Employer of record in Japan
31 sourced figures on hiring in Japan, drawn from 12 sources and normalized for comparison: statutory rules, employer cost and exactly what an EOR covers locally. Every figure is dated.
Hiring here: moderately complex, mid-range on cost, and fast to hire via EOR.
Employer of record in Japan: the statutory snapshot
The headline employer costs, pay floor and worker protections for hiring in Japan through an employer of record, each figure sourced and dated. 44 EOR providers cover Japan.
| Minimum wage | JPY 182,726/mo | ILOSTAT, 2024-01-01 |
|---|---|---|
| Employer social security | 15.66% | OECD |
| Total tax wedge | 33.12% | OECD |
| Corporate tax | 21.37% | OECD |
| Average income tax | 7.95% | OECD |
| Notice period | 4.3 weeks | ILO EPLex, 2026-01-01 |
| Severance | None | World Bank Employing Workers / B-READY, 2019-05-01 |
| Annual leave | 10 days | National government, 2026-01-01 |
As of 2026-08-30. Each value is the winning figure from primary and harmonized sources, resolved by a documented priority chain. Full record with provenance below.
Reading the data
What the figures say about Japan
Employing someone in Japan carries a total tax wedge of 33.12%, built from an employer social security contribution of 15.66% and an employee-side rate of 14.7%. The statutory minimum wage stands at JPY 182,726 per month, while the average monthly wage of employees reaches JPY 307,400, giving employers a clear sense of where market pay sits relative to the legal floor. At the top end, personal income tax peaks at 45%, and the corporate tax rate is 21.37%. The standard working week is set at 40 hours, though actual weekly hours worked come in at 37, against an annual figure of 1,617 hours per year. Exit costs are relatively low on paper: there is no statutory severance, and the required notice period is 4.3 weeks, though Japan's employment protection index score of 2.08 on a 0 to 6 scale signals that dismissal of regular-contract workers carries meaningful procedural weight, with regular contracts scoring 2.10 specifically. On leave, employers must budget for 14 weeks of maternity leave, 56.1 weeks of paternity leave, and 44 weeks of parental leave, plus 16 public holidays per year.
Where to start
Three ways to hire in Japan
You are the employer. Lowest per head cost at scale, months to establish.
You direct the work, the provider's local entity is the employer on paper. Compliant in days.
See the 44 providers below ↓Not your employee. Fastest and cheapest, with misclassification exposure.
The full record
Every figure behind the snapshot
Not a guide, a record: 31 figures for Japan from 12 sources, last refreshed 2026-08-30. Each value carries its source and the date it was pulled. Hover any provenance tag for the full chain.
The differentiator
What an EOR handles in Japan
An EOR removes the entity and the payroll machinery. It does not remove your obligations as the people manager.
Provider × country
Who can employ in Japan
44 providers operate an EOR in Japan, ranked by Select Score.
Comparing EOR options for Japan?
Run a side-by-side on the providers that actually operate there.