Japan digital nomad visa

Requirements

• Annual income of at least ¥10 million (roughly $65,000–70,000 depending on exchange rate)
• Citizenship of one of ~50 eligible countries/regions (visa-waiver countries with tax treaties — US, UK, EU members, Australia, etc.)
• Remote work for employers/clients outside Japan
• Private health insurance covering the stay (death/injury/illness, ¥10M+ coverage)
• Spouse and children can accompany you under a linked status

How to apply

1. Confirm nationality eligibility and the income bar
2. Prepare income evidence, insurance certificate, and the activity description
3. Apply for the Certificate of Eligibility / visa at the Japanese embassy
4. Enter Japan with 'designated activities' status — 6 months, non-extendable; reapply after at least 6 months outside Japan

Renewal and long-term stay

• Renewable: no — a single fixed term
• Path to permanent residency: no — time on this visa does not lead to residency
• Path to citizenship: no

Six months, flatly non-extendable — when it expires you leave, and a cooling-off period (widely reported as six months outside Japan) applies before you can apply again. You are not issued a residence card (zairyu card), which is the tell: this is a long visitor permission rather than residence, and it builds nothing toward permanent residency.

Applying: where and how

• Apply from outside the country: yes — apply before you travel
• Where you file: at an embassy or consulate
• Income requirement as published: ¥10,000,000 per year

Applied for at a Japanese consulate before travelling, and because the visa cannot be extended you will be doing this from outside Japan again if you return. No residence card is issued, which affects everyday admin such as opening a bank account or signing a phone contract.

Bringing a partner or children

• Dependants: yes — a partner and children can be included

Unusually generous on paper: a spouse and children can be included on the same application and Japan does not require extra income for them, unlike most European programmes. Two conditions people miss — children must be unmarried and under 19, and your dependants must themselves be nationals of visa-exempt countries.

Tax

• You become tax resident: after 183 days in the country
• Foreign income taxed locally: no — foreign-earned income is not taxed locally
• Special nomad or expat tax regime: yes — see below

The visa's six-month cap and the tax line are designed to agree: stay 183 days or fewer, be paid by a foreign employer with no Japanese branch, and Japan treats you as non-resident and does not tax that foreign income. Because the visa cannot be extended past six months, you are structurally unlikely to cross into residency — which is arguably the programme's main appeal, given how heavily Japan taxes residents on worldwide income.

This summarises published rules, not your situation, and it is not tax advice. Two things it can't tell you: your home country may tax you anyway — US citizens are taxed on worldwide income wherever they live — and day-count is only the most common trigger for tax residency, not the only one. Having a permanent home, a family or your centre of economic interests in a country can make you resident well before the day count does. Get advice before you move.

Moving abroad means more than the visa — sort your travel insurance (many visa applications require proof of coverage), set up borderless banking, and land with data working.

First nomad visa? Our digital nomad visa guide explains how qualifying, applying, and taxes work across every country.