT has begun. You may register by 14 April (Friday) via the following link.
For enquiries regarding the grant, please use our new grant email address, grant@clair.or.jp.
The AJET Peer Support Group (PSG) is recruiting for new volunteers for the 2023-2024 JET year. PSG is a listening and referral service provided by a volunteer organisation comprised of current JET Programme participants. It’s available every night of the year from 8pm to 7am.
Recruitment for new volunteers has already started and the deadline for applying is April 15th.
For more information please refer to the AJET PSG website.
https://www.ajetpsg.com/volunteer
Applications can also be made via the website until April 15th. If you have any questions or want more information please contact the PSG Volunteer Coordinator at psgapplications@gmail.com. Please do not contact the hotline with recruiting-related questions.
Please note that CLAIR cannot answer enquiries or provide information concerning AJET PSG as it is a separate organisation.
You can apply for online Japanese language courses offered by CLAIR.
For the 2024 fiscal year, changes are being made to the format and application process for the JET Programme Japanese language courses. Please check out the course guide on the JET Programme website (link below) for detailed information:
http://jetprogramme.org/ja/languagecourses/
Japanese Language Course Application Form
This is a reminder that CLAIR complies handbooks for ALTs, SEAs and CIRs on the JET Programme website.
The handbooks provide information on work duties and how to adapt to your workplace in Japan.
If you haven’t checked out your handbook yet, please take a look!
Besides, the page contains teaching materials for ALTs, including many example games and activities for different school levels.
https://jetprogramme.org/en/acs-h/
Besides the ALT Handbook on the JET Programme website, there is another ALT Handbook produced by MEXT with support from the British Council. You can find it here.
All JET Programme participants are strongly advised to register with their home country’s embassy or local consulate, and/or through your embassy run travel registration scheme while living in Japan, as your embassy may be able to help you and your relatives obtain necessary information and check on each other’s safety in times of emergency. Please check the website of your home country’s embassy or local consulate for more details:
https://www.mofa.go.jp/about/emb_cons/protocol/index.html
JET Programme participants finishing their appointments and returning to their home countries may be eligible to receive a pension refund (lump-sum withdrawal payment). For more information, please refer to page 176～183 of the 2022 edition of the General Information Handbook (GIH).
https://jetprogramme.org/en/gih/
Information is also available in English and Japanese on the following website:
https://www.nenkin.go.jp/international/english/index.html (英語)
https://www.nenkin.go.jp/index.html (日本語)
Is your house or apartment covered by property insurance (kasai hoken)? If you do not know, please check with your contracting organisation supervisor.
There have been several cases where JET participants were forced to pay for the damages to not only their own, but also their neighbours’housing when there were water leaks or other problems (if a water leak occurs, damage to the property of neighbours is covered by the JET Accident Insurance Policy Liability Endorsement, but damage to your own property as well as damage to the structure or building can only be covered by property insurance). Whether or not to purchase property insurance is the choice of the JET participant. However, if you are liable for damages, the costs can be very high. Therefore CLAIR recommends that JET participants enroll in property insurance.
Although the majority of JET Programme participants live in rental properties, earthquake insurance may also be taken to account for the cost of lost household items, such as personal computers or TVs. Therefore, please take care to research a suitable form of insurance for your situation.
Do you want to stay in Japan after JET? Do you want to know what kind of opportunities there are for former JETs in Japan?
We have made a video showcasing three former JETs and their impressive career paths post JET, ranging from positions at Mercari and Square Enix to the Osaka Tourism Bureau. Get inspired by your senpai JETs and check out the career support initiatives we offer at CLAIR!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tBvb-lY0de8
Please feel free to share this video on your own social media and spread the word on the amazing potential of former JETs!
