Business Manager Visa in Japan

最終更新日 2023-02-15

Suppose you want to set up your own company and run a business in Japan. In that case, you may need a “Business Manager” visa (or status of residence) unless you already have one of the personal-status-based statuses of residence, such as Permanent Resident and Spouse or Child of a Japanese National.

I will give you an outline of this status of residence in this post, covering the following issues:

• What is a Business Manager status of residence?
• Requirements for a Business Manager status of residence
• Some notes on the requirements for small companies
• Necessary documents

What is a Business Manager status of residence?

This status of residence is for a foreign national who will run a business as president, manage an existing company as a manager, or succeed the business of a Japanese company in Japan.

Suppose you are already living in Japan with a mid-to-long term status of residence (such as Study, Engineering/Specialist in Humanities/International Services, Skilled Labor, etc.). In that case, you may need to apply for a Change of Status of Residence. If you are living in a foreign country and do not have a mid-to-long-term status of residence, you may need to apply for the Issuance of a Certificate of Eligibility.

Requirements for a Business Manager status of residence

You need to satisfy the following requirements:

1. You have an office in Japan.
2. The amount of capital (or the total amount of investment) is more than five million yen, or you have two full-time employees in Japan, or the business scale is deemed to be equivalent to either one of the preceding two factors.
3. In case of management work, you must have more than three-year experience in operating or managing a business, and your remuneration or salary is equivalent to or more than the amount to be paid to a Japanese national for comparable work.

Also, apart from these requirements for obtaining the status of residence, if you are setting up your own company, you will need to take care of the company’s registration.

Procedures for establishing a company in Japan normally takes the following steps:

1. Preparation of the company’s articles of incorporation;
2. Notarization of the articles of incorporation;
3. Remittance of the capital amount;
4. Registration of incorporation at Legal Affairs Bureau.

It is optional to have all the company registration process completed by the time you apply for the status of residence. However, you’ll need to produce documents to let the examiner know that you genuinely want to establish the company and that its establishment is almost assured.

Some notes on the requirements for small companies

• In the case of a sole proprietor, although it is not impossible, it is often difficult to obtain a Business Manager status of residence. This is because you may have difficulty convincing the examiner that your business has the scale equivalent to the business in which more than five million yen is to be invested.
• In the case of a one-person company, a Business Manager status of residence might not be granted if you are to be engaged primarily in day-to-day work site activities (such as cooking at your restaurant) rather than in operating and managing your company (such as operating your restaurant business as the head of your restaurant). You must explain carefully in your application document that the business operation work is your primary work.

Necessary documents

If you apply for this status of residence as president of your newly established company, you will need, among others, the following documents, for example:

1. A copy of the company registration certificate (in case a company registration is not completed, a copy of the company’s articles of incorporation and other documents to support that you intend to start the business applied for);
2. Document to prove that you have secured the place to work; and
3. A detailed business plan.

Depending on your proposed activities, you will need additional documents. You will also need an official request form duly filled in, your photograph, your passport, and your residence card.

Whether to grant permission depends on the examiner’s discretion at the Immigration Office. As the examination is carried out based on the submitted documents, you should take time to prepare application documents with convincing details.

As a final note, please look at the government’s special measures for a startup company at the following links: The official website of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and; the Official website of the Aichi Prefectural Government.