5 ms·

Ask HN: Moving to Tokyo as a software engineer

17 points by japanaway 9y ago

I have noticed that there are many folks living in Japan as a software engineer on here, and I figured this would be one of the best places to ask this. How hard is it to find work in Tokyo for someone that does not speak Japanese? I'm in my mid-20s, at the 'senior' level equivalent at a FAANG company, and willing to take a pay cut for the experience.

dvhh 9y ago
You might need to find a company that provide visa sponsorship, some recruiting company are willing to do the paperwork, there is a surprising amount of company in Tokyo where you could work using only English. Although Everyday life could be difficult without knowing a little of Japanese language and renting apartment is quite expensive at the start.
TokyoKid 9y ago
There's a secret way to go to Japan on a very long visa: start your own company with a Japanese co-fouder and go there on a management visa. You can get up to a 5-year visa and it does NOT require a $50k investment. If you want to stay longer, the only option through marriage.
- japanaway 9y ago
  > start your own company with a Japanese co-fouder and go there on a management visa Will look into this, thanks!
- agibsonccc 9y ago
  This is what I did. I hired someone already local and he handed the company to me (didn't want risk, mainly wanted the salary, we were already well funded) Be aware it does take a bit of capital though.
  - TokyoKid 9y ago
    Is there anyway we could get in touch? I'd like to have someone I could ask questions once I do this myself.
    - agibsonccc 9y ago
      Email is in profile.
seanmcdirmid 9y ago
Tokyo in general pays less than America or even China for software engineers, just be warned. If you are at Google, you can see if you can work in their office there. Facebook also has a Japanese operation, but most of it is localization rather than worldwide R&D. A friend of mine worked as a designer for Phillips for a few years and enjoyed it, but I don't know of many engineers who did the same. To be honest, if you really are that senior, it would be much easier and financially rewarding to work in China if you are interested in Asia.
- japanaway 9y ago
  Wow, I knew that Japan compensated engineers poorly but didn't realize that China pays well in comparison. Unfortunately, money isn't as much the issue. I can afford and would be willing to live in Tokyo for a couple years and work on side projects, but this is not possible visa-wise.
  - seanmcdirmid 9y ago
    It isn't that Japan compensates senior engineers poorly, it is just that China compensates them well. If all you want to do is work away there and you aren't concerned about pay, maybe you could get a job as a visiting researcher or teacher.
    - japanaway 9y ago
      My rationale for wanting to continue in tech is that my CV will not have weird gaps like "took a year off to teach English" and the money is presumably still better, even despite the low salaries there.
      - seanmcdirmid 9y ago
        If you are actually a senior programmer in a FAANG company while just being your mid 20s, a gap year is not going to affect your resume much at all.
    - segmondy 9y ago
dbosch 9y ago
I don't know your citizenship. But if you are from an eligible country (france, UK, Germany...) you are still eligible for a Working Holiday visa. It's a 1 year visa, quite easy to get. Unfortunately, the US citizens are not allowed to obtain this visa. I lived in Tokyo for a year, and it's actually quite easy to get a job as a computer engineer there. Several of my friend came with a tourist visa (or Working Holiday visa) and managed to get a visa sponsorship from companies who wanted to hire them. I'm not saying it's super easy, but it is doable. And believe me, there is a shortage of web / mobile engineer in Tokyo. Finally, don't worry too much about the gap year. Just go there and you'll find something. Go to events and meetups and you ll find plenty of people to talk to. You'll find a lot of opportunities that way. Wish you the best
- japanaway 9y ago
  Unfortunately my US citizenship precludes the working holiday route. I will look in to attending meetups the next time I'm over there, though.
  - dbosch 9y ago
    check out the '500 startups' meetup: https://500startups.jp/bilinguals-gaijins-in-startups/ https://500startups.jp/bilinguals-gaijins-in-startups/ plenty of startups of their portfolio looking for engineers you can also have a look at this guy blog: http://www.tokyodev.com/ http://www.tokyodev.com/ lots of tips on how to work as a gaijin engineer in japan
cattlefarmer 9y ago
You're also welcomed to join the hntokoy slack channel. There was a thread just last week asking exactly the same question. https://hntokyo.io https://hntokyo.io
- japanaway 9y ago
  I'll check it out, thank you!
zumu 9y ago
Try to work for a western company -- you will most likely get paid more, and the culture will be much more relaxed. Being in Japan will be enough of a culture shock, imho.

