Labor and social insurance when you remotely employ an overseas resident (China, Taiwan) — a locally hired worker who never comes to Japan

In short: When you directly employ, on a remote basis, a person living in China or Taiwan without bringing them to Japan, the Labour Standards Act follows the territoriality principle and does not automatically apply to an overseas place of work. Health insurance and employees' pension turn on the employment relationship with an applicable workplace; employment insurance and workers' accident insurance, in principle, do not apply to a locally hired person working outside Japan. Because the person does not come to Japan, a residence status is in principle unnecessary.

For HR and management at Japanese companies that want to directly employ overseas talent without bringing them to Japan, this article organizes the application of labor and social insurance from the viewpoint of a Shakai Hoken Roumushi. The premise is neither a "posting" nor a "secondment" nor a "business trip," but employing someone who lives abroad from the outset — a locally hired, remote arrangement. Because individual application varies with the facts, points that are not settled are flagged as "not verified."

How does remote employment of an overseas resident differ from a posting or secondment?

Even for the same "working overseas," the application depends on which business the person belongs to and whose direction they are under. First, separate three types.

Type	Typical case	Relation to this article
Overseas business trip	Temporarily going abroad while belonging to a domestic workplace	Domestic direction continues, so domestic systems tend to reach
Overseas posting (secondment)	A domestic employer dispatches a worker to an overseas business	Workers' accident insurance handled by special enrollment; subject to social security agreement coordination
Locally hired remote employment	Directly employing a person living abroad who does not come to Japan	The subject of this article. Work outside Japan, outside the scope of special enrollment

For the difference in workers' accident insurance between a trip and a posting, see an overseas business trip and an overseas posting are completely different for workers' accident insurance; for the Japan–China agreement that prevents double enrollment for a posting, see social insurance for staff stationed in or from China; for the approach when receiving someone on secondment, see social insurance when you hire or receive on secondment from Taiwan. This article narrows to the case of "directly employing without the person coming to Japan," which differs from all of these.

Do the Labour Standards Act and minimum wage apply to an employee working overseas?

The Labour Standards Act follows the territoriality principle. It applies in principle to workers used in a business within Japan, and it does not automatically reach a person who works at an overseas place of work. Accordingly, the working conditions of a person who lives abroad and works abroad are considered, in principle, with the labor law of the place of work (China, Taiwan, etc.) as the axis.

However, which country's labor law applies, and how far Japanese law reaches if it is set as the governing law in the contract, are legal judgments involving private international law and each country's mandatory rules — not something a Shakai Hoken Roumushi can settle. We assign that to an attorney. In practice, the starting point for design is to "use the local labor law as the standard while clearly putting in writing, in the employment contract, the working conditions the company will uphold."

How are health insurance, employees' pension, employment insurance, and workers' accident insurance treated?

The axis of judgment differs by system. On the premise of a locally hired, no-visit remote arrangement, the basic organization is as follows.

System	Basic approach (no-visit remote employment)
Health insurance / employees' pension	Judged by whether the person is "used" at an applicable workplace. Employee insurance has no domestic-residence requirement, but whether an employment relationship is recognized for a no-visit local hire is highly fact-specific — a matter to confirm with the pension office (not verified)
Employment insurance	A locally hired person working outside Japan is in principle not an insured person. Different from an overseas business trip, where the person belongs to a domestic workplace and is under its direction
Workers' accident insurance	Work in an overseas business is outside the scope of domestic workers' accident insurance. Special enrollment for overseas postings targets "a person dispatched from a domestic employer to an overseas business," so a locally hired person is not covered

The key point: with special enrollment for overseas postings, a person can be covered even for work outside Japan — but its scope is a worker dispatched by a domestic employer to an overseas business, and it does not include a locally hired person or a business traveler. A no-visit remote arrangement resembles a local hire and often cannot be covered by special enrollment, so you need to separately consider how the company will handle compensation for any work-related injury or illness (such as private insurance).

