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Teaching English in Japan: JET, ALTs, Eikaiwa, and Career Paths
Teaching English in Japan usually starts through one of three entry routes: the JET Programme, an Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) post through a dispatch company or a board of education, or an eikaiwa (English conversation school), with university and international-school roles as later step-ups.123 The route you take decides your status of residence, who employs you, and the legal form of your contract, and those three things shape your pay, your social insurance, and how easily you can change jobs.
Procedures, fees, and requirements can change. Confirm current details at the Immigration Services Agency (出入国在留管理庁, Shutsunyūkoku Zairyū Kanri-chō) site. This article is general information, not immigration, legal, or labor advice; for your specific case, consult an immigration lawyer or gyōseishoshi (administrative scrivener) about a change between Instructor and Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services, or a sharōshi (labor and social security attorney), a local labor union, or the Labor Standards Inspection Office about dispatch-versus-outsourcing status, unpaid gap months, or shakai hoken enrollment.
Overview
Most foreign English teachers in Japan work under one of two statuses of residence. Teaching at elementary, junior high, and senior high schools and similar institutions falls under Instructor, while language teaching at a private company, including an eikaiwa, falls under Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services.42 University teaching sits under a third status, Professor.3
| Term | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 教育 | kyōiku | Status of residence "Instructor"4 |
| 技術・人文知識・国際業務 (技人国) | gijutsu, jinbun chishiki, kokusai gyōmu (gijinkoku) | Status of residence "Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services"2 |
| 教授 | kyōju | Status of residence "Professor"3 |
| 外国語指導助手 | gaikokugo shidō joshu | Assistant Language Teacher (ALT)5 |
| 英会話 | eikaiwa | English conversation (school) |
| 教育委員会 | kyōiku iinkai | Board of education6 |
The job title matters less than the employer. Two people who both call themselves ALTs can hold the same status of residence yet work under different contracts: one appointed by a board of education, the other employed by a private dispatch company.1
Neither status's landing criteria mention a TEFL or CELTA certificate; the criteria rest on a degree, a qualifying diploma or teaching licence, years of education in the language, or work experience, depending on the status (as of 2026-10; confirm current criteria with the Immigration Services Agency).7
Three entry routes and two step-ups
- JET Programme: a government-run scheme that places ALTs and other participants with a contracting organization in Japan; you do not choose your placement.89
- ALT via a board of education or a dispatch company: the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) names the JET Programme, direct employment by the municipality (自治体独自の直接雇用, jichitai dokuji no chokusetsu koyō), and a worker dispatch contract (労働者派遣契約, rōdōsha haken keiyaku) as the three appropriate ways to use ALTs.1
- Eikaiwa: language teaching at a private company, including conversation schools and corporate classes, under Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services.2
- University lecturing (step-up): research, research supervision, or teaching at a university or equivalent institution, under the Professor status.3
- International schools (step-up): the Instructor status covers teaching at 各種学校 (kakushu gakkō, "miscellaneous schools") and institutions equivalent in facilities and organization; the International schools section below covers how this applies.45
What "ALT" means in a Japanese school
The Immigration Services Agency (ISA) lists the 外国語指導助手 (gaikokugo shidō joshu, "Assistant Language Teacher") as an example case of the Instructor status, alongside language teachers at junior and senior high schools.5 The word "assistant" is literal.
In team teaching, the ALT works under the direct guidance of the 学級担任 (gakkyū tannin, "homeroom teacher") or 教科担任 (kyōka tannin, "subject teacher"), who gives specific instructions on content and method and evaluates the ALT's work.1 That chain of instruction is the reason the contract form matters so much, as the Contract structures section below explains.
