MichiEdu Terms of Service

1. Who this agreement is between

1.1 This agreement is between 株式会社エスハチ, trading as MichiEdu (“MichiEdu”, “we”, “us”), and the person who creates the account and pays for the service (“you”).

1.2 If the student is under 18, the account holder must be the student’s parent or legal guardian. The student is not a party to this agreement. You are responsible for payment and for accepting these terms on the student’s behalf.

1.3 If the student is 18 or over, the student may hold the account and enter into this agreement directly.

1.4 Our contact details are set out on our 特定商取引法に基づく表記 (Commercial Transactions Act Notice) page.

2. What we provide

2.1 MichiEdu provides one-to-one online tutoring, primarily for the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme.

2.2 We provide this service to you directly. Tutors deliver sessions on our behalf under separate contracts with us. Your agreement is with MichiEdu, not with any individual tutor.

2.3 We verify each tutor’s academic credentials before they are permitted to teach. Each tutor’s profile states which credentials we have verified.

2.4 We do not guarantee any examination score, grade, or university admission. What we commit to is verified tutors, a transparent process, and honest reporting of the student’s progress.

3. Your account

3.1 You must provide accurate information when creating your account and keep it up to date.

3.2 You are responsible for keeping your login details secure.

3.3 Where the student is under 18, you must approve booking and add a payment method before any session can be booked for that student. Once you have done this, the student may book sessions without needing your approval for each one.

3.4 Where you have more than one student using MichiEdu, these terms apply separately to each student.

3.5 You are responsible for all bookings made through your account, including bookings made by a student. You may remove a student’s booking access, or remove the payment method, at any time in account settings.

3.6 You may close your account at any time.

4. Booking sessions

4.1 You book sessions through the platform. The tutor confirms or declines each request.

4.2 The price applicable to a session is fixed at the moment the booking is confirmed and does not change afterwards.

4.3 A standard session is 90 minutes. 60-minute sessions are available.

4.4 The price includes the tutor’s preparation time and the written session summary.

4.5 Before booking lessons, you may book a free Meet and Greet call with a tutor. It lasts 15 to 20 minutes. It is not a lesson. Its purpose is for the student and tutor to meet, talk about what the student needs, and decide whether to work together. There is no charge and no obligation to continue.

5. Prices

5.1 Prices are shown on each tutor’s profile. All prices include Japanese consumption tax.

5.2 The price consists of the tutor’s hourly rate plus any applicable subject premium. Each tutor’s rate is agreed with MichiEdu and shown on their profile. Both figures are shown before you book.

5.3 We may change a tutor’s rate. If we do, your existing recurring bookings continue at the previous rate until the end of the current term. The new rate applies only to bookings made after the change.

5.4 The price you pay includes MichiEdu’s service fee. We may change how that fee is calculated. Any change applies only to bookings made after the change takes effect, and never to a session you have already booked.

6. Payment

6.1 You pay monthly, after sessions have taken place, for sessions actually delivered.

6.2 There is no package, no advance payment, and no credit balance. Nothing you pay for expires.

6.3 We issue one invoice after the end of each month covering that month’s sessions. Payment is due within 7 days of the invoice date.

6.4 You may pay by credit card or bank transfer. If you save a card, we will charge it automatically each month after sending you the invoice.

6.5 If an invoice remains unpaid, we will pause further bookings until it is settled.

6.6 We issue a receipt (領収書) on request.

7. Changing, cancelling and missing sessions

All times are measured from the scheduled start of the session.

Rescheduling

7.1 More than 12 hours before the session, you may reschedule free of charge, as often as you need, with no approval required.

7.2 Between 2 and 12 hours before the session, you may ask to reschedule. The tutor has to accept. Tutors accept up to 2 late reschedule requests per 10 lessons and may decline without penalty. If the tutor declines, the session is treated as a late cancellation under clause 7.4.

7.3 Within 2 hours of the session, rescheduling is not available.

If you cancel

7.4 The charge depends on when you cancel:

7.5 If the student does not attend and you have not cancelled, the full session price is charged.

If the student is late

7.6 If the student joins within 15 minutes of the start time, the session goes ahead. The tutor may extend it to make up the time but is not required to.

7.7 If the student has not joined after 15 minutes, the tutor may record the session as not attended and the full price is charged. If you send a message through the platform before that point to say the student is on the way, the tutor will normally wait.

If the tutor cancels or does not attend

7.8 You are not charged.

7.9 We will reschedule the session at no cost, with the same tutor or a different tutor, whichever you prefer.

If neither side attends, or a technical failure occurs

7.10 If neither the student nor the tutor joins the session, there is no charge.

7.11 If a technical failure on our side prevents the session from taking place, there is no charge.

8. If a tutor is not the right fit

8.1 If your first session with a tutor is not right, we will match the student with a different tutor at no charge. We do not refund the session, because the remedy we offer is a better match rather than a refund.

8.2 You may change tutors at any time. The new tutor’s rate applies from the change.

9. Working with tutors outside MichiEdu

9.1 We introduce tutors to you through MichiEdu. Please do not arrange tutoring with a MichiEdu tutor outside the platform.

9.2 If sessions take place outside MichiEdu, we cannot verify credentials, monitor sessions, provide safeguarding, keep records, or offer a replacement tutor.

10. Conduct

10.1 We expect students to treat tutors with respect. We may suspend or end the service if a student behaves abusively toward a tutor.

10.2 Our tutors are bound by a Code of Conduct. If you have any concern about a tutor’s conduct, contact us immediately at support@michiedu.com.

11. Your information

11.1 We handle personal information as described in our Privacy Notice, which forms part of this agreement.

11.2 Where a tutor is located outside Japan, the student’s information is shared with that tutor outside Japan. We ask for your separate consent to this.

11.3 Sessions are recorded and transcribed. We ask for your separate consent to this and explain why in the Privacy Notice.

12. Our responsibility to you

12.1 We will provide the service with reasonable care and skill.

12.2 If we fail to deliver a session you have paid for, we will either deliver it again or refund it.

12.3 Our liability to you for any loss arising from this agreement is limited to the fees you have paid for the affected sessions.

12.4 The limit in clause 12.3 does not apply where the loss results from our intentional wrongdoing or gross negligence (故意又は重過失). Nothing in this agreement excludes any liability that cannot be excluded under Japanese law.

13. Changes to these terms

13.1 We may change these terms at any time.

13.2 Where a change does not disadvantage you, such as a correction, a clarification, or a new feature, it takes effect when we publish the updated terms.

13.3 Where a change disadvantages you, we will tell you at least 30 days before it takes effect. If you do not accept it, you may stop using the service before that date. If you continue to book sessions after that date, you accept the change.

13.4 A change to these terms never affects a session you have already booked. The price and the terms that applied when you booked continue to apply to that session.

14. Ending this agreement

14.1 You may stop using the service at any time.

14.2 We may end this agreement by giving you 30 days’ notice.

14.3 We may suspend or end the service immediately if you fail to pay, or if clause 10.1 applies.

14.4 Ending this agreement does not affect payment owed for sessions already delivered.

15. General

15.1 If any part of this agreement is found to be unenforceable, the rest continues to apply.

15.2 This agreement, together with the Privacy Notice, forms the whole agreement between us.

15.3 This agreement is governed by Japanese law. The Tokyo District Court (東京地方裁判所) has jurisdiction as court of first instance.

15.4 These terms are published in Japanese, English, and Chinese. In the event of any inconsistency, the Japanese version governs.

株式会社エスハチ · 東京都中央区勝どき四丁目6番2-4509号 · support@michiedu.com