Govt to approve child allowances even if parents abroad

Tokyo, Jan 19 (Kyodo) Japan will ease the rule on childallowances in fiscal 2011 to allow children to receive thepayments even if their parents live aboard, on condition thattheir guardians stay in Japan, welfare ministry officialssaid.

The money will be paid even if the guardians liveseparately and if the children stay in such accommodation asschool dormitories, they said, adding that payments tonon-Japanese residents who have children in the own homelandwill be terminated.

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare plans to makethe new rule effective in October this year when the13,000-yen monthly allowance for the June-September periodwill be paid, the officials said.

Children in foster homes will also be eligible for theallowances at the same time, they said.

The child allowance programme was one of theattention-grabbing campaign pledges of the Democratic Party ofJapan during the general election in August 2009, throughwhich the party seized power.(Kyodo)