Japan has a well-documented IT talent shortage. Foreign engineers are actively sought, and many companies hire without requiring Japanese fluency. If you have the skills, Japan’s tech industry is very accessible.
Why Japan Needs Foreign IT Workers
- Aging workforce with fewer young engineers entering the field
- Government pushing digital transformation across all industries
- Massive backlog of legacy systems needing modernization
- Game and anime industry needs international talent for global products
The government’s Highly Skilled Professional visa was partly designed to attract foreign tech workers.
Salary Ranges
| Role | Annual Salary |
|---|---|
| Junior Software Engineer | ¥4M–6M (¥333K–500K/month) |
| Mid-level Engineer (3–5 years) | ¥6M–10M |
| Senior Engineer / Tech Lead | ¥10M–15M+ |
| Engineering Manager | ¥12M–20M+ |
| Data Scientist / ML Engineer | ¥7M–14M |
Salaries vary significantly between Japanese traditional companies and foreign-affiliated or startup companies. Foreign companies typically pay more.
Do You Need Japanese?
It depends on the company type:
| Company Type | Japanese Required? |
|---|---|
| Foreign multinational (Google, Amazon, etc.) | Usually not |
| International startup (Mercari, Rakuten English team) | Often not |
| Traditional Japanese company | Usually yes (at least business level) |
| SIer (system integrator) | Yes, strongly preferred |
Tech roles at companies like Google Japan, Amazon Japan, Line, Mercari, SmartNews, Paidy, Stripe Japan often hire entirely in English.
Top Companies Hiring Foreign Engineers
Global companies with large Japan offices:
- Google Japan
- Amazon Japan (AWS)
- Microsoft Japan
- Indeed Japan
Japan-born companies with English-friendly culture:
- Mercari
- LINE (now LY Corporation)
- SmartNews
- Recruit Holdings
- CyberAgent
- DeNA
Startups (English-friendly, fast growth):
- Paidy
- Freee
- Sansan
- Henkel (digital division)
Skills Most in Demand
- Cloud (AWS, GCP, Azure) — Very high demand across all sectors
- React / TypeScript / Node.js — Modern frontend and fullstack
- Python — Data science, ML, backend
- Java / Kotlin — Enterprise and Android
- Go — Growing fast in Japan’s tech scene
- DevOps / SRE — Critical shortage
- Cybersecurity — Government pushing this hard post-2023
How to Get Hired
Step 1 — Polish Your Online Presence
- GitHub — Active repositories signal genuine skill
- LinkedIn — Increasingly used by Japanese tech companies
- Portfolio — Deployed projects, not just code
Step 2 — Use the Right Job Boards
- GaijinPot Jobs — English-language listings including many IT roles
- Tokyodev — Japan tech jobs for international developers, excellent resource
- Japan Dev — Curated English-friendly tech companies
- Wantedly — Popular startup job board (some English)
- LinkedIn — Many recruiters actively reach out here
- Recruit Agent / doda — Japanese recruitment agencies, some with English support
Step 3 — Consider a Recruiter
Tech recruiters in Japan specializing in foreign talent:
- Robert Half Japan
- Michael Page Japan
- Hays Japan
- Randstad Japan
Recruiters are free for candidates and can open doors at companies not publicly advertising.
Visa for IT Workers
Most IT professionals qualify for the Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services visa (技術・人文知識・国際業務).
Requirements:
- Degree in a related field (computer science, engineering, math) OR 10+ years of experience
- Job offer from a Japanese company
- Salary at real market rate (not below ¥200,000/month)
Fast-track: Apply for the Highly Skilled Professional (HSP) visa via the points system. 70+ points gets you PR in 3 years, 80+ points in 1 year. IT skills, advanced degrees, and high salary all add points.
Check your score: Immigration HSP Points Calculator
Learning Japanese for Tech Work
Even if your company is English-first, some Japanese helps: