For many foreigners, working in Japan has long been the dream, and the road may look simple. A 2025 Nikkei report suggested that around 98% of CEOs in Japan are looking to hire international talent. In fact, there are currently 2.3 million foreign-born workers in Japan, accounting for roughly 3.7% of the workforce, and some reports indicate even more are needed. But does that mean anyone can work in Japan now?

The truth is, the Japanese government has become stricter and more selective in issuing visas. For example, if you’re applying for a job that requires heavy use of Japanese and you’re being sponsored from overseas, you may need JLPT N2 or an equivalent certification. Do you need a bachelor’s degree? Is there a minimum age?

While there’s a lot to say about the potential and prospects of working in Japan, this time we want to focus on the bare-minimum requirements.

Understanding Japan’s Work Visas

When we say “work visa,” this is an umbrella term that encompasses 19 specific types of work visas (officially called Statuses of Residence) that allow foreign nationals to engage in paid employment. These include:

• Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services (the most common type, covering IT, translation, and office work)
• Business Manager
• Legal/Accounting Services
• Highly Skilled Professional
• Arts & Media (Artist, Journalist, Entertainer)
• Skilled Labor & Manual/Technical Fields

Depending on your background, the requirements you’ll need to satisfy vary significantly by visa type. But above all, with a few exceptions like the artist visa, you’ll need a company willing to sponsor your visa. So let’s break down the bare minimum.

Read more: How to Make a Career Transition in Japan

Do You Need a Bachelor’s Degree?

In short, no, you don’t strictly need a bachelor’s degree to get hired in Japan, though lacking one may limit your options. Japan’s Immigration Services Agency allows for alternative professional requirements under visas like the Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services visa.

A degree remains the easiest and most common path. For example, most employers hiring for professional, white-collar roles (IT, office work, etc.) require either a university degree or a minimum of 10 years of relevant work experience. 

Keep in mind that even if a company is willing to hire you without a degree, immigration has the final say. If you’re substituting a degree with years of experience, you’ll need solid proof, like certificates, documentation, references, or immigration may not approve your application.

One notable exception is the JET Program (government-run), which, under no exception, requires at least a bachelor’s degree; no substitutions accepted.

Age Requirement to Get Hired in Japan

For both Japanese nationals and foreigners, Japan legally sets a general minimum age of 18 for full-time employment under labor standards law.

Some paths allow Japanese people to work professionally straight after high school. For Japanese nationals without a bachelor’s degree, there’s a dedicated hiring track called 高卒採用, or kousotsu saiyou, literally “high school graduate hiring.” They typically earn less than peers who graduated from a university, even though both are technically “new” graduates. 

For foreigners, it’s more complicated. As we discussed, while not every work visa requires a degree, most require either a degree or substantial work experience, which usually means you can’t realistically qualify at 18. 

Unless you’re applying through a very niche visa or a specific skilled-labor visa like the SSW, it’s extremely difficult to find a company willing to sponsor you professionally at that age. So while 18 is technically the legal minimum, in practice, you’ll likely need to graduate from university or accumulate years of experience first.

Japanese Language Level Requirement 

Do you officially need proof of Japanese proficiency to get a job and work visa in Japan? The answer: it depends.

For example, tech workers and engineers often have lower Japanese language requirements. We’ve seen job boards like TokyoDev and JapanDev frequently list roles requiring no Japanese at all.

But “not required” and “not preferred” aren’t the same thing. If a recruiter is comparing two similar resumes and one candidate has stronger Japanese, they’ll likely pick that candidate. That’s why we still recommend you brush up your Japanese language skills while you can. 

There is an important caveat, though. As of April 15, 2026, Japan officially revised the requirements for one of its most commonly held work visas, the Engineer / Specialist in Humanities / International Services visa, to require Japanese language ability for roles where Japanese is used on the job. They will have to provide proof of Japanese language ability at the CEFR B2 level, or the equivalent of JLPT N2 for certain applicants. The updated requirement applies to:

• Overseas applicants applying for the visa for the first time and requiring a Certificate of Eligibility (COE)
• Applicants being employed by Category 3 or 4 companies (small and medium-sized enterprises)
• Applicants whose job description specifically requires Japanese language ability

And remember: Japanese immigration policy changes frequently, so always check official government sources for the latest requirements.

