Hiring guide · APAC
How to hire in Japan
To hire in Japan you need an entity enrolled in health, pension, employment and workers' accident insurance, or an Employer of Record that is. Employer social insurance adds roughly 15–17% to salary. Dismissal requires objectively reasonable grounds, so exits are negotiated rather than executed.
- Currency
- JPY
- Payroll cycle
- Monthly
- Employer cost
- ~15–17%
- Notice
- 30 days or pay in lieu
The talent market in Japan
Japan is the third-largest economy and a high-value enterprise market, but the bilingual talent pool is small and competition for it is intense. Hiring timelines run longer than elsewhere in APAC, and candidates weigh employer stability heavily.
Compensation convention differs from western markets: semi-annual bonuses often form a substantial part of annual pay, and commuting allowances are near-universal. Quoting a base-only figure will read as a below-market offer.
Salary benchmarks in Japan
Indicative annual gross base salary in JPY for common roles. Treat these as planning ranges — actual offers move with city, seniority, sector and equity mix, and we model a live benchmark before you go to offer.
| Role | Annual gross base |
|---|---|
| Software engineer (mid) | JPY 7,000,000 – 10,000,000 |
| Senior software engineer | JPY 10,000,000 – 15,000,000 |
| Account executive (SaaS) | JPY 9,000,000 – 15,000,000 incl. variable |
| Customer support specialist | JPY 4,000,000 – 6,000,000 |
Employment rules and payroll in Japan
The statutory framework any offer has to sit inside — hours, leave, notice and the contributions that turn salary into fully loaded cost.
Working week
40 hours; overtime requires a filed Article 36 agreement
Probation
3–6 months, though dismissal during it is still constrained
Notice period
30 days' notice or 30 days' pay in lieu
Paid leave
10 days after six months, rising to 20 with service; 5 days must be taken
Public holidays
16 national holidays
Payroll cycle
Monthly, commonly with semi-annual bonuses
Employer contributions
~15–17%: health, nursing care, employees' pension, employment and workers' accident insurance
Contractor, EOR employee or your own entity?
Three ways to engage someone in Japan. The right one depends on how permanent the role is, how much direction you give, and how much local risk you want to carry.
Contractor
Fastest to start and simplest to end. Suitable for genuinely independent, project-scoped work where the person controls how and when they deliver, invoices you, and works for other clients. No statutory benefits, no notice period, no severance.
Employee via EOR
The right structure for a full-time role with fixed hours, managerial direction and exclusivity. A licensed in-country partner is the legal employer, so the person gets a compliant contract, statutory benefits and local payroll — without you opening an entity.
Your own entity
Worth it once headcount, permanence and local revenue justify the incorporation, tax registration, statutory filings and local directorship. Most companies reach that point somewhere between 15 and 30 employees in a single country.
Misclassification risk in Japan
Japanese labour authorities look past the contract label to actual subordination, fixed hours and exclusivity. Reclassification brings retroactive social insurance enrolment with back contributions, unpaid overtime at statutory premium rates, and the near-absolute dismissal protection that comes with employee status.
Work permits and right to work
Foreign nationals need a status of residence permitting the work, most commonly Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services, which requires a relevant degree or ten years' experience and a Certificate of Eligibility obtained by the sponsoring entity. Allow two to three months from offer to start.
Hire in Japan without an entity
TalentStores orchestrates Employer of Record employment in Japan through licensed in-country partners, with cost modelled before you extend an offer.
Explore Employer of Record- Fully loaded cost modelled before offer
- Licensed partner matched, not assumed
- One contract, one consolidated bill
Hiring in Japan: frequently asked questions
Can we hire in Japan without a KK or GK entity?
Yes. A Japanese Employer of Record employs the person through its own entity, enrols them in the four statutory insurances, and issues Japanese-language employment terms and work rules — avoiding the two to three months an entity setup and insurance registration take.
How difficult is it to dismiss an employee in Japan?
Very. Dismissal must be objectively reasonable and socially acceptable, and courts set a high bar even for performance grounds. Most separations are handled as negotiated resignations with a settlement, which should be modelled before the hire, not after.
What does a Japanese employee cost above salary?
Roughly 15–17% in employer social insurance across health, nursing care, pension, employment and workers' accident insurance. Add commuting allowance and any semi-annual bonus convention for the role, which can be a further one to four months of salary.
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Get the Japan Hiring Cost Guide
A country brief covering fully loaded employment cost in JPY, salary benchmarks by role, statutory contributions, leave and notice rules, and a sample offer breakdown for Japan.