Gijinkoku Visa (Engineer/Specialist): Which Jobs Qualify and Which Don't

Three fields under one status

The status brings together three kinds of work that used to be handled separately. What they share is that the work requires professional knowledge or skills, or a perspective rooted in a foreign culture, and that it is carried out under a contract with an organization in Japan, usually a company.

Periods of stay are granted in set lengths of five years, three years, one year or three months, depending on the Immigration Services Agency's assessment. The status can be renewed as long as you continue qualifying work, and holders can generally bring a spouse and children under the Dependent status.

What the status does not do is authorize any job at all. It authorizes activities of a particular kind. Change the kind of work, and you may fall outside the status, even if you stay at the same company.

• Engineer (技術): work requiring knowledge of the natural sciences, such as engineering or information technology. Examples include software development, systems engineering, mechanical or electrical design, production engineering and technical quality control.
• Specialist in Humanities (人文知識): work requiring knowledge of the humanities or social sciences, such as law, economics or sociology. Examples include accounting, finance, marketing, sales planning, human resources, general affairs and legal work.
• International Services (国際業務): work requiring a way of thinking or sensitivity based on a foreign culture. Examples include translation and interpretation, language instruction, public relations and advertising, overseas trade, and fashion or interior design.

Education or experience: the basic requirements

For the Engineer and Specialist in Humanities fields, the usual basis is education. That means graduating from a university, including a junior college or graduate school, in Japan or abroad, in a field relevant to the duties. Graduates of Japanese vocational schools (senmon gakko) who earned the senmon-shi title, or the advanced kodo senmon-shi title, in a relevant field can also qualify.

Without a relevant degree, the general alternative is ten years or more of practical experience in the relevant field, and periods spent studying related subjects at university, high school or similar institutions can count toward it. For International Services duties, the requirement is generally three years or more of practical experience in the relevant work, such as translation, interpretation, language instruction, public relations or overseas trade. University graduates who will work in translation, interpretation or language instruction are generally exempt from that three-year requirement.

For IT roles, certain information-technology exams and qualifications designated by the Minister of Justice may be accepted in place of the education requirement. The list is specific and can change, so check the Immigration Services Agency's current information rather than assuming your certificate is on it.

Two further conditions apply to everyone. Your pay must be equal to or higher than what a Japanese employee doing the same work would receive, and the employer must be able to show that the work genuinely exists and that the employment can be sustained.

How closely must your major match the job?

Relevance is where many applications succeed or fail. The question the Immigration Services Agency asks is whether the knowledge you gained through your studies, or your experience, is actually needed for the duties you will perform. Your major does not have to match the job title word for word.

In practice, relevance tends to be judged more flexibly for university graduates, since universities provide broad education, than for vocational school graduates, whose course is expected to relate closely to the job. A business administration graduate moving into marketing is a natural fit. A computer science graduate moving into accounting is harder to explain. An automotive-maintenance vocational graduate moving into an unrelated office role may find it very difficult.

When you evaluate a job, write down the specific courses, research, projects or work experience it would use. If you struggle to list anything, that is a sign to look at different roles or to get professional advice before applying. Employers who regularly hire foreign staff often ask for your transcript early for exactly this reason.

• Economics or business degree to accounting, sales planning, market research or trade administration: generally a natural connection.
• Mechanical or electrical engineering degree to CAD design, production engineering or technical quality control: generally a natural connection.
• Information science degree, or a designated IT qualification, to software development, infrastructure or technical IT support: generally a natural connection.
• Languages, literature or international studies to translation, interpretation or international sales support: generally a natural connection.
• Any degree to a job whose main duties are serving restaurant customers or packing products: not covered, whatever the degree.

Duties that typically fit, and duties that do not

The status is for professional work. Duties that can be learned quickly without specialized knowledge, often called simple labour, are not covered when they form the main part of the job. This is the single most common reason a job that looks fine on paper turns out to be incompatible.

