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Care worker jobs in Japan (介護): visas and exams

Care for older people and people with disabilities (介護, kaigo) is one of the fields where Japan officially hires foreigners without a university degree. There are four routes: the Nursing Care status with a Japanese qualification, Specified Skilled Worker (特定技能, tokutei ginō), the Economic Partnership Agreements and technical intern training. Which exams to take, in which countries, what the work pays and who can bring a family.

Four routes

All professions

Checked against the websites of the Immigration Services Agency, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, JICWELS and the Social Welfare Promotion and Examination Center on October 7, 2026 · Nursing Care status · Specified Skilled Worker

Routes into Japanese care work for a foreigner4

Average monthly pay with bonuses, care workers, 2025¥314,000

Countries outside Japan where the SSW care test is held13

Limit on Specified Skilled Worker (i), years (6 in some cases)5

In short

Care work in Japan in five lines

  • The fastest route is Specified Skilled Worker (i): a care skills test, a care Japanese test and JFT-Basic (A2) or JLPT N4. Up to 5 years in total (6 in some cases); you cannot bring your family.
  • The most secure route is the Nursing Care status (介護). It needs the Japanese qualification of certified care worker (介護福祉士, kaigo fukushishi). It can be renewed with no limit, and your family can live with you.
  • Two ways to qualify: a care school in Japan, or 3 years of work plus a course and the national exam. The exam is held once a year, only in Japan and only in Japanese.
  • The Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA) are open only to citizens of Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam.
  • The Specified Skilled Worker care tests are held in Japan and 13 other countries, from the Philippines and Nepal to India, Uzbekistan and Pakistan.

Four routes

How a foreigner gets into Japanese care work

The work is the same on every route: help with bathing, meals and the toilet, plus activities and leisure with the people you care for. What differs is the status, the exams and whether you can stay for good.

Route What you need Japanese How long Family
Nursing Care status (介護) The certified care worker qualification and a contract with a care facility The qualification exam is in Japanese 5 years, 3 years, 1 year or 3 months; renewable Yes, as Dependents (家族滞在)
Specified Skilled Worker (i) (特定技能1号) The care skills test and the care Japanese test JFT-Basic A2 or JLPT N4 Up to 5 years in total (6 in some cases) No
Economic Partnership Agreements (経済連携協定, EPA) Citizenship of Indonesia, the Philippines or Vietnam; placement only through JICWELS From N4 to N3 level, by country 4 years before the exam (5 under conditions; Indonesia up to 5 years from August 2026) No as a candidate; yes after you qualify
Technical Intern Training (技能実習) A separate program with its own rules Under the program’s rules Up to 5 years; replaced by a new system from April 1, 2027 No

1. The Nursing Care status — with a Japanese qualification

The status is granted to people who hold the certified care worker (介護福祉士) qualification and have a contract with a Japanese facility. Since April 1, 2020 it does not matter how you got the qualification. There are two ways:

  • A care school (介護福祉士養成施設, kaigo fukushishi yōsei shisetsu) on a student visa. Graduates up to March 31, 2027 get the qualification without the exam for 5 years and keep it if they pass the exam or work for those 5 years in a row. Graduates from April 1, 2027 to March 31, 2032 also get it for 5 years, but keep it only if they pass the exam in that time. From April 1 after graduation until the certificate is issued, you can work on the Designated Activities status (特定活動, tokutei katsudō).
  • Work experience: 3 years in care — at least 1,095 days of employment and 540 days actually worked — plus the practical training course (実務者研修, jitsumusha kenshū). Specified Skilled Workers and technical interns take this route. International students who passed the exam this way can also work on Designated Activities until the certificate is issued.

2. Specified Skilled Worker (i)

Your employer is a care home or another care facility. The government’s cap for Specified Skilled Workers in care is 126,900 people to the end of March 2029 (revised in January 2026). You may change employers, but only with a new permission for your status. There is no Specified Skilled Worker (ii) for care: the long-term route goes through the qualification and the Nursing Care status. Since April 21, 2025 you can also do home-visit care, if you have completed the introductory care course (初任者研修) and, as a rule, have at least a year of experience in a facility.

3. The Economic Partnership Agreements

Japan’s EPAs with Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam let candidates come to work in care and prepare for the national exam. Details below.

4. Technical intern training and the new system

Technical intern training is a separate program with its own rules; you cannot bring your family. From April 1, 2027 it will be replaced by Employment for Skill Development (育成就労, ikusei shūrō); details for care are still being finalized. Interns who complete stage 2 in care with good results are exempt from the Specified Skilled Worker tests. More: Technical Intern Training.

EPA

Care worker candidates from Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam

Under the Economic Partnership Agreements, candidates come to Japan on the Designated Activities status, work in a care facility under an employment contract with pay at least equal to a Japanese employee’s, and prepare for the national care worker exam. The Japan International Corporation of Welfare Services (JICWELS, 国際厚生事業団) is the only organization that places candidates.

