Work in Japan

The labour market is conservative, with a low turn-over rate. This is a market that is known for being tough to penetrate for foreigners, where European people are still under-represented. With a very low unemployment rate (close to 2%), this market is very close to reaching full employment. However, we need to beware of this employment rate as 35% of the active population have precarious jobs (2/3 of this group are women).

In 2017, the French Embassy in Japan identified more than 9000 French people in Japan. Counting foreign nationals that are not registered to the Embassy, we can estimate French population in Japan at more or less 10 000 people.

There is no standard profile and it mostly depends on the needs of the companies. However, we can detect a principal trend. For local contracts, companies are looking for applicants that have completed graduate or postgraduate education, that have a practical knowledge of Japanese language and that have an expertise in an industry or position. Knowing the language is not enough, it needs to be completed with valuable experience alongside companies.

Professions in IT, research & development, recruitment firm, education, catering are the sections that are the most likely to be fulfilled by foreigners. Some Japanese companies can also recruit Japanese-speaking foreigners for business development positions abroad.

Even if it is hard, it is not impossible to find a job in Japan without speaking Japanese. Some positions require a technical expertise that sometimes prevails on Japanese language. It concerns mostly IT engineers, R&D researchers or some positions in Finance. Globally, it mainly regroups jobs that focus on back office, where the Japanese language is secondary. Recruiting firms can also be good alternatives for foreigners that do not find a job in their core business. Japanese market being mostly closed to foreigners, it is crucial to develop and leverage a network there (mainly through associations), in order to hear about opportunities via word of mouth.

It depends on multiple variables: work experience, Japanese proficiency, research intensity, distance, network strength… After beginning an active search for a job in Japan, it can seem appropriate to make a brief account after the first six months. It will help you understand your strengths, weaknesses and to potentially re-evaluate your position in the job market.

Every year, recruitment firms (Robert Walters, Michael Page) publish a document that compiles salary data for different positions. For reference only, an assistant will earn 3-4 million of yens, a manager will earn 6-8 million of yens, a branch representative managing at least 5-10 people will expect 10 million of yens or more. This information can be taken into account for foreign professionals for whom the salary system is based on competency and not seniority. In Japan, it is possible that an assistant earns 5-6 million of yens, including bonus, if he reaches 20 years of experience.

There are a lot of visas that will allow you to work in Japan. The most famous one is the working visa, which actually groups several visas depending on the situation of the applicant (Specialist in Humanities, Skilled Labour…). It is the role of the company to sponsor the applicant to help him/her obtain a visa. The “Student Visa” and the “Dependent Visa” also allow you to engage in a paid activity for at most 28 hours a week, if you obtain a derogation from the Immigration Office. The Student Visa is sponsored by a school (university or language school) and the Dependent Visa can be granted to the legal spouse of a person that works in Japan. The working-holiday visa, non-renewable, can be granted to people under 30 years of age, for 1 year, to work in Japan (as a support job to pay the expenses there).

The website of the French Embassy in Japan lists the different visas you can obtain, and the requirements.

It is strictly prohibited to work with a temporary visa (tourist visa) of 90 days. However, it is possible to participate in professional meetings or interviews. When the visa expires, the government discourages people from leaving the country for a few days and then re-entering for another 3 months. Immigration inspectors can find frequent back and forth trips suspicious.

To get a working visa, it is necessary to obtain an employment contract with a company because it is its role to start the procedures with the Immigration Office. The company will obtain an Eligibility Certificate for a period of 2-3 months, document (often mandatory) that will allow you to apply for a visa that you will obtain in a couple of days, from the Immigration Office if you are in Japan, or the Japanese consulate in France. Thus, you will need approximately 3 months to obtain a working visa.

The immigration office reviews on a case-by-case basis and there are no specific or strict rules to follow. However, we can observe that the contract must not be precarious (no part-time or one-off work), the applicant must at least possess a bachelor degree, the salary must be sufficient to maintain an adequate standard of living in Japan (minimum 200 000 yen) and the training or experience of the applicant must match with the position for which he is applying for a visa.