The JET Programme
The JET Programme (Japan Exchange and Teaching Programme) is coordinated by CLAIR, the Council of Local Authorities for International Relations. Successful applicants contract with a contracting organization in Japan, and they cannot choose where they are placed.89
Eligibility and the application cycle
The JET site sets out the core eligibility rules.10
- Degree: a bachelor's degree or higher, or one obtained by the designated arrival date; ALT applicants may instead hold a certificate of completing a course of 3 or more years that qualifies them to teach at primary or secondary schools (as of 2026-10; confirm current criteria with CLAIR or the Japanese embassy or consulate in your country).10
- Nationality: you must be a national, not only a permanent resident, of the country where recruitment takes place, at the time you apply (as of 2026-10).10
- Prior participation and residence: the eligibility page sets limits on earlier JET participation and on total past residence in Japan, with cut-off years that roll forward each cycle (as of 2026-10).10
Application dates are set per country, and the JET site tells applicants to contact their Japanese embassy or consulate for the deadline.9 The site gives the following generic cycle and marks it as subject to change (as of 2026-10).9
| Stage | Typical timing | As of |
|---|---|---|
| Applications accepted, country-specific deadlines | October to November/December | 2026-109 |
| First notice sent to applicants | January | 2026-109 |
| Interviews at embassies and consulates | February | 2026-109 |
| Second notice with results | Late March to April | 2026-109 |
| Placement details from the contracting organization | May to July | 2026-109 |
| Departure | July/August | 2026-109 |
Two examples from the 2027 intake show how far deadlines can differ between countries (as of 2026-10).1112
| Country | Deadline | Other dates | As of |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland | 23:59, Friday 4 December 2026, by email to the JET Desk | Interview notification January 2027; interviews January to early February 2027; main arrivals 25 July or 1 August 2027 | 2026-101113 |
| Australia | 5 November 2026, 5pm AEDT | Interviews January to February; departure July/summer 2027 | 2026-1012 |
These two deadlines fall a month apart. Check your own country's embassy or consulate page rather than relying on a date quoted elsewhere.
Pay, term, and placement
JET remuneration rose sharply between the 2025 and 2026 guidelines; the table shows the current schedule, pre-tax and approximate (as of 2026-10).81314
| Appointment | Annual remuneration | As of |
|---|---|---|
| 1st year | ¥4,020,000 | 2026-101314 |
| 2nd year | ¥4,140,000 | 2026-101314 |
| 3rd year | ¥4,260,000 | 2026-101314 |
| 4th and 5th year (exceptional participants) | ¥4,320,000 | 2026-101314 |
The 2025 guidelines gave ¥3,360,000 for the first year, so older pay figures still circulating online describe a superseded schedule (as of 2026-10).15 Remuneration is paid monthly, prorated for participation shorter than a year, and subject to Japanese income and residence taxes (as of 2026-10).138
Whether a tax treaty with your home country changes your obligations depends on the treaty, and CLAIR states it cannot advise on this.8
- Term: one-year appointments, renewable up to a total of 3 years, or up to 5 years for participants judged exceptional (as of 2026-10).813
- Travel: the contracting organization provides travel to Japan, and the return airfare if you complete the appointment and leave within one month (as of 2026-10).8 The 2027 Ireland guideline specifies a Dublin to Tokyo (Narita or Haneda) ticket, with domestic travel to the departure airport at your own cost.13
- Insurance: health insurance, Employees' Pension Insurance, employment insurance, and JET Accident Insurance (as of 2026-10).8 The Ireland guideline describes health coverage through a 共済組合 (kyōsai kumiai, "mutual aid association") and says pension and employment insurance contributions are mandatory and deducted from pay.13
- Placement: you cannot choose your location.8
CIR and other JET positions
JET recruits Coordinators for International Relations (CIRs) and Sports Exchange Advisors (SEAs) as well as ALTs. Each position carries a different status of residence: ALT under Instructor, CIR under Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services, and SEA under Skilled Labor.813
CIR applicants need functional Japanese, stated as equivalent to JLPT N1 or N2 (as of 2026-10).10
Dispatch ALT companies
A dispatch ALT is employed by a private company, and the board of education contracts with that company for the ALT's services. The legal line between dispatch and outsourcing decides what the school may ask of the ALT.
How the dispatch model works
MEXT's 2005 notice states that, whatever the contract is called, when a company sends its own employees and the receiving school directs their work, the arrangement must comply with the 労働者派遣法 (Rōdōsha Haken Hō, "Worker Dispatch Act").16 Whether an arrangement is dispatch or outsourcing is judged by its actual circumstances, not its contract form.17
Under lawful dispatch, the school may give the ALT day-to-day instructions. Under an outsourcing contract it may not.116
Since 1 April 2020, the amended Worker Dispatch Act requires dispatch agencies to secure dispatched workers' treatment through one of two methods: equal or balanced treatment with the client's regular workers (派遣先均等・均衡方式, hakensaki kintō/kinkō hōshiki), or a labor-management agreement setting wages at least equal to the general wage for similar work (労使協定方式, rōshi kyōtei hōshiki).1819 Further changes took effect on 1 October 2026: employers must tell dispatched workers, at hiring and at dispatch, that they may ask for an explanation of treatment differences and the reasons for them (as of 2026-10-01; confirm current rules with the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, MHLW).18
How dispatch posts are awarded also shapes job security. Kyoto Prefecture's board of education introduced competitive bidding for dispatch ALTs in fiscal 2023, with one-year contracts, and a union petition reports one dispatch ALT working at the same school for three years under a different company each year (as of 2025-09).20 That is one prefecture's example, not a national norm.
