Labour for accepting Specified Skilled Workers in construction — the monthly-salary duty and the Construction Career Up System

In short: Accepting a Specified Skilled Worker in construction adds field-specific measures on top of the criteria common to all fields. Three are central: first, paying the reward on a stable "monthly-salary basis" (a stable amount per month rather than a build-up of daily or hourly pay — construction workloads swing with the season and the stage of work, so daily pay tends to make income unstable); second, registering both the accepting company and the worker in the Construction Career Up System (CCUS) (business registration and skilled-worker registration); and third, obtaining the approval of the "construction acceptance plan" (建設特定技能受入計画) from the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism before the residence-status applications. The reward must be equal to or above that of a Japanese worker with equivalent skills, with raises as skills mature (the standard for the Specified Skilled Worker employment contract; Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act, Article 2-5, and the ministerial ordinance on Specified Skilled Worker criteria). From a shakai hoken roumushi's viewpoint this page organises the labour side — designing equal pay and the monthly-salary basis, the overtime agreement, and enrolment in social and labour insurance — leaving the approval of the construction acceptance plan and the filing of the residence-status application and the construction-business licence to a gyoseishoshi or a registered support organisation, and individual disputes such as termination to an attorney, each under separate engagements as independent business entities.

The Specified Skilled Worker scheme in construction has one more layer of requirements than fields such as nursing care or food service, and the order of the procedures is distinctive. Because standards that bear directly on the labour design — how wages are paid (monthly salary) and the cap on the number of workers — are set out in construction-specific rules, you need to fix "how you will hire and how much, and how, you will pay" before the property and the licence. This page is for the HR and administrative staff of construction businesses considering accepting Specified Skilled Workers, organised around labour.

How does accepting a Specified Skilled Worker in construction differ from other fields?

The common criteria (passing the skills test and the Japanese-language test, concluding the employment contract, drawing up the support plan, and so on) are the same as other fields, but construction has its own additional measures. Broadly:

Item	Construction-specific treatment
How pay is made	Monthly salary (a stable amount per month). A design that varies only by piling up daily or hourly pay is hard to accept
Acceptance plan	Approval of the "construction acceptance plan" by the Minister is required before the residence-status applications
CCUS	Business registration by the accepting company and skilled-worker registration by the worker are mandatory
Industry body	Membership of the Japan Association for Construction Human Resources (JAC) (as a direct member or through a member body) is required
Number accepted	The number of Specified Skilled Workers (ichigo) must not exceed the total number of the accepting company's full-time staff (skilled workers)
Construction licence	A licence under Article 3(1) of the Construction Business Act must be held

The labour side of Specified Skilled Workers in nursing care is covered in Labour and social insurance for Specified Skilled Workers in nursing care. The biggest difference in construction is the addition of the monthly-salary basis, the approval of the acceptance plan, CCUS registration, and the cap on the number accepted.

How do you check the "monthly-salary" duty and equal pay?

In construction, paying the reward stably is part of the criteria for approving the acceptance plan. This means a monthly-salary basis — a stable amount paid each month — so that, even if the number of working days rises and falls with the busy and slack seasons and the weather, that month's reward does not swing widely up and down. A design that simply multiplies daily or hourly pay by the number of working days tends to be seen as not stable, because income drops in months with rain or waiting between stages.

The level of the reward must be equal to or above that paid to a Japanese worker with equivalent skills doing the work, and raises as skills mature are also required (the standard for the Specified Skilled Worker employment contract; Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act, Article 2-5, and the ministerial ordinance on Specified Skilled Worker criteria). If you spell out the grade and the raise mechanism in the wage rules and keep a basis that can be compared with the wages of Japanese skilled workers doing the same kind of work, it is easier to explain in the review of the acceptance plan.

Point to check	Content	What labour management does
Monthly salary	Is it paid stably per month?	Set the monthly amount in the wage rules and employment contract; do not vary it by daily pay alone
Equivalence	Is it equal to or above that of a Japanese worker with equivalent skills?	Prepare material that can be compared with the in-house wage table
Raises	Are there raises as skills mature?	State the grades, the evaluation and the raise criteria in the wage rules
Overtime, holiday, late-night	Are premium wages paid properly?	Conclude and file the overtime agreement; calculate premiums (Labour Standards Act, Articles 36 and 37)

The cap on overtime in construction has applied since April 2024, and the design of the overtime agreement and premium wages is needed for foreign and