Japan’s Employment for Skill Development Plan Pre-Implementation Applications Start September 1, 2026 | Timing, A1 Japanese and Sending Fees
Administrative Scrivener Office
Pre-Implementation Applications for Employment for Skill Development Plans Start September 1
Application timing, supervising and support organizations, A1 Japanese, sending fees, transfers, and the difference between plan approval and a Certificate of Eligibility.
Important: the new system itself does not start on September 1, 2026
The Employment for Skill Development system is scheduled to take effect on April 1, 2027.
What starts on September 1, 2026 is the pre-implementation application process for approval of Employment for Skill Development Plans for work beginning on or after April 1, 2027.
Plan approval and the immigration procedure for a Certificate of Eligibility (COE) are separate. Plan approval alone does not automatically permit entry into Japan.
- September 1, 2026: pre-implementation plan applications begin.
- March 31, 2027: pre-implementation application period ends.
- April 1, 2027: the new system takes effect.
- As a rule, apply seven to five months before the planned start date.
- For supervised-type plans, proof that the supervising and support organization has applied for permission is important.
- Applicants who have not yet passed an A1-level test may use the prescribed Japanese-language training route.
- Fees paid by the worker to a sending organization are subject to a benchmark cap based on two months of scheduled monthly wages.
1. What begins on September 1, 2026?
The Organization for Technical Intern Training (OTIT) will begin accepting pre-implementation applications for approval of Employment for Skill Development Plans. The operation of the new system itself begins on April 1, 2027.
2. What is the application period?
| Date | Procedure | Important point |
|---|---|---|
| April 15, 2026 | Pre-implementation applications for supervising and support organization permission | This is separate from permission under the current technical intern system. |
| September 1, 2026 | Pre-implementation plan applications begin | OTIT instructs applicants to arrange delivery on or after September 1. |
| March 31, 2027 | Pre-implementation period ends | Each case is still subject to the seven-to-five-month rule. |
| April 1, 2027 | New system takes effect | Results on pre-implementation applications will be issued sequentially from this date. |
3. When should a company apply for an April 1, 2027 start?
Under the general seven-to-five-month rule, the calculated window is approximately September 1 through November 1, 2026. Reconfirm delivery dates, holidays, and any later OTIT notices before filing.
4. Where is the plan application filed?
File with the OTIT regional office or branch that has jurisdiction over the applicant’s address. For a corporation, jurisdiction is based on its head-office address. Do not send the application to OTIT headquarters.
5. Can an existing technical intern supervising organization be used as-is?
A supervising organization under the current Technical Intern Training Program and a supervising and support organization under the new system are different permission systems. Current permission alone does not necessarily authorize supervision under the new system.
6. How are the two pre-implementation applications connected?
For a supervised-type plan, the proposed organization must have valid current supervising-organization permission and must also have filed a pre-implementation application for supervising and support organization permission. A copy of the application receipt must be attached to the plan application. Confirm that the relevant work is included in the organization’s proposed scope.
7. Is September 30 a general deadline for the new permission?
No. OTIT’s September 30, 2026 notice concerns new supervising-organization permission applications under the current Technical Intern Training Program. It should not be presented as a universal deadline for permission under the new system.
8. What does A1 Japanese before starting work mean?
Before work begins, the worker may either pass a recognized Japanese-language test at A1 level or above or complete the prescribed A1-equivalent training. Do not treat A1 and JLPT N5 as automatically identical; check the official list of recognized tests.
9. Can a plan be filed before the worker passes an A1 test?
Not passing an A1-equivalent test does not automatically make the system unavailable. A prescribed training route exists, subject to the detailed and field-specific requirements.
10. What is the benefit of passing A1 before the application?
If A1-equivalent test passage can be demonstrated when applying for plan approval, the A1-equivalent part of post-entry training may not be required and the total training hours may be shortened.
11. What Japanese level is targeted at the end of three years?
The basic target is A2 level. If a field establishes a higher additional standard, the field-specific requirement takes priority.
12. What is the two-month benchmark for sending fees?
Under the prescribed standards, fees paid by the worker to a sending organization must not exceed an amount based on two months of scheduled monthly wages.