For health insurance and employees' pension, employee insurance has no domestic-residence requirement, but whether a person who works abroad without coming to Japan can be treated as "an insured person used at a Japanese applicable workplace" is judged by the actual employment relationship and is not uniform. It also relates to health insurance's benefits in kind (how care received abroad is treated). Whether insured-person status exists is a matter judged by the pension office and the Japan Pension Service according to the facts, and this article does not state a settled conclusion (not verified).

Note that a social security agreement is mainly a mechanism to coordinate the double pension-contribution burden that accompanies a "posting" from one country to another. The agreement between Japan and China took effect on September 1, 2019; it covers public pensions only and has no provision for totalization of coverage periods. There is no social security agreement between Japan and Taiwan. Both are coordination mechanisms premised on a "posting," and there are limited situations where an agreement's certificate of coverage can be used as-is for a no-visit, locally hired remote arrangement.

How should you design the management of working hours, premium pay, and work rules?

Even on the premise that the Japanese Labour Standards Act does not automatically reach, matters the company should manage remain. Using local law as the standard, clarifying the following in the employment contract and internal rules helps avoid later trouble.

• Put the governing law and applicable labor law in writing: state in the contract which country's labor law is the standard, and how working hours, days off, premium pay, and the overtime cap are treated. The ultimate effect of the governing law is a matter for an attorney.
• Decide how working hours are grasped: for remote work in a country with a time difference, set the working hours, the times the person is reachable, and the treatment of breaks in advance. For the approach to working-hour management in domestic telework, working hours and costs of telework / work-from-home is a reference.
• Organize the payment method, currency, and taxation of wages: confirm with a tax accountant in which currency and when to pay, and whether withholding (non-resident taxation) applies.
• Confirm the scope of the work rules: Japanese work rules cannot always be applied as-is to an overseas resident. Organize the scope of application and the priority relationship with local law.

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These come as a set with the legal judgment of "which country's law ultimately prevails." We assign that judgment to an attorney, and the Shakai Hoken Roumushi handles the labor design manageable on the Japanese side (written contracts, how working hours are grasped, maintaining internal rules).

Who should handle taxation and the governing law?

Directly employing a no-visit overseas resident involves separate professionals. The premise is that each is a separate, independent entity and is contracted separately.

What to do	Main person in charge
Labor design on the Japanese side, maintaining the employment contract and internal rules, organizing any Japanese social insurance that may apply	Shakai Hoken Roumushi (our office)
Withholding, non-resident taxation, and the international taxation of permanent establishment (PE)	Tax accountant
Legal judgment on the governing law and applicable labor law; labor disputes	Attorney
Application of labor law, social insurance, and tax on the China/Taiwan side	Local professionals / authorities

A person who works abroad without coming to Japan does not reside in Japan, so a residence status (work visa) is in principle unnecessary, because the Immigration Control Act targets foreign nationals who land and stay in Japan. If the person later comes to Japan to work, the eligibility and application-agency for a residence status become the business of a Gyoseishoshi, and that is a separate contract from the Shakai Hoken Roumushi work.

四葉社会保険労務士事務所 can advise on the labor design manageable on the Japanese side, maintaining the employment contract and internal rules, and organizing the application of Japanese social insurance. Consultation is free; fees are summarized in the fee schedule, and frequently asked questions in the FAQ.

Frequently asked questions

Q. If we employ a person living in China or Taiwan without bringing them to Japan, does the Japanese Labour Standards Act apply?
A. The Labour Standards Act follows the territoriality principle and does not automatically apply to a person working at an overseas place of work. The basis is the labor law of the place of work (China, Taiwan, etc.). Which country's law ultimately applies, and the effect if Japanese law is set as the governing law, are legal judgments involving private international law and are a matter for an attorney.

