Komichi Guides
All Guides
Every guide you need to work, study, and live in Japan — organized by topic.
Start here — Is Japan for you?
Understand why Japan is worth considering and get the big picture.
Overview
Why Choose Japan? The Honest Case for Working and Living There
Record numbers of foreigners now build careers in Japan — and the door is opening for Indians. The honest case for choosing Japan, trade-offs included.
Read →Guide
How to Work in Japan: A Complete Guide for Indians (2026)
Visa routes, in-demand fields, and where the India–Japan skilled-worker plan actually stands after the August 2026 roadmap talks — plus the five moves that take you from India to a real job in Japan.
Read →Choose your path
Find the visa route and job field that fits your background.
Path
Caregiver & Nursing Path
Explore path →Path
IT & Software Engineer Path
Explore path →Path
Skilled Trades Path
Explore path →Path
Food Service Path
Explore path →Path
Management & Business Path
Explore path →Path
Student Path
Explore path →Visa
SSW Visa from India in 2026: The Complete, Honest Guide to Working in Japan
How Indians get Japan's Specified Skilled Worker (SSW) visa in 2026 — sectors, tests held in India, step-by-step process, real salaries in ₹, and honest caveats.
Read →Visa
Ikusei Shuro 2027: Japan's New Work Visa, Explained for Indians
Japan replaces TITP with Ikusei Shuro on 1 Apr 2027. What the new visa means for Indians, how it links to SSW, and the smartest move to make now.
Read →Language
What Japanese Level Do You Need for Each Japan Visa? A 2026 Guide for Indians
SSW needs N4, the engineer/IT visa now needs N2 (from Apr 2026), Ikusei Shuro needs A1. The 2026 Japanese-level map for every Japan visa — and where to start.
Read →Guide
Can You Work in Japan Without a Degree?
Yes — and here's exactly how. The visa route that values skills over diplomas, and what you need instead.
Read →Jobs
Jobs in Japan for Indians (2026): In-Demand Sectors & How to Get Hired
Jobs in Japan for Indians: the sectors hiring most under SSW — care, manufacturing, construction, agriculture — plus IT and engineering roles, salaries, and how to apply.
Read →Language
JFT-Basic vs JLPT N4: Which Should You Take?
Both qualify you for the SSW visa — but they differ in format, frequency, and long-term value. Here's how to choose.
Read →Career
Caregiver & Nursing Jobs in Japan for Indians (2026)
Japan's biggest labour shortage is in care work — and Indian nurses and caregivers are well placed to fill it. Requirements (three exams, not two), salaries, Prometric booking in India, and the long-term career path.
Read →Language
Japanese for Caregivers: Essential Words & Phrases
The everyday Japanese a care worker actually uses — greetings, the body, daily care, and vital signs — to get you started.
Read →Plan your move
Applications, tests, costs, and what to expect.
Process
How to Apply for the SSW Visa from India: Step by Step
The full application path from India — choosing a field, passing the tests (seven skills tests are now sittable in India), finding an employer, and getting your visa.
Read →Money
How Much Does the SSW Visa Cost from India? (2026 Breakdown)
Real official fees — ₹3,540 JFT-Basic, skills tests from ₹696, visa just ₹500 for Indians (the 2026 fee hike doesn't apply to us) — and the lakhs you should refuse to pay.
Read →Test
JFT-Basic Exam in India: Dates, Centres, Fees & How to Register
JFT-Basic exam in India 2026: test centres in Bengaluru, Gurgaon, Guwahati, ₹3,540 fee, 200/250 pass score, and how to book the Aug–Sep 2026 window.
Read →Guide
How to Write a Japanese Resume (Rirekisho): The Complete Guide for Indians (2026)
A Western CV gets quietly rejected in Japan. Here's the resume that actually works — the rirekisho + shokumu-keirekisho system, section by section, with the mistakes Indians make most.
Read →Money & life in Japan
Salaries, taxes, savings, and what happens when you leave.
Money
Salaries, Tax & Savings in Japan: A Real Breakdown for 2026
The headline salary is not what lands in your account, and not what you save. Here's the real math — earnings, deductions, costs, and savings — in ¥ and ₹, updated for 2026's pay rises and the new payslip deduction.
Read →Money
Cost of Living in Japan for Indians (2026): What It Really Costs, City by City, in ₹
What Japan really costs in 2026 — rent by city in ₹, a realistic monthly budget, the upfront move-in cost that catches everyone, and how much you can actually save on a Japanese salary.
Read →Money
Japan Pension Refund for Indians: How to Claim Your Lump-Sum Withdrawal (2026)
Every year, foreign workers leave Japan and walk away from hundreds of thousands of yen in pension money — and then forfeit a further 20.42% that they could have claimed back in tax. Here's how to get yours.
Read →Career
Working at a Japanese Company vs a Foreign/MNC in Japan: Which Is Right for You? (2026)
Pay, hours, job security, and how much Japanese you'll need all change depending on whether you join a Japanese (nikkei) or foreign (gaishikei) company. The honest comparison for Indians.
Read →Culture & everyday life
Understand daily life, work culture, and food in Japan.
Culture
Japanese Work Culture: What Indians Should Really Expect
Honne, hou-ren-sou, nomikai, overtime — the honest truth about Japanese work culture for Indians, what's changing, and how to adapt without losing yourself.
Read →Life
Vegetarian in Japan: The Complete Survival Guide for Indians
Konbini label decoder, a foodie's Tokyo Indian restaurant shortlist, veg-friendly chains, Jain & vegan levels, 1K-kitchen cooking, and what to pack from India.