Mixed roles are where judgement comes in. A hotel front-desk role that involves substantial interpretation for international guests and handling reservations in foreign languages may be potentially compatible, while a role that is mostly carrying luggage and cleaning rooms is not. The outcome depends on the real share of professional work, and on whether the workplace has enough of it to justify a full-time position.

Initial training may include time on a factory floor or in a store. Such on-the-job training may be acceptable when it is temporary, part of a training plan that also applies to Japanese employees, and leads to professional duties. What is not acceptable is a job that is permanently or mostly field work with a professional title attached. If a company says you will start in a store for a few years, ask for the training plan in writing and get professional advice.

• Typically compatible: software engineer, systems engineer, CAD designer, production engineer, technical quality assurance, accountant, marketing or sales planner, HR or general affairs staff, trade administrator, translator or interpreter, in-house language instructor, overseas sales.
• Typically not compatible as the main duty: factory line work, warehouse picking and packing, cleaning, food serving and dishwashing, cashier work and shelf stocking, hotel room cleaning, construction site labour, delivery driving.

Salary and employer conditions

There is no single salary figure that makes an application succeed, and this guide does not quote one. The rule is comparative: your pay must be at least equal to that of a Japanese employee doing the same work at the company. Pay levels vary by region, industry, company size and experience, so compare an offer with the company's own pay for Japanese staff in the same role, not with averages you read online.

The employer's situation also matters. The Immigration Services Agency looks at whether the company is stable, whether the business can sustain the position, and whether the documents describe real work. Large listed companies usually submit fewer documents than new small businesses, but small employers can also hire under this status when the job is genuine and clearly documented.

For you, this means the quality of the employer's paperwork is part of your application. A company that writes a precise job description, explains why it needs your skills and keeps its own records in order makes the review easier for everyone.

How to read a job ad for compatibility

You cannot confirm compatibility from a job ad alone, but you can screen out most mismatches in a few minutes. Read the job title, then set it aside and read the duties. Titles such as general career-track staff (総合職) or store manager candidate (店長候補) can hide very different realities.

Look for signal words. Terms such as 開発 (development), 設計 (design), 企画 (planning), 経理 (accounting), 貿易事務 (trade administration), 通訳・翻訳 (interpretation and translation) and 海外営業 (overseas sales) point toward professional work. Terms such as ホール (floor service), 調理補助 (kitchen assistant), ライン作業 (line work), ピッキング (picking), 清掃 (cleaning), 品出し (shelf stocking) and レジ (cashier) point toward field work that belongs to other statuses, such as Specified Skilled Worker.

Then check the rest of the ad for consistency: the required education should make sense for the duties, the salary should be monthly and comparable to Japanese staff, and there should be some mention of visa support or experience hiring foreign staff. On OlaJob, jobs marked as potentially compatible with Engineer/Specialist status are a good starting point, but check each one with the questions below.

• Roughly what share of my working time will go to each duty?
• Will I be assigned to stores, sites or production lines, and for how long?
• Which of my courses or past experience does this role actually use?
• Is my pay the same as Japanese employees in the same role?
• Has the company employed people on this status before, and who prepares the documents?

Changing jobs and renewing on this status

You can change employers while holding this status, but the new job must fit it too. The status is tied to the type of work, not to the company, so moving from software development at one company to software development at another is usually straightforward, while moving from translation to sales-floor work is not.

When you leave a job and when you join a new one, you generally must file a notification regarding your contracting organization with the Immigration Services Agency within 14 days each time. You can also apply for a Certificate of Authorized Employment (就労資格証明書), which confirms that the new job falls within your status. It is optional, but without it the new job is only reviewed for the first time at your next renewal, so it reduces uncertainty.

Gaps matter too. If you do not engage in the activities of your status for three months or more without a justifiable reason, your status can become subject to revocation. Looking for a new job after leaving one can be a justifiable reason, so keep records of your search. If your situation is complicated, such as a long gap, a change of field or a past refusal, consult a certified administrative scrivener or an immigration lawyer before you act.