When you move from technical intern training to specified skilled worker, what happens to social and labour insurance? (food service, manufacturing)

Bottom line first: If you only change the residence status from technical intern training to Specified Skilled Worker (i) at the same company, the insured status for health insurance, employees' pension, workers' accident compensation and employment insurance in principle continues, and no loss or acquisition procedure is needed — because insurance attaches to the employment relationship, not to the residence status. When the move involves changing to another company, a loss procedure at the old company and an acquisition procedure at the new one are needed.

For a move in the food-service or manufacturing field, checking and handling social and labour insurance, and designing wages to meet the equal-pay requirement, is work that 四葉社会保険労務士事務所 takes on. The residence-status change application and the work of a registered support organisation belong to a Gyoseishoshi (四葉行政書士事務所); as an independent business entity separate from 四葉社会保険労務士事務所, you contract with each separately. This office takes no referral fee, and individual determinations are made by a qualified professional after a consultation.

From technical intern training to specified skilled worker, what happens to social insurance (health insurance, employees' pension)?

Both a technical intern and a specified skilled worker, if they are workers used by a covered workplace, are insured for health insurance and employees' pension just like Japanese workers. Whether someone is insured is decided by the employment relationship with the covered workplace, not by the type of residence status (Health Insurance Act Article 3, paragraph 1; Employees' Pension Insurance Act Article 9).

So if you only change the residence status from technical intern training to Specified Skilled Worker (i) at the same company and the employment is not interrupted, the insured status simply continues. There is no need to file a loss notification or an acquisition notification again.

Form of the move	Social insurance (health / pension) procedure
Only the residence status changes, same company	Status continues. Loss / acquisition procedures in principle not needed
The move involves changing to another company	Loss notification at the old company, acquisition notification at the new company
An unpaid gap arises before the move and the employment contract ends	The treatment of the gap changes the result; confirm the break in the contract and judge individually

The difference between the residence statuses and the whole picture of the system are set out in Technical intern training, employment for skill development, and specified skilled worker — differences in work and labour management, and the labour management for a move in the care field is in Labour and social insurance when hiring a care-field specified skilled worker. The individual application of things like the treatment of social insurance during a gap turns on the reality of the contract and employment (unverified).

Do the insured statuses for labour insurance (workers' accident) and employment insurance continue?

Workers' accident compensation insurance applies to any worker who is used by a business and paid wages, regardless of nationality or residence status. It is not a scheme you "join" by a specific notification; you are covered within the insurance relationship of the business. Even when moving from technical intern training to specified skilled worker, being covered by workers' accident insurance does not change as long as the person keeps working at the same business.

For employment insurance, a worker who meets requirements such as scheduled working hours of 20 or more per week and an expected employment of 31 days or more becomes insured (Employment Insurance Act; exclusions are in Article 6). If the requirements are met, the insured status continues even when the residence status changes from technical intern training to specified skilled worker, and there is no need to re-file an acquisition notification.

Insurance	Treatment after the move (continued employment at the same company)
Workers' accident insurance	Any worker is covered as a matter of course; no procedure needed for a residence-status change
Employment insurance	If requirements such as 20 hours/week and an expected 31 days are met, the insured status continues

On the other hand, the notification of the employment status of a foreign national is needed on hiring and on separation. In a move that involves changing companies, the old company makes the separation notification and the new company makes the hiring notification. The forms and deadlines are compiled in When you hire a foreign national, notify Hello Work. Whether a notification is needed when the residence status alone changes for a continuing employee should be confirmed individually (unverified).

How does the equal-pay requirement affect social insurance?

A Specified Skilled Worker (i)'s employment contract carries a standard that the amount of pay is equal to or higher than the amount when a Japanese worker does the work (Ministerial Ordinance to Provide the Standards etc. for the Specified Skilled Worker Employment Contract and the Support Plan for a Specified Skilled Worker (i) (Ordinance of the Ministry of Justice No. 5 of 2019), Article 1, paragraph 1, item 3). Item 2 of the same paragraph also requires that scheduled working hours be equal to those of an ordinary worker.

