Japan work visa in 2026: how a foreigner can get one

The specialist status, Highly Skilled Professional points and J-Skip, Specified Skilled Worker, the certificate of eligibility, fees from 1 October 2026, family and the road to permanent residence

A Japanese work visa starts with the employer. The company in Japan applies for a certificate of eligibility for the status of residence that matches your job, and you take it to a Japanese consulate for the visa. The statuses are open to every nationality on the same terms: the fit between your degree or experience and the job, a salary on par with Japanese colleagues and an employer in good standing decide the outcome.

Japan work visas compared

Engineer, Specialist in Humanities and International Services

The most common work status covers engineers, programmers, sales, marketing and finance specialists, translators and language teachers. You need a contract with a company in Japan and a university degree related to the job or 10 years of experience; translators, interpreters and language teachers qualify with 3 years. The salary matches what a Japanese employee earns in the same position, and the job draws on your education or experience. The status is granted for 3 months, 1, 3 or 5 years and is extended inside Japan.

Since 15 April 2026, applicants hired by smaller employers, those in categories 3 and 4, for customer-facing work in a language, such as translation or a hotel front desk, prove that language at CEFR B2. For Japanese, the Japanese-Language Proficiency Test at N2 or higher, 400 points in the Business Japanese Proficiency Test or a degree from a Japanese university counts as B2.

Highly Skilled Professional and the J-Skip fast track

Researchers, engineers and executives collect points for their degree, experience, annual income, age and Japanese. With 70 points the status is granted for 5 years with extra benefits:

• permanent residence after 3 years, or after 1 year with 80 points
• a spouse works full time in specialist jobs
• parents join the family while a child is under 7
• a domestic worker joins under set conditions

J-Skip grants the same status without points: researchers and engineers with a master's degree or 10 years of experience and an income of at least ¥20 million a year, and executives with 5 years of management experience and at least ¥40 million.

Specified Skilled Worker

Sectors short of staff, such as nursing care, building cleaning, construction, manufacturing, food service, agriculture and fishing, hire through the Specified Skilled Worker status. You pass a skills test for the sector and a Japanese test at everyday level, and sign a contract with an employer that provides a support plan. Level 1 gives up to 5 years in total without family. Level 2 is renewable with no limit, brings a spouse and children and leads to permanent residence.

Intra-company transfer

An employee of a foreign company moves to a branch, office or subsidiary of the same group in Japan. The rules ask for at least 1 year with the company before the transfer and a salary on par with Japanese staff; a degree in the field is not required.

How to find an employer in Japan

Information technology, engineering and language teaching hire the most foreigners, and many of these employers work in English. Look at Japanese and international job boards and at career fairs for foreign professionals. Check that the company is ready to file for the certificate of eligibility and to show its financial statements: new and loss-making companies face a closer review. The job title and duties in the contract match your degree or experience, because the whole status rests on that fit.

Documents for a Japan work visa

• a passport, the application form and a photo
• the employment contract or offer letter with the position, duties and salary
• your diploma and proof of work experience
• the employer's documents: registration, financial statements and a description of the business
• for Highly Skilled Professional status, the points calculation with evidence for each item
• for Specified Skilled Worker status, the skills and Japanese test certificates
• for customer-facing language jobs at smaller employers, proof of B2 in the working language

Documents in other languages go with a Japanese translation. Dates of study and work in the form match your previous visa applications.

Step by step: from job offer to arrival

Narita, Haneda, Kansai, Chubu and other major airports issue the residence card on arrival. Everyone living in Japan for more than 3 months joins public health insurance; an employer enrols its staff and shares the contribution.

Bringing your family

A spouse and children receive the Dependent status for the same length as the worker. With permission from the immigration bureau, a dependent works up to 28 hours a week. The spouse of a Highly Skilled Professional works full time in specialist jobs, and parents and a domestic worker join under set conditions. Specified Skilled Worker level 1 does not include family; level 2 does.

Changing employer

The status follows the type of work, not the company. Moving to a new employer in the same field takes a notification to the immigration bureau within 14 days. A job outside the status needs a change of status before you start. A Highly Skilled Professional changes status with every new employer, because the status names the organisation.

Fees and timelines: what a Japan work visa costs

The fees apply from 1 October 2026 for counter applications and are paid with revenue stamps on approval; applications received by 30 September 2026 pay the earlier rates. Online applications have their own rates.

How to get your Japan work visa approved the first time

• a job that matches your degree or experience
• a salary at least equal to that of Japanese staff in the same position
• an employer with filed accounts and paid social insurance contributions
• dates of study and work that match earlier visa applications
• specialist duties, not routine manual work, under a specialist status
• B2 proof for customer-facing language jobs at smaller employers
• paid taxes and contributions at every extension

The immigration bureau explains its decisions briefly and in person, so we build the file so that the job, the degree and the contract tell one story.

Moving to Japan without an employer

Without a Japanese employer, the routes are the Business Manager status for your own company, the startup visa offered by several cities and the 6-month digital nomad status for citizens of listed countries with a high remote income. Details are in Japan startup visa, Japan digital nomad visa and how to get residency in Japan.

From a work visa to permanent residence and citizenship

Permanent residence comes after 10 years of continuous residence in Japan, at least 5 of them on a work status. A Highly Skilled Professional applies after 3 years with 70 points or after 1 year with 80. The application fee is ¥200,000 on approval, and the review covers taxes, pension and health insurance contributions for every year.

Citizenship by naturalisation comes after 5 years of residence, and Japan asks adults to give up their previous citizenship. Details are in Japanese citizenship and dual citizenship in Japan.

This topic in other countries

Work visas in other countries:

• US work visa in 2026
• UK work visa in 2026
• Canada work visa in 2026
• China work visa in 2026
• Poland work visa in 2026
• working holiday visas

Residence, taxes and life in Japan:

• moving to Japan
• how to get residency in Japan: every route
• taxes in Japan
• buying an apartment in Japan

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