The Japanese Resume: Rirekisho and Shokumukeirekisho

The Japanese resume is a two-document set, not a single CV, and most applications expect both parts together.¹² Missing one half reads as an incomplete application even when the content of the other half is strong.

Confirm current details with official sources

Procedures, fees, and requirements can change. Confirm current details at Hello Work (the Employment Security Bureau of the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare).

Overview

Most Japan-based employers screen applicants through two complementary documents. The 履歴書 (rirekisho, "personal-history resume") is a fixed-form fact record, while the 職務経歴書 (shokumukeirekisho, "career-history document") is a free-format pitch.¹²

Hello Work describes the rirekisho as the standard document generally requested at application, with employers increasingly requesting a shokumukeirekisho alongside it.¹ Both influence the hiring decision, so preparing only a Western-style single CV leaves one of the two readers uncovered.³⁴

Document	Reader	Shape	Job
Rirekisho	HR and administration	Fixed form, oldest first	Verifies identity, schooling, and job dates53
Shokumukeirekisho	Hiring manager	Free format, tailored per role	Assesses duties, results, and fit64

The flow above is the mental model for the rest of this article. The rirekisho proves who you are on paper; the shokumukeirekisho argues what you can do for this employer.⁵³

Rirekisho: The Form-Based Personal History

The rirekisho uses an identical grid for every applicant, so a recruiter knows exactly where each fact sits.⁷³ An unusual layout therefore reads as a problem before a single word is judged.

The reference layout for years was the Japanese Industrial Standards sample form. That sample was removed in July 2020, and the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare published its own recommended sample in April 2021 as the replacement reference for fair hiring.⁸

Use the MHLW form when no format is specified

The MHLW sample is guidance for fair hiring rather than a legal mandate, and employers may use other forms.⁸ When a posting names no format, the MHLW-style form is the safe default because hiring managers recognize it.⁹

Fields on the form

Standard boxes cover name with a phonetic reading, date of birth with age, address with postal code and phone plus email, a photo box, a combined education and work-history column, licenses and qualifications, a motivation and appeal box, and a personal-request box.⁸⁷

Education entries run oldest first, with enrollment and graduation on separate lines carrying year and month. Work entries follow the same oldest-first order, with joining and leaving each employer named explicitly.⁷⁵

The column closes with 以上 (ijō, "end of list") on the right, written after the final entry.⁷ School and company names use formal unabbreviated names throughout.⁷

Hello Work advises starting education from junior-high-school graduation as the general pattern.⁷⁵ Applicants with long work histories may instead list only their final education to save space.⁷⁵

The 志望動機 (shibō dōki, "reason for applying") box holds why this company and role plus what the applicant brings.⁷ The request box holds genuine preferences such as location or start timing, or a light standard line when there is nothing specific.⁷

The contact-address line is only for a contact different from the current address.⁸⁷ Most applicants leave it blank.

The MHLW 2021 form and what changed

On the MHLW 2021 form the gender field is optional and may be left blank.⁸ There is no forced male or female choice.

Four fields from the old sample were removed entirely: commute time, number of dependents excluding spouse, spouse presence, and spouse-support obligation.⁸ The reason given is privacy; these are highly private matters that an employer should ask about later only where genuinely needed.⁸

Older templates still circulating online may show the removed fields.⁸² Applicants who prefer the current form should download an MHLW-style form rather than filling an outdated one.⁸²

If an employer instructs use of a JIS-style form, follow that instruction.⁹ Commercially sold JIS-style paper forms remain accepted in that case.⁹

Shokumukeirekisho: The Career Summary Supplement

The shokumukeirekisho has no fixed template.⁶⁵ The applicant builds a free-format document fitted to the target role, which makes it the place where an application is won or lost.⁴²

Hello Work defines it as an A4 vertical document of about 1 to 2 pages detailing work content in free format.⁶ Practitioner guides describe 1 to 3 pages as the working norm, stretching toward 4 for long careers.⁴²

Unlike the rirekisho, which is largely reused as is, the shokumukeirekisho is tailored for each application.² A reused generic version undersells the exact strengths the posting asks for.

What goes inside

Required header elements are the title 職務経歴書 (shokumukeirekisho, "career-history document"), the date, and the applicant name.⁶ Everything below the header is chosen to fit the applicant.

