The painful memory of not receiving my wife's childcare leave benefits for five months.

It was in May that my wife started her maternity leave.

I also took childcare leave starting the following month, in June. Our baby was born, and our busy but happy days began.

At the beginning of August, my childcare leave benefits were deposited.

“Thank goodness, it actually arrived...!!”

I felt relieved. But then, I suddenly realized something.

Where were my wife's benefits...?

It had been several months since her maternity leave began. I didn't remember them ever being deposited.

“Wait, isn't something wrong...?”

At first, I thought, “Maybe the maternity leave paperwork just takes longer.” But my own childcare leave benefits had already arrived. Yet, my wife's hadn't.

I tried contacting my wife's company.

Then, a shocking fact came to light.

The paperwork had been stuck at the labor and social security attorney's office that the company uses.

The application itself hadn't even been filed. It wasn't the company's fault, nor was it my wife's. But the consequences fell entirely on us, our family.

In the end, it tookfive monthsbefore the benefits were finally deposited.

Life during that time was a tightrope walk. For a family with a baby, having no income for five months because the benefits hadn't arrived is truly no laughing matter.

I learned something from this experience.

When it comes to applying for childcare and maternity leave benefits,it is important to keep checking on it yourselves. If you leave it entirely up to the company or the labor and social security attorney, things like this can happen. You need to follow up yourself by asking, “When do you plan to file the application?” and “When will the payment be deposited?”

I have written about the specific confirmation steps to prevent benefit delays and the three actions I actually took in a paid article.

Even so, I truly believe that taking childcare leave was the right decision.

It was incredibly painful not receiving the benefits for five months. But being able to be by my child's side during that time is something that cannot be replaced by anything.

I was able to witness the moment my child rolled over for the first time.

The time from birth until the age of one will never come back. If you are hesitating about taking childcare leave, I strongly encourage you to take the plunge. You can overcome the paperwork if you have the right knowledge. But the time you miss watching your child grow is something you can never get back.

For me, the time spent on childcare leave, where I could grow alongside my child, became truly precious.

Details on the application process for childcare leave benefits and how to prevent delays are here
▶ The complete guide on how a 41-year-old, the first in his company's history to take childcare leave, took 1 year and 4 months off with almost no reduction in take-home pay (¥3,000)

📚 Read the series in full
▶ The story of a dad with a 1 million yen unrealized loss taking childcare leave three times