13. How are scheduled monthly wages calculated?
| Wage type | Basic monthly calculation |
|---|---|
| Hourly | Hourly rate × scheduled hours per day × average scheduled working days per month |
| Daily | Daily rate × average scheduled working days per month |
| Monthly | Scheduled wages stated in the employment contract and written working conditions |
14. Which costs are included?
Do not assume that sending service fees, Japanese education, medical examinations, translations, travel-related expenses, and airfare are all treated identically. Check the applicable OTIT rules, the worker’s fee declaration, and any bilateral arrangement with the sending country item by item.
15. What should the employer verify about the worker’s payments?
- Name of the sending organization and the contract
- Total amount actually paid and an itemized breakdown
- Receipts
- Whether the worker borrowed money to pay the costs
- Whether any deposit or penalty agreement exists
Excessive debt affects worker protection and may also increase operational and disappearance risks.
16. What should companies prepare before September 1?
- Planned start date
- Industrial field and work category
- Employer’s field-specific eligibility
- Supervised or individual-enterprise type
- Proposed supervising and support organization
- Receipt for the organization’s permission application
- Identity and prior technical intern history of the worker
- Japanese ability and education plan
- Sending organization and sending fees
- Employment conditions
- Skills-development plan
- Responsible person, instructor, and daily-life adviser
- Required training courses
- Field council and additional documents
17. Responsible persons, instructors, advisers, and training courses
OTIT’s August 5 FAQ indicates that relevant training should generally have been completed within the three years preceding plan approval. Transitional treatment may allow corresponding training completed under the current technical intern system until new-system courses are established.
18. Field-specific requirements must be checked separately
Meeting the common requirements does not make every employer eligible in every field. Review the field policy, notifications, operational guidelines, council membership, certification, and other additional requirements.
19. Does the new system permit transfers?
The new system introduces transfers based on the worker’s intention, but it is not a free job-change system. Required employment periods, skills, Japanese ability, and the eligibility of the new employer must be satisfied.
20. Can a worker freely transfer to another industrial field?
No. During Employment for Skill Development, the industrial field and work category may not be changed.
21. Does plan approval permit entry into Japan?
No. Plan approval alone does not permit entry.
| Point | Plan approval | COE |
|---|---|---|
| Main authority | OTIT | Immigration Services Agency |
| Purpose | Checks whether the plan meets applicable standards | Advance examination of immigration and landing requirements |
| Pre-implementation filing | Starts September 1, 2026 | This does not mean the COE process starts on the same date |
| Result | Approval of the plan | Certificate of Eligibility |
22. When can a COE application be filed?
As of August 13, 2026, final detailed guidance on the filing period, documents, and online procedures for the new status remains subject to later publication. Do not state that COE applications also begin on September 1 unless the Immigration Services Agency formally announces this.
23. Frequently asked questions
Q1. Can a foreign worker start working on September 1, 2026?
No. Only the pre-implementation plan application process begins then. The system takes effect on April 1, 2027.
Q2. Can the plan be filed at any time before March 31?
No. The general filing window is seven to five months before the planned start date.
Q3. Where is the plan filed?
With the competent OTIT regional office or branch.
Q4. Is current supervising-organization permission sufficient?
Not by itself. The new supervising and support organization permission is separate.
Q5. Is an A1 test pass always required before filing?
A prescribed training route exists, subject to detailed and field-specific rules.
Q6. Is there a benefit to passing A1 early?
Part of post-entry training may be omitted and total training hours may be shortened.
Q7. May a sending organization set any fee?
No. The applicable cap, item-by-item rules, and prohibitions must be checked.
Q8. Can a worker transfer to an unrelated industry?
No. The industrial field and work category cannot be changed during the program.
Q9. Does plan approval automatically allow entry?
No. COE, visa, and landing procedures remain separate.
Q10. Are all final forms and procedures already published?
No. Some checklists, examples, fee-payment instructions, and immigration details remain subject to additional publication.
24. How Tommy’s Legal Service can assist
We can review potential eligibility, the industrial field and work category, employer requirements, plan-approval documentation, coordination with the supervising and support organization, Japanese-language and sending-fee evidence, and separate COE and immigration procedures.
Start preparing early
Companies considering an April 2027 or later start should check field requirements, the worker’s Japanese ability, the sending organization, and the proposed supervising and support organization well before filing.
25. Summary
September 1, 2026 is the start date for pre-implementation plan applications, not the effective date of the system. Calculate the filing window from the planned start date and prepare the supervising and support organization, A1 Japanese, sending fees, field-specific requirements, and COE procedure as separate issues.
