Yokohama SSW Hiring Subsidy: Preparation Costs, Student Transitions and Application Order
Tommy’s Legal ServiceFY2026 | Employer preparation
Yokohama SSW Hiring Subsidy: Preparation Costs, Student Transitions and Application Order
Check the grant decision before employment begins.
Reviewed: 10 October 2026
日本語版Yokohama employers planning to hire a Specified Skilled Worker, including a possible transition from a student part-time job to full-time SSW employment, should check the subsidy before setting the start date.
An application receipt is not a grant decision. The city’s guide excludes employment that has already begun before the grant decision.
Watch the English explanation
FY2026 outline
The subsidy supports eligible Yokohama businesses using a registered support organization to newly employ SSW workers. It also covers certain Designated Activities statuses for people preparing to move to SSW1, following the 1 October 2026 amendment. It does not cover every Designated Activities status.
The subsidy is up to one third of eligible costs, capped at JPY 200,000 per company, once and for one person under the current guidance. Applications run from 12 June 2026 to 26 February 2027 (planned), on a first-come basis, and close early when the budget limit is reached. Approval and the maximum amount are not guaranteed.
Business requirements
The applicant must be an eligible small or medium-sized business or eligible non-company entity with its head office/business establishment in Yokohama for at least one year. Deemed large enterprises are excluded. Social welfare, medical, school, nonprofit and cooperative entities are among the non-company categories. Exclusion rules such as organized-crime involvement also apply.
Before application, the employer must attend an eligible government/public-body seminar on foreign recruitment or retention, and make Yokohama’s decarbonization commitment declaration. Keep evidence of participation and declaration. The webpage refers to seminars within approximately five years, whereas the October guide specifies attendance from April 2023 onward. Ask the city if relying on older attendance; do not assume the broader period applies. No individual upcoming seminar is promoted here.
Use the city’s official decarbonization declaration page and retain the downloadable declaration/confirmation. Declaration eligibility and subsidy eligibility require separate checks. See the official declaration FAQ (Japanese).
Eligible and excluded costs
Published examples include recruitment fees paid to a registered support organization, Japanese study for prospective hires, acceptance support, assistance/consultation for residence-status procedures, and qualifying economy-class airfare. Costs require evidence and separation from other activities. VAT-equivalent consumption/local consumption taxes, bank transfer fees and other indirect costs, costs borne by the worker, and overseas costs other than qualifying airfare are excluded. Deduct other national/local subsidies applied to the same costs.
On 9 October 2026, our office was told by Yokohama City that transition from a student part-time job to an SSW full-time job at the same employer can qualify; pre-hiring preparation costs are included; post-hiring costs and monthly registered-support fees are excluded. Individual timing, expense categories and conditions still require confirmation with the city. This is not a published official FAQ or a guarantee.
Illustrative subsidies: bills of JPY 110,000, 220,000 and 330,000
All three examples assume 10% consumption tax, the entire amount excluding tax accepted as eligible preparation costs, a one-third subsidy rate, and rounding down amounts below JPY 1,000.
| Bill including tax | Eligible costs excluding tax | One third before rounding | Illustrative subsidy |
|---|---|---|---|
| JPY 110,000 | JPY 100,000 | JPY 33,333.33… | JPY 33,000 |
| JPY 220,000 | JPY 200,000 | JPY 66,666.66… | JPY 66,000 |
| JPY 330,000 | JPY 300,000 | JPY 100,000 | JPY 100,000 |
For a JPY 220,000 bill including tax: JPY 200,000 ÷ 3 = JPY 66,666.66…; rounding down amounts below JPY 1,000 gives JPY 66,000. Do not apply one third to the gross bill. Exclude consumption and local consumption tax, ineligible charges and amounts funded by other subsidies.
The cap is JPY 200,000 per eligible employer, with one application and one worker per company. The city determines eligible costs and the final grant amount after review. The rate may change within the budget. These conditional examples do not guarantee payment.
Preparation and sequence
- Check eligibility and dates
Business location/size, residence status, support organization, contract and employment dates. - Complete prerequisites
Seminar and decarbonization declaration; itemized estimates and evidence; city consultation for uncertainty. - Submit the grant application
Use current official forms and complete attachments. Incomplete applications are not accepted. - Receive the grant decision
Check the written decision and conditions before eligible employment starts. - Implement and report
Retain employment, residence-status and expense evidence; submit the performance report on time. - Final amount and payment
After the final amount notice, submit the claim and check receipt.
The guide covers projects contracted from 1 April 2026 onward but excludes eligible employment starting before the grant decision. Confirm the meaning of project commencement, preparatory contracts and payment timing under Article 8 with the city. Review normally takes about two weeks after acceptance; this is an estimate. Employment must start by 31 March 2027. Immigration permission and employment requirements apply separately.
Documents and performance report
Application: Form 1, officer list, project plan, budget, estimates, recent corporate registration evidence, company profiles, recent corporate municipal tax certificate, decarbonization declaration evidence and seminar evidence. The guide specifies registration/tax certificates issued within three months. Ask the city about alternatives for sole proprietors and other applicant categories.
Report: Form 9, project report and final accounts, recruitment/support contract evidence, itemized invoices/receipts/payment evidence, employment terms, relevant passport/residence card/designation documents and evidence of the receiving account.
The report is due by the earlier of 60 days after project completion or 31 March 2027. Completion involves employment beginning plus support-organization payment completed or an invoice received with payment in progress. Confirm evidence and year-end handling with the city. Retain evidence for five years from the end of the grant-decision fiscal year, and report changes/cancellation as required.
Questions
Can an existing student part-time worker qualify?
Telephone guidance says a same-employer SSW full-time transition can qualify. Confirm the distinction between existing part-time work and the new eligible employment, exact dates and cost allocation.
Are monthly support fees covered?
The telephone explanation excluded post-hiring and monthly registered-support fees. Separate these from preparation costs.
Is there an official subsidy FAQ?
No separate subsidy FAQ was identified among the links inspected on the official page. These questions are our explanatory summary.
Consult us from application through performance reporting
Prepare the proposed start date, residence status, workplace/head-office details, support organization, seminar record and itemized estimate. Scope and fees are explained individually.
English inquiryTommy’s Legal Service
mail@tommyslegal.com · 045-550-5135
Related: student-to-SSW preparation
Official sources and review date
Reviewed 10 October 2026: city webpage updated 2 October 2026, October 2026 application guide, rules amended 1 October 2026, and linked official application/report forms. Telephone information is dated 9 October 2026 and identified separately above.
City contact: 045-671-2343 / ke-global-hr@city.yokohama.lg.jp. General guidance; individual eligibility and payment are determined by the city.
