Living in Japan
Japan to Accept 40,000 Workers Under New Residency Visa in First Year: Is Japan Ready?
Japan will accept approximately 40,000 workers in the first year of implementation of the “Specified Skills” residency visa status, to ameliorate labor shortages in fourteen designated industries. The draft amendment to the Immigration Control Act was approved by the Cabinet... More
Living in a Japanese Apartment
Living in Japan: How to Avoid Getting into A Dispute with Your Landlord Over Your Rental Deposit
Apartment rental deposits are one of the leading causes of landlord-tenant disputes in Japan. The landlord either returns a much lower amount than the tenant expects or does not return the deposit at all, claiming that the entire amount was... More
Living in Japan
Japan to Consider Accepting Foreign Workers in 14 Industries Under New Residency Visa – Up From Original 5
The Japanese government has just approved a draft amendment to establish two new statuses of residence that would expand acceptance of foreign workers to Japan in 14 industries experiencing serious labor shortages, up from the five that were originally proposed.... More
New “Specified Skills” Residency Visas Coming to Japan in 2019: Here’s What You Need to Know
To alleviate labor shortages amid an aging population and falling birth rate, the Japanese government announced this May that it will implement two new residency visa statuses as early as April 2019. Below we update what is known so far regarding... More
Living in Japan
What are the best paying jobs and industries in Japan? 2018 Survey
In this article, we review the average annual salary in Japan by occupation, age, and gender, using the latest available survey, in a follow up to last year’s post on What is the average salary in Japan by occupation and... More
Living in Japan
Japanese for Emergency Situations: How to report an emergency and useful phrases
In this post, we describe how to report a fire, accident or medical emergency in Japan and give some basic phrases for communicating with an emergency dispatcher. In case of fire, accident, or medical emergency: Dial 119 You can dial... More
Living in a Japanese Apartment
Setting Up Internet at Home in Japan: Basics of Getting a High-Speed Internet Connection
In this post, we give a brief explanation of setting up a broadband internet connection in your home in Japan, including an overview of English-friendly internet service providers (ISPs) and the process of applying for internet service. As we’re focused on... More