There's consumption tax of 10%. Freelancers basically were not collecting it up until now. Businesses didn't care. Now, businesses can deduct the 10%, so it lo

There's consumption tax of 10%. Freelancers basically were not collecting it up until now. Businesses didn't care. Now, businesses can deduct the 10%, so it looks like they can reduce their bills by 10% _so long as freelancers actually collect the consumption tax_. (This wasn't in place before! consumption tax was consumption tax, not a VAT-style system) Now in theory a freelancer can also deduct the 10% from their expenses. But many freelancers have very little in the term of business expenses (their computer, basically). So freelancers all have just taken an income hit (in a period where inflation is making a lot of basic food more expensive than ever). The perfect storm of extra taxes, lower purchasing power to begin with, and more and more industries demanding people become "freelance" contractors rather than employees.