The Three Main Labor Statutes and Seishain, Keiyaku, Haken, and Arubaito: Japan's Employment Categories cover the general framework behind dispatch work.
Pay and the school-holiday months
Dispatch ALT pay is set by each company's contract with each board, so a single figure cannot stand for the whole sector. One union-reported example: in Kyoto prefectural high schools, a dispatch ALT received ¥210,000 per month, compared with ¥335,000 per month for a first-year JET ALT doing the same work under the board's ALT guidelines (as of 2025-09).20
The same General Union petition reports the board's per-person cost as ¥5.8 million for a JET ALT and ¥4.32 million for a dispatch ALT (as of 2025-09).20 The petition asked for a ¥250,000 monthly minimum and a one-month bonus.20
School-holiday pay is a contract term to check before you sign. Read how your contract treats August and the spring break, and if pay is cut or withheld, ask a union or the Labor Standards Inspection Office whether that is lawful in your case.21
Shakai hoken enrollment thresholds
社会保険 (shakai hoken) here means employees' health insurance plus Employees' Pension Insurance. Enrollment depends on your scheduled hours and, for part-timers, on your employer's size.22
- Ordinary enrollment: applies when your scheduled weekly hours and monthly days are at least three-quarters of a regular worker's (as of 2026-10-01).22
- Short-time worker enrollment: if you are below three-quarters, you are still covered as a 短時間労働者 (tanjikan rōdōsha, "short-time worker") if you work 20 or more scheduled hours a week, are not a student, are not on a fixed term of 2 months or less, and work for a covered employer (as of 2026-10-01).22
- Wage requirement: the former requirement of a scheduled monthly wage of ¥88,000 or more was abolished on 1 October 2026 under the 2025 pension reform law, and the Japan Pension Service's enrollment page no longer lists it (as of 2026-10-01).2322
The employer-size test for short-time workers is on a published step-down schedule (as of 2026-10-01).2224
| Period | Employer size (count of Employees' Pension insured) | As of |
|---|---|---|
| From October 2022 | 101 or more | 2022-0724 |
| October 2024 to September 2027 | 51 or more | 2026-10-012422 |
| From October 2027 | 36 or more | 2026-10-0122 |
| From October 2029 | 21 or more | 2026-10-0122 |
| From October 2032 | 11 or more | 2026-10-0122 |
The October 2022 step also removed the earlier requirement that short-time workers be expected to stay employed for a year or more (as of 2022-07).24 The 2025 pension reform law, passed on 13 June 2025, is the basis for the wage-requirement removal; it also phases out the enterprise-size requirement over about 10 years and, from October 2029, extends coverage to individual businesses with 5 or more employees in all industries, with businesses already existing at that date temporarily exempted (as of 2026-10).25
Enrollment turns on the scheduled weekly hours and days in your contract and on your employer's size, so check those figures against the three-quarters line, the 20-hour line, and the table before you sign, and ask a sharōshi or union if they look wrong.22
Shakai Hoken Overview and Kosei Nenkin: Employees Pension Insurance explain what each scheme pays for and how contributions are calculated.
Direct-hire ALTs with boards of education
A direct-hire ALT is appointed by a municipal or prefectural board of education rather than employed by a company. That makes the ALT a local public employee, with a different set of rules from private-sector staff.
Fiscal-year appointee status
A 2017 amendment to the Local Public Service Act and the Local Autonomy Act (平成29年法律第29号) created the 会計年度任用職員 (kaikei nendo nin'yō shokuin, "fiscal-year appointee") category, effective 1 April 2020.26 In many local governments, staff previously hired as special-service part-time employees for posts based on specialist knowledge were switched to fiscal-year appointee hiring from that date.27
| Term | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 会計年度任用職員 | kaikei nendo nin'yō shokuin | Fiscal-year appointee, a one-fiscal-year local-government appointment26 |
| 特別職非常勤職員 | tokubetsu-shoku hijōkin shokuin | Special-service part-time employee2627 |
| 一般職 | ippan-shoku | Regular-service public employee category27 |
The appointment rules are tight.26
- Term: runs within the fiscal year, to 31 March at most; the appointing authority must state the term, may renew within the fiscal year based on performance, and must avoid unnecessarily short repeated terms.26
- Conditional start: every fiscal-year appointment is conditional and becomes formal after one month of satisfactory service.26
- Outside work: part-time fiscal-year appointees are exempt from the Local Public Service Act Article 38 permission requirement for outside paid work; full-time appointees are not.26 Immigration permission for outside work is a separate requirement, covered under Visa routes below.
