1. Opening Remarks
There has been a recent increase in information of Taiwanese firms entering the Japanese industry, such as tales of a main Taiwanese semiconductor company building a semiconductor producing plant in Japan and a important Taiwanese lender opening its next branch in Japan in Fukuoka.
Fukuoka City is among the increasing towns in Japan, exactly where the population continues to improve even with the point that the population of Japan as a complete continues to drop. In new many years, the two Fukuoka Prefecture and Fukuoka City have been using lively measures to attract international companies, with Fukuoka Metropolis owning recognized a facility in Tenjin, the centre of Fukuoka, for this quite purpose. A&S Fukuoka LPC’s office (hereinafter, “A&S Fukuoka”) also is situated in Tenjin, and given that relocating to Fukuoka in 2021, co-writer Mr. Usui has been offering assistance to abroad companies environment up operations in Fukuoka, and also cooperates with the area authorities to assist overseas firms.
Through this newsletter, we would like to introduce the guidance made available to international organizations in Japan and particularly in Fukuoka, by Atsumi & Sakai and A&S Fukuoka (hereinafter, collectively “Atsumi & Sakai”).
Though not discussed in this e-newsletter, the M&A technique of coming into the Japanese marketplace by the acquisition of shares of an existing corporation carries on to be one of the most preferred techniques of entering the Japanese industry, primarily for industries that demand licenses and approvals.
2. Institution of a Japanese Corporation or a Branch Business
A international firm can set up a subsidiary in Japan. If a Japanese legal professional is retained, the subsidiary can be set up in as shorter as 2-3 weeks. When setting up a company with the easiest governance structure, only 1 director is desired. In addition, the administrators are not required to reside in Japan. A foreign corporation getting into the Japanese marketplace should pick out regardless of whether to established up their corporation as a kabushiki kaisha (inventory business) or a godo kaisha (limited legal responsibility organization). It is normally reported in Japan that kabushiki kaishas are more creditworthy, but in new several years, it has not been uncommon for foreign companies coming into the Japanese industry to decide on to established up their firms as a godo kaisha1.
In the different, it is achievable to just established up a Japanese department of a overseas enterprise without having developing a corporation. In such cases, a resident of Japan will have to be appointed and registered as the agent in Japan.
Even so, a department is not a legal entity, and consequently is deemed to be part of the legal entity of the international firm. As a final result, the international firm straight bears lawful possibility if any legal responsibility occurs at the Japanese branch. Creating a Japanese corporation avoids these dangers, due to the fact under the Firms Act, the shareholders or fairness holders of a kabushiki kaisha or godo kaisha have only confined liability.
In any celebration, as long as the Japan workplace, no matter of composition, is the base of operations in Japan and truly conducts small business in Japan, it is probably to be considered a long lasting institution for tax purposes.
3. Obstacles in Entering the Japanese Industry
There are a number of usual difficulties that foreigners encounter when relocating to Japan. These troubles are: visa (residence status), opening a financial institution account, non-responses from true estate brokers that be reluctant to interact with non-Japanese clients and which usually have to have that a non-Japanese tenant offer a guarantor, and so forth., and cell phones (telecommunications enterprise).
Atsumi & Sakai’s visa crew supplies visa application services for international firms increasing into Japan. In addition, by partnering with Fukuoka City’s World-wide Finance Middle, A&S Fukuoka has established a procedure enabling the smooth managing of particular varieties of visa purposes. A lot of of the troubles are fixed as soon as a visa is obtained, but the serious estate problem stays.
A&S Fukuoka can introduce foreign organizations to regional, international-language-capable authentic estate corporations that can help with obtaining residential genuine estate.
Even though it is incredibly complicated for people today who do not reside in Japan to open up a bank account, it is attainable for men and women with residence in Japan to open up a financial institution account if they hold a visa. The operations of mobile cellular phone contracts differ for every telecommunications business. The World-wide Finance Heart also offers aid in opening financial institution accounts and getting mobile phones, and A&S Fukuoka can handle this as a result of referral.
4. Visa Techniques
If a foreigner needs to provide as an officer or agent of a Japanese department or seek the services of a foreigner as an staff, he/she need to utilize for the appropriate visa (standing of residence).
