Working Through a Temp Agency in Japan: How Haken and Contract Work Differ

Quick answer

Hi, I'm Miya, and I help newcomers settle into life in Japan. Many people picture their first job here as a straightforward direct hire, and then the offer in front of them turns out to be dispatch work (haken) or a fixed-term contract (keiyaku shain). Neither is a lesser way of working in Japan. They are different contract structures, and the difference that matters most is who your legal employer is.

With haken, you sign an employment contract with a staffing agency. The agency pays you and handles your insurance, while you work at a client company that directs your daily tasks. With a fixed-term contract, the company where you work employs you directly for a stated period. Both come with defined terms, renewal cycles, statutory insurance and paid leave, and both require that the work fits your status of residence.

Who your employer legally is

Dispatch work involves three parties rather than two: you, the agency, and the client company. Your employment contract is with the agency, and the agency has a separate commercial contract with the client. So your payslip, contract terms, insurance enrolment and leave all sit with the agency, even though you spend every working day at someone else's office, following the client's instructions and workplace rules.

That split matters most when something needs changing or goes wrong. Questions about pay, contract length, leave or working conditions go through your agency coordinator, even if the issue came up at the client's site. Responsibilities for workplace safety and harassment prevention are divided between agency and client under Japanese law, and the division is not always obvious from where you sit. Ask at the start who handles what.

A fixed-term contract is simpler in structure. The company you work at employs you directly for a stated period, usually renewable, and its own work rules apply to you. The term keiyaku shain is used broadly, and what it means for duties, renewals and treatment varies a lot between companies. Read the written conditions you are given rather than reading anything into the job title.

Registering with an agency and the skill check

The haken route starts with registration, not with a job offer. You create a profile, online or at a registration session, covering your work history, Japanese ability, the days and hours you can work, your commuting range, and the concrete skills you bring — spreadsheet work, bookkeeping, translation, customer service. Registering with more than one agency is normal, since each holds different assignments.

Many agencies pair registration with a skill check and a short interview. That can be a typing or spreadsheet exercise, a language check, or a conversation with a coordinator who wants to know what you can do unsupervised. You will usually be asked for documents — commonly your residence card, My Number, a bank account in your own name, and your pension and employment insurance numbers if you have them. Requirements differ, so ask what to bring.

Being registered means you are in the agency's pool, not that you have work. Assignments are proposed as they come in, and you can decline. Under Japan's dispatch rules the client generally is not meant to pick a specific worker through an interview the way a direct employer would, though practice around workplace tours and pre-start meetings varies. Ask your coordinator how they handle it, and keep your profile current.

How assignments and renewals are offered

When an assignment comes up, you should receive a defined package: the duties, the workplace and location, the start date, the days and hours, and the contract period. Working conditions have to be set out in writing, so treat that document as the real offer rather than the phone call before it. Read the dates, the description of duties, what is said about overtime, and who supervises you on site.

Renewal is decided before the current period ends, usually some weeks ahead. Your coordinator checks whether the client wants to continue and whether you do, and a new period is set from there. There are rules about notice when a contract will not be renewed, and about what the agency is expected to do to find your next assignment. Ask your coordinator to explain your own case in writing.

Two statutory limits sit behind this route: how long one dispatched worker can keep working in the same organisational unit of a client, and rules under which repeatedly renewed fixed-term contracts can become open-ended. The details are set in legislation and depend on your own contract history. The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare publishes guidance, and your agency should be able to explain how the rules apply to you. Keep your own record of contract periods and renewal dates.

Social insurance, paid leave and how pay is handled

Enrolment in health insurance, employees' pension and employment insurance follows statutory criteria rather than job titles — broadly, how many hours you work and how long your contract is expected to run. On the dispatch route the agency enrols you; on a direct fixed-term contract it is the company you work at. Ask in writing which insurances you will be enrolled in and from which date.

Paid annual leave is a statutory entitlement that accrues once you have worked a set period of continuous service with sufficient attendance, and it applies to dispatch and fixed-term staff too. On this route your leave sits with the agency rather than the client, so ask early how continuous service is counted if you move between clients or have a gap between assignments.

Pay administration usually runs on a timesheet the client approves and the agency processes on its own payroll cycle, so learn the submission deadline and the payment schedule in your first week. How commuting costs are treated varies, so confirm rather than assume. Japanese law also contains rules aimed at balanced treatment between dispatched staff and the client's own staff doing the same work; how your agency applies them is a fair thing to ask.

Match the work to your residence status, then ask before you sign

Your status of residence permits certain activities, and that is the test the work has to pass. The question is not whether dispatch employment is allowed in general, but whether the duties you will actually perform at the client's site fall within what your status permits. Because your employer and your workplace are two different organisations here, make sure both understand your status, and re-confirm when an assignment or your duties change.

If you are a student or a dependent, working at all requires permission to engage in an activity outside the scope of your status, which comes with a weekly limit on hours and restrictions on the kind of workplace. If you are unsure whether a role fits your status, the Immigration Services Agency is the authority to rely on, and you can apply for a certificate stating whether a specific job matches your status. Nothing here is legal advice, so please check your own case with the authority or a qualified professional.

Before you sign, work through a short list: who is my employer of record; what is the contract period and the expectation about renewal; is my job description in writing; what are my hours and how is overtime handled; who do I contact at the agency and who on site; which insurances, from when; how is paid leave counted; how are commuting costs treated; and what happens between assignments. Ask how much Japanese the role really needs, too. Get answers in writing where you can — a good coordinator expects these questions.

Get connected early so assignments can reach you

One very practical thing about this route: agencies contact registered staff by phone and SMS when an assignment comes up, and sometimes want an answer the same day. Once you start, timesheets, shift confirmations and messages from your coordinator tend to run through apps. A Japanese number you can actually be reached on is not a nice extra here — it is effectively part of being available for work.

So sort a Japanese number and mobile data early, ideally before you start registering. Your residence card is what unlocks it: with Rakuten Mobile you can apply online with just that card, and if your phone supports eSIM you can often be activated the same day, usually around fifteen minutes after you finish the application. I have written the steps out in the setup guide here on the site, and I would check the official campaign page for current conditions before you apply.