The number in the job advertisement and the number that arrives in your account are different, and the gap is larger than most candidates expect.
Understanding the difference in advance is the best protection there is against a bad placement.
Verify before you act on this. The Specified Skilled Worker system is revised frequently. The Immigration Services Agency of Japan and the ministry responsible for your field are the sources that bind. This page is orientation, not authority.
The legal floor
SSW workers must be paid at least the same as a Japanese national doing equivalent work, and at least the regional minimum wage. Minimum wage in Japan is set by prefecture and revised annually, so it differs depending on where you are placed.
That is the law. Whether your specific offer respects it is a question you should ask directly, in writing, before signing.
What is legitimately deducted
A Japanese payslip deducts a lot, and most of it is normal:
| Deduction | What it is |
|---|---|
| Income tax | National, withheld at source |
| Resident tax | Local, usually from your second year |
| Health insurance | Mandatory; gives you medical cover |
| Pension | Mandatory. Partly refundable on departure — see below |
| Employment insurance | Mandatory |
| Accommodation | If provided by the employer |
| Utilities | Sometimes bundled with accommodation |
Social insurance and tax together commonly take a substantial share of gross pay. This is ordinary and it is the same for Japanese workers.
The pension point is worth knowing: foreign workers who leave Japan may claim a lump-sum withdrawal payment for part of their pension contributions. Many people never claim it. Check the rules and the time limit before you depart.
What should worry you
Accommodation charged far above its value. Employer-provided housing is normal and legitimate. Housing charged at several times a realistic local rent is a way of clawing back wages, and it is one of the most common abuses in this system.
Ask: what is the accommodation, where, and what exactly is the monthly charge? Then compare it with local rents for something similar.
Vague or shifting deductions. Every deduction should be itemised on a payslip and explicable. “Administration fee”, “management cost” and similar items with no clear basis deserve hard questions.
Repayment of recruitment costs. If a share of your wage is being taken to repay fees paid to an agency, understand exactly what the total is, over what period. This is the mechanism behind the debt problems that have dogged foreign labour programmes in Japan for years. See agency red flags.
Unpaid overtime. Overtime in Japan is legally compensated at premium rates. Work that is expected but not recorded is not a cultural quirk; it is wage theft.
Questions to ask before you sign
Ask these in writing and keep the answers:
- What is the gross monthly wage, and what is the expected net?
- What are all the deductions, itemised?
- Is accommodation provided, what is the charge, and what does it include?
- What are the contracted hours, and how is overtime paid?
- Are there any repayments to an agency or third party from my wages?
- Who is the registered support organisation, and how do I contact them directly?
An employer or agency that answers these clearly is behaving normally. One that treats them as suspicion is telling you something.
Where the money goes
Budget realistically. After tax, insurance, accommodation and living costs, the remittable surplus is meaningful but not the gross figure in the advertisement. The cost of moving to Japan sets out the up-front side.
If something is wrong after you arrive
Your registered support organisation has a legal duty to support you, including with problems at work. Labour standards inspection offices exist in every prefecture and handle wage and hours complaints, including from foreign workers.
You are not without recourse, and you are not obliged to stay in an abusive placement. See changing jobs on SSW.