(1) Principles
The Intra-Enterprise Transferee Visa is out there when a foreigner operating for the father or mother firm in his/her household place is despatched to operate in Japan (https://www.mofa.go.jp/j_facts/go to/visa/extensive/index.html). To utilize for the Intra-Enterprise Transferee Visa, the applicant will have to have worked for the mother or father corporation in the residence nation for at minimum 1 12 months. In addition, the nature of the employee’s predicted obligations in Japan must drop underneath the category of “engineer/expert in humanities/international solutions” these kinds of as engineers in mechanical engineering, interpreters, designers, language instructors in personal providers, marketing and advertising gurus, and so on. The applicant also is essential to obtain compensation equivalent to or better than that obtained by Japanese nationals who serve in a related role. If the Japanese company or branch in Japan is proven smoothly, the Intra-Company Transferee Visa can be employed.
In some circumstances, the consultant of a Japanese company obtains a Small business Supervisor Visa. (https://www.mofa.go.jp/j_information/check out/visa/lengthy/index.html)
In addition, it is usually achievable to secure an Engineer/Professional in Humanities/Global Expert services Visa when utilizing foreigners who previously reside in Japan. A foreigner with a visa that does not impose any perform limitations, these types of as Everlasting Resident, Prolonged-term Resident, or Partner or Baby of Japanese Nationwide will need not get hold of a new visa.
(2) Fukuoka City’s start-up visa system
Fukuoka Town is specified as a National Strategic Exclusive Zone. Countrywide Strategic Distinctive Zones, limited to particular municipalities, are areas inside which certain Japanese laws are comfortable on a demo foundation. Countrywide Strategic Exclusive Zones connected to the leisure of visa regulations are used by Tokyo, Kanagawa
Prefecture, Kyoto Prefecture, Niigata City, Fukuoka City, Kitakyushu Metropolis, Sendai Town, Aichi Prefecture, Hiroshima Prefecture, and Imabari Metropolis (as of January 4, 2023). In addition to remaining a person of the most active municipalities in accepting overseas human means, Fukuoka town is also regarded for the proactiveness and flexibility with which they work, which only a compact metropolis can provide.
As for the particular particulars of the rest of laws, entry into Japan is permitted as long as it is most likely that the visa holder will be able to meet up with the benchmarks for the Business Manager Visa these types of as securing a position of company in just 6 months. It is well worth looking at in the initial phases of getting into the Japanese market place, if a remain of many months is expected. In purchase to get a Organization Supervisor Visa underneath this procedure, a new business implementation strategy need to be well prepared and submitted for the business enterprise supposed to be performed in Fukuoka City, and affirmation for such plan must be gained from Fukuoka City. A New Business enterprise Implementation Confirmation is issued if Fukuoka Town determines that there is a higher probability that the contents of the company plan described in the new business implementation system, following a six-thirty day period interval of stay, is very likely to be permitted for a common Business Manager Visa.
On receipt of the New Enterprise Implementation Affirmation, the applicant will be issued a visa by applying for the Small business Supervisor Visa at the Fukuoka Regional Immigration Providers Bureau. (https://www.city.fukuoka.lg.jp/keizai/r-support/small business/startupviza_2_2.html)
One tactic may possibly be to create a Japanese corporation in Fukuoka Metropolis and establish a manufacturing facility in a further municipality. Qualified industries that are predicted to bolster the global competitiveness of Fukuoka City’s industries and broaden work, are as follows.
- Understanding generation industries (fintech, semiconductor-connected, program growth, articles manufacturing, robotics, and so on.)
- Overall health, healthcare and welfare-associated industries (drug enhancement ventures, health-related technology advancement, regenerative drugs, welfare gear progress, and so on.)
- Ecosystem and energy-connected industries (eco-friendly tech, cleanse electrical power growth, up coming-generation electric power storage engineering, geo-facts programs, etcetera.)
- Logistics-linked business (world-wide SCM providers, 3PL solutions, intercontinental parcel supply, drone logistics progress, and many others.)
- Trade-similar firms (corporations that contribute to the enhancement of abroad sales channels for goods designed in Fukuoka metropolis, enterprises that employ the capabilities of Hakata Port and Fukuoka Airport, etc.)
* For trade-linked firms, the company should be novel or add appreciably to the expansion of companies in Fukuoka city.
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