$110,000 High Paying Jobs in Japan With Visa Sponsorships

Updated: September 3, 2025

If you are aiming for a six-figure offer in Japan with a sponsored work visa, this guide gives you a straight path. You will see the roles that most often cross $110,000, the visa types Japanese companies use to sponsor foreign talent, urgent “hiring now” tips, and a short checklist to submit a strong application. I’ll keep the language clear and practical, avoid hype, and link you to official pages only.

Quick note on money: salaries in Japan are quoted yearly in yen. Companies in Tokyo often pay a premium. Many senior roles, especially in tech and finance, cross ¥16–20 million per year, which can be around $110k–$135k depending on exchange rates. Ranges vary by company, skills, bonus, and location.

Table of Contents

• Who this guide helps

• Salary snapshot: roles that reach $110k+

• Visa routes companies use to sponsor

• Eligibility checklist

• Where to find openings hiring now

• Step-by-step: apply and get sponsored, fast

• City hotspots with higher offers

• Role guides: tech, finance, engineering, health, education, creative

• Recruiters vs direct hire

• Documents, Certificate of Eligibility, and timelines

• Compliance, red flags, and safe job search

• FAQs

• Official links list

Who This Guide Helps

• Experienced professionals in software, AI, data, cloud, security, fintech, investment banking, quant, and semiconductors.

• Engineers in mechanical, electrical, automotive, EV, renewable energy.

• Education and creative roles like university lecturer, international school teacher, UX, game designer.

• Healthcare and care roles with Specified Skilled Worker tracks.

• Fresh graduates from top global universities who can use J-Find to job-hunt in Japan.

• Applicants outside Japan, including overseas candidates who want relocation and a sponsored visa.

Salary Snapshot: Roles That Reach $110,000+

The ranges below reflect typical total annual cash for senior or in-demand hires in major cities. Use them to plan your targets. Final pay depends on skills, company stage, bonuses, stock, and language level.

Tech

• Senior Software Engineer, Backend, Platform, Distributed Systems
  ¥14–20M+ total comp, with some offers higher in global tech firms.

• AI/ML Engineer, LLM/NLP, Computer Vision
  ¥16–22M+ where model deployment and product impact are clear.

• Data Scientist, Analytics, MLOps
  ¥13–19M+ depending on stack and business impact.

• Cloud / DevOps / SRE
  ¥13–18M+ for strong infra and automation backgrounds.

• Cybersecurity
  ¥12–18M+ for threat, cloud security, and compliance experience.

Finance

• Investment Banking Associate / VP
  ¥16–24M+ depending on group and bonus cycles.

• Quant / Risk / Trading Tech
  ¥15–22M+, often higher with low-latency skills or PhD.

Engineering & Industry

• Semiconductor, Automotive EV, Power Electronics, Robotics
  ¥12–19M+ for senior IC design, battery, or motor control.

• Mechanical / Electrical with deep niche expertise
  ¥11–17M+.

Management

• Product Manager, Senior Project Manager, Operations Director
  ¥13–20M+ depending on P&L scope and bilingual ability.

Education & Creative

• University Lecturer / Assistant Professor
  ¥7–12M, some research or industry crossovers pay more.

• International School Teacher
  ¥6–10M, often with benefits like housing or tuition.

• UX Designer / Game Designer
  ¥9–15M for senior, portfolio-strong profiles.

Tip: use “hiring now”, “apply today”, and city name in your search to pick up fresh postings with active recruiters. Many six-figure roles refresh late Q3 and Q4 for September–December 2025 starts.

Visa Routes Companies Use to Sponsor

Japan has several work-authorized statuses of residence. These are the most common for sponsored jobs:

1) Engineer / Specialist in Humanities / International Services

This is the standard white-collar work route that covers IT engineers, scientists, designers, copywriters, foreign language teachers, interpreters, and similar professional roles. Official overview appears under Work or Long-term stay on MOFA. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan

2) Highly Skilled Professional and J-Skip

Japan uses a points-based system to fast-track top talent with advanced degrees, senior pay, research output, and management records. The Ministry of Justice introduced this system in 2012 and later added J-Skip for special top-tier professionals. Benefits can include longer stays and simpler family accompaniment. Ministry of Justice JapanMinistry of Foreign Affairs of Japan

• MOFA also lists newly introduced visas, including J-Skip and J-Find. This confirms the current lineup and recency. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan

