Changing jobs
Quitting your job in Japan on a work visa: notice, notifications and the 3-month rule
Quitting a job in Japan on a work visa: 2 weeks' legal notice, the 14-day notice to immigration, the 3-month rule, and health insurance and pension.
Work
Paid leave (年次有給休暇), overtime pay, minimum wage, maternity and childcare leave, and what quitting or changing jobs means for your residence status, explained from the labor ministry's (厚生労働省) own rules. The same labor law protects foreign and Japanese workers.
5 guides, last updated Oct 24, 2026
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Rights at work
Your rights as a foreign worker in Japan: contracts, overtime and unpaid wages
Overtime pay in Japan: 25% extra, 50% past 60 hours a month, 35% on legal holidays. Plus 36 agreement caps, unpaid wages and free help in your language.
Rights at work
Paid leave in Japan (有給休暇): how many days you get and the 5-day rule
Paid leave in Japan: 10 days after 6 months, up to 20 a year, 5 days your employer must make you take, 2-year carryover, part-time days and sick days.
Rights at work
Minimum wage in Japan 2026 by prefecture: rates, dates and how to check your pay
Minimum wage in Japan for FY2026: ¥1,177 national average, Tokyo ¥1,280, every prefecture's rate and start date, and how to check a monthly salary.
Parental leave
Maternity and childcare leave in Japan for foreign workers
Maternity leave in Japan: 6 weeks before and 8 after birth, two-thirds pay, childcare leave to age 1 at 67% then 50%, and the 80% top-up from 2025.