Indonesia Philippines Vietnam
Education A higher-education diploma (3 years or more) plus care-worker certification by the Indonesian government, or a nursing school (3 years or more) A 4-year university degree plus care-worker certification by the Philippine government, or a 4-year nursing degree A 3- or 4-year nursing course
Japanese About N4 on entry, about N3 when work starts About N4 on entry, about N3 when work starts N3 or higher
Language training 6 months before and 6 months after arrival 6 months before and 6 months after arrival 3 or 12 months before arrival (to N3), about 2.5 months after
Stay before the exam Up to 5 years from August 2026 4 years (5 under conditions) 4 years (5 under conditions)
  • Candidates with JLPT N2 or higher skip the Japanese training; in the Philippines and Indonesia, candidates with N4 or N3 skip the training before arrival.
  • You apply in your own country through the body named by your government, not to a Japanese employer directly.
  • As a candidate you cannot, in principle, change facilities or bring your family.
  • After passing the exam you keep working as a certified care worker (EPA介護福祉士) on Designated Activities, with no limit on renewals; you may then change facilities and bring your spouse and children. You can also change to the Nursing Care status. EPA candidates who worked 4 years are also exempt from the Specified Skilled Worker tests.

Nurse candidates come through the same agreements — see doctors, nurses and other licensed jobs.

Exams

Which exams to take, and where

Exam For Format Where
Care skills test (介護技能評価試験) Specified Skilled Worker in care 45 questions in 60 minutes on a computer: basics of care, body and mind, communication, life support Japan and 13 other countries
Care Japanese test (介護日本語評価試験, kaigo nihongo hyōka shiken) Specified Skilled Worker in care 15 questions in 30 minutes: care vocabulary, talking with residents, documents The same places
JFT-Basic or JLPT N4 General Japanese for Specified Skilled Worker JFT-Basic on a computer, A2 level needed; JLPT in July and December JFT-Basic: Japan and the same 13 countries; JLPT: in many cities worldwide
National care worker exam (介護福祉士国家試験) The qualification and the Nursing Care status Written, in Japanese, once a year; parts you passed are credited 35 prefectures, only in Japan
  • Where the Specified Skilled Worker care tests are held. They are run by Prometric. In the September–October 2026 schedule: Japan, the Philippines, Cambodia, Myanmar, Mongolia, Nepal, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, India, Sri Lanka, Uzbekistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan. JFT-Basic is held in the same countries. The schedule is updated every month.
  • Who can sit them: from age 17 (Indonesian citizens from 18); in Japan, only with a status of residence. You can book about 2 months ahead (from 59 days before the test) and retake after 45 days. Passing does not guarantee a visa.
  • Exempt from the Specified Skilled Worker tests: interns who completed stage 2 in care with good results, graduates of care schools, and EPA candidates who worked 4 years.
  • The 2027 national exam (the 39th) is on January 31, 2027, results on March 23, 2027. Applications were taken from July 22 to September 2, 2026; the fee is ¥20,510. If you passed some parts last time, you only sit the rest.

Which Japanese level you need for which visa: Japanese for work.

Example

From Specified Skilled Worker to the Nursing Care status

Ana passed the care tests and the Japanese tests in her home country and started work as a Specified Skilled Worker on November 1, 2026.

  1. November 1, 2026She starts work. Before the national exam she still has to take the practical training course (実務者研修).
  2. March 31, 2029Only 882 days of employment out of the 1,095 needed. Too early for the January 2029 exam.
  3. Summer 2029She applies for the exam of the 2029 school year: experience is counted to March 31, 2030, when she will have 1,247 days. 540 days worked, on a five-day week, take about 25 months.
  4. January – March 2030The exam and the results, then registration as a certified care worker.
  5. After registrationChange of status to Nursing Care — better not to wait: her 5 years as a Specified Skilled Worker run out on October 31, 2031. After the change she can bring her family.

If she fails, there is time: she can try again before the 5 years end. If in her last exam before the 5 years she scores at least 80% of the pass mark and passes at least one part, her period can be extended by up to 1 year (to 6) for the next attempt, with a study plan from her employer. Periods without work count toward the 5 years; maternity leave, childcare leave or sick leave can be excluded if you prove them with documents (for sick leave: more than 1 month in a row).

Pay

What care work pays

Measure A month What it is
Care workers, 2025 ¥314,000 June pay plus 1/12 of last year’s bonuses; about ¥3.77 million a year (base pay alone: ¥262,900)
All industries, excluding managers, 2025 ¥396,000 Same method; care is about 79% of this level
Specified Skilled Workers (all fields), 2025 ¥221,400 Base pay only, without overtime and bonuses

The first two rows are the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare’s calculation from the Basic Survey on Wage Structure (賃金構造基本統計調査) for 2025; the third is the same survey for foreign workers. These are averages before taxes and premiums. The employer must pay any foreign worker at least what a Japanese employee gets for the same work. What is left after deductions: take-home pay calculator; the overall picture: salaries in Japan.

