Hiring Foreign Employees in Japan: Work Visa Requirements and Process

When a company in Japan hires a foreign national as a regular full-time employee, the usual route is the Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services (技術・人文知識・国際業務) status of residence (在留資格). Approval requires that the job involves specialist work, that the candidate’s education or work history relates to the job, and that pay is at least equal to what a Japanese employee would receive. For a hire coming from overseas, the company applies for a Certificate of Eligibility (在留資格認定証明書); for an international student or another person already in Japan, the application is for a change of status of residence.

Jobs covered by the Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services status

Work that does not require specialist knowledge, such as factory line work, front-of-house service in restaurants or cleaning, falls outside this status. To employ foreign nationals in these fields, consider other schemes such as Specified Skilled Worker (特定技能). For details, see Specified Skilled Worker: employer requirements and support obligations.

Requirements for the Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services status

The candidate’s education and work history

The link between what the candidate studied and the job carries significant weight in the review. Show the major with degree certificates and transcripts, and tie it explicitly to the job description.

Pay

Pay must be at least equal to what a Japanese national would receive for the same work. There is no fixed monetary threshold; the assessment compares it with Japanese employees in the company and with pay levels in the same region and industry.

The employer’s position

The review also considers whether the company’s business is stable and ongoing, whether the company genuinely needs to hire this person, and whether there is a sufficient volume of specialist work. A recently established company explains this through its business plan and outlook.

Common issues in the review

• The link between the major and the job cannot be explained (for example, a literature graduate hired as a systems developer)
• The job description includes a large share of non-specialist tasks
• Pay is lower than that of Japanese employees doing the same work
• The person is hired as a translator or interpreter, but the company does not have enough translation or interpretation work
• The job description in the application does not match the employment contract or company brochure

If new hires will spend a period doing on-site work as part of their onboarding training, be ready to explain the content and duration of the training plan.

Required documents by employer category

The documents required depend on which category the hiring company falls into.

Main documents required in Categories 3 and 4

• Documents showing the nature, duration, position and pay of the activity, such as the employment contract or notice of employment terms
• Documents proving the candidate’s education and work history (degree certificates, certificates of employment, etc.)
• Materials describing the business, such as a certificate of registered matters (登記事項証明書) and company brochure
• A copy of the most recent financial statements (a business plan for a newly established company)

Attach Japanese translations to any documents in foreign languages. Check the latest document requirements on the page for each status of residence published by the Immigration Services Agency (出入国在留管理庁, ISA).

From hiring to the first day of work

1. Recruitment and selection: check how the job relates to the candidate’s major and work history
2. Offer and employment contract: state the duties, pay and employment period, and make the contract conditional on the status of residence being granted
3. Preparation and submission of the application
4. Approval: for an overseas hire, send the Certificate of Eligibility to the candidate, who then obtains a visa at the Japanese embassy or consulate-general in their country
5. Start of employment and enrolment in social insurance and employment insurance
6. Notification of employment status of foreign workers

A Certificate of Eligibility is valid for three months. Set the start date allowing for both the review period and the visa process.

What to state in the employment contract

• Specific duties (consistent with the application)
• Amount and breakdown of pay (base salary, allowances, bonuses)
• Employment period and start date
• Place of work and working hours
• What happens if the status of residence is not granted

Certificate of Authorized Employment for mid-career hires

The Certificate of Authorized Employment (就労資格証明書) is a document in which the ISA certifies the work activities a foreign national may engage in. When hiring someone already residing under Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services, it offers a way to confirm in advance that the new job fits their status. Applying is optional, but it lowers the risk that the job content becomes an issue at the next renewal.

Hiring international students

Part-time work by international students is based on permission to engage in activity other than that permitted under their status (資格外活動許可) and is in principle limited to 28 hours a week. To work as a regular employee after graduation, they must obtain permission to change their status of residence before joining. Work back from the start date and apply early.

Estimating the review period

The standard processing period is only a guide; it becomes longer during peak application periods or when additional documents are requested. The ISA also publishes actual processing times for residence reviews. Set the start date with room to spare, and keep the company’s financial documents and the candidate’s certificates ready so that you can respond promptly to any request for further material.

Notifications by the company and the employee after hiring

The notification of employment status of foreign workers is mandatory for every employer of foreign nationals. Before hiring, check the residence card (在留カード) for the status of residence, the period of stay and any restrictions on work.

Avoiding illegal employment

• Do not assign work beyond the scope permitted by the status of residence as the person’s main job
• Track the expiry dates of periods of stay and do not miss renewal applications
• Do not employ people whose status does not permit work or whose period of stay has expired

If a company has someone perform work not permitted by their status of residence, the company itself may face charges for facilitating illegal employment (不法就労助長罪). When reassigning staff or changing their duties, check that the new work stays within the scope of their status.

Period of stay and renewal

The period of stay for Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services is five years, three years, one year or three months. Review times vary by season and case, so apply well before the expiry date. If the person has changed jobs or duties, the renewal review checks whether the new work fits the status.

Where the period of stay is six months or longer, a renewal application can generally be filed from about three months before expiry. If the application is filed by the expiry date, the person may continue working while the review is pending even after expiry, until the earlier of the date of the decision or two months after the expiry date. Companies are well advised to keep a list of each employee’s expiry date and prompt them to prepare renewals early.

For candidates who meet criteria such as education and income, the Highly Skilled Professional visa, which offers preferential treatment, may also be an option. If an employee plans to bring family members to Japan, also check the requirements for the Dependent visa.

How TIMOA can help

Hiring foreign employees involves one continuous chain: defining the job, the employment contract, the status of residence application, and post-hire notifications and social insurance. Working with partner administrative scriveners (行政書士) and labor and social security attorneys (社会保険労務士), TIMOA supports the entire process, from checking that the job fits the status of residence and preparing application documents to post-hire notifications and tracking periods of stay. For details, see our Visas, Talent & Living page.