It is hard to obtain a visa for manual work in Japan. Without a bachelor degree, 3 to 10 years of core-business experience are required to obtain a “Skilled Labour” visa. Moreover, it is important to understand that French degrees are almost not recognized in Japan and that performing your manual work in Japan will probably require local qualifications.  

Several Immigration Offices exist in Japan. In Tokyo, the closest underground station is “Shinagawa”. You will then need to take a bus that will bring you directly to the Office.

5-5-30 Konan, Minato-ku,

108-8255 Tokyo

Website:  www.immi-moj.go.jp/english/index.html

Tel : 03-5796-7111

Email : info-tokyo@immi-moj.go.jp

The JLPT (Japanese Language Proficiency Test) is a Japanese exam that regroups 5 levels (Level 1 is the hardest). Unlike the TOEIC, each participant chooses, when registering, the level they want to pass, and obtain a certificate if they succeed. The participant is free to choose the level that suits him, without having to pass the inferior levels before. The tests (vocabulary/grammar, reading and listening comprehension) are in a multiple-choice form. In Japan, you can take this test 2 times a year:

• The 1^st Sunday of July
• The 1^st Sunday of December

More information on the official JLPT website: www.jlpt.jp/e/index.html

The JLPT is recognized as the official Japanese exam for non-native speakers. Paradoxically, it is true that this exam is not always known by Japanese people. However, most foreigners that are in Japan or local recruiters recognize it. Thus, it is highly recommended to pass it, to increase your chances to find a job in Japan. As all language exams, the JLPT will add value to your level after a certain level. It can facilitate your access to the interviewing step, but will never be a sufficient criterion to judge your real knowledge and practice of Japanese.

Conventionally, it is considered that the level 2 of JLPT is the minimum requirement for working in a company. But it depends on the company and positions you apply for. A position in communication will certainly requires a higher level in Japanese than for positions in Research & Development. Inferior levels of JLPT (5,4 and 3) will still be appreciated from recruiters as a guarantee of investment and interest for the language and country.

If you live in Japan, you can take courses in the city hall of your neighbourhood. The price of the courses in city hall is very affordable. Language schools also offer courses via different formulas (intensive courses, quarterly courses…). They can sponsor studying visa applications (no age limit) for those who want to learn Japanese for more than 3 months. Yearly, costs for a language school are high (5000 to 6000 €).

When we are foreigners, to speak English is considered by Japanese people as a given. That is why the mastery of this language doesn’t add value to your profile.

Besides Japanese, a complete mastery of a third language (Chinese, Korean, Portuguese…) can be an asset on the labour market.

The 3 most used channels to find a job in Japan are:

1) Employment website (CareerCross, Daijob, Gaijinpot…)

2) Recruitment companies (Michael Page, Robert Walters, JAC…)

3) Networking (LinkedIn, associations, alumni networks, local friends, word of mouth)

Before considering a settlement in Japan, it is important to know that the labour market is still conservative and hard to access for foreigners (language barrier, socio-cultural differences, strong national identity). Once in Japan, French people that will be the most successful on the market are those who created a consistent path that leads to Japan (through student exchanges, language proficiency, 3-5 years of experience…). If you plan to spend several years in Japan, we invite you to invest in Japanese language learning. Even if you don’t reach a professional level, learning Japanese will always be well perceived by locals. However, even if it tempts you to fully immerse yourself in a Japanese environment, we recommend that you stay visible from the French-speaking community. It is important to stay connected with a network that could be useful in the future. To this end, you can join associations that will hold networking events, offer conferences… The aim is to meet new people, to learn about the news in Japan and to be visible. If you are experienced but do not master the language, the best way to find a job in Japan is by growing your network.