It is not unusual for pay to rise above the level during technical intern training. Here, what the labour side checks is the reflection in the standard monthly remuneration. When fixed wages change and a difference of two grades or more arises in the standard monthly remuneration based on the pay over the three months after the change, a revision (a monthly-remuneration-change notification) becomes due (Health Insurance Act Article 43, Employees' Pension Insurance Act Article 23). If it is revised, the premiums change too.

What to check	Content
Equal-pay requirement	Equal to or higher than when a Japanese worker does the work (Ordinance Article 1, para. 1, item 3). Check the level against the wage rules
Scheduled working hours	Equal to those of an ordinary worker (item 2 of the same paragraph)
Standard monthly remuneration	If a fixed-wage change produces a two-grade-or-more difference, a revision (monthly-remuneration-change notification) is due

The final application of whether pay is "equal or higher" changes with whether there is a comparable Japanese worker and with the job content. The difference between the regular determination and the revision of the standard monthly remuneration is in What is the difference between the base-calculation notification and the monthly-remuneration-change notification, and the labour management for opening a restaurant is in Labour management when opening a restaurant — late-night shifts and deemed working hours.

Who do you assign the residence procedure and the labour work to?

At the time of the move, the residence-status procedure and the labour procedure run at the same time. Because the qualifications in charge differ, each is a separate contract.

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Procedure	In charge
Residence-status change application; support plan and support work as a registered support organisation	Gyoseishoshi (四葉行政書士事務所, a business entity separate from this office)
Checking and handling social and labour insurance; designing wage rules and pay levels; preparing work rules	Shakai Hoken Roumushi (四葉社会保険労務士事務所)
Exit procedures such as the lump-sum withdrawal payment of the pension on returning home	Shakai Hoken Roumushi (What happens to the pension of an employee returning home)

The whole picture of how many windows you need to hire one foreign national is set out in How many windows do you need to hire one foreign national. 四葉社会保険労務士事務所 accepts work as an independent business entity, and where another professional such as a Gyoseishoshi is needed, we introduce them under a contract you conclude directly. This office takes no referral fee.

What can 四葉社会保険労務士事務所 do?

What this office takes on is designing and handling the labour when moving from technical intern training to specified skilled worker in the food-service or manufacturing field.

• Confirming that the insured status for social and labour insurance continues where employment continues at the same company
• Handling loss and acquisition notifications where the move involves changing companies
• Designing wage rules and pay levels to meet the requirement of pay equal to or higher than a Japanese worker's
• Judging and handling the revision of the standard monthly remuneration (monthly-remuneration-change notification) that a pay rise brings
• Preparing employment management such as work rules, notice of working conditions, and the notification of the employment status of a foreign national

The residence-status change application and the work of a registered support organisation are a Gyoseishoshi's area. 四葉社会保険労務士事務所 accepts work as an independent business entity, and where another professional such as a Gyoseishoshi (四葉行政書士事務所) is needed, we introduce them under a contract you conclude directly, separately. There is no referral fee.

Consultations are free of charge. Fees are set out in the fee schedule; see also our services and how a consultation proceeds.

Frequently asked questions

Q. If I change from technical intern training to specified skilled worker at the same company, is a social-insurance procedure needed?
A. Where you only change the residence status without interrupting employment, the insured status for health insurance and employees' pension simply continues, and in principle you do not need to file a loss notification or acquisition notification again. This is because whether someone is insured is decided by the employment relationship with the covered workplace, not by the type of residence status (Health Insurance Act Article 3, paragraph 1; Employees' Pension Insurance Act Article 9). When the move is to another company, a loss procedure at the old company and an acquisition procedure at the new one are needed.

