Japan work visa (Engineer/Specialist in Humanities)

Jobs in sectors such as nursing care, construction, manufacturing, food service, agriculture or hospitality that do not need a degree are covered by Specified Skilled Worker (i), granted for up to five years in total after passing a skills test and a Japanese test, and (ii) for skilled workers, which can be renewed and allows family. Japan has signed cooperation memoranda on this programme with a group of sending countries, but candidates of any nationality may apply if they pass the tests and have an employer.

For engineering and humanities work you need a university degree (or a Japanese vocational college diploma) in a field related to the job, or ten years of relevant experience; IT specialists can also qualify through IT certifications recognised by the Minister of Justice. For international services such as translation, interpreting, language teaching at companies, public relations or overseas trade, three years of experience suffice, and university graduates doing translation or language teaching need no experience.

Salary must be at least equal to what a Japanese national would receive for comparable work. Simple manual labour is not allowed under this status.

The ISA sorts employers into four categories. Listed companies and public bodies (category 1) and companies with large withholding tax payments (category 2) submit little beyond the form and proof of category. Smaller or new companies (categories 3 and 4) also provide the employment contract, the company register, the latest annual accounts, your diploma and CV, and for new companies a business plan.

Mid- to long-term residents receive a residence card at Narita, Haneda, Chubu, Kansai and other major airports (elsewhere it is mailed after address registration). Within 14 days of finding a home you must register your address at the city, ward or town office, which also enrols you in National Health Insurance and the National Pension unless your employer covers you under its schemes.

Changes of employer or school, marriage status and address must be notified to the immigration bureau within 14 days. Leaving Japan for up to one year (or until your status expires, if sooner) is possible without a re-entry permit by ticking the special re-entry box at departure.

Extensions and changes of status are filed at the regional immigration bureau up to three months before expiry, or online. From 1 October 2026 the counter fee depends on the period granted: JPY 33,000 for one year, JPY 48,000 for more than one and less than three years, JPY 64,000 for three to under five years and JPY 75,000 for five years. Applications received by 30 September 2026 still pay the former JPY 6,000. Standard processing is two weeks to one month for extensions and one to two months for changes of status.