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Short term consulting in Japan

ymc

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27 Apr 2015
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I am running a one-man consulting company in my local area. I am getting business. But my local market is kinda small for what I am doing.

Since I know some Japanese (passed N1 last July), I am thinking maybe I can explore if it is possible to expand my business there.

Currently, my consulting jobs are mostly several months long. But it seems if I do the same in Japan then I couldn't find any visa that allows short term contract. (Am I wrong?)

After reading this site and the MoFA site, I think the easiest probably is to spend 10M yen to start a company there and hire two Japanese. I have the money to do this but I think maybe that's too much commitment up front. So it would be great if there

I heard that it is possible to get a real job there first from one sponsor to obatin a working visa. Then after one year, I can quit and sponsor myself to do consulting contracts. Is that true?

Is there a third way?

Thank you in advance for your advice.
 
Work visas require that you get hired first, then together you and the employer apply for your work visa.

People from Hong Kong like yourself have the option of working holiday visa. See what that involves.

What kind of consulting are you in?
 
Thanks for your reply. I am too old for working holiday visa

I know I do need to find a job first. But making sure I understand the visa situation can make my potential employer more comfortable.

I am in the business of setting up IT system to analyze biological data in the pathology lab within a hospital. I think maybe I fall into the medlcal service category of work visa. But that kind of visa is either 1 year or 3 years.

I heard that work visa can be approved for a annual salary of 3.6mil yen. Is that true? Can I work four months, get paid for that sum to count as working for one year?

Thanks a lot
 
Do you mean I can get a 1 year visa from my potential employer even though in reality I only work a few months as long as my total salary >3.6mil yen?
 
I'm not entirely clear on what you are asking, but usually your 1 year visa implies you and you company have agreed for you to be here for one year. If the contract particulars are in order, and you satisfy the other immigration requirements, the immigration department will grant you the visa that will enable you to carry out that contract. If you are asking whether or not the immigration bureaucracy cares if you intend to breach your contract, I think any of us would be obliged to answer "yes". But, a contract isn't indentured servitude, and it isn't uncommon for people to quit their initial contract before the term is up. In other words, it happens.
If you are asking whether you can find a Japanese company to play along with you and give you a year contract even though you only need the visa for a few months... that is a much more unlikely proposition.
Also, there is a rule in place that requires you to inform immigration if the conditions of your employment change during the period of validity for your visa.
 
All I am saying is that people who make 250,000 yen/month (3 million per year) are making enough that immigration does not consider them a financial burden on society, so they can get a visa. There is no definite specific minimum monthly salary that immigration goes by. I've seen people get work visas (for a year) based on salaries as low as 150,000 yen/month, but that's awfully low and you would have to live out of a shoebox or have an employer pay for a lot of your expenses to make only that much.

There is a 3-month work visa now. I don't know what requirements are, but I suspect that immigration has not changed on its vague monthly concept. That means you probably have to make a certain minimum depending on the cost of living in the region of Japan where you live. It will vary by location, obviously.

Are you saying that you can get 3.6 million yen in a 4-month period?
 
3.6mil yen in 4 months is about the rate I am getting now in my local market.

What is that 3-month work visa? Can you give me a link. I can only find that entertainer can have 3-month work visa at MoFA but I don't know about my category which is medical service
 
Ah.. Just also want to know if it is true that if I get an one year visa, then at the end of the year, I can sponsor myself to continue to stay in Japan to get short term consulting jobs?
 
I don't think the "self-sponsor" visa is that easy to get. You would need to show you already had some work lined up, otherwise they'd wonder about your ability to support yourself.

I have a question about:
setting up IT system to analyze biological data in the pathology lab within a hospital

Are you selling a particular system, and then providing install/troubleshooting/user training? Because if you can legitimately describe your activity as "after sales service" for a system imported into Japan, that changes things and may allow you to do shorter visa-free trips as a "business trip" under the visa waiver scheme.
 
I suppose "self sponsor" visa is hard to get. But I would like to learn about it. Do you know any official pages describe how it works?

I think my service can be counted as a selling a system and then provide training and after service. So effective I don't need any visa?

I think for 3-month work visa or this "after sales service" visa won't give me a residency card. I suppose I can't open a Japanese bank account because of that. Does that mean I should ask for a wire to my local account? What about taxes? I suppose then I don't need to pay Japanese tax but my local tax?
 
Self-sponsorship requires that you have a work visa first for at least a year, and THEN you can show contracts from customers/clients which immigration will look at to determine whether you can self-sponsor. Count that out.

I think my service can be counted as a selling a system and then provide training and after service. So effective I don't need any visa?
If you earn money from Japanese clients while you reside in Japan, you need a work visa.
 
You would need to be in the position where you weren't directly being employed by the Japanese company, so yes, they'd pay into Hong Kong. What I'm not clear about is whether if it's just software, if this still applies - it's usually for machinery, e.g. if a Japanese company buys some machine for a German company and it breaks, the engineer that comes over from Germany to fix it generally doesn't need a work visa.

IANAL, so consult a lawyer, but under the right circumstances I believe this is possible (the part where you have to have sold them something which was then imported into Japan would be the key). Does it give you any residency? No. But it might help you make some contacts.

Equally, you can legally go over to conduct activities like market research under the visa waiver.
 
I think my software can possibly be counted as something importable? If not, I can install it in a computer box and import? Anyway, maybe I should go to the consulate and ask?

Embassy of Japan in the UK

Temporary Visitor Visa is for activities not exceeding 90 days as below:
sightseeing, visiting relatives or friends, recreation, convalescence, attending a conference, participation in unpaid lectures, meetings, amateur athletic meetings or other contests, short business trips (e.g. market surveys, business talks, after sales service for machinery imported into Japan)
This category excludes profit-making operations and paid activities.

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If that's not working, then I can try the 3-month work visa. (no need to pay JP tax in this case?)

Either route should give me some contacts and exposure. When I get several customers, then I can start thinking about establishing a presence there by hiring two Japanese.

Thanks everyone for your input!
 
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