Q. Do workers' accident insurance and employment insurance continue after the move?
A. Workers' accident insurance covers any worker used by a business and paid wages, regardless of nationality or residence status, and being covered does not change as long as the person works at the same business. Employment insurance continues if requirements such as 20 or more hours a week and an expected 31 days or more are met. In a move that involves changing companies, the notification of the employment status of a foreign national is needed on hiring and on separation.

Q. If pay rises under specified skilled worker, do social-insurance premiums rise?
A. They can. Specified Skilled Worker (i) carries a standard that pay is equal to or higher than a Japanese worker's (Ordinance Article 1, paragraph 1, item 3), and if a fixed-wage change produces a two-grade-or-more difference in the standard monthly remuneration over the three months after the change, a revision (monthly-remuneration-change notification) becomes due (Health Insurance Act Article 43, Employees' Pension Insurance Act Article 23). If the standard monthly remuneration rises, the premiums rise too.

Q. Can I also ask a Shakai Hoken Roumushi to do the residence-status change application?
A. The residence-status change application and the work of a registered support organisation are a Gyoseishoshi's area, and a Shakai Hoken Roumushi does not do them. 四葉社会保険労務士事務所 handles social and labour insurance and wage/employment management, and the residence procedure is handled by a Gyoseishoshi (四葉行政書士事務所). The two are independent business entities, and you contract with each separately. This office takes no referral fee.

Basis for this article

• Health Insurance Act (Act No. 70 of 1922) Article 3, paragraph 1 — the insured is a person used by a covered workplace; insured status attaches to the employment relationship, not to the type of residence status
• Employees' Pension Insurance Act (Act No. 115 of 1954) Article 9 — a person under 70 used by a covered workplace is insured
• Health Insurance Act Article 43 and Employees' Pension Insurance Act Article 23 — revision of the standard monthly remuneration where a fixed-wage change produces a marked difference (in practice, three months after the change and a two-grade-or-more difference are the guide)
• Employment Insurance Act (Act No. 116 of 1974) — the insured and exclusions (Article 6). A worker meeting requirements such as 20 or more hours a week and an expected 31 days or more is insured
• Workers' Accident Compensation Insurance Act (Act No. 50 of 1947) — applies to a business that uses workers, regardless of nationality or residence status
• Ministerial Ordinance to Provide the Standards etc. for the Specified Skilled Worker Employment Contract and the Support Plan for a Specified Skilled Worker (i) (Ordinance of the Ministry of Justice No. 5 of 2019) Article 1, paragraph 1, item 2 (equal scheduled working hours) and item 3 (pay equal to or higher than a Japanese worker's) (e-Gov Law Search, accessed 19 September 2026)
• Act on Comprehensively Advancing Labour Policies, etc. Article 28, paragraph 1 — notification of the employment status of a foreign national (on hiring and on separation)
• The treatment of social insurance during a gap in a same-company residence-status change, and whether the notification of the employment status of a foreign national is needed when the residence status alone changes for a continuing employee, turn on the reality of the contract and employment. This article does not conclude on the individual case (unverified)

This article is general information. Individual determinations are made by a qualified professional after a consultation, in light of individual circumstances. 四葉社会保険労務士事務所 can advise on the continuation of insured status and loss/acquisition procedures for social and labour insurance on a move from technical intern training to specified skilled worker, designing wage rules to meet the equal-pay requirement, revising the standard monthly remuneration, and preparing employment management such as work rules and the notification of the employment status of a foreign national. The residence-status change application and registered support organisation work are handled by a Gyoseishoshi (四葉行政書士事務所), and 四葉社会保険労務士事務所 accepts work as an independent business entity. Where another professional is needed, we introduce them under a contract you conclude directly, separately; there is no referral fee. Frequently asked questions are collected in the FAQ. Written by Joji Uramatsu (Shakai Hoken Roumushi, Gyoseishoshi, Registered Real Estate Transaction Specialist).