Certification and License

For most professional jobs, you typically don’t need a certification or license to be hired (though having one can still strengthen your resume). Certifications and licenses are often required at the company level. Recruitment agencies, for example, need a recruitment license at the company level, not the individual level.

That said, some professions do legally require an individual license. One most relevant and closest field is perhaps the gyosei shoshi (行政書士), a certified immigration scrivener, a legal professional specifically licensed to handle immigration application paperwork.

Other professions that are more regulated include care worker, or the kaigo fukushi-shi (介護福祉士), where you need to pass the certified care worker exam and obtain Care Worker residence status, which allows for long-term residence, with a path toward eventual Permanent Residence

The Right Company to Sponsor You

Finally, with a few exceptions such as the entrepreneur or artist visa, you need a company willing to sponsor your work visa before anything else can happen.

“Sponsorship” itself isn’t a perfectly precise term. The process differs depending on whether you’re switching from another visa to a work visa (say, student visa to working visa) or applying directly from your home country or overseas.

In general, this means the company must provide supporting documents. Every sponsoring organization is sorted into one of four categories (Immigration Services Agency of Japan), and that category determines how many documents you personally have to chase down for your Certificate of Eligibility. 

Japan’s Immigration Services Agency places every visa-sponsoring organization into one of four categories, based on size, status, and tax record. This category system applies mainly to the Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services visa. If a company is listed in the Japanese stock exchange, for example, they can just provide the proof of listing. 

• Category 1: Companies listed on a Japanese stock exchange, mutual insurance companies, government bodies (Japanese or foreign, national or local), independent administrative agencies, special or licensed corporations, and public-interest corporations approved by the government.
• Category 2: Organizations whose prior-year withheld income tax on employee salaries, as reported on the statutory aggregate withholding tax report, totaled 10 million yen or more.
• Category 3: Organizations that filed the same withholding tax report but didn’t reach the 10-million-yen threshold.
• Category 4: Everyone else, most often newly established companies with no tax filing history yet, or very small employers. If your employer can’t produce documentation proving Category 1, 2, or 3 status, you fall into Category 4 by default.

Most companies end up in Category 3 or Category 4. That’s not surprising: Japan has over 3.36 million small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which make up 99.7% of all businesses in the country.

Unfortunately, a lot of applicants and even companies themselves were not aware of this, so that

One final important thing is that as of April 15, 2026, Category 3 and 4 employers must submit a new declaration form about the organization’s representative.

What to Watch Out For: Black Companies

In rare cases, you might come across a job ad or agency advertising unusually low requirements or an abnormally high salary (keep in mind the average starting salary for new graduates in Tokyo is around 250,000–270,000 yen per month), or even one asking you to work on a visa status you’re not actually eligible for. Chances are, these are what’s known as black companies.

“Black company”, or burkaku kigyou (ブラック企業), is a Japanese term for an exploitative, abusive workplace that routinely breaks labor laws. They would have employees work excessive (often unnecessary) overtime.

If a job looks too good to be true (no experience, no degree, nothing required, yet high pay), we recommend you do your research. Search forums and review sites to check whether the posting is legitimate before applying. 

For part-time and student workers, the equivalent red flag to watch for is yamibaito (闇バイト).

Study in Japan with Coto School Finder

For many mid-career professionals and students, entering Japan through a student visa is a strategic move to bridge the gap between their global experience and the specific cultural and linguistic requirements of the Japanese market. Enrolling in a Japanese language school is the most effective way to master 

Coto School Finder provides 100% free, personalized support to match you with over 15 top language schools across Japan. Their experts guide you step-by-step through the student visa application process, even assisting with document translations, to help you find the perfect program to act as an educational bridge for pushing your career further in the Japanese market.

If you’re ready to make the move, contact us today!

FAQ

Do I need a university degree to work in Japan?

Not strictly. While a degree is the easiest and most common path, Japan’s Immigration Services Agency allows alternatives for visas like the Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services visa, such as years of experience.

What's the minimum age to work in Japan?

18, under Japan’s labor standards law. In practice, though, it’s very difficult for foreigners to be sponsored at 18.

Do I need to speak Japanese to get a job in Japan?

It depends on the role. Tech and engineering jobs often have low or no Japanese requirements. But as of April 15, 2026, certain applicants for the Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services visa, Japan’s most common work visa, must now prove CEFR B2-level (roughly JLPT N2-equivalent) Japanese proficiency if their job relies on the language.