Hiring Specified Skilled Worker foreign staff in agriculture: how are working hours and labour handled?

Bottom line first: Agriculture is exempt from the working-hours, break and holiday rules under Labour Standards Act Article 41(i), but the late-night premium (Article 37), annual paid leave (Article 39) and the minimum wage do apply. The labour rules are the same when you hire foreign staff, and the residence-status procedure is a Gyoseishoshi's area.

When hiring Specified Skilled Worker or Employment-for-Skill-Development foreign staff in farming or livestock, the single biggest source of trouble is the misreading that "agriculture is exempt from working-hours rules, so you can work them as you like." This article sets out where the exemption applies and where it does not, in the context of foreign employment.

Is it true that agriculture's working-hours and holiday rules differ from other industries?

Yes. For people engaged in agriculture, livestock, sericulture and fisheries, the working-hours, break and holiday provisions of the Labour Standards Act do not apply (Article 41(i)). These businesses depend on weather, season and the care of living things and do not fit a uniform cap of 8 hours a day / 40 a week.

But the non-application is limited to working hours, breaks and holidays. The late-night premium, annual paid leave, the minimum wage, safety and health, and workers' compensation all apply to agriculture. Reading this as "everything is free" turns into violations such as unpaid premiums or unprovided leave.

What is exempt under Article 41, and what still applies (night, leave, minimum wage)?

Exempt are the statutory daily/weekly hours (Article 32), breaks (Article 34), holidays (Article 35) and the overtime/holiday portions of premium pay (Articles 36 and the overtime/holiday parts of 37). What still applies:

Item	Basis	Treatment in agriculture
Working hours, breaks, holidays	Arts. 32, 34, 35	Exempt (Art. 41(i)); no overtime premium even beyond 8 hours a day
Late-night premium	Art. 37(4)	Applies; at least 25% for 10 p.m.–5 a.m.
Annual paid leave	Art. 39	Applies; the duty to grant and the 5-days-a-year designation arise
Minimum wage	Minimum Wage Act	Applies; pay at or above the regional minimum
Safety and health / checks	Industrial Safety and Health Act	Applies; hiring and periodic checks needed
Workers' compensation	Workers' Accident Compensation Insurance Act	Applies regardless of nationality or residence status

Article 41(i) refers to the businesses in Appended Table 1 items 6 (cultivation of land and planting, etc., excluding forestry) and 7 (raising animals, capture of aquatic life, etc.). Forestry is outside this exemption, so the working-hours rules apply to it.

Where do residence status and labour meet when hiring foreign staff in agriculture?

When receiving foreign staff under the Specified Skilled Worker agriculture field or Employment-for-Skill-Development (replacing the Technical Intern system), the labour rules are the same as for Japanese staff. Working-condition notice (Art. 15), social and employment insurance (where requirements are met, regardless of nationality), the minimum wage, safety and health, and workers' compensation all apply. Specified Skilled Worker pay must be at least equal to what a Japanese worker would receive.

The common pitfall is overworking foreign staff on the basis that "agriculture is exempt from working hours." Since the late-night premium, leave, minimum wage and duty of care remain even under the exemption, keep proper records of working time. See where to divide the foreign-employment windows and equal pay and the working-condition notice for foreign staff.

How far is long work allowed in the busy season? (the limits of the exemption and the duty of care)

Having staff work long hours in a peak such as harvest is possible in agriculture without an overtime premium, because the working-hours rules are exempt. But it is not unlimited. The employer owes a duty to secure the life and safety of workers (Labour Contract Act Article 5), and remains responsible for preventing health harm from overwork. Night work still needs the late-night premium, and paid leave must be granted. Foreign staff with limited command of the language find it harder to ask for breaks, days off or to report feeling unwell, so build rest and safety into the work rules and the working-condition notice rather than leaning on the exemption.

How do you set up social insurance, workers' compensation and the working-condition notice (native-language version)?

In agriculture too, a company is covered by social insurance (sole proprietors vary by business type and headcount, so confirm individually). Workers' compensation applies regardless of nationality or residence status, and employment insurance applies where the insured requirements are met. From 1 April 2024 the items to be stated in the working-condition notice increased (scope of change of workplace and duties, etc.), and foreign staff must be given the notice in a way they can understand.

To set up	Basis	Point
Working-condition notice (with native language)	Labour Standards Act Art. 15(1); foreign-worker guideline	Reflect the 2024 additions; present it so it is understood
Social / employment insurance	Health, Pension, Employment Insurance Acts	Companies covered; nationality irrelevant where requirements met
Workers' compensation	Workers' Accident Compensation Insurance Act	Applies regardless of nationality / status
Work rules	Labour Standards Act Art. 89	Required at 10+ regular staff; state night, leave and safety

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Who handles residence procedures, labour and tax?