Read →Culture
10 Everyday Japanese Etiquette Rules for Newcomers
Japan runs on small, quiet courtesies. Here are ten that matter most for newcomers — and the "why" behind each, so they feel natural, not memorised.
Read →All culture articles
Browse →Study & Japanese
Learn the language you need for work and daily life.
Script
Learn Hiragana in a Week: A Free Beginner's Guide
Hiragana is the very first thing to master in Japanese. Here's the full chart and a simple 7-day plan to read it confidently.
Read →Script
Learn Katakana: The Free Chart and How to Read It
Katakana unlocks the thousands of loanwords in everyday Japanese — coffee, convenience store, even your own name. Here's the chart and how to learn it fast.
Read →Vocab
JLPT N5 Vocabulary List: The Words You Actually Need (Free)
What the JLPT N5 vocabulary really covers — how many words, which categories matter most, and how to study them for free.
Read →Test
How to Pass JLPT N5: A Realistic 3–6 Month Roadmap
Zero Japanese to your first JLPT certificate in 3–6 months — the right order to learn things, a weekly rhythm that actually sticks, and the step most beginners skip.
Read →Tips
Anime That Actually Helps You Learn Japanese
"I'll learn Japanese from anime" usually goes nowhere — passive watching teaches almost nothing. Here's the method that actually works, plus the traps to avoid.
Read →Tool
Vocab & Kanji Study
Open →Tool
Reading Library
Open →Tools & Calculators
Interactive calculators for salary, tax, visa eligibility, and more.
Calculator
Japan Salary Calculator
See your real take-home pay
Open calculator →Calculator
Japan Tax Calculator
Income tax, deductions & tax-saving optimizer (DTAA)
Open calculator →Calculator
HSP Points Calculator
Check if you qualify for the fast-track Highly Skilled visa
Open calculator →Calculator
Pension Refund Calculator
Lump-sum refund + India–Japan social-security (SSA)
Open calculator →All tools
Browse →More Guides
Additional guides across all topics — newest first. Showing 12 of 62.
🚧Work
Japan Already Closed One Specified Skilled Worker Field — Here's Which Sector Fills Up Next
Japan's food-service SSW route already shut on its cap. We ran the immigration agency's own numbers on all 16 fields to show which lane fills next.
Read →🛡️Work
Can Japan Take Away Your Permanent Residency? The 2027 Revocation Rules, Read Line by Line
Japan published its draft rules for taking permanent residency away. We read the whole document. It is a demotion regime, not a deportation regime.
Read →📋Work
One Year of the India–Japan 50,000-Worker Plan: What Actually Opened for You, and What Still Hasn't
A year ago India and Japan promised 50,000 skilled workers. We checked every commitment against the primary sources — here's what actually changed in year one, and what didn't.
Read →🪜Work
Japan Changed the Specified Skilled Worker Rules: Longer Visas, a Six-Year Exception, and a Harder PR Path
Japan rewrote the Specified Skilled Worker clock — longer visas, a six-year exception, and a harder route to permanent residency. What it means for Indians.
Read →🎓Study
Japan's Fully-Funded Master's Degrees for Indian Civil Servants: Six GRIPS Programmes, Real Stipends, and the DoPT Route
Six fully-funded GRIPS master's and PhD programmes in Tokyo for serving Indian officials — real stipends in ₹, who actually qualifies, and the DoPT nomination route.
Read →📄Work
Japan's New Permanent Residency Rules: What the Draft Actually Says, and What It Means for Indians
The draft is real and it is a serious tightening — permanent residence would move from 'meet the bar and you are generally fine' to 'show you actively benefit Japan.' But the specific figures circulating on WhatsApp are not in the draft.
Read →💴Work
Japan Residence & PR Fees Rise Up to 20× from 1 October 2026: What Indians Should Do Before Sep 30
Japan's Immigration Services Agency has proposed raising the PR application fee from ¥10,000 to ¥200,000 — a 20× increase — effective 1 October 2026. Renewals and change-of-status applications will also see tiered increases. This is still a draft, but here's what you should know.
Read →🤝Culture
Racism and Discrimination in Japan: What Japan's Own Data Shows for Indians
47% of foreign residents in Japan report discrimination — and 91% say they're satisfied living here. Both numbers come from the same government survey. This article is about how both things can be true, and what that means for Indians.
Read →🔬Study
Inside a Japanese Lab: What Indian Research Students Wish They Had Known Before Their First Day
In Japan, you don't really join a university — you join a kenkyūshitsu. Here's what a normal week inside it looks like, what your professor will and won't do for you, and the funding map that most 2026 guides get wrong.
Read →🚩Work
The 3 Scams Fake Japan Agents Run on Indians — and the 5-Minute Check That Stops All Three
The three scams are the Package (a bundled fee many times what Indian rules allow), the Gatekeeper (selling access to a door that is already open), and the Deposit (money held against you leaving). Here's the 5-minute check that stops all three.
Read →🕵️Work
Black Companies in Japan: How Indians Can Spot an Exploitative Employer Before Signing, From India
You cannot judge a Japanese employer from its website. But you can check whether it legally exists, enrolls staff in social insurance, and whether the recruiter is licensed — all in one evening, for free, from India.
Read →🗺️Work
How Far Does English Actually Get You in Japan? The Honest 2026 Map for Indians
Japan scored 446 on the EF English Proficiency Index 2025 — 96th of 123 countries and regions. But that single number hides the map. English in Japan behaves like a professional-class working language, not a public utility. This is the honest map of which doors English opens, which ones it only half-opens, and exactly how much Japanese your specific path needs.
Read →