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Pathway

Japan Intracompany Transfer Visa

Japan Residency
Pathway overview

At a glance

An employer transfer from an overseas office to a related office in Japan may qualify for residence. Your professional duties, recent service, and pay must meet the transfer rules.

Assignment
Employer-supported professional work
Previous service
Normally one continuous year immediately before transfer
Pay
At least comparable to a Japanese worker doing the same work

Summary

If your employer is transferring you from an overseas office to a related office in Japan, you may qualify for Intra-company Transferee status. It covers a fixed-period assignment doing the professional work allowed by this category.

The applicant normally needs a continuous year of service immediately before the transfer. Immigration also compares the proposed pay with that of a Japanese worker doing comparable work, so both overseas employment records and the Japanese assignment terms matter.

Could this pathway work for you?

Eligibility

You must be transferring from an eligible overseas office to an office in Japan. The assignment must involve professional duties covered by this status.

You normally need at least one continuous year of relevant work immediately before the transfer. Some earlier qualifying assignments in Japan can count; your employer must document the complete history. Your pay must be at least what a Japanese worker would receive for comparable work.

Ask the employer for evidence of the relationship between the offices, your past service, job description, pay, and assignment dates. Use the current checklist for the company’s application category, including the overseas-work records.

The Japanese office normally helps obtain a Certificate of Eligibility. This immigration document supports the visa application, but is not itself permission to enter and does not guarantee a visa.

Moving to a related office in Japan
  1. Confirm the company transfer The overseas and Japanese offices and proposed duties must fit the rules.
  2. Document your work history Include the required preceding service, pay, and assignment records.
  3. Complete the visa and entry process If approved Follow the dates and work conditions actually granted.

Some qualifying prior Japan assignments can count toward the service requirement. The employer must document the history.

What This Route Allows

Approval lets you carry out the agreed assignment in Japan. Possible periods are five years, three years, one year, or three months. The approved period may be shorter than the planned assignment, so check your own documents.

What This Route Is Not

This is not a permit to look for work or work remotely for unrelated overseas clients. Owning a company does not, by itself, establish an employee transfer.

Being recruited for a new job by an unrelated Japanese employer uses other work categories.

Next Steps

  1. Ask the employer to confirm the relationship between the offices and that your duties fit the transfer category.
  2. Gather the required work-history, pay, company, and assignment records.
  3. Complete the applicable Certificate of Eligibility and visa applications.
  4. Follow the entry steps and the approved work conditions and dates.

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Sources