Applications for the Specified Skilled Worker status, the support plan and filings, and the immigration procedures for Employment-for-Skill-Development, are the area of a Gyoseishoshi (as an immigration-filing agent); a Shakai Hoken Roumushi cannot act as an agent for residence applications. Withholding and tax-treaty matters are a tax accountant's area. Working conditions, work rules, social insurance and workers' compensation are a Shakai Hoken Roumushi's. Each is engaged as a separate, independent entity under separate contracts, and this office takes no referral fee.

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Frequently asked questions

Q. Is it true that agriculture need not pay overtime?
A. For overtime and holiday premiums, yes. Agriculture is exempt from the working-hours, break and holiday rules (Article 41(i)), so no overtime premium arises beyond 8 hours a day / 40 a week. But the late-night premium for work between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. (Article 37(4)) must be paid, and annual paid leave and the minimum wage still apply.

Q. Can we pay a Specified Skilled Worker less than a Japanese worker?
A. No. Specified Skilled Worker pay must be at least equal to what a Japanese worker doing the same duties would receive. The Minimum Wage Act also applies regardless of nationality, and pay below the regional minimum is not allowed. A Shakai Hoken Roumushi handles the supporting evidence and the working-condition notice.

Q. Is forestry exempt from working hours like agriculture?
A. No. Article 41(i) excludes forestry from item 6. So the working-hours, break and holiday rules apply to forestry, and overtime/holiday work needs premium pay. The treatment differs from agriculture, livestock, sericulture and fisheries.

Q. Can a Shakai Hoken Roumushi also do the residence-status application?
A. No. Applications and changes for the Specified Skilled Worker status and support-plan filings are the area of a Gyoseishoshi (immigration-filing agent) or a lawyer; a Shakai Hoken Roumushi cannot act as an agent for residence applications. A Shakai Hoken Roumushi handles labour — working conditions, work rules, social insurance and workers' compensation. The Gyoseishoshi and tax accountant are engaged separately as independent entities, contracted directly by you.

This article's basis

• Labour Standards Act (Act No. 49 of 1947) Article 41(i) (persons engaged in the businesses of Appended Table 1 item 6 — excluding forestry — or item 7 are outside the working-hours, break and holiday provisions), Article 37(4) (late-night premium, 10 p.m.–5 a.m., at least 25%; applies to agriculture), Article 39 (annual paid leave; applies to agriculture), Article 15(1) (notice of working conditions), Article 89 (drawing up and filing work rules)
• Labour Standards Act Appended Table 1 item 6 (cultivation of land, clearing, and the planting, cultivation, gathering or felling of plants, and other agriculture/forestry businesses) and item 7 (raising of animals, capture or culture of aquatic animals and plants, and other livestock, sericulture or fisheries businesses)
• Minimum Wage Act (Act No. 137 of 1959): the regional minimum wage applies regardless of nationality or residence status
• Labour Contract Act (Act No. 128 of 2007) Article 5 (the employer's duty of care for safety)
• Immigration Services Agency operational guidelines and field-specific policy for the Specified Skilled Worker agriculture field, and the laws on Employment-for-Skill-Development (replacing the Technical Intern system) (accessed 1 October 2026)
• Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare guidance on the clarification of working conditions for foreign workers, and the additions to the items stated in the working-condition notice effective 1 April 2024 (scope of change of workplace and duties, etc.; amendment to Article 5 of the Enforcement Regulations) (accessed 1 October 2026)
• Whether social insurance applies to a sole-proprietor farm, and the application of the individual operational requirements of the Specified Skilled Worker / Employment-for-Skill-Development systems, vary case by case. This article does not give an individual conclusion (unverified).

This article is general information. An individual judgment on your circumstances is made by a qualified professional after a meeting. At the Yotsuba Shakai Hoken Roumushi Office we can advise on agriculture's working hours, late-night premium and annual leave, and on the working-condition notice (with native language), work rules, social insurance and workers' compensation for foreign staff. Applications and support plans for the Specified Skilled Worker status belong to a Gyoseishoshi (immigration-filing agent) or a lawyer, and withholding and tax treaties to a tax accountant — each a separate, independent entity engaged under separate contracts, with no referral fee. Common questions are gathered in the FAQ. Written by Joji Uramatsu (Shakai Hoken Roumushi, Gyoseishoshi, Licensed Real Estate Transaction Agent).