(As of June 2012)

Japan	U.S.A.	U.K.	Germany	France	Sweden
Plan system	Two-tiersEmployees' pension insurance	One-tierOld-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance	Two-tiersNational second pension	One-tierSelf-employed workers' pension by occupation	One-tierGeneral pension	One-tierGuaranteed pension
National pension	Non-working self-employed workers	Basic pension	Non-working self-employed workers self-employed workers	Non-working self-employed workers	Non-working self-employed workers
Subject person for compulsory participation	All residents	Employees and self-employed workers	Employees and self-employed workers	Employees of the private sector and self-employed workers engaged in specified occupation (lawyers, medical doctors, etc.)	Employees and self-employed workers	Employees and self-employed workers
Premium rate (2011)	[General employees] Employees' Pension: 16.412% (from Sept. 2011: Equally shared by an employee and an employer) * Category-1 insured persons: fixed amount contributions (from April 2012: ¥14,980 per month)	10.4% Employee: 4.2% Employer: 6.2% * In 2011, the premium rate of employees was reduced by 2%, or from 6.2% to 4.2%, as a temporary special measure.	[General employees] 25.8% Employee: 12.0% Employer: 13.8% * These contributions are also used as financial resources of industrial injury insurance and unemployment insurance	[General employees] 19.9% (Equally shared by an employee and an employer)	[General employees] 16.65% Employee: 6.75% Employer: 9.9%	17.21% Employee: 7.0% Employer: 10.21% * In addition, a premium of 1.7% for survivors' pension is imposed on employer (This is different from the old-age pension)
Pensionable age (2011)	National pension (basic pension): Age 65 Employees' pension: Age 60 * The age will be raised to 65 by 2025 for males and by 2030 for females.	Age 66 * The age will be raised to 67 by 2027	Males: Age 65 Females: Age 60 * The age will be raised to 65 for females by 2018, and then to 66 for both males and females by 2020. * The age will be further raised from 66 to 68 for both males and females from 2034 to 2046.	Age 65 * The age will be raised to 67 from 2012 to 2029.	Age 60 * The age will be raised to 62 by 2018	Selection by the person after his/her 61st birthday (However, pensionable age for the guaranteed pension is 65)
Period of coverage required for entitlement to an old-age benefit	25 years	40 quarters of plan participation (equivalent to 10 years)	None (Such requirement was abolished as a result of the law amendment in 2007. However, persons who are subject to the old law remains to be required to have 11 years (males) or 9.75 years (females) of period of coverage	5 years	None	None (As to the Guaranteed pension, it is required to reside in Sweden for more than 3 years for entitlement to that pension. and 40-year residence in Sweden is required for receiving the full amount)
National subsidies	1/2 for the benefit cost of the basic pension	The state subsidy is normally not provided but was in 2011 to cover the shortage that resulted from the 2% reduction in the premium rate as a temporary special measure.	None, in principle	27.9% of benefit cost (2010)	Approx. 26.7% (2010) by general tax and contributions by general community (CSG), etc.	For the guaranteed pension component

Source: • Social Security Programs Throughout the World: Europe, 2010 / The Americas, 2011

• Mutual Information System on Social Protection in the Member States of the European Union

• Documents published by the respective countries, and others

• Social security in advanced countries (1) U.K., (4) Germany, (5) Sweden, (6) France, (7) U.S.A. (University of Tokyo Press)