Special-service part-time employees had basic labor rights. Fiscal-year appointees are regular-service employees whose rights are restricted: they cannot form a labor union and, under the staff-association system, can organize and bargain but cannot conclude collective agreements.27
One news report states that fiscal-year appointees are often not renewed after 3 years, though practice varies by local government (as of 2026-02; confirm renewal terms with the appointing board of education).27
On 29 January 2026, the Tokyo District Court ruled that denying collective-bargaining rights to fiscal-year appointees is constitutional, dismissing claims brought by Tozen Union and two ALTs who had worked at Tokyo metropolitan high schools.2827 The court, as reported, reasoned that conditions set by local ordinance, staff-association mechanisms, and personnel-commission appeals adequately substitute for collective bargaining, and the plaintiffs announced an appeal (as of 2026-02).2827
Pay, renewal, and how to find posts
Direct-hire pay and terms are set by each board of education, so the figures below are examples, not norms. Nagano Prefectural Board of Education's 2026 recruitment offered ¥335,000 per month (¥4,020,000 per year), an appointment from 1 August 2026 to 31 July 2027, weekday hours of 8:30–16:15, and health, pension, employment, and workers' accident insurance (as of 2026-05).29
The Nagano guide applied the Terms and Conditions for JET prefectural ALTs to everything else, sought 9 ALTs qualified to teach English or with equivalent high-school teaching experience, and required a copy of a university degree certificate.29 Tokyo Metropolitan Board of Education recruited fiscal-year-appointee ALTs for fiscal 2026 through an external job board, with applications open from 19 November to 3 December 2025 (as of 2025-11).30
Boards also weigh cost. The General Union states that about 50% of costs are reimbursed by special allocation tax grants when ALTs are hired as fiscal-year appointees, and that JET costs are about 70% covered by national grants (as of 2025-09).20
Direct-hire posts are advertised by the board itself, often on its own website or through a job board it names. Where to Look: The Bilingual Job-Board Landscape covers the wider set of channels.
Eikaiwa conversation schools
Eikaiwa are private English conversation schools, and corporate language classes fall in the same category for visa purposes.2 Because the employer is a private company, private-sector labor and social insurance rules apply in full.
Contract forms and employee status
Eikaiwa pay and schedules are set school by school, so this section covers the legal structure behind the contract rather than a pay figure.
Whether you are an employee or an independent contractor is judged by the actual circumstances of the work, not by the label on the contract. MHLW states this principle for the line between dispatch and outsourcing; The Freelance-vs-Employee Test sets out the factors for the employee-versus-contractor line.17
If you are employed part-time at a covered employer and work 20 or more scheduled hours a week, and you are not a student, you must be enrolled in shakai hoken (as of 2026-10-01; confirm current thresholds with the Japan Pension Service).22 These enrollment rules apply to employees, so a genuine contractor arrangement falls outside them; whether the contractor label is genuine turns on the actual circumstances, as above.2217
Visa sponsorship at an eikaiwa
Eikaiwa teaching falls under Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services, not Instructor; ISA's examples for that status include 私企業の語学教師 (shikigyō no gogaku kyōshi, "language teachers at private companies").2
The international-services track normally requires 3 or more years of related practical experience. The ministerial ordinance makes an exception: "大学を卒業した者が翻訳、通訳又は語学の指導に係る業務に従事する場合は、この限りでない," meaning university graduates engaged in translation, interpretation, or language instruction are exempt (as of 2026-10).7
From 15 April 2026, ISA requires some Category 3 and 4 applicants who will mainly use language ability for interpersonal work to submit evidence of CEFR B2-equivalent language ability (as of 2026-04-15).2 How that rule applies to a particular teaching job is covered in Engineer/Humanities/International Services Visa.
University and international-school roles
University and international-school posts are usually later moves rather than entry points. Each sits under a different legal framework from the ALT and eikaiwa routes.