You will find below a non-exhaustive list of websites:

- CareerCross: www.careercross.com/en/

- Daijob: www.daijob.com/en/

- Indeed: jp.indeed.com

- Gaijinpot : jobs.gaijinpot.com

- Skillhouse : www.skillhouse.co.jp/en/

- Japan Times Jobs: job.japantimes.com/index_e.php

- https://www.careerjet.jp/

A lot of recruiting firms are present in Japan and a lot of companies ask them to find the best candidates for their local jobs so it is important to be registered in their database. They mainly look for local and experimented profiles, or foreigners with a good language level. However, they sometimes have offers for younger profiles.

Here is a non-exhaustive list of recruiting firms:

- Michael Page: www.michaelpage.co.jp/en

- Robert Walters: www.robertwalters.co.jp/en/

- Hays: www.hays.co.jp/en/index.htm

- ENWorld: www.enworld.com/jp-en/

- JAC: corp.jac-recruitment.jp/en/

Several professional forums exist in Japan and it is often a trail to not overlook. Daijob hosts a Job Fair (Go Global Career Fair) gathering foreign and Japanese companies, 4 to 6 times a year. Numerous foreigners participate to those free events, upon registration. Targeting young foreigners, Works Japan Global hosts twice a year a professional forum named Job Festa, in Akihabara and Kyoto. Targeting engineers, especially those qualified in IT, the Ingénieur TekiShoku Fair is organized by type.

I want to participate in a VIE, does the CCIFJ offers this kind of service?

The VIE is a formula developed and handled by Business France (formerly UbiFrance). This organization publishes directly the company offers on its platform CiviWeb (https://www.civiweb.com). To be eligible to participate, you need to be less than 28 years old and to have never undertaken such a mission before. The most common duration for the mission is 1 year. It is a great stepping stone to start your career in Japan. In parallel, CCI France Japon can sometimes publish on its website some VIE offers when companies require it. However, all handling after the recruitment of a candidate will be managed by Business France.

There are 2 main options. If you already have a visa that allows you to work in Japan, the simpler is to work as a freelancer, and then to complete each year your tax declaration from the Japanese tax authority. You can get help from an accounting firm. If you do not have a visa, or if you want to create a company with a legal entity in Japan, you will need to follow the visa application for a “Business Investor” visa. It is the visa that will allow you to create your structure in Japan, but its obtention requires a starting capital of 5 million of yens (about 42,500 €). You will find the different existing legal entities and the procedures to follow to create your company in the document: Set-up in Japan.   

Before starting your research for an internship, you need to understand that the concept of internship is not common in Japan as this practice doesn’t fit in the university path of a Japanese student. It is true for Japanese companies but also for French companies that have mostly Japanese employees. Thus, there are few internship offers. CCI France Japon receive a dozen of internship offers each year. You will also find internship offers on the Kopra platform. CCI France Japon also has a directory of French and Japanese companies in which you can find the contacts of our members.

A business card is an essential of Japanese business culture. However, since recruiters can access your CV during interviews, it is not mandatory to have a business card during the recruiting process. We suggest that you get one if you plan to participate in events, where you will meet a lot of people.

Finding a temporary job in Japan is simpler than finding a long-term one. Sectors that recruit the most are: teaching, hotels, catering. In those sectors, unsolicited applications are more easily accepted. Hellowork, Japanese public institution, has a dedicated centre for foreigners and can help you with the procedure. The website Gaijinpot also hosts a lot of employment offers for baito. You can also find employment offers in local newspapers dedicated to foreigners such as Metropolis, Weekender…

In the last years, a lot of language schools became more demanding and now ask the candidates to obtain a FLE diploma to teach French. It concerns public schools and some private schools. However, some organizations are still open to people that possess a bachelor degree or that already have an experience in teaching. Most positions are freelance or part-time work and it is hard to obtain a full-time job. You can contact the language schools that are registered in the ‘Working in Japan’ brochure to know their recruiting needs.

For French or foreign companies, a CV in English is generally sufficient. If explicitly asked by the company, and if the candidate already speaks Japanese, a CV in Japanese will be necessary. Most of the candidates then adopt an Anglo-Saxon CV form and translate it to Japanese. It can work but there is in Japan a standard format for CV (Rirekisho and Shokumukeirekisho) that you can buy in convenience stores and that must be filled by hand. More and more candidates now use this format online, with a Word or Excel version.

