The Skilled Labor visa is Japan's status for workers who possess proven, specialised skills in particular industrial fields — most famously the foreign-cuisine chef, but also craftsmen, aircraft pilots, sports instructors, and sommeliers. Its hallmark is a demanding experience requirement: for many fields, ten years of practical experience.
This guide explains the nine fields the status covers, the experience required in each, the core requirements, the documents and process, and how Skilled Labor differs from the newer Specified Skilled Worker route. Specified Skilled Worker may provide alternative pathways in some designated fields, but as of June 2026, new admissions in food service have been restricted; this article reflects current availability across all fields.
What the Skilled Labor Status Is
Skilled Labor is for foreign nationals who carry out work requiring mature, specialised skills in a particular industrial field as defined by Japan's immigration criteria. Some categories, such as foreign cuisine, foreign-style construction, and foreign-specific products, require skills with a foreign or overseas-derived character; others, such as aircraft piloting, sports instruction, animal training, oil/geothermal/seabed work, and wine appraisal, are defined by their own specific skill and experience standards. The classic example is a chef trained in a foreign cuisine working at a restaurant of that cuisine in Japan. The status rewards demonstrated craft and experience rather than academic qualifications.
The period of stay is one of 5 years, 3 years, 1 year, or 3 months, decided according to your track record and the nature of the work. Unlike Specified Skilled Worker Type 1, Skilled Labor has no fixed cap on total years and can be renewed indefinitely while the employment continues, and it allows family to be brought on a Dependent visa.
The Nine Skilled Fields
The status covers nine defined fields:
| Field | Typical experience required |
|---|---|
| Cooking of foreign cuisine (chefs, confectioners) | 10 years (may include study at a culinary institution abroad) |
| Foreign-style building and civil engineering | 10 years (or 5 years if you work under the direction of someone with 10+ years' experience) |
| Manufacture / repair of foreign-specific products | 10 years |
| Processing of jewellery, precious metals, or fur | 10 years |
| Animal training | 10 years |
| Oil exploration / seabed geological survey | 10 years |
| Aircraft piloting | 250+ flight hours |
| Sports instruction | 3 years (or a professional / top-level competitive record) |
| Wine appraisal (sommelier) | 5 years, plus one of: strong performance in an international sommelier competition, participation as a representative in a one-per-country international competition, or a Minister-of-Justice-designated qualification |
The experience must be genuine and documented — immigration asks for certificates of employment from your previous workplaces covering the whole period.
The Foreign-Cuisine Chef Route
Most Skilled Labor applications are for chefs of a foreign cuisine. The key points are:
- Ten years of experience cooking that cuisine. In some cases time spent studying at a culinary education institution can count toward the ten years — but practical kitchen experience is the core.
- A matching restaurant. The Japanese employer must genuinely serve that foreign cuisine; the role must require your specialised skill, not general kitchen help.
- Proof of the experience. Employment certificates from each restaurant where you built the ten years, ideally with the dates and your role, are essential. Gaps and undocumented periods cause refusals.
Thai cuisine has a special arrangement under the Japan-Thailand Economic Partnership Agreement: a Thai-cuisine chef may qualify with five years of Thai-cuisine experience, provided the applicant holds the Thai Ministry of Labour skill-level certificate and meets the EPA conditions, including evidence of appropriate remuneration as a Thai-cuisine chef in Thailand during the year before application. This is the main exception to the ten-year rule for chefs.
For Foreign Workers Looking to Build Their Career in Japan
TreeGlobalPartners' service is completely free for foreign workers — no fees of any kind, no hidden charges. We support your appropriate job change or new employment in Japan with verified employers. Visa applications, status changes, and registered support procedures are handled through our group's affiliated Tree Administrative Scrivener Corporation, giving you a true one-stop service across the group.
Consult TreeGlobalPartners →Core Requirements
Across all fields, a Skilled Labor application must show:
- The required experience for the field, fully documented.
- A genuine job offer from a Japanese employer for work that truly requires the specialised skill.
- That the job fits one of the nine statutory Skilled Labor categories — some, such as foreign cuisine and foreign-style construction, require skills with a foreign or overseas character; others, such as aircraft piloting, sports instruction, animal training, oil/geothermal/seabed work, and wine appraisal, are defined by their own specific experience or qualification standards.
