The Small and Medium Enterprise Agency has proposed extending by one year a special credit-insurance arrangement for small businesses hit by the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. Under the draft cabinet order, the cut-off moves from March 31, 2027 to March 31, 2028.
What would be extended
The arrangement is the "Great East Japan Earthquake reconstruction emergency guarantee" in the agency's own wording. Article 128 of the 2011 special financial assistance law sets it up to ease cash flow at small and midsized firms that suffered serious damage. It does this by putting a separate ceiling on the insurance limit under the SME credit insurance system and by raising the insurance indemnity rate, among other measures.
The indemnity rate applies to the insurance relationship, not to what a borrower pays. The agency's summary does not give an interest rate for borrowers.
Who is covered
The extension applies only to the part of the scheme covering small and midsized firms with an establishment in the currently designated disaster-affected areas. The draft order amends Article 1, item 1 of the 2011 implementing order (Cabinet Order No. 133), replacing the March 31, 2027 date with March 31, 2028. It is a one-year extension of an existing carve-out, not a new general subsidy, and it does not make every small firm eligible. The agency cites the state of reconstruction in the affected areas as the reason.
Timetable
The public comment period runs from October 21 to November 19, 2026. Comments sent by email are accepted until 23:59 on November 19, and mailed comments must arrive by that day. Submissions go through the e-Gov portal, by post or by email, in Japanese.
Promulgation and enforcement are planned for mid-March 2027, which is before the current end date. The planned date is a schedule, not a decision. The draft order takes effect on the day it is promulgated.
The agency says it will use the comments it receives as a reference in making its final decision and will not reply to individual comments.