Photo/Illutration At a child care facility in Kawasaki, staff are required to sit against the wall when playing with the children so that they can be seen by others. (Yoshika Uematsu)

Schools and child care facilities will be required to conduct criminal sexual background checks of their employees and applicants and to protect children from offenders under a bill unanimously passed and enacted in the Upper House on June 19.

The new law includes the creation of a Japanese version of Britain's Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS), which checks applicants for such crimes. 

Under the law, prospective and current employees at schools and facilities such as licensed day care centers will be subject to verification.

After-school children’s clubs and tutoring cram schools will be subject to a voluntary certification system.

If a business that wishes to be certified meets certain requirements, the central government will certify the business and criminal background checks will become mandatory.

It also requires employers to reassign employees with sex crime offenses to positions that minimize interaction with children.

The specified sexual offense convictions to be checked are criminal offenses such as indecent assault without consent, and violations of municipal ordinances such as molestation.

It will not include cases that were not prosecuted, nor administrative penalties.

The period for which criminal records can be checked is 20 years from the completion of the sentence for custodial sentences, and 10 years from the date of the finalization of the trial if the sentence is suspended, and 10 years from the completion of the sentence for fines or less.

If current employees are found to have such a criminal record, they must be reassigned to a different position and their employment will be partially restricted.

If a person is judged to be at risk of committing a sexual offense, measures such as reassignment will also be taken.

The central government’s Children and Families Agency will establish and disseminate guidelines on what constitutes such a threat.

The effective date of the new law will be determined within two and half years from its promulgation.

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