Partial amendment of the Specified Visa for Designated Activities to allow foreign graduates to engage in food service and manufacturing industries

On May 30, the Ministry of Justice is set to introduce a partial amendment of the public notice for the Immigration Control Act. With this revision, foreign graduates of Japanese undergraduate and postgraduate institutions will be able to stay in or enter the country with the Specified Visa for Designated Activities. This is based on the condition that they wish to work in the food service or manufacturing industries, which require an excellent command of the Japanese language.

At present, non-Japanese workers can’t apply for residence status to engage in the service industry, including food and manufacturing industries. The move comes amid a government decision to increase the current job placement rate of foreign students from 30% to 50%, suggested by the country’s 2016 Growth Strategy. The ministry also points out that foreign graduates of Japanese universities with strong language skills can cover communication between foreign and Japanese workers, and help accommodate Japan’s growing inbound tourism.

[Website]Partial amendment of Ministry of Justice’s public notice to provide employment support for international students