Japan’s immigration authorities are strengthening their approach to preventing unauthorized employment among international students. Under the new policy, Japanese language schools will be required to meet with each student once every three months to confirm whether their part-time work complies with the rules. During these interviews, schools must check the student’s workplace, job duties, and weekly working hours.
If a student appears to be working more than the permitted hours or in industries where employment is not allowed, the school must first provide guidance and request correction. When no improvement is observed, the school will be obligated to report the case to the Immigration Services Agency. Based on the findings, immigration officials may issue warnings or decide not to approve future extensions of the student’s residence status.
Japan currently allows international students to work up to 28 hours per week with official permission, which is generally granted upon arrival at the airport. This system was designed to help students cover part of their living expenses. However, cases of excessive working hours and employment in prohibited sectors—such as nightlife businesses or gambling-related establishments—have become a concern. The existing framework only allows authorities to confirm the employer’s name, making it difficult to understand the actual working conditions.
The new instructions aim to close this gap by requiring schools to actively monitor students’ work situations. Schools are responsible for ensuring that students follow the law, and failing to conduct interviews or report issues may be considered a violation of their obligations. Japan currently hosts a large number of international students, and nearly half of them attend Japanese language schools, which number around 900 nationwide.
In addition to these measures, the government is considering revising the process for granting work permits to students. Instead of approving applications uniformly at the airport, immigration officials may shift to a system that evaluates each student individually based on academic performance and attendance. This direction aligns with the government’s broader policy to strengthen cooperation between educational institutions and immigration authorities in identifying and addressing unauthorized employment.
(Source: Nikkei, April 12, 2026)
Global University in Japan view:
Although the article focuses on Japanese language schools, it is reasonable to expect that universities in Japan will also face stricter requirements for managing international students in the future. As institutions that welcome talented individuals from around the world, Japanese universities have a responsibility to ensure that students can concentrate on their primary purpose—academic study. To fulfill this role, universities should continue strengthening their support systems and creating an environment that enables international students to focus on their education without unnecessary distractions.
