Obligation to file tax return
Tax return is a filing process where you as delivery partner of Uber report the amount of tax from your previous year’s income for the service you provided to restaurants to National Tax Agency. Filing deadline depends on whether you are filing as an individual (income tax) or as a corporation(corporate tax).
FAQ
- Do I need to pay income tax?
Yes. According to the Japanese National Tax Agency, you must file a final tax return if your total income for the year exceeds the total amount of deduction from income during the year from January 1 to December 31 of each year. We expect all of Uber partners to meet their tax obligations like everyone else, including declaring Uber earnings in your individual final tax return. Although we understand that Uber related expenses are able to deduct from your taxable income in your tax return, please consult to your local tax accountant to consider your specific individual tax situation.
- Does Uber pay or withhold tax for me?
No. As an Uber partner, you independently provide delivery services to Restaurant Partners on the Uber Platform. You are not an employee of Uber nor a contractor of Uber and your earnings from providing delivery services are paid to you by Restaurant Partners. As such, you are responsible for reporting and paying all relevant taxes associated with your earnings producing activities.
To understand more on your specific individual tax requirement, you should contact your local tax accountant.
- Do I become a Japanese consumption taxpayer? If so, do I need to register for Japan Consumption Tax?
Please refer to the Japan National Tax Agency’s website for Japan consumption tax guidelines. In general, if an individual person had more than JPY 10m of Japanese consumption taxable sales in 2 years ago, such person becomes a Japanese consumption taxpayer in this year.
If you are treated as a Japanese consumption taxpayer for consumption tax in Japan, you will have consumption tax obligations such as filing a consumption tax return and maintaining relevant records/evidences to support consumption tax declaration.
As of today, there is no “registration” for Japanese consumption tax purpose though a notification filing is necessary if you becomes a Japanese consumption taxpayer. The registration for an issuance of qualified invoice will be commenced from 1 October 2023 and registration process will be commenced from 1 October, 2021. After that, you may need to register to operate Japanese business.
To understand more on your specific individual consumption tax requirement, you should contact your local tax accountant.
- How do I declare / pay for Japan Consumption Tax?
Please refer to the Japan National Tax Agency’s website for details on Japan consumption tax declaration process and payment.
Please note that whether you are a non-Japanese consumption taxpayer or Japanese consumption taxpayer is determined by certain thresholds such as taxable sales in the base period etc., automatically and there is no notice and registration provided by the Japanese tax office to you. Therefore, if you are not sure whether you are a Japanese consumption taxpayer or not, please consult with your tax advisor or relevant tax office to provide your basic information (such as sales proceeds in the base period including fees/compensations from your other businesses, notification forms filed to the tax office so far etc).
- What documents will I receive from Uber?
You can download your weekly payment statements from your partner dashboard which has information about the earnings you receive from Restaurants and Uber related expenses each week. This is designed to help with your tax management, but you are nevertheless responsible for maintaining your own records and we recommend you consult your tax advisors for specific advice for your circumstances.
You can also check out MoneyForward, a partner we are working with whom offers an app to digitally track expenses.
- Where can I find my weekly payment statement?
You can download this on your partner dashboard by heading to Partner Payment.
- How does the service fee work with taxes?
You are charged a percentage-based service fee for Uber’s lead generation services. The service fee is calculated on the gross delivery fee you earn.
This may be a business expense for you. However, it’s important to note that Uber is not able to provide tax advice.
Your tax advisor can help you identify which of your expenses qualify as allowable business expenses. To understand more, you can contact your local tax accountant.
- What is my service fee?
You can find the service fee applicable to you in the delivery partner handbook which is distributed to you at your onboarding stage.
- Does the delivery fee I earn include Japan consumption tax?
All delivery fee you charge restaurant partners for the provision of delivery services are inclusive of Japan consumption tax.
- How do I calculate Japan consumption tax on my delivery fee?
Delivery fees you charge Restaurants are inclusive of Japan consumption tax. As such, Japan consumption tax is calculated as 8/108 of the delivery fee. For example, if the delivery fee charged on a trip is JPY 1,000, consumption tax is JPY 74.
- What expenses are deductible?
It’s important to note that Uber is unable to provide tax advice. Every Uber partner has different earnings and expenses and your overall taxable earnings will depend on your circumstances.
To understand more, you can contact your local tax accountant.
- How can I keep track of receipts/expenses?
There are many ways to keep track of receipts. It is best to speak to your local accountant.
You can also check out MoneyForward, an Uber partner we are working with whom offers an app to digitally track expenses.
- How do incentives, referral incentives and miscellaneous payments work with taxes?
It’s important to note that Uber is unable to provide tax advice. Any amounts you receive as part of providing delivery services to Restaurants on the Uber Platform should constitute your earnings and form part of your tax obligations, as required.
To understand more, you can contact your local tax accountant.
- How much tax should I pay?
It’s important to note that Uber is unable to provide tax advice. Every Uber partner has different earnings and expenses and your total taxable earnings or deductible business-related expenses will depend on your unique circumstances.
Note you are not an employee of Uber nor a contractor of Uber and your earnings from providing delivery services are paid to you by Restaurant Partners, as such you are responsible for reporting and paying all relevant taxes associated with your earnings producing activities.
To understand more on how to calculate any taxes you should be paying or are liable for, you should contact your local tax accountant.
- Which tax service or professional should I use?
The Japan tax office or independent professional can help to answer questions specific to your unique tax situation, especially for partners who are new to Uber.
Who you choose is up to you, however we are working with MoneyForward as a business partner and they may have recommended local tax accountants for Uber Partners.
- My tax advisor has questions about Uber
Unfortunately, we aren’t able to provide tax advice.
To help your tax advisor, you can provide them your weekly payment statement from your Uber profile. This summary provides your total earnings from Restaurants (gross delivery fees), a breakdown of your fees, and other information to help file your taxes.
Everyone's tax situation is unique to them and unfortunately Uber isn't able to provide tax advice or answer questions specific to your individual tax requirements.
Your tax advisor or yourself may like to speak to the relevant Japan tax office directly if you have any further questions.