Q. With remote employment of an overseas resident, can they join Japan's employment insurance and workers' accident insurance?
A. In principle a locally hired person working outside Japan is not an insured person under employment insurance. Work in an overseas business is also outside the scope of domestic workers' accident insurance, and special enrollment for overseas postings targets "a person dispatched from a domestic employer to an overseas business," so a locally hired person is not covered. How the company handles compensation for an emergency must be considered separately.

Q. Can we enroll them in health insurance and employees' pension?
A. Employee insurance has no domestic-residence requirement, but whether a no-visit local hire can be treated as "an insured person used at a Japanese applicable workplace" is judged by the actual employment relationship and is not uniform. Whether insured-person status exists is judged by the pension office and the Japan Pension Service according to the facts. This article does not state a settled conclusion.

Q. Since the person does not come to Japan, is a residence status (work visa) unnecessary?
A. As long as the person works abroad without residing in Japan, a residence status is in principle unnecessary, because the Immigration Control Act targets foreign nationals who land and stay in Japan. If the person later comes to Japan to work, a residence status becomes necessary, and its application-agency is the business of a Gyoseishoshi.

Sources

• Territoriality of the Labour Standards Act: the Labour Standards Act applies in principle to workers used in a business within Japan and does not automatically reach a person working at an overseas place of work (Labour Standards Act; application is based on established administrative interpretation).
• Application of employment insurance: a person employed by a domestic applicable business and working in Japan is an insured person; a locally hired person working outside Japan is in principle not an insured person (Employment Insurance Act).
• Application of workers' accident insurance and special enrollment for overseas postings: applies to a worker belonging to a domestic business; work in an overseas business is outside the scope. Special enrollment for overseas postings targets "a person dispatched from a domestic employer to a business carried out overseas," and does not include a locally hired person or a business traveler (Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Act).
• Application of health insurance and employees' pension: a person used at an applicable workplace is an insured person. Employee insurance has no domestic-residence requirement, but whether an employment relationship is recognized for a no-visit local hire is an individual judgment (Health Insurance Act, Employees' Pension Insurance Act; Japan Pension Service).
• MHLW: Status of social security agreements (24 agreements in force, as of June 2, 2026); Japan Pension Service: social security agreements: the Japan–China agreement took effect on September 1, 2019, covers public pensions only, and has no totalization provision; Taiwan is not an agreement partner. Accessed October 6, 2026.
• Residence status: the Immigration Control Act targets foreign nationals who land and stay in Japan; a person who works abroad without coming to Japan in principle does not need a residence status (Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act; application and agency for residence status are the business of a Gyoseishoshi).
• Business of a Shakai Hoken Roumushi: Article 2 of the Certified Social Insurance and Labor Consultant Act.

This article does not decide whom to consult. 四葉社会保険労務士事務所 can advise on the labor design manageable on the Japanese side, maintaining the employment contract and internal rules, and organizing the application of Japanese social insurance. Withholding, non-resident taxation, and the international taxation of permanent establishment are the business of a tax accountant; legal judgment on the governing law and applicable labor law and labor disputes are the business of an attorney; the application of labor law, social insurance, and tax on the China/Taiwan side is a matter for local professionals and authorities. These are contracted separately as separate, independent entities. Our office does not receive referral fees. The final decision on whether Japan's social insurance applies, or whether the person is an insured person or covered for employment insurance or workers' accident insurance, in an individual case is made by the pension office, the Japan Pension Service, Hello Work, and the Labour Standards Inspection Office. Fees are summarized in the fee schedule and frequently asked questions in the FAQ.

This article is general information. Individual judgments, such as the application of labor and social insurance that accompanies employing an overseas resident, are made by a qualified professional after a consultation, in light of the latest primary sources (the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, the Japan Pension Service, etc.) and individual circumstances. Written by Joji Uramatsu (Shakai Hoken Roumushi, Gyoseishoshi, Registered Real Estate Transaction Specialist).