In this post, I will be discussing the different types of Japanese Visa and the people who are eligible for each type. I will also discuss the requirements for visa application and the types of visa needed to be able to legally work in Japan.
A. Short-term Stays
Short-term stays refer to temporary visits of up to 90 days for such purposes as sightseeing; sports; convalescence; visits to relatives, friends, or acquaintances; amateur participation in athletic meetings or other contests; business trips (such as market surveys, business liaison, business talks, signing contracts, and after-sale service for machinery imported into Japan); and friendship visits. These activities require either a temporary visa or transit visa. (However, this category excludes profit-making operations and paid activities.)
Acquiring a short-term visa my be helpful for anyone looking for a job here in Japan. Please note though that foreigners with short-term visa cannot legally work here. What they can do is look for prospective employers and acquire a contract. I would say that 90 days is a long enough time to look for work here in Japan. Once a foreigner has a contract, he/she can reapply for a working visa. Acquiring a contract and a COE (Certificate of Eligibility) makes the application for a working visa processed faster. COEs are applied by the employers in Japan.
B. Work and Long-term Stays
If a foreigner wishes to enter Japan for activities other than those described in section A, he or she will need a diplomatic visa, official visa, working visa, general visa, or specified visa. Naturally, foreigners who enter Japan having acquired a working visa are able to work in Japan.
Visa types for entry in Japan include:
Visa category [Status of residence]
Diplomatic Visa [Diplomat]
Official Visa [Official]
Working Visa [Professional(Engineers, Nurses, Teachers, IT,Entertainers,etc.)/Skilled Workers]
Temporary Visitor's Visa [Temporary Visitor*]
Transit Visa [Temporary Visitor*]
General Visa [Cultural Activities*College Student*Precollege Student*Trainee*Dependent*]
Specified Visa [Designated Activities+Spouse or Child of Japanese NationalSpouse or Child of Permanent Resident Long-Term Resident]
* Statuses of residence not permitting work.+ Whether work is permitted or not depends on the content of individual permits.
Source: http://www.mofa.go.jp/j_info/visit/visa/03.html
For comments and questions, please reply to this post. Thank you.
With the current trend today, more and more Filipinos are seeking to find employment abroad. Some opt to migrate permanently and some opt to work abroad just to alleviate their financial status.
Many Filipinos are very hardworking. Many Filipinos are highly-skilled. However, for Filipinos who look to work abroad, not all are given equal opportunities. Whether they be Nurses, IT Professionals, Engineers, Teachers, etc. luck and money often are big factors on getting employment abroad. And I believe that having the right information divulged to everyone, in some ways, diminishes the aforementioned factors.
I am a software engineer who works here in Japan. And I am going to share some information, for those who seek it, on how I got here and found work.
Remember these things as a guide on how to find employment in Japan. I will be updating this blog from time to time for it to become better organized and consequently become more useful. As for now, I am just going to give you a rough picture of how I got here.
1. For my first visit in Japan, I came with a 3-month "Business Visa". I acquired this business visa because I already had a Japanese employer in the Philippines. I was sent on a 3-month business trip to Japan.
Documents needed: Passport, University Records (TOR), [Past] Employment Record, Resume
For the business trip, our company in the Philippines acquired the services of Discovery Tours in Makati to process my visa application.
2. After the 3-month business trip, I went back to the Philippines. That time I already had a COE (Certificate of Eligibility) which was applied for by my employer in Japan. I also had a CONTRACT to work at our Japan office (The company I work for has offices in the Philippines and in Japan).
I appied for an 3-year Engineer's visa (again, Discovery Tours) and then I applied for OFW status at POEA (with me are my COE, Contract, Engineer Visa and other relevant papers).
This was basically how I found employment in Japan. But there are other ways. And I will be writing about them including FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) on how to apply for work here in Japan.
Thank you for reading my post. I hope this helped. And do watch out for my next entries.
Arigatou Gozaimasu.
