Japan To Cap Fees Foreign Laborers Pay To Work In The Country

Japan is set to impose a cap on the fees foreign trainees pay to work in the country, under a draft ordinance for the new "training and employment" foreign labor system, Kentaro Minami reported for Mainichi Japan.

Trainees paid an average of 540,000 yen (roughly $3,600) per person to secure work in Japan. I Photo: IM Japan

The draft, presented at a meeting of experts, is expected to be finalized and officially published by this summer. The new system will replace the controversial Technical Intern Training Program as early as fiscal 2027.

Under the current system, some foreign trainees arrive in Japan burdened with significant debt after paying "fees" or "pre-arrival education" costs to dispatch agencies or intermediaries in their home countries.

A 2022 survey by Japan’s Immigration Services Agency found that trainees paid an average of 540,000 yen (roughly $3,600) per person to secure work in Japan.

This financial burden has been linked to hardships during their stay and cases of trainees disappearing from their job placements. Under the proposed ordinance, fees paid to dispatch agencies will be capped at the equivalent of two months' salary after the worker’s arrival in Japan.

With 10% of their salary allocated to repayments, foreign workers could clear their debts in about 18 months—a timeline the government deems reasonable. Any costs exceeding this cap will be borne by the companies hiring the workers.