Japan to ease way for foreign students to take anime jobs

September 17, 2017

TOKYO- The Japanese government is discussing plans to relax resident status requirements for students from overseas to make it easier for those studying anime, design and cooking to find jobs in Japan after graduation, Jiji Press learned Sunday.

The proposed deregulation is aimed at securing up-and-coming human resources to promote the further development of Japan's content industry sectors, informed sources said.

The government is responding to requests from experts and industry representatives made at meetings of a panel set up in March to study human resources development under the Cool Japan strategy of promoting Japanese culture abroad.

The government plans to conduct surveys on related industry sectors and educational institutions, beginning in late April, and ease resident status requirements from fiscal 2018, which starts next April, at the earliest, according to the sources.

Currently, foreign students can earn the resident status needed to have jobs in Japan if they make use of the specialized knowledge and techniques they acquired at vocational school or university in Japan.

For instance, graduates of dressmaking vocational schools are allowed to work in Japan as designers and product planners. But resident status for working is not issued for tasks that do not require professional skills, such as cutting cloth, sewing and coloring.

But some experts point out that it is not realistic for content industry workers to engage in sophisticated creative activity soon after employment.

Resident status allowing engagement in uncomplicated work is issued only for a limited training period soon after employment, but the government is looking at permission for one or two years on condition that medium- to long-term employment plans are submitted, according to the sources.

The government also plans to revise the period in which students from abroad are allowed to use for job hunting.

Foreign students are currently given a maximum of one year after graduation from university or vocational school in Japan to find jobs in the country. But the period is deemed by some to be too short as students are busy with graduation projects in the last phase of their school life.

With the Justice Ministry said to be cautious about extending the period, the government plans to hold discussions among related ministries and agencies, the sources said. Jiji Press