Quitting your job in Japan
2018/10/20
The day has come that you had enough of your current job or found a better job. When you decide to quit your job in Japan, it can be a challenge to know the procedure of how to quit. I also decided to quit my job recently and have had the same situation as many of you are in right now.
These are the steps that I took when I decided to quit my job.
Notify the company
Resignation letter
First of all what you have to do is to notify the company that you decided to quit your job. In most cases and also in my case, the company tries to prevent you from leaving as you are a valuable member of the team. Also, you will have an interview as they want to know what made you decide to leave your job.
Some questions to expect during the interview are as follows:
After the interviews, it is time to hand in your resignation letter to the company. As for the resignation letter template, the company usually has an excel template that you fill in if you cannot find it you can ask your HR department about it. If your company does not have a format, you could download it from MyNavi here. You have to hand it into your boss in person. It is best to also send it by email as proof to show when you submitted your resignation letter.
Announcing that you are leaving the company
Almost all companies usually require you to give your resignation notice two or three months in advance. According to the law, you can quit after a two-week notice, so you do not really have to obey that rule. Keep in mind if you want to leave on good terms, that it is best to give the company some more time to find someone to replace you. As for me as I was not in a rush, I decided to give the company two months notice.
Returning company items
On your final day make sure that you give back all the items that you received from your company.
Below you can find a sample list of things that you have to give back.
In case you have forgotten something, you have to go back to the company which is not something that you want to do. Hand all your company items to the HR department and then you are ready to get out of the office and never come back!
Gift for coworkers
On your last day make sure to bring a small gift (usually candy) to hand out to your co-workers. It does not have to be expensive, but it shows that your appreciation to your coworkers. If possible, you could give them a special gift from your own country.
Letter of release
In case you are in between jobs, it is wise to also request a "rishoku-hyo", or in English letter of release from the company. This letter of release will determine if you can receive unemployment benefits. Sometimes your next company could request it as well. If you are between jobs for more than two weeks you also need it to change your health insurance plan to the national health insurance plan.
If you leave at your own initiative you will not receive unemployment benefits for the first three months. To read more about unemployment benefits click here.
Notifying immigration
Lastly, when you change your job or are in between jobs, you have to notify the immigration. The rule is to notify them within two weeks after your departure from the company. It seems like the immigration is not that strict about the rules as long as your visa is valid, but I would not risk any trouble with immigration as it might cause a problem when you have to renew your visa. You can easily notify the Immigration Bureau online, click here to read how to notify the Immigration Bureau online.
If you are in between jobs, make sure to check out our articles on how to get a job in Japan.
Good luck with changing your job and to a bright future!
Also, if you have any questions or would like to add something to this article, please send an email or let me know in the comment section below.
