Japan Business Manager residence

Eligibility & suitability

A route for an operating business and its real manager

Business Manager is permission to conduct qualifying management or administration in Japan, not a residence product obtained simply by parking money in a company. The Immigration Services Agency’s reform took effect on 16 October 2025 and materially raised the requirements. Older explanations centred on JPY5 million and no staff are not a reliable description of a new 2026 application.

A sound case begins with the business itself: who buys the product, where the work happens, who has authority, what licences are needed and how operating costs will be funded. Immigration evidence, company accounts, tax registration, premises and bank onboarding should describe the same operation. Outsourcing every meaningful management function can conflict with the claimed activity.

The new requirements are cumulative

The current framework requires business scale of at least JPY30 million in capital for a corporation, or the relevant total amount invested in the business for an individual proprietor, and at least one qualifying full-time employee. These are not alternative ways to satisfy the new rule. The company must also meet the premises, viability and applicant requirements.

The employee who satisfies the staffing minimum must fall within the permitted categories, such as a Japanese national, special permanent resident or qualifying Annex II status holder. An ordinary Annex I work-status employee does not satisfy that particular staffing test. The language requirement has a different scope: the applicant or an appropriate full-time employee must demonstrate the specified Japanese ability, and the guidance allows a broader employee category for that language role.

The applicant needs an appropriate master’s, doctoral or professional degree in a relevant field, or at least three years of management/administration experience under the guidance. The business plan must be checked by a listed professional, such as a certified public accountant, tax accountant or SME management consultant. A paid signature is not a substitute for a viable and internally consistent plan.

Capital is not the same thing as fees or the first-year budget

JPY30 million is a business-scale requirement, not a government application fee or a promise that this sum covers the move. Budget separately for incorporation, premises, deposits, hiring, payroll insurance, licences, accounting, tax, translation and the household. Working capital must remain consistent with the genuine business, not circulate temporarily to manufacture a balance.

A newly incorporated company at this capital level also needs immediate consumption-tax analysis: the new-company rules can remove the small-business exemption where opening capital is at least JPY10 million. Do not place a supposed automatic two-year tax holiday in the plan. Company profitability, residence permission and bank acceptance are different decisions.

Choose premises after checking the specific immigration and local-use requirements. The reform guidance is restrictive about combining the business office with the applicant’s home. A cheap virtual address, casual desk or residential lease should not be assumed sufficient for the proposed operation.

Household planning requires separate permissions

A qualifying spouse or child may seek Dependent status with relationship and support evidence. General dependent permission does not automatically allow unrestricted employment; separate activity permission is normally required for permitted part-time work. Parents and unmarried partners do not acquire a general entitlement under the spouse/child category.

The legal recognition of a same-sex relationship needs separate attention. Japan’s national marriage framework and discretionary immigration treatment are not the same as a municipal partnership certificate. The official material reviewed supports particular humanitarian Designated Activities treatment for some foreign same-sex spouses, but it does not establish a universal dependent entitlement for every sponsor configuration.

Build the household’s insurance, education, accommodation and income needs into the cash-flow plan. A successful company application does not dispense with each family member’s eligibility, documentation or tax-residence review.

Existing holders and preparation routes have transition rules

For people already holding the status, the reform includes a transition extending to October 2028 and a case-sensitive renewal assessment. The published guidance considers business performance, tax and public-payment compliance, and the credibility of achieving the new requirements. It is inaccurate both to promise indefinite grandfathering and to claim that every existing holder must immediately leave if capital is below JPY30 million.

Startup Visa and other preparation permissions have their own approval dates and transition conditions. A prior plan or confirmation may matter under the stated rules, but a fresh 2026 applicant should not assume the old standard applies merely because the business idea started earlier. Highly Skilled Professional management activity must also satisfy its underlying business-management requirements.

We can coordinate the feasibility review, company and residence sequence, document preparation and specialist implementation. The useful first inquiry specifies the business model, available capital, relevant experience, Japanese-language resources, proposed staff and intended prefecture.