Job Discussion Forums

[Glenski]

Stosskraft,

Keep EVERYTHING. You are entering a very gray area, and nobody can predict what immigration will want to know. That's the definition of case by case. If you don't shine your shoes, they may not give it to you. If you whine about not speaking Japanese, they may not give it to you. If the officer has had a bad morning.... you get the picture.

[ryuro]

Stosscraft,

Aside from keeping EVERYTHING (especially contracts) as Glenski points out, be sure you get 'Certificates of Employment' or as they're sometimes called 'Letters of Service'.

These are slightly different from typcial reference letters, but sometimes they can be combined (though I don't recommend that).

The Certs of Service should contain the following information:

- Your COMPLETE name (including middle name)

- your date of birth

- the EXACT start and finish dates of employment with the company issuing the Cert. (don't forget the DAY- month/year only will not do)

- it MUST indicate whether it was full-time or part-time (immigration will not simply assume it was full-time- it must literally be stated in the Cert)

- brief description of your duties and courses taught; try to include how many per week, length, student numbers, student ages, abilities, course topics, etc...

- any unqiue or special duties and/or accomplishments

The tone of the letter should be very matter-of-fact rather than "referenceish" (you're not having someone sell you, rather just trying to state the facts/details of your employment).

Get them to write it in English and be sure the appropriate person signs and stamps it (I believe in China they call the stampe\s "chops"- in Japan it would be a Hanko or Inkan) be sure they date the letter and include their title. It should also be written on 'official' letter head of the organization that would include contact details (address, phone, fax, email if available).

Having seperate letters of reference are a good thing too.

Once you have these documents(Certs. and references), get a Japanese friend to translate them into Japanese (it doesn't have to be an 'official' translation). And NEVER lose these things. If you continue teaching any where in the world, you'll find having Letters of Service/Certificates of Employment (in the style I've outlined here) INVALUABLE in addition to references, etc.

But be aware that in order for imigration to issue a visa to someone with no degree, they're going to need a pretty good reason. Basically your sponsor would need to prove that they can't find someone with a degree to do the job you're doing- which is a pretty tall order.

That's not to say people don't get them, but it's not as easy as some might have you think. And be careful of people who say they got one without a degree- usually when pressed I find out they actually are married to a Japanese citizen and thus have a spouse visa- not a work visa; or they have a dependents visa because they're married to someone who has a full-fledged work visa.

In my personal expereince, I really don't think having JUST three years of typical EFL/ESL teaching expereince would hold a lot of weight with immigration. There are heaps of people more qualified or with degrees looking for jobs so you may find the going tough- I would say impossible if you're NOT physically in Japan where a potential employer can meet you face-to-face and decide if they want to press the issue with imigration.

Anyway, hope this helps and good luck!

Cheers,
ryuro

ps. a typical first paragraph for a letter of Service might go something like this...

To whom it may concern:

I (we) are writing on behalf of TEACHER NAME (date of birth: 1 January, 1965). Mr.Ms. NAME was a full-time EFL and English Teacher with ORGANIZATION from START DATE to FINISH DATE.

[Stosskraft]

Hey, thanks for the advice Glenski and ryuro.

The "Letter of Service" idea is great and I feel this would be a valuable tool when applying for a position in any country. Hopefully having 1 year of teaching experience in Japan ( on a WHV ) will help when when applying for a working visa later on.

Thanks again

[ryuro]

Stosskraft,

Don't mean to beat a dead horse here on this subject, but I hope you did read the whole thread inlcuding Glenski's and my discussion about working full-time on a WHV.

Remember that it's technically NOT ALLOWED to work full-time on a WHV. Of course heaps of people come over here and do just that- just don't let immigration or the tax offices find out and it's no problem.

However the scenario you're planning goes something like this (please correct me if I'm wrong)...

Work 1 year in China, then get a WHV (by going back to your home country- can't get it while in China) and come to Japan and work another year (full-time I assume or a couple part-time giggs). After that go back to China for another year of full-time experince then try to apply for a Japanese work visa having 3 years of relevant, FULL-TIME work experience and a company/school willing to sponsor you.

However, when you turn in copies of your Letters of Service & previous contracts to Japanese immigration and copies of your Japanese income tax receipts from your time in Japan (which you MUST provide- so DON'T LOSE THEM), they quickly discover (and they WILL discover this) that while you were in Japan on a WHV you were working FULL-TIME (or possibly more than one part-time job) and probably paying only 4-5% income tax (and not the 20% that's necessary for a WHV).

Based on the fact that you violated the terms of your WHV and evaded taxes, your application for a work visa would definitely be shot down. On top of it, if you're in the country on a tourist visa say, you could find the consequnces far worse- up to and including being booted out of the country and facing a hefty bill for back taxes and penalities. Not to mention they'd probably go after the company/school that employed you too.

A far better scenario would be to get your three years of full-time experience in China (or elswhere) THEN come here on a WHV and try to get the work visa while you're here with the WHV already. Don't know if your age precludes this or not.

Of course, we're talking 3-4 years here, in that time you could get a degree and all this discussion would be irrelevent (not tyring to be harsh or flipant, but it is an option).

Remember, immigration DOES keep detailed records and you won't be able to fool them.

As always, just trying to help. Good luck in whatever you choose!

Cheers,
ryuro

[Stosskraft]

ryuro,

Thanks for the detailed explanation. Now that is exactly what I was planning to do. Now with your information, that idea does not seem to smart given my future goal is to return to Japan and work full-time, once I have 3 years of full-time teaching experience.

I am now looking at reconsidering my options, and possibly going beck to Canada to earn a degree. Oh the though of going back to school at my age...(29).

I don't believe that I will be able to enter Japan on a WHV as I will be 31 at the time (I turn 29 this Sept) so, I will have to consider the other 2 options you suggested.

Funny, how things work a family tragedy forced my out of university in my first year, and into running the family business at the time. Before I started teaching this had always worked in my favor, as most companies I worked for in Canada preferred the "work experience" to "schooling". And now this very situation is working against me. Oh well I would not do anything differently and I will have to re-consider going back to school or staying put and teaching for 3 years.

I am I wrong in thinking that many of the teachers working on WHV are working full-time and or multiple part-time positions? Does this mean they are burning their bridges, if they plan on returning in the future? (given that they are degree-less)

Would I be able to realistically support myself working part-time given my qualifications (or lack of)?

Well thanks for the help and the information.