3) J-Find for Recent Graduates

The Japan System for Future Creation Individual Visa lets graduates from top global universities stay up to two years in Japan to job hunt or prepare to start a business, with designated periods and possible extension to a maximum of two years. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan

4) Specified Skilled Worker (SSW)

For designated fields such as care, food processing, construction, and more, SSW allows work after passing language and skills tests, unless you completed certain technical training. The government’s SSW portal lists testing and job-matching events. SSW+1

5) Intra-company Transferee

Common when your current employer moves you to its Japan office under a transfer. Listed under MOFA’s long-term stay categories. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan

Why this matters: your target visa steers your eligibility, documents, and timeline. For senior six-figure roles, companies often use Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services or Highly Skilled Professional/J-Skip. For care and other designated fields, SSW is the path.

Eligibility Checklist

Use this basic list to self-screen before you apply.

• Degree or 3+ years relevant experience for professional roles, as commonly required under Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan

• Points strength for Highly Skilled or J-Skip: advanced degrees, high salary, publications, management scope. Ministry of Justice Japan

• SSW: pass language and skills tests for your field, unless exempt via completed technical internship. SSW

• Language: English-first roles exist, especially in tech and global finance, but JLPT N2 opens more options.

• Clean record, fit to work, and a company ready to act as a visa sponsor.

Where To Find Openings Hiring Now

• Hello Work and Employment Service Centers for Foreigners provide government job services and counseling, with English info pages for Tokyo and Osaka. Japan Labor Bureau Directoryen.osaka-foreigner.mhlw.go.jp

• The SSW portal posts government-organized job-matching events and testing schedules. SSW

• MOFA and the Immigration Services Agency give the official visa status pages that recruiters and HR teams follow. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan+1

Add “Tokyo, Osaka, Yokohama, Fukuoka” to your searches, plus words like “visa sponsorship”, “relocation package”, and “apply today”.

Step-by-Step: Apply And Get Sponsored, Fast

Goal: move from job search to Certificate of Eligibility (COE) and visa issuance smoothly. Timelines vary by case and season.

1. Shortlist roles with active hiring now
   Target senior software, AI, data, quant, investment banking, semiconductor, and EV engineering. Add city names and “visa sponsorship” to your search.

2. Match the visa route

   • Professional white-collar → Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services.

   • Top-tier points profile → Highly Skilled or J-Skip.

   • New graduate from a top university → J-Find to job hunt in Japan.

   • Care, construction, food processing → SSW.

3. Prepare a Japan-ready CV
   Keep it short, results-focused, and quantify impact. Add tech stacks and numbers. Include JLPT level if you have one.

4. Send direct applications on company sites
   Direct applications often move faster. Use “apply on company site” calls to action. Avoid copy-paste spam.

5. Interview and offer
   Expect online coding or case tasks for tech, and business cases for finance. Ask clear questions on sponsorship, relocation, and start date.

6. Company applies for your COE
   After signing, your employer gathers documents and submits for a Certificate of Eligibility with the regional immigration office. You later apply for the visa at the embassy or consulate using the COE. Embassy pages summarize this flow. Embassy of Japan in the U.S.

7. Receive visa and relocate
   Confirm your period of stay and conditions. For SSW, check the test and field requirements again if changing industries. SSW

Keep copies of degrees, transcripts, work letters, passport data page, and references ready. Ask HR what role name they will use on the visa paperwork so your duties align with the chosen status.

City Hotspots With Higher Offers

Tokyo

Global HQs, trading floors, and R&D centers sit here. Senior tech, finance, and product roles push past ¥16M fast with the right profile.

Osaka

Manufacturing, trading houses, and fast-growing tech teams. Good mix of engineering and product roles.

Yokohama and Kawasaki

Semiconductors, automotive, and robotics. Solid for hardware, EV, and embedded talent.

Fukuoka and Nagoya

Fukuoka is startup-friendly, Nagoya is strong for automotive and power electronics. Some roles add housing allowances or relocation packages.

Search combos like “Tokyo senior backend engineer visa sponsorship”, “Osaka high salary jobs with visa”, or “Yokohama semiconductor engineer hiring now”.

Role Guides: What To Target And How To Pitch

Each mini-guide gives common titles, clean pitch lines you can adapt, and typical senior ranges. Use city + role + visa phrases in your headings and bullets on your resume.