- Pay at least equal to a Japanese national doing the same work, with a stable employer.
Documents and Process
You apply through the usual channels — a Certificate of Eligibility from abroad, or a change of status from within Japan. The core documents are:
- The application form and a photograph
- Certificates of employment proving the full period of experience required for your field
- The employment contract with the Japanese employer, stating duties, hours, and salary
- Documents about the employer and, for restaurants, evidence that it serves the relevant foreign cuisine (menus, photos, registration)
- For pilots, sommeliers, and sports instructors, the relevant licences, hours logs, or award records
Certificate of Eligibility review usually takes about 1 to 3 months; a change of status about 2 weeks to 1 month.
Skilled Labor vs Specified Skilled Worker
Since 2019, many roles that once relied on the Skilled Labor visa — especially in food service — can also be filled through Specified Skilled Worker, which does not require ten years of experience. The two are quite different:
| Point | Skilled Labor | Specified Skilled Worker |
|---|---|---|
| Basis | Long proven experience (often 10 years) | Skills and Japanese-language requirements confirmed by tests or by prescribed transition routes (e.g., skilled training completion); Type 2 requires higher skill level |
| Total stay | No cap; renewable indefinitely | Type 1: in principle up to 5 years total; Type 2: no renewal-count limit |
| Family | Dependent visa allowed | Type 1: family accompaniment is not allowed in principle (some exceptions may apply); Type 2: spouse and children may be allowed as Dependents if requirements are met |
| Fields | The nine skilled fields | Designated industry fields (food service, etc.) |
For an experienced master chef, Skilled Labor offers stability and family rights. For someone without a decade of experience, Specified Skilled Worker may be an option in some designated fields, but as of June 2026, new admissions in food service are restricted: overseas Certificate of Eligibility applications are generally not accepted, and changes of status received on or after April 13, 2026 are generally not approved except for specific exceptions. Renewals and workplace changes within food service continue to be processed for existing workers.
Frequently Asked Questions
Summary
- Skilled Labor is for workers with mature, specialised skills in nine statutory categories; some require foreign-specific skills, while others are defined by their own experience or qualification standards
- Foreign-cuisine chefs are the most common case and generally need ten years of documented experience (Thai cuisine: five years with a Thai qualification)
- Other fields range from 250 flight hours (pilots) to 3 years (sports instruction) and 5 years plus awards (sommelier)
- Requirements: documented experience per field, a genuine job matching one of the nine statutory Skilled Labor categories, and pay at least equal to a Japanese worker
- Period of stay is 5 / 3 / 1 year or 3 months, renewable indefinitely; family is allowed on a Dependent visa
- Specified Skilled Worker may offer a non-ten-year route in designated fields through tests or prescribed transition routes, but Type 1 is in principle limited to five years total and does not allow family accompaniment in principle; as of June 2026, new admissions in food service are restricted
- Related reading: our guides to Specified Skilled Worker and the Dependent visa
The Skilled Labor visa honours a lifetime of craft — the chef, the artisan, the master with a decade behind them. If you have the experience and can document it, it offers something Specified Skilled Worker Type 1 does not: indefinite renewal and the right to keep your family with you. The make-or-break factor is evidence, so gather complete employment certificates for every year of your experience before you apply.
For Foreign Workers Looking to Build Their Career in Japan
TreeGlobalPartners' service is completely free for foreign workers — no fees of any kind, no hidden charges. We support your appropriate job change or new employment in Japan with verified employers. Visa applications, status changes, and registered support procedures are handled through our group's affiliated Tree Administrative Scrivener Corporation, giving you a true one-stop service across the group.
Consult TreeGlobalPartners →Official sources: Immigration Services Agency — Skilled Labor; Immigration Services Agency — Residence procedures. Always confirm the latest details on the official pages of the Immigration Services Agency.
Disclaimer: This article is accurate as of June 2026 and is based on Japanese immigration law — the Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act and its ministerial criteria — and the published information of the Immigration Services Agency. Experience requirements and field definitions depend on the specific case. This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal or immigration advice. For your own case, please consult an administrative scrivener or immigration lawyer specialised in immigration matters.