Graduated Without a Job Offer? Staying in Japan to Keep Job Hunting

Who this is for

Graduates of Japanese universities, graduate schools and junior colleges who were job hunting while enrolled but have no offer yet; vocational school (専門学校) graduates with the 専門士 title in a similar position; and graduates with strong Japanese who are looking at jobs that mix specialist knowledge with customer-facing work.

Graduates of Japanese-language schools are generally not covered by the job-hunting category described here. Ask the bureau whether any current exception applies to you.

Requirements for continued job hunting

The main conditions are that you graduated from a university or similar institution in Japan, were already job hunting while enrolled, have a recommendation letter from your school, and can support yourself during the period. University graduates are generally granted 6 months, with one extension possible, for up to about 1 year in total.

Vocational school graduates who earned the 専門士 title may also be eligible, under conditions set by the ISA, such as the field they studied relating to the kind of work they are seeking.

Some local governments run job-support programs for international graduates. Taking part in one may allow additional time under certain conditions; ask your school or the bureau.

Part-time work is not included automatically. You need a new permission to engage in activity outside status, generally up to 28 hours per week, because the permission you held as a student ended with your studies.

Designated Activities No. 46

No. 46 is a work status, not a job-hunting status. It is aimed at graduates of Japanese universities, with a bachelor's degree or higher, who have advanced Japanese, generally JLPT N1 or a score of 480 or more on the BJT Business Japanese Proficiency Test, and who are hired full-time by an employer in Japan at pay at least equal to that of Japanese employees.

Its appeal is scope. It can cover work that combines specialist duties with customer-facing or on-site tasks, such as serving foreign guests at a hotel or restaurant while using Japanese in two-way communication, or working at a factory while translating instructions for foreign staff. Work made up only of simple tasks with no real need for Japanese communication does not qualify, and roles that legally require a license, such as legal or medical work, are excluded. The ISA also expects the work to make use of what you learned at university, or to be expected to.

Because the designation is tied to your employer, changing employers requires a new permission, and dispatch arrangements are not accepted. The ISA publishes detailed guidelines for this category, and the eligible schools and conditions have been revised over time, so read the current version or ask a scrivener before relying on it.

Step by step: job-hunting route

Start the conversation with your school before graduation. The recommendation letter is central, and schools have their own internal process for issuing it.

• 1. Before graduating, talk to your career office about the recommendation letter and timing.
• 2. Collect your documents: graduation certificate, recommendation letter, proof of job hunting and proof of funds.
• 3. Apply to change to Designated Activities promptly after graduation, and always before your Student period of stay expires.
• 4. If you want part-time work, apply for a permission to engage in activity outside status.
• 5. Keep job hunting, and keep records of applications, interviews and results.
• 6. If you are still searching near the end of the period, apply for an extension with updated documents, including a new recommendation letter.
• 7. When you receive an offer, apply to change to the matching work status. If the start date is far off, ask whether a Designated Activities status for the waiting period is available; conditions apply.

Documents

Check the ISA site for the current list. Typical categories are below; preparing them does not guarantee approval.

• Application form and photo; passport and residence card
• Graduation certificate or diploma; for vocational graduates, proof of the 専門士 title
• Recommendation letter from your school
• Proof of continued job hunting, such as application records, interview notices and results
• Proof that you can support yourself, such as bank statements or a supporter's documents
• For No. 46: degree certificate, JLPT N1 or BJT score report, employment contract, job description and employer documents

Timing

Once you graduate, you are no longer carrying out the activity of Student status, so apply promptly rather than waiting for your period of stay to run out. Processing time varies by bureau and season, and spring is busy, so plan with your school before graduation. The job-hunting period is limited: treat its end date as a firm deadline and review your options, including other statuses, well before it arrives.

Common pitfalls

If your situation has complications, such as a period of low attendance, a gap in studies or an earlier refusal, speak to a certified scrivener or immigration lawyer before filing.

• Waiting for weeks after graduation without applying
• Continuing part-time work on the old student permission
• Asking for the recommendation letter too late
• Accepting an offer whose duties do not fit any work status
• Mixing up No. 46 with Engineer/Specialist status and their different requirements
• Not keeping job-hunting records, which makes an extension harder
• Letting health insurance and pension payments lapse after graduation