Things to Look Out for when Doing Up a Business Plan for a Business Manager Visa Application – Business Plan Contents and Precautions

When applying for a business manager visa, it is necessary to submit a business plan. This business plan is also an important document that determines whether your visa will be approved or not.

In this article, we will discuss some points to consider when drafting a business plan.

What kind of “business plan” is required when applying for a business manager visa?

What kind of document is the business plan that must be submitted when applying for a business manager visa? Let’s look at the outline first.

Outline of Business Plan

A business plan is an essential document when applying for a business manager visa, and is one of the criteria that is emphasized in the visa application examination.

Academic background and management experience are not required when applying for a business manager visa. Since no experience is required, it is important to clearly demonstrate how you can stably manage your business in Japan.

Although there are many aspects of management and business that you won’t know unless you try, you probably won't be able to obtain a business manager visa on the assumption that you will fail from the beginning. It is necessary to write a plan for the business on how you plan to manage your upcoming company to get the Immigration Bureau's consent.

Appropriate Volume of Business Plan Content

How much documentation should I aim for when creating a business plan?

It depends on the software you use to create it, such as Word or PowerPoint, but it's common to put together around 10 sheets of A4 paper. If there is too much volume, it may be difficult for the examiners to grasp all the contents.

Ideally, you should use charts and graphs as much as possible, and add appropriate descriptive text. It's a good idea to make it easy for the reader to quickly understand the content. Also, if you have a product, it is recommended to post a photo.

It is not always good to have a huge number of sheets, so try to create a business plan that is easy to convey to the judges.

Contents to be Stated in the Business Plan when Applying for a Business Manager Visa

What should be included in the business plan when applying for a business manager visa?

Proof that you Meet the Requirements for Obtaining a Business Manager Visa

If you want to obtain a business manager visa, you must first meet the requirements.

It must be clearly proven that the business site exists in Japan, the size of the business, the presence or absence of capital for conducting the business, etc., and that the conditions stipulated in the guidelines are met.

Clear & Detailed Information of the Business

Write a detailed overview of your business, including information about what kind of business you are starting and your management philosophy. Bullet points make the content easier to read. Below is a description of what should be included.

Business content

Explain what kind of service or business you do by posting diagrams and pictures of your products. It is recommended to use pictures and diagrams of the actual product, as it will be easier to understand.

What is the revenue forecast and basis?

Your visa may be rejected if your sales forecast is too vague. It should be stated so that a clear basis can be shown, such as the number of units sold x the unit price of the product.

If you have already started a business, it is a good idea to prepare and submit financial reports.

Suppliers

If you are planning to sell products, include detailed information on clients and/or supplier (address, telephone number, company name, name of the person in charge, estimated annual transaction amount, etc.).

If you offer a service, explain what you are selling.

Management career

List the manager's work history. If you have previous management experience, it will be slightly more advantageous to list it. Eg, it would be a good idea to add that you were a leader during your part-time job.

Employee hiring plans

After creating a notice of working conditions, enter the information (address, name, phone number, etc.) of the employee (including part-time workers) you are planning to hire.

It will be important to describe in as much detail as possible the overview of the business and management philosophy listed above, and to clearly convey that the purpose of entering Japan is business.

Plan for stable business continuity

In order to obtain a business manager visa, the most important thing is the stability and continuity of the business. To do that, you have to explain how you plan to operate the business for the long term. Below is a summary of what should be included.

Describe the above in detail to appeal the stability and continuity of your business.

In addition, business management visas are often granted with a period of stay of one year, but when renewing a business management visa, the same conditions as the first application will be reviewed.

Things to Note when Drafting a Business Plan

I will explain what you should pay attention to when creating a business plan for a business manager visa.

A certain level of Japanese proficiency is required to create a business plan

The business plan to be submitted when applying for a business manager visa must be written in Japanese, as it will be submitted to the Immigration Bureau of Japan.

If the business plan is written by a foreigner who is not good at Japanese, there may be cases where the content is not understood at the time of screening, or misunderstandings are caused because the correct meaning is not conveyed.

Even if you have a management philosophy, if the language is not understood and permission is denied, you will not be able to start a business in Japan.

Although it might be costly, we recommend that you hire a professional translation company if you are unsure of your Japanese ability. Also, if you ask an immigration lawyer, including application support, you may be able to get translation done on your behalf.

In some cases, the screening process is strict when inviting someone to work at an acquaintance's company.

If you apply for a business manager visa to invite an acquaintance to the company, the examination will be strict. Be especially careful when inviting relatives or family members, as they may be suspected of entering the country under disguise.

In fact, there are cases where people obtain a business manager visa simply because they want their family members or relatives to live in Japan, but in actuality they are not involved in management.

If your parents or relatives really want to obtain a business manager visa, your business and management experience, educational background, purpose and content of starting a business, your level of understanding of Japanese, etc. will be strictly checked, so their application must be proceeded with care.

Summary

It is very important to create a business plan when applying for a business manager visa.

First and foremost, you should rationally explain how you will stabilize and ensure business continuity for your company. In addition, explain in detail why you want to do your business in Japan and what kind of activities you need to do to manage and operate it well. However, in order for the judges to understand easily, it is important to summarize the contents in correct and concise Japanese.

At Samurai Immigration Law Firm, we also support the creation of business plans for business management visa applications. If you want to start your business in Japan without any hiccups, or if you are worried about preparing documents in Japanese, or if you want to invite your relatives and acquaintances to obtain a business manager visa, please don’t hesitate to contact us to learn more.