Job Discussion Forums

Dray · Joined: 05 Feb 2006 Posts: 31 Location: England

I have a couple years of teaching experience in Japan and some in Europe too. Having spent plenty of time working for others, I would like to now work for myself. I am currently in England, but hope to head to Asia soon. Ideally, I would like to work for myself - starting out with a few private students and taking it from there. Never mind the whole business of getting students in the first place (I'm aware it's not easy), how about the legal side of things? How easy (or expensive) is it for a foreigner to be self employed in Japan (or another Asian country)? Could anybody point in the right direction for some information on that kind of thing?

Glenski · Joined: 15 Jan 2003 Posts: 12844 Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

Whether you take on private lessons or string together part-time work or take a full-time job, you must have a proper visa (in Japan, anyway). Getting caught without one imposes some serious potential ramifications:

3 million yen fine
detention up to 23 days without a lawyer (longer if warranted)
deportation at your expense
being blacklisted from returning to Japan for 5-10 years

So, if you want to work for yourself, you'll probably have to get a work visa first, which means finding an employer to hire you and to sponsor the visa. After one year, you can change sponsorship such that you are on what is loosely called "self-sponsorship", but you still really need some company(ies)/school(s) to tell immigration that you are making a total income of a certain amount.

If you're British, you may also be eligible for a working holiday visa (12-month maximum duration, only once in your life), which doesn't require an employer to sponsor you.

dvasas · Joined: 31 Jan 2006 Posts: 138 Location: Taipei, Taiwan

saint57 · Posted: Wed Nov 29, 2006 9:48 am Post subject:

I can tell you that Malaysia is absolutely not the place to do this sort of thing.

When I was in Korea some people lived exclusively off privates. I tend think most of them lied about how much money they made. From what I hear, it's much more difficult to do this in Korea now.

I think it would be difficult to do it in China. I lived in Shanghai. Plenty of people make good money illegally, but it's usually from working at one kindergarten.

I always hear Taiwan is the place to do privates. I really haven't heard much about it in the past two years though.

What are your motivations for doing this?

chacma · Joined: 29 Nov 2006 Posts: 13

saint57 · Posted: Thu Nov 30, 2006 12:50 pm Post subject:

If you have a legit full-time job and want to do extra lessons, I imagine that there are actually more opportunities. They cracked down on people working illegally. I suspect leaving Korea for a few days every three months would put up a pretty big red flag.

Yaya · Posted: Sun May 13, 2007 8:47 am Post subject:

What Korean officials did was to disable Korean ATM cards from working abroad. Teachers would make their money, put it in a bank account and then withdraw the dough from their home countries.

Llamalicious · Posted: Wed May 16, 2007 9:52 am Post subject:

I wouldn't recommend Indonesia, either.

I did meet a few people who were doing it, but it is illegal and I know at least one of them has been fined and deported (5 years).

Here, the work visa states that you're only allowed to draw salary from one employer, but privates on the side are no problem.

Er, if you know what I mean...

desultude · Joined: 19 Jan 2003 Posts: 614

lmbeharry

I lived in Korea for two years. I knew several foreigners who had married Korean females. They had a pretty plush time of it...

lmbeharry

Sorry, my last remark was sexist. I assumed you were male.

I believe that I should have said, if you marry a Korean national, it seems to me that starting a business is not too difficult.

Lyndon