New Act obligating business operators to protect freelancers effective 1 November 2024

In recent years, the diversification of work styles has progressed, and some people are choosing to work as freelancers. This has resulted in a disparity in bargaining power and information-gathering ability between individual freelancers and the business operator organizations that employ them. To address this situation, the Act on Ensuring Proper Transactions Involving Specified Entrusted Business Operators (Act No. 25 of 2023, the “Act”) was promulgated on 12 May 2023 and entered into effect on 1 November 2024. The enforcement ordinance and guidelines pursuant to the Act entered into effect on the same date. The Act has two objectives: (1) ensuring the propriety of transactions involving freelancers and (2) improving the working environment for freelancers.