Senior Software Engineer, Backend, Platform

• What they want: ownership of services, scale, and reliability.

• Pitch line: “Led backend services for millions of users, cut latency by 35 percent, improved uptime to 99.95.”

• Range: ¥14–20M+ in Tokyo with sponsorship and relocation.

AI / ML Engineer

• What they want: deployed models that move metrics.

• Pitch line: “Shipped LLM-powered features with safety guardrails, lifted activation 12 percent.”

• Range: ¥16–22M+, rising with MLOps skills.

Data Scientist / Analytics / MLOps

• What they want: clear business wins, clean pipelines, stakeholder skills.

• Range: ¥13–19M+.

Cloud / DevOps / SRE

• What they want: IaC, autoscaling, observability, incident depth.

• Range: ¥13–18M+.

Cybersecurity

• What they want: breach response, cloud posture, audits.

• Range: ¥12–18M+.

Product Manager / Project Manager / Ops Director

• What they want: roadmap, P&L, cross-team delivery.

• Range: ¥13–20M+.

Investment Banking / Finance / Quant

• What they want: modeling, deal flow, risk, or low-latency builds.

• Range: ¥16–24M+ with variable bonus cycles.

Semiconductor / EV / Power Electronics / Robotics

• What they want: IC design, verification, battery systems, motor control.

• Range: ¥12–19M+.

UX Designer / Game Designer

• What they want: shipped work, systems thinking, player metrics.

• Range: ¥9–15M senior.

University Lecturer / International School Teacher

• What they want: strong teaching sample, research or IB/IGCSE track.

• Range: ¥6–12M, often with benefits.

Nursing / Caregiver, SSW Fields

• What they want: language and skills tests, care mindset.

• Range: varies by region, check SSW events and employer packages. SSW

Integrate intent words naturally in your materials: “visa sponsorship, relocation package, apply now, hiring now”, and the specific visa path the company expects.

Recruiters vs Direct Hire

• Direct company sites give better speed and accurate role titles. Use “apply on company site” when possible.

• Specialist headhunters help with hidden roles in quant, investment banking, and senior engineering. Share exact visa history and notice period early.

• Government job centers add stability and free guidance for foreigners. See Tokyo and Osaka centers. Japan Labor Bureau Directoryen.osaka-foreigner.mhlw.go.jp

Documents, COE, and Timelines

Employer submits for your Certificate of Eligibility once you sign. Then you apply for the visa at an embassy or consulate with the COE. Embassy pages summarize this flow and link back to MOFA and ISA for details. Embassy of Japan in the U.S.

Have ready:

• Passport, CV, degree, transcripts

• Work letters with job titles and dates

• Portfolio or GitHub for tech and creative

• JLPT certificate, if any

• Clean, readable PDFs and a simple file name style

SSW Candidates: confirm which tests and field you qualify for, and track official exam announcements on the SSW portal. SSW

Compliance, Red Flags, and Safe Job Search

• Stick to official sources for visa rules. Use MOFA and the Immigration Services Agency pages for current categories such as Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services, Highly Skilled, J-Skip, J-Find, and SSW. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan+1

• Do not pay for a job offer. Real employers cover the visa paperwork.

• Be clear about overtime policies and benefits in your contract.

• Never promise or claim a guaranteed visa. Sponsorship depends on the company, your background, and government review.

FAQs

Are there fixed national application deadlines?
No. Jobs are rolling by company. Academic and some finance cycles have seasonal peaks, but roles in tech and industry open all year. The only strict dates you must track are visa category rules and SSW test schedules, which the SSW portal publishes. SSW+1

Do I need Japanese language to reach six figures?
Strong English-first teams exist, mainly in global tech and finance. JLPT N2 opens many more choices and can lift offers in customer-facing roles.

Which visas move fastest for senior hires?
When you meet the criteria, Highly Skilled or J-Skip can simplify stays and benefits. Many employers still sponsor through Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services for standard white-collar roles. Ministry of Justice JapanMinistry of Foreign Affairs of Japan

I’m a new graduate. Can I job hunt in Japan?
If your university is on the eligible list, J-Find lets you stay in Japan up to a maximum of two years while you job hunt, subject to extension within set limits. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan

What about care, construction, or factory roles?
Use the Specified Skilled Worker route. Check the language and skills test requirements and government job-matching updates on the official SSW site. SSW+1

Official Links (copy and paste)