Starting Your Own Business in Japan
Are you a so-called
"plus one“ who came with your partner to Japan, but is itching to be
something other than a homemaker? Are you keen to work but don’t know how to
get legal permission? Do you have an idea for your own business but no idea how
to get started? Rest assured: while it might be tricky to find your way, it is
certainly not impossible.
Savvy talked to an immigration lawyer and legal advisor who helps
foreign nationals in Japan to set up their businesses and apply for the
appropriate visa status. She explained what’s behind the cryptic
“permission to engage in activity other than that permitted under the status of
residence previously granted,“ why it’s probably best for foreigners to refrain
from opening a restaurant in Japan, and why she encourages her clients to give
their careers a try here.
Compared with other countries, is it harder or easier here to set up a
business or get a working visa?
In places like Hong Kong or Singapore it seems to be easier to set up a
company. It takes about a week and requires less paperwork there. That’s why
some people come to Japan and have this idea of setting up a business really
easily. This is not the case. There is a lot of paperwork and many steps to go
through. But once you know the procedure it is quite straightforward. If you
are guided correctly, it is not too much of a hassle. It takes about one month
to register a company. You have to go to the registry office which is dependent
to the Ministry of Justice.
If you have specific skills as a foreigner is it easy to get a working visa
in Japan?
There are different kinds of working visas. If you work as an employee,
basically all you need is a university degree. In most cases you don’t even
need to have professional experience if you work in an office environment.
There are some exceptions like if you work as a cook, then you need to have 10
years of experience. If you work as a sports instructor, you need three years’
experience. If you work as an employee, your company will generally sponsor
your visa and take care of all the paperwork for you.
What visa do you need if you want to set up your own business?
The visa for business owners is called the “investor and business manager
visa.” To get one, you don’t need any degree or experience, but you need
to invest at least five million yen into your company’s capital and you need to
have a physical office that is separate from your home. You can apply for this
investor visa after having registered your company. To begin with, you will be
given a one year visa, and after that it depends on the company’s performance.
If the business is doing well, you will most probably get a three year visa,
but if the company is making no profit or a loss, the visa will be only
extended for one year. For each renewal you need to provide your financial
status.
How big of an obstacle is it if you don’t speak any Japanese?
Many of my clients don’t speak a word of Japanese, and some of them are
really successful. It could help, though, if you have some experience with
running a business in your home country. Obviously you don’t do all the
paperwork yourself, so you need to hire someone to go through all the
procedures, as it is all in Japanese. Most of my successful clients work with
foreign companies overseas.
I do not see many of them having Japanese partners, because it is difficult
to find the right partner who shares the same values. The difference in working
cultures could be a reason for that.
What kind of business would you advise to set up?
A lot of people think that running a restaurant would be an easy thing. But
that’s actually the hardest business you could ever imagine to run, because it
requires a lot of investment, there is a lot of competition, and importing food
products to Japan is quite complicated.
The best activity is something which does not require a huge amount of
investment, like any service industry, something which does not involve making
things, which would mean you need to have a warehouse. Many people engage in
IT-related services; they just have these skills and provide their services.
Some offer consultant services. One of my successful clients buys things in
Japan and sells them overseas. I think selling to Japanese people is difficult.
If you only have a dependent visa because you came here with your partner,
and yet you want to work part time, do you also need to get visa sponsorship?
No. Only if you work full time. If you wish to work part time you can apply
to get permission to do so on your current visa status. It allows you to work
up to 28 hours per week. You get it at the immigration office. It has got a
really long name: “permission to engage in activity other than that permitted
under the status of residence previously granted.” But even if it sounds quite
complicated, it is actually not. And it is free. You just need to fill out the
form, take your passport and residence card to the immigration office, and then
you can apply.
Can you tell us about any success stories?
Definitely. A British man is doing business consulting between Japanese
companies and European companies; a British and a Canadian guy are running ski
lodges in Hakuba, in the Nagano region, targeting mainly foreign tourists. A
French guy buys secondhand luxury bags, like Chanel, and sells them overseas.
Apparently the quality of secondhand products in Japan is good, as people take
good care of their items here.
What is your own experience with setting up a business?
What I really want to say is that you should give it a try. I never thought
of starting my own business and when I actually did it, it was much easier than
I thought. There are a lot information and tools on the internet. Even if you
just stay here for a few years, what you have tried in Japan might be useful in
other countries. It’s all about getting the experience. Even if it does not
work in Japan, you can start already here with ideas, doing research, a bit of
trial.
When I started myself I gave myself one year to see how it works and I was
sure that it wouldn’t. After one year it was not really great, but I saw that
things were moving forward, more people were sending inquiries, looking at my
website. And the second year worked really well. So I just kept going.