Standard body elements include a career summary, detailed work history, usable skills, qualifications, 自己PR (jiko PR, "self-promotion"), and motivation.⁶ Most applicants combine several of these rather than using all of them.⁶

The career summary is a tight 3 to 5 line overview at the top stating overall career and core strengths.⁴² Recruiters use it to decide whether to keep reading, so it leads with the most relevant strengths for this posting.⁴²

Work history is organized by employer with company outline, department, role, duties, and concrete results.⁶⁴ Results are quantified where possible, using sales, cost, speed, or scale figures the hiring manager can picture.⁶⁴

Skills and certifications commonly sit in a table by category with tools, years of use, and proficiency.⁶⁴ Language ability and technical certifications belong here, including JLPT level where relevant.⁶⁴

Match the posting language with quantified results

Recruiters check fit against the specific opening first, so mirror the posting requirements and support each with a measured outcome.⁴ Proactive improvements and scope of responsibility carry extra weight for senior roles.⁴

Hello Work layout guidance for PC creation keeps body text around 10.5 to 12 points in one unified font, with generous margins and emphasized headings.⁶ Sentences stay short with noun-ending style, except self-PR and motivation which use polite verb endings.⁶

Formal names for companies, schools, and qualifications are written out in full.⁶ Company-internal names and niche acronyms are glossed in plain terms so a non-specialist recruiter can follow the impact.⁶²

How the two documents divide the work

The rirekisho carries names and dates only, with no duty descriptions.⁵³ The shokumukeirekisho carries the duties, results, and skills that the rirekisho omits.⁵³

Copying English-CV bullets into the rirekisho breaks the form, and copying rirekisho lines verbatim into the shokumukeirekisho wastes the pitch.⁶³ The shokumukeirekisho must add what the rirekisho could not hold.⁶

Self-PR may appear briefly in the rirekisho and at length in the shokumukeirekisho.⁶⁴ When both carry it, keep the rirekisho version to a high-level summary and put the detailed evidence in the shokumukeirekisho.⁶⁴

For bilingual and Japanese-dominant roles the shokumukeirekisho is normally prepared in Japanese, which also demonstrates language ability.⁴ State actual Japanese level plainly so the interview expectation matches the document.⁴

New graduates with no work history and many part-time applications commonly submit only the rirekisho.⁵² Experienced hires for full-time career-track roles should submit both unless the posting says otherwise.⁵²

Handwritten vs Typed

Handwriting was traditionally read as sincerity and care, with penmanship taken as a character signal.⁴ That expectation has softened without disappearing entirely.

Current Hello Work guidance states that the choice depends on the employer and that many employers now accept either when no instruction is given.⁷ The posting controls, not tradition.

Typed creation is the safe default for office, IT, and foreign-affiliated applications and for postings that accept online entry.⁷² Handwriting is reserved for postings that explicitly request it and for some traditional employers.⁷²

Handwritten rules, when handwriting applies, require black ballpoint or fountain pen only, with no pencil or mechanical pencil.⁷ Script stays careful and block-style with uniform character size, and style stays unified throughout.⁷

Correction fluid, correction tape, double-line strikethrough, and correction seals are all prohibited on a handwritten form.⁷ A mistake requires rewriting from a fresh form, which is why applicants buy spare copies.⁷

Copies of a used form and reuse of a returned form are avoided.⁷ The old date and visible wear signal recycling to the reader.⁷

For PC creation, entering in Word or Excel and submitting as PDF prevents layout breakage.⁹ Checking fonts and layout before sending is part of the routine.⁹

The Photograph Convention

A formal ID-style photo in the top-right photo box is expected on the rirekisho.⁷⁵ An empty box reads as an incomplete application unless the posting states that no photo is required.⁷⁵

The standard spec is 30mm wide by 40mm tall portrait, plain light background, business attire, neutral or slight-smile expression, hair off the face, taken within the last 3 months.⁵² Exact box size can vary by form, so checking the printed box matters.²

Standard sourcing is a station or shopping-center ID-photo booth on its resume mode, or a photo studio cut to size.² For digital submission the image is embedded in the file rather than sent separately.²

Do not substitute a casual snapshot for the photo

A missing photo, an outdated photo, or a cropped social picture signals unfamiliarity with professional norms.⁷⁵ A growing minority of tech employers make the photo optional, but omission is safe only when the posting says so.²

The shokumukeirekisho carries no photo.² Adding one there repeats personal data the first document already holds.

Applying With International Education and a Non-Japanese Name

Resume conventions in Japan are national employer norms rather than municipal procedures, so the same form applies everywhere.⁸¹ Foreign education creates adaptations inside that form, not a separate procedure.

Dates may use Western calendar or Japanese era; the system must stay unified across the entire document.⁷⁶ Mixing the two reads as careless even when every individual date is correct.⁷⁶

Foreign applicants commonly use Western years throughout because era conversion is error-prone and HR staff read Western dates fluently.² Hello Work separately notes Western years as normal for foreign-affiliated and IT applications.⁷

Non-Japanese names are conventionally written in capital roman letters with a kana reading line alongside.² Where a residence-card reading exists, that registered reading takes precedence.²

Foreign schools are written with the country noted and the institution rendered alongside its formal name, still in oldest-first chronology.² The ordering rule does not change for international schooling.