17 points by japanaway 9y ago

dvhh 9y ago

You might need to find a company that provide visa sponsorship, some recruiting company are willing to do the paperwork, there is a surprising amount of company in Tokyo where you could work using only English. Although Everyday life could be difficult without knowing a little of Japanese language and renting apartment is quite expensive at the start.

TokyoKid 9y ago

There's a secret way to go to Japan on a very long visa: start your own company with a Japanese co-fouder and go there on a management visa. You can get up to a 5-year visa and it does NOT require a $50k investment. If you want to stay longer, the only option through marriage.

japanaway 9y ago
> start your own company with a Japanese co-fouder and go there on a management visa Will look into this, thanks!
agibsonccc 9y ago
This is what I did. I hired someone already local and he handed the company to me (didn't want risk, mainly wanted the salary, we were already well funded) Be aware it does take a bit of capital though.
- TokyoKid 9y ago
  Is there anyway we could get in touch? I'd like to have someone I could ask questions once I do this myself.
  - agibsonccc 9y ago
    Email is in profile.

seanmcdirmid 9y ago

Tokyo in general pays less than America or even China for software engineers, just be warned. If you are at Google, you can see if you can work in their office there. Facebook also has a Japanese operation, but most of it is localization rather than worldwide R&D. A friend of mine worked as a designer for Phillips for a few years and enjoyed it, but I don't know of many engineers who did the same. To be honest, if you really are that senior, it would be much easier and financially rewarding to work in China if you are interested in Asia.

japanaway 9y ago
Wow, I knew that Japan compensated engineers poorly but didn't realize that China pays well in comparison. Unfortunately, money isn't as much the issue. I can afford and would be willing to live in Tokyo for a couple years and work on side projects, but this is not possible visa-wise.
- seanmcdirmid 9y ago
  It isn't that Japan compensates senior engineers poorly, it is just that China compensates them well. If all you want to do is work away there and you aren't concerned about pay, maybe you could get a job as a visiting researcher or teacher.
  - japanaway 9y ago
    My rationale for wanting to continue in tech is that my CV will not have weird gaps like "took a year off to teach English" and the money is presumably still better, even despite the low salaries there.
    - seanmcdirmid 9y ago
      If you are actually a senior programmer in a FAANG company while just being your mid 20s, a gap year is not going to affect your resume much at all.
  - segmondy 9y ago

dbosch 9y ago

I don't know your citizenship. But if you are from an eligible country (france, UK, Germany...) you are still eligible for a Working Holiday visa. It's a 1 year visa, quite easy to get. Unfortunately, the US citizens are not allowed to obtain this visa. I lived in Tokyo for a year, and it's actually quite easy to get a job as a computer engineer there. Several of my friend came with a tourist visa (or Working Holiday visa) and managed to get a visa sponsorship from companies who wanted to hire them. I'm not saying it's super easy, but it is doable. And believe me, there is a shortage of web / mobile engineer in Tokyo. Finally, don't worry too much about the gap year. Just go there and you'll find something. Go to events and meetups and you ll find plenty of people to talk to. You'll find a lot of opportunities that way. Wish you the best

japanaway 9y ago
Unfortunately my US citizenship precludes the working holiday route. I will look in to attending meetups the next time I'm over there, though.
- dbosch 9y ago
  check out the '500 startups' meetup: https://500startups.jp/bilinguals-gaijins-in-startups/ https://500startups.jp/bilinguals-gaijins-in-startups/ plenty of startups of their portfolio looking for engineers you can also have a look at this guy blog: http://www.tokyodev.com/ http://www.tokyodev.com/ lots of tips on how to work as a gaijin engineer in japan

cattlefarmer 9y ago

You're also welcomed to join the hntokoy slack channel. There was a thread just last week asking exactly the same question. https://hntokyo.io https://hntokyo.io

japanaway 9y ago
I'll check it out, thank you!

zumu 9y ago

Try to work for a western company -- you will most likely get paid more, and the culture will be much more relaxed. Being in Japan will be enough of a culture shock, imho.