TOKYO - Foreign workers in Japan reached a record of about 2.3 million last year, reflecting chronic domestic labor shortages that have made overseas hires indispensable. At the same time, illegal employment has climbed, with experts pointing to brokers who target technical intern trainees amid reports of workplace harassment and low pay.
A recent segment featuring labor specialists highlighted how illegal employment cases, after dipping to around 6,000 in 2022, exceeded 14,000 last year. Roughly 40% involve short-term visitors overstaying and working without authorization, while about 30% are people who entered with valid statuses—such as student work permits or other employment categories—but later dropped out as debt or unexpected living costs mounted.
Brokers exploit those pressures. According to lawyers who handle foreign-labor cases, some agents tell unauthorized workers they can “secure a job,” promise refunds if placement fails, and then demand “interview referral fees” of 500,000 to 1,500,000 yen. Technical intern trainees are a particular target because the current program tightly restricts job changes, leaving trainees little room to exit abusive or underpaid workplaces.
The technical intern training program, launched in 1993, channels company openings through supervising organizations and overseas sending agencies. Applicants typically pay 300,000 to 500,000 yen in fees to the sending side, even though there are no formal requirements for education or Japanese-language testing. Because these fee practices are governed abroad, Japanese authorities have limited leverage. Some countries, such as the Philippines, prohibit charging workers and require the receiving side to bear costs, but in many other jurisdictions the burden still falls on the trainee.
Structural issues compound the vulnerability. Transfers are in principle prohibited; even in recognized hardship cases, trainees generally must move only within the limited set of companies tied to their supervising organization—of which there are more than 4,000—narrowing options and strengthening brokers’ leverage. Compliance on the employer side is also uneven: a labor ministry survey has found that over 70% of companies accepting interns have committed some form of legal violation, underscoring the breadth of the problem.
To address these gaps, the government plans to replace the current program with a new “training and employment” framework on April 1, 2027. Under the proposal, trainees would be allowed to change employers once certain conditions are met, such as completing at least one year at the initial workplace; Japanese-language ability would be required; and newly designated support agencies would oversee fewer foreign workers per staff member to provide closer assistance. Experts say the changes could improve mobility and working conditions by nudging employers to offer better pay and treatment to retain workers. They also caution that outcomes will depend on how transfer rules are applied in practice and whether enforcement against illegal brokering is tightened, since penalties are still seen as relatively light—for example, reentry bans of five years for offenders—and staffing these support bodies will raise costs.
Amid these policy shifts, some institutions are trying to raise skill levels and match labor demand more safely. A driving school in Saitama has begun helping foreign residents obtain professional licenses to work as drivers in Japan, and since July has partnered with a school in Tokushima to offer Vietnamese candidates a curriculum that teaches Japan’s traffic rules before arrival. The school has also hired and trained Vietnamese instructors, reflecting the growing need for on-the-ground support as foreign employment deepens across retail, construction and services.
Ultimately, specialists argue that curbing illegal work will require a mix of stricter action against brokers, clearer and more practicable transfer pathways under the new system, and better pay and conditions so workers choose to stay with compliant employers rather than seek risky alternatives.
Source: サン!シャイン公式ch.