University lecturing
University teaching falls under the Professor status, which covers research, research supervision, or teaching at universities, equivalent institutions, or colleges of technology; it is granted for 5 years, 3 years, 1 year, or 3 months.3 Research and teaching posts are listed on JREC-IN Portal, a database run by the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) that carries research-related job postings from academia, industry, and government.31
Under the Labor Contracts Act, a worker whose fixed-term contracts with the same employer total more than five years can apply for an indefinite contract, and the employer is deemed to accept.32 A special exception, in force since 1 April 2014, extends this period to 10 years for certain researchers and teachers at universities and research institutions, and the university must tell the person in writing that the exception applies.33
The exception rests on two statutes, the 研究開発力強化法 (Kenkyū Kaihatsu-ryoku Kyōka Hō, an act on strengthening research and development capacity, often called the Innovation Act) and the fixed-terms act described below. Whether it covers a language lecturer depends on which one the university relies on and how the post is designated.3334 Under the 大学の教員等の任期に関する法律 (Daigaku no Kyōin-tō no Ninki ni Kansuru Hōritsu, the Act on Fixed Terms of University Teachers), fixed terms may be set for posts such as those needing diverse personnel for cutting-edge or interdisciplinary work, 助教 (jokyō, "assistant professor") posts, and posts under a time-limited plan.34
Two court rulings, as reported by Rodo Shimbun, show the contrast.
- Senshu University case (Tokyo District Court, 16 December 2021): a part-time lecturer teaching a foreign language at introductory to intermediate level, whose duties were limited to classes and exams, was held not to be a "researcher," so the ordinary 5-year rule applied.35
- Hagoromo Gakuen case (Supreme Court First Petty Bench, 31 October 2024): reversing the High Court, the Court held that a lecturer's post in a care-worker training course fell within the fixed-terms statute's first category, which brings in the 10-year exception, and gave weight to each university's own judgment in designating posts.36
Fixed-Term vs. Permanent Contracts and the 5-Year Conversion Rule explains the general rule in detail.
International schools
The Instructor status covers teaching at 各種学校 and institutions equivalent in facilities and organization.4 The ordinance adds a proviso for such schools established to give primary or secondary education in a foreign language to children residing in Japan with Diplomat, Official, or Dependent status: for them, the degree, Japanese specialized-course diploma, or teaching licence item alone is sufficient, without the years-of-education item (as of 2026-10; confirm current criteria with the Immigration Services Agency).57
A practitioner guide by an administrative scrivener firm describes international schools that hold 各種学校 accreditation as qualifying their teachers for Instructor (as of 2026-05).37 The school's legal category is therefore worth confirming before you accept an offer.
International schools in Japan are private employers, so the Labor Contracts Act's 5-year conversion rule applies to them as it does to other private-sector employers.32 Major International School Families in Japan and Foreign Qualification Recognition in Japan cover the schools themselves and how foreign teaching credentials are treated.
Visa routes: Instructor vs Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services
The route decides the status of residence, and the two main statuses do not use the same qualifying criteria.
Which status each route uses
| Route | Status of residence | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| JET ALT | Instructor (教育) | JET FAQ; 2027 guidelines813 |
| JET CIR | Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services | JET FAQ; 2027 guidelines813 |
| JET SEA | Skilled Labor (技能, ginō) | JET FAQ8 |
| Dispatch ALT, direct-hire ALT | Instructor | ISA example list names 外国語指導助手5 |
| Eikaiwa, corporate language teaching | Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services | ISA example 私企業の語学教師2 |
| University lecturer | Professor (教授) | ISA status page3 |
| International-school teacher | Instructor where the school is a 各種学校 or equivalent | ISA status page; ordinance proviso47 |
Instructor Visa and Engineer/Humanities/International Services Visa cover each status's application process in full.
Degree and experience requirements
Instructor
The ministerial ordinance that sets the landing criteria has two items for Instructor. Item 一 applies when the applicant will teach at a 各種学校 or equivalent institution, or will hold a post other than 教員 (kyōin, "licensed teacher") at another educational institution, which is the ALT case.57
For those posts, item 一 requires the applicant to meet each of the following (次のいずれにも該当していること, tsugi no izure ni mo gaitō shite iru koto), wording that ISA's own 2025 explanatory slides reproduce (as of 2026-10; confirm current criteria with the Immigration Services Agency):57
- Item イ: one of university graduation or equivalent education, completion of a qualifying Japanese 専修学校 (senshū gakkō, "specialized training college") course in a relevant subject, or a teaching licence for the subject.
