This article is a translation of the Japanese original. Where the two differ, the Japanese version prevails. Read the Japanese original（日本語版を読む）
We cannot recommend applying for an employee's work visa before the manager's own 「経営・管理」 has been granted. It is possible in theory, but the stability and continuity of the company cannot be proved. The risk that both will be denied, or that screening will become doubly prolonged, increases.
An enquiry about when a company that is waiting for permission for 「経営・管理」 should apply for a work visa for a foreign employee.
You can apply in theory, but the company's foundations may be judged unstable, which risks a denial or prolonged screening.
Applying for an employee's work visa without waiting for permission for 経営・管理, on the ground that "time is precious", is possible in theory, but in the practice of screening it is an extremely risky course. The reason lies in the order and the logic of screening at the Regional Immigration Services Bureau.
In screening for 技人国, what is required strongly is not only the applicant's own educational background and the content of the work, but also the ability of the employing company to run its business stably and continuously.
Where the company has only just been incorporated, however, and the representative has not yet been recognised as a "lawful manager", the question arises: "how is this company going to employ staff stably and keep paying their salaries while its representative has no permission to carry on management activities in Japan?"
As a result, the risk that the employee's 技人国 application will stall in screening, or be denied, on the ground that "the company's foundations are too unstable" becomes very high.
Where the applications are filed at around the same time, screening of the manager's own 「経営・管理」 always takes priority before the employee's 技人国 is screened.
The longer the manager's screening takes, the longer the employee's is left on the shelf. The employee's screening period ends up depending on the manager's, and this brings about a negative chain in which "both take a long time".
Immediately after the manager has received the Residence Card for 「経営・管理」 is the most reliable time.
The way to raise your chances of success is a step-by-step approach that puts "certainty of permission" first.
Note that applications concerning a status of residence are filed with the Regional Immigration Services Bureau. It is not the Legal Affairs Bureau, so please take care not to confuse the two.
It is important to draw up the plan in a form that allows the business to start even without the employee you plan to hire.
The business plan for the period until the employee you plan to hire joins should be drawn up in a form that can start with you and collaborators in Japan (an accountant and the like) alone, and it needs to be set out in the application documents you file with the Regional Immigration Services Bureau.
If you build the existence of one particular employee into the plan as an essential requirement of the business from the outset, and that person's status of residence is denied, there is a risk that the manager's own 「経営・管理」 will also be denied on the ground that the business cannot continue.
Prioritise "certainty of permission" over "being quick".
For a foreign manager, securing staff is a race against time, but in applications for a status of residence you must put "certainty of permission" first, ahead of "being quick".
Permission for 経営・管理 is the starting line for an employee's visa application. Please understand this principle and set a planned application schedule. If you are unsure how to judge matters, consult a certified administrative procedures legal specialist (gyoseishoshi) or another specialist early on.
You can apply in theory. In the practice of screening, however, it is extremely risky and we cannot recommend it. While the representative has no permission for management activities, the stability and continuity of the company are hard to prove.
Immediately after the manager has received the Residence Card for 「経営・管理」. By attaching a copy of the new Residence Card to the application, you can prove that the company's foundations are in place.
If that person's status of residence is denied, the business may be judged incapable of continuing, and the manager's own 「経営・管理」 may be denied as well. Please make it a plan that can start with you and collaborators in Japan alone.
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This page is a translation of the Japanese original. Where the two differ, the Japanese version prevails.