Useful additions for foreign residents include visa status and expiry where relevant, plus JLPT or TOEIC scores in the qualifications box.³² These lines answer the employability questions HR would otherwise have to chase.

A native-speaker proofread before sending catches small phrasing slips that stand out to recruiters.³² Consistency between the English CV and the Japanese pair on dates and titles matters as much as grammar.³

A4 is the mainstream size for job-change applications because the shokumukeirekisho is also A4.⁹ Unifying on A4 eases handling for hiring managers.⁹

Good to know

Mixing Japanese-era and Western dates in one document

Mixing calendars is one of the fastest screen-out signals. Hello Work instructs unifying the era system across the whole document, and guide reporting lists mixed dates among the classic errors.⁷⁶² Picking Western years throughout is the lower-risk choice for most foreign applicants.²

Leaving the motivation box generic or blank

The motivation and appeal section is the most-read part of the rirekisho, and Hello Work instructs stating why this company specifically.⁷ Generic language-study goals or commute convenience alone read as low interest, while a company-specific reason tied to the posting reads as preparation.⁷⁵

Submitting a casual photo or no photo without instruction

A missing, outdated, or casual photo creates a negative first impression before any text is read.⁷⁵² Unless the posting states that the photo is optional, treating the photo box as mandatory is the safer course.⁷⁵²

Sending only a Western CV for a Japanese-track application

An English CV and a rirekisho serve different readers, with the CV arguing value and the rirekisho confirming background in standard form.³ Submitting only one half leaves either HR verification or hiring-manager assessment uncovered, which reads as half an application for mid-career roles.³⁴

See also

• How the Japanese Labor Market Works
• The New-Graduate (Shinsotsu) Hiring Cycle
• Seishain, Keiyaku, Haken, and Arubaito: Japan's Employment Categories
• Japanese Job Interview Format: What to Expect
• Reading a Japanese Employment Contract
• Salary Negotiation in Japan

References

Footnotes

1. ハローワークインターネットサービス (Hello Work Internet Service, Employment Security Bureau, MHLW). 「履歴書・職務経歴書の書き方」 (landing page: both documents affect hiring decisions, three pamphlets, MHLW form downloads, seminars and advice). https://www.hellowork.mhlw.go.jp/member/career_doc01.html ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

2. JapanLifeStart Editorial Team. "Writing a Japanese Resume (Rirekisho) as a Foreigner." Updated 2026-07-27. https://japanlifestart.com/en/work-study/rirekisho-shokumukeireki-foreigners ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷ ↩¹⁸ ↩¹⁹ ↩²⁰ ↩²¹ ↩²² ↩²³ ↩²⁴ ↩²⁵ ↩²⁶ ↩²⁷ ↩²⁸ ↩²⁹ ↩³⁰

3. JAC International. "How to Write a Rirekisho." https://www.jac-international.jp/job-seekers/how-to-write-a-cv-in-english-for-japan-ai-smart-guide-for-bilingual-talent/how-to-write-a-rirekisho ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹²

4. TokyoDev (Rebecca Callahan). "A Guide to Writing Japanese Resumes." https://www.tokyodev.com/articles/japanese-resumes ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷ ↩¹⁸

5. ハローワーク川崎 職業相談部門 (Hello Work Kawasaki). 「履歴書・職務経歴書の役割と書き方」 (role division, format choice, photo recency, chronological vs career methods). https://jsite.mhlw.go.jp/kanagawa-hellowork/content/contents/002604519.pdf ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷

6. ハローワーク (Hello Work). 「職務経歴書の作り方 パンフレット」 (work-history purpose, A4 1-2 pages free format, required header items, layout and style rules). https://www.hellowork.mhlw.go.jp/doc/shokurekisho3003.pdf ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷ ↩¹⁸ ↩¹⁹ ↩²⁰ ↩²¹

7. ハローワーク (Hello Work). 「応募書類の作り方 パンフレット 1.履歴書」 (resume basics: screening role, form choice, A4 recommendation, handwritten vs PC, writing rules, education and work entries). https://www.hellowork.mhlw.go.jp/doc/oubosyorui_pamphlet_01_202306.pdf ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷ ↩¹⁸ ↩¹⁹ ↩²⁰ ↩²¹ ↩²² ↩²³ ↩²⁴ ↩²⁵ ↩²⁶ ↩²⁷ ↩²⁸ ↩²⁹ ↩³⁰

8. 厚生労働省 (MHLW). 「新たな履歴書の様式例の作成について」 (explanatory notice: JIS sample removed July 2020, MHLW sample created April 2021, gender optional, four fields removed). https://www.mhlw.go.jp/content/11600000/04.pdf ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰

9. FICILCOM Inc. "Free Japanese Resume (Rirekisho) Templates to Download: Curated Formats for Job Changers." Published 2026-07-09. https://www.ficilcom.jp/en/blog/rirekisho-template-free-download ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