- Item ロ: for foreign-language teaching, 12 or more years of education in that language (当該外国語により十二年以上の教育を受けていること); for other subjects, 5 or more years of teaching experience.
Item 二 applies to every Instructor applicant, licensed teachers included: pay at least what a Japanese national would receive for the same work.7
ISA's status page, by contrast, lists the supporting documents as "one of the following" (学歴又は職歴等を証明する次のいずれかの文書, gakureki mata wa shokureki-tō o shōmei suru tsugi no izureka no bunsho): proof of university graduation or equivalent, a licence or qualification, proof of 12 or more years of education in the foreign language, or proof of 5 or more years of teaching experience.4 The checklist describes which documents to file, and the ordinance sets the criterion itself.47
For ALT and 各種学校 posts, the ordinance makes items イ and ロ cumulative, so 12 years of English-medium schooling does not replace a degree, qualifying diploma, or teaching licence. If you plan to rely on the checklist's "one of the following" wording, confirm your case with the Immigration Services Agency or a gyōseishoshi before you accept an Instructor-status job.47
Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services
For the international-services track, the usual requirement is 3 or more years of related practical experience, with the exemption for university graduates engaged in translation, interpretation, or language instruction (as of 2026-10).7 The ordinance wording requires university graduation but does not restrict the field of the degree (as of 2026-10).7
Switching routes and side work
| Term | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 在留資格変更許可申請 | zairyū shikaku henkō kyoka shinsei | Application for change of status of residence38 |
| 活動機関 / 契約機関 | katsudō kikan / keiyaku kikan | Organization where the activity is performed / contracting organization39 |
| 資格外活動許可 | shikakugai katsudō kyoka | Permission to engage in activity other than that permitted40 |
| 包括許可 / 個別許可 | hōkatsu kyoka / kobetsu kyoka | Comprehensive permission / individual permission40 |
Moving from ALT work to an eikaiwa, or the reverse, is a move to activities under another status, so it needs a change of status application, not only an employer notification.382 Whichever way you move, you must notify ISA within 14 days of leaving one school or employer and joining another.39 The decision runs as follows.
The flow above reflects the two separate duties. Instructor holders notify changes in their 活動機関, and Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services holders notify changes in their 契約機関; notification can be made online, at a regional bureau counter, or by mail to the Tokyo bureau.39
The counter fee for a change of status application depends on the period granted (as of 2026-10-01).38
| Period granted | Counter fee | As of |
|---|---|---|
| 3 months or less | ¥10,000 | 2026-10-0138 |
| 1 year | ¥33,000 | 2026-10-0138 |
| Over 1 year, under 3 years | ¥48,000 | 2026-10-0138 |
| 3 years to under 5 years | ¥64,000 | 2026-10-0138 |
| 5 years or more | ¥75,000 | 2026-10-0138 |
Intermediate bands apply to grants between 3 months and 1 year. Applications received by 30 September 2026 were charged the old ¥6,000 rate. Online fees are listed on a separate ISA page, and reduced or exempt fees exist for some applicants (as of 2026-10-01).38
Paid work outside your status, such as private lessons or a weekend eikaiwa shift while on Instructor, needs permission to engage in activity other than that permitted.540 Comprehensive permission, up to 28 hours a week with no employer named, is available to Instructor and Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services holders only when they have an employment contract with a local government or similar body (as of 2026-10).405
In March 2025, ISA told the government's regulatory reform working group it would consider measures including a review of who is eligible for comprehensive permission (as of 2025-03-04).5 The current ISA page shows no change yet.40
Change of Status of Residence and Notifying Immigration of the Employer Change cover the two filings. Inter-Employer Movements: Same Industry, Cross Industry, Cross Status explains how ISA treats different kinds of job change. Side-Business While Employed: What's Allowed and Work Permission by Status of Residence cover outside work.
Contract structures: direct employment, dispatch, and outsourcing
Three contract forms sit behind ALT jobs, and the difference between them is who employs you and who may tell you what to do in the classroom.116
| Term | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 労働者派遣 | rōdōsha haken | Worker dispatch16 |
| 請負 / 業務委託 | ukeoi / gyōmu itaku | Contracting / outsourcing16 |
| 偽装請負 | gisō ukeoi | Disguised contracting: dispatch run under an outsourcing label |
| 労働局 | rōdōkyoku | Prefectural labor bureau1 |
Direct employment
MEXT lists the JET Programme and direct employment by the municipality as appropriate ways to use ALTs.1 The board or contracting organization both employs and directs the ALT, so team teaching raises no contract-form problem.
Direct-hire ALTs are local public servants, and the Labor Contracts Act does not apply to national or local public servants.32 Private-sector direct employment, such as at an eikaiwa, a university, or an international school, is governed by that Act; Reading a Japanese Employment Contract walks through the documents you should receive.
Dispatch (haken)
Under dispatch, the school may give the ALT day-to-day instructions.116 Dispatch-specific protections then apply, including equal-treatment duties and period limits.1841 The period limits are in principle 3 years per client workplace, extendable by 3 years after hearing the majority union or worker representative, and 3 years per individual in the same organizational unit.41
The individual limit does not apply to workers the dispatch agency employs indefinitely or to workers aged 60 or over.41 Equal-treatment duties and the October 2026 additions are covered under How the dispatch model works above.18
Outsourcing (gyōmu itaku) and the disguised-contracting problem
Under an outsourcing contract, the school may not instruct the ALT directly, which clashes with how team teaching works. MEXT's notice 21初国教第65号 of 28 August 2009, issued after confirming with MHLW, states that ALT team teaching in which the homeroom or subject teacher gives specific instructions on content and method, asks for improvements, or evaluates the ALT's work cannot be done under an outsourcing (請負) contract.1 The notice asks boards to switch to JET, direct employment, or dispatch, and to consult the prefectural labor bureau.1
MEXT's 2014 follow-up (26初国教第92号, 27 August 2014) relays MHLW's answer that, under an outsourcing contract, the ALT and teachers may jointly confirm the work content and the ALT may demonstrate foreign-language conversation.6 Boards are asked to check existing contracts and consult the labor bureau where in doubt.6 These two notices remain the core MEXT guidance on ALT contract forms; check MEXT's foreign-language education pages for anything newer.
Outsourcing did not disappear. MEXT's FY2018 survey of elementary schools counted 13,044 ALTs and similar staff: 2,523 JET (19.3%), 2,627 directly appointed (20.1%), 2,355 dispatched (18.1%), 1,356 under outsourcing (10.4%), and 4,183 other (32.1%), with some boards using more than one form (as of 2018-12-01; confirm current figures with MEXT).42
MEXT's FY2024 survey was published, but its overview does not break ALTs down by contract form (as of 2025).43 Disputes continue at the local level: a September 2025 General Union petition to the Kyoto Prefectural Assembly asked for the dispatch ALT bidding system to be abolished in favour of direct employment (as of 2025-09).20
The Freelance-vs-Employee Test explains how the actual-circumstances test works in other settings.
Comparing the routes
The table puts the main routes side by side. Pay cells are single dated examples from named sources, not norms (as of 2025-09 to 2026-10; confirm current figures with CLAIR, the board of education, or the employer).132920
| Route | Employer | Status of residence | Contract form | Pay example (as of) | Shakai hoken | Renewal ceiling |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JET ALT | Contracting organization (local government or school)8 | Instructor8 | Direct, one-year appointments8 | ¥4,020,000/year in year one (2026-10)1314 | Health (kyōsai), pension, employment insurance813 | 3 years, up to 5 if exceptional8 |
| Dispatch ALT | Private dispatch company | Instructor5 | Worker dispatch1 | ¥210,000/month, Kyoto prefectural high schools, union-reported (2025-09)20 | Covered at 3/4+ of a regular worker's hours; below that with 20+ scheduled hours only at a covered employer22 | Tied to one-year client contracts in the Kyoto example20; 5-year conversion rule applies32 |
| Direct-hire ALT | Board of education | Instructor5 | Fiscal-year appointment2630 | ¥335,000/month, Nagano prefecture (2026-05)29 | Health, pension, employment insurance in the Nagano example29 | Within each fiscal year; Labor Contracts Act does not apply2632 |
| Eikaiwa | Private company | Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services2 | Employment; check for contractor arrangements17 | Set by each school | Same thresholds as dispatch22 | 5-year conversion rule applies32 |
| University | University | Professor3 | Fixed-term or indefinite | Set by each university | Depends on the employing institution | 5 years, or 10 where the special exception applies333536 |
School-holiday pay is not in the table because no dated public source covers it. Treat it as a contract term to check for every non-JET route.
Exit paths and career progression
Most moves out of ALT work change your status of residence. Moving from Instructor work to eikaiwa or corporate work is a move to activities of another status and needs a change of status application.382
Translation, interpretation, and language instruction are the duties for which a university graduate is exempt from the 3-year experience requirement on the international-services track (as of 2026-10; confirm current criteria with the Immigration Services Agency).7 Other international-services work needs 3 years' related experience unless another track of the status applies, which matters if you plan to move from teaching into a non-teaching office role.7
Whatever the move, an affiliated-organization change must be notified to ISA within 14 days.39 JET caps participation at 5 years, 3 as standard and up to 5 if exceptional, and the General Union petition notes JET does not allow reappointment after that (as of 2026-10).820
Within education, the realistic next steps are a direct-hire board of education post, a university lectureship, or an international school, each covered above. For moves outside teaching, see Working in Japan's IT and Tech Sector as a Foreigner; Where to Look: The Bilingual Job-Board Landscape; and Job-Hunting from Abroad vs. From Inside Japan.
Good to know
Contract gaps between school years and your visa
ISA may revoke a status of residence if the holder has not engaged in its activities for 3 months or more in a row without a legitimate reason.44 Revocation is also possible earlier if you are not doing your status activity and are engaged in, or intend to engage in, other activities.44
A March contract end and an April start elsewhere also mean two notifications, each due within 14 days.39 Dispatch contracts can follow the client's one-year tender: in the Kyoto example, the dispatch company changed every year through bidding (as of 2025-09; confirm current arrangements with the board of education).20 The 3-Month-Unemployment Renewal Risk covers the revocation ground in detail.
Unpaid holiday months and unemployment insurance
Reduced pay in August while you are still employed is not unemployment. Basic unemployment benefit (基本手当, kihon teate) requires being unemployed: registered with Hello Work, willing and able to work, but unable to find a job.4546
Eligibility normally requires 12 or more months of insured periods in the 2 years before separation, and a month counts if it has 11 or more paid days or 80 or more working hours (as of 2026-10).45 Employment insurance covers, in principle, workers with 20 or more scheduled hours a week and expected employment of 31 days or more (as of 2022-06).46 Unemployment Benefits (Shitsugyo-Hoken) and Minimum Wage and Wage Payment Rules cover both sides of the gap-month question.
The 5-year conversion rule and ALT contracts
At a private employer, such as a dispatch company or an eikaiwa, repeated fixed-term renewals that total more than five years give you the right to apply for an indefinite contract.32 Direct-hire ALTs are public servants and fall outside the Labor Contracts Act, so this rule does not reach them.3226
Under dispatch, the 3-year individual limit per organizational unit does not apply to workers the agency employs indefinitely.41 Fixed-Term vs. Permanent Contracts and the 5-Year Conversion Rule explains how to exercise the right.
Unions and where to take a dispute
MHLW lists Labor Standards Inspection Offices, prefectural labor bureaus, general labor consultation corners, and foreign-language consultation services for workers with labor-condition problems, along with a channel for reporting workplaces suspected of breaking the Labor Standards Act.21 The General Union describes its membership as foreign workers at universities, eikaiwa schools, elementary to senior high schools as ALTs, and IT companies.20
Direct-hire ALTs are in a different position. Fiscal-year appointees cannot form a labor union or conclude collective agreements, and the Tokyo District Court upheld that restriction in January 2026, with an appeal announced (as of 2026-02).2827 Labor Unions: Enterprise vs. Local Unions explains how local unions work.
TEFL certificates are not a visa criterion
Neither the Instructor criterion nor the international-services criterion lists a TEFL-type certificate; for ALT and 各種学校 posts, the Instructor items are a degree, specialized-course diploma, or teaching licence plus years of education in the language, and the international-services items are a degree or experience (as of 2026-10).75
JET's alternative to a degree for ALT applicants is a certificate of completing a course of 3 or more years that qualifies the holder to teach at primary or secondary schools, not a TEFL certificate (as of 2026-10).10 Whether an employer asks for a TEFL certificate is a hiring decision, separate from your visa.
See also
- The Labor Bureau (Rodo-Kijun-Kantokusho)
- Employment-Dispute Paths
- International School Accreditation in Japan
- Tenshoku Procedure: The Job-Change Sequence
- Health Insurance When Changing Jobs in Japan