2023/11/01

Specific skill visa

　This time I will explain the specific skill visa.


　The specific skill visa is a new visa that came into effect in May 2019.With the aim of alleviating the domestic labor shortage, workers are now able to work in 14 industries, including nursing care, construction, accommodation, and agriculture, under looser standards than before.
Initially in 2019, it was expected to accept more than 340,000 people over five years, but things are not progressing as planned due to delays in preparing to accept people in various industries and immigration restrictions due to the coronavirus pandemic. Although the numbers are a little old, the total number of people accepted as of the end of 2020 was 15,663, of which 9,412 were Vietnamese, accounting for 96.1% of the total.
As of the end of 2020, there are over 280,000 foreigners residing in Japan on technical visas, humanities specialist visas, and international work visas, and their importance is expected to increase even more once entry restrictions are lifted. A specific skill visa can be obtained by those who have worked in Japan as a technical intern for three years or more, or by those who have passed the specific skill evaluation test and Japanese language proficiency test for each industry. I read the text for the Nursing Care Evaluation Exam, and it requires very specialized knowledge.


There are two types of specific skill visas: No. 1 visa and No. 2 visa. Specified Skills Visa No. 1 allows you to stay for up to 5 years. For these five years, the registration support organization will support the accepting company and the specified skilled foreigner. During this period, you cannot bring your spouse or children to Japan on a family visa.

Specified Skills Visa No. 2 is a visa for those who wish to continue working after obtaining Specified Skills Visa No. 1. If you continue to work, you may be able to obtain a permanent resident visa. Once you obtain the Specified Skills Visa No. 2, you can bring your family with you on a family visa. Currently, the Specified Skills Visa No. 2 applies only to the construction industry and shipbuilding/shipbuilding industry. However, we are considering applying the Specified Skills Visa No. 2 to all industries.

Therefore, in the future many foreigners will be able to work actively in Japan and obtain permanent resident visas.