French interviews are different than Japanese interviews. In France, the candidate starts from nothing and the recruiter listens to him. He earns as much points as he is convincing. In Japan, the candidate starts with “100 points” and the recruiter remove points when the candidate makes mistakes. First minutes are crucial so your behaviour and appearance are primordial. Keep your back straight, keep your hands on your knees, listen carefully to your interlocutor. After receiving his business card with both hands, you won’t store it in your pockets instantly or write on it. Regarding the contents of the interview, Japanese people are often flattered to see people interested in their country and language. So, they will certainly ask about it and about your motivations for starting a career in Japan. In a very Japanese environment, what matters most to the recruiters are not your skills but whether your personality will fit in or not with the company. It is highly recommended to showcase your experience and to show that your willingness to enter the company is consistent with your career.

As in France, finding an apartment in Japan through a real estate agency can be very hard if you do not have a stable job and a guarantor. It is often the company of the applicant that accepts to bear this responsibility. Thus, it is not the simpler solution to find an accommodation in Japan when arriving in Japan without a job. The easiest method is to find an accommodation through guest houses, that each year host thousands of foreigners. They offer dormitories, shared houses, or individual furnished apartments. Administrative procedures are simple and most guest houses have French-speaking employees. Here are some examples:

- Sakura House (site fr): www.sakura-house.com/fr

- Oak house (site fr): www.oakhouse.jp/fra/

- Tokyo Stay (site fr): www.tokyostay.co.jp

- Borderless House (site en): www.borderless-house.com

If you already have a job and speak Japanese (recommended), you can contact Japanese real estate companies. Here are some examples:

- Sumo: suumo.jp/kanto/

- Chintai: www.chintai.net

- Minimini: minimini.jp

- Able: www.able.co.jp

- Home’s: www.homes.co.jp

Some companies do not always ask for a guarantor and are more open to foreigners. Here are some examples:

- Flat: www.flat-japan.com/english/

- Best Estate: best-estate.jp/en/kanto/

Japanese culture is a vast and complex set that can’t be summarized in few sentences. Thus, we will focus on a key aspect: Tatemae / Hon’ne (literally facade, true sound), that we find on different layers of Japanese society.

The Tatemae is the facade behavior that Japanese people adopt in society and that consists in always staying ethically correct to not embarrass the interlocutor. On the other side, the Hon’ne represents the subjective thoughts that they have and that they only share with their narrow circles (family, close friends). For foreigners, the objective is not to act as Japanese people. For one hand, Japanese people appreciate foreigners especially for acting differently than Japanese people. On the other hand, Japanese people will more easily forgive a rudeness to a foreigner than to a Japanese person. However, understanding the Tatemae and the Hon’ne will help a foreigner to better interact with the Japanese community.

Daily, Japanese people are used to receive an exceptional quality of service so they are very demanding when it comes to adopt a product or service. They are used to receiving clear and precise guidance. In Japan, there are codes and processes everywhere and anticipation is crucial. Japanese people often feel disoriented when facing an unexpected situation, or a too spontaneous one. Please note that form matters as much as contents.

A lot of Japanese people consider their company as a second family. In university, students do not choose the position they want to have but rather the company they want to work in. When they apply for it, they often know that they will stay for many years there. Without any prior professional experience, they will be trained to fit with the brand values and to master the brand expertise, by evolving in different departments of the company. Every year, their salary will be increased and with time, they will get a good overview of the company that made them grow. Without mentioning workload, Japanese people invest a lot of time in their company. Most of them do not completely take the 10 annual vacation days that they are granted since being absent means transferring their workload to their colleagues. Overtime hours are hours offered to the companies, seen as a service given. For Japanese people, work is not only a means to earning a living and thriving in their jobs, but also to give a purpose to their lives.