Deadlines

Deadlines, and what happens if you miss them

What When If you miss it
Graduating from a care school and keeping the qualification by 5 years of work by March 31, 2027 graduates up to March 31, 2032 get the qualification for 5 years and keep it only by passing the exam
Applying for the national exam in summer (in 2026: July 22 – September 2) the next chance is a year later
Retaking a Specified Skilled Worker test after 45 days earlier bookings are not accepted
Specified Skilled Worker (i) 5 years in total (6 if your last exam scored 80% of the pass mark and you passed a part) without the qualification and a change of status you have to leave
Telling immigration about a new or ended contract within 14 days a fine of up to ¥200,000
Work outside your status, or no work 3 months without a good reason grounds for revoking your status

If you have a family

Spouse, children, parents: what changes

A dependent for tax and a dependent for health insurance are two different things with different income limits. All the rules for families: Family and dependents.

  • Nursing Care status: your spouse and the children you support get the Dependent status (家族滞在, kazoku taizai) and may work up to 28 hours a week with part-time work permission.
  • Specified Skilled Worker (i) and technical intern training: you cannot bring your family. If your spouse gets a work or student status of their own, they can live in Japan on it.
  • Care school graduate on Designated Activities: your spouse and children may also get Designated Activities until the certificate is issued.
  • Full-time in a care facility you are in Health Insurance and Employees’ Pension Insurance through your employer; your dependents are covered by your health insurance if their income is under the limit — spouse.

Linked to your visa

What matters for your status

Linked to your visa.

  • Nursing Care status — for 5 years, 3 years, 1 year or 3 months; registration as a certified care worker is required.
  • Changing employers as a Specified Skilled Worker — only after a new permission for your status; until then you may not work for the new employer.
  • A care school student may work up to 28 hours a week with permission while studying.
  • Pay at least equal to a Japanese employee’s — a condition for both the Nursing Care status and Specified Skilled Worker.
  • From April 15, 2026, applications for the Nursing Care status include a statement about the representative of the employing organization.

Nursing Care status · Specified Skilled Worker · Change of status · Notifications · Student visa

Free help in your language. Questions about your status of residence: the Foreign Residents Support Center (FRESC) help desk, 0570-011000 (03-5363-3013 from IP phones and abroad), weekdays 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., in English, Vietnamese, Nepali, Indonesian, Filipino, Thai and other languages. Problems at work — unpaid overtime, pay below the contract: the Labour Standards Advice Hotline, free, in English on 0120-531-401 and in other languages on other numbers. All the places to ask: your rights at work.

FAQ

Questions about care work in Japan

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Can I work in care in Japan without a degree?

Yes. Specified Skilled Worker (i) needs no degree: you pass the care skills test, the care Japanese test and JFT-Basic at A2 level or JLPT N4, and find an employer. You can stay up to 5 years in total and cannot bring your family. To stay longer you need the certified care worker qualification and the Nursing Care status.

In the September to October 2026 schedule it was held in Japan, the Philippines, Cambodia, Myanmar, Mongolia, Nepal, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, India, Sri Lanka, Uzbekistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Prometric runs it on computers, and the schedule on the Specified Skilled Worker portal is updated every month.

Only citizens of Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam who meet their country’s education requirements. Placement goes through JICWELS, the only organization that matches candidates with Japanese facilities. Vietnamese candidates need JLPT N3 or higher; Indonesian and Philippine candidates about N4 on entry and about N3 when work starts.

You need the Japanese certified care worker qualification and a contract with a care facility. You get the qualification by graduating from a care school in Japan, or by working 3 years in care, completing the practical training course and passing the national exam. The exam is held once a year, only in Japan and only in Japanese.

On the Nursing Care status, yes: your spouse and children get the Dependent status and may work up to 28 hours a week with permission. As a Specified Skilled Worker (i) or a technical intern you cannot bring your family.

According to the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, care workers earned about ¥314,000 a month in 2025 including a share of bonuses (base pay alone: ¥262,900), about ¥3.77 million a year. That is about 79% of the all-industry average. Specified Skilled Workers in all fields averaged ¥221,400 of base pay.

Yes, but only after immigration grants a new permission for your status with the new employer. Until then you may not work for the new employer. Tell immigration within 14 days when your contract ends.

Sources

Where this information comes from

Rates, limits and deadlines on this page were checked against the official websites of the Immigration Services Agency, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, JICWELS and the Social Welfare Promotion and Examination Center on October 7, 2026. Amounts are in Japanese yen. When a rule changes we update the page and the date above.

This page is general information, not legal advice. Immigration decides your status; the test organizers set the test rules; JICWELS and the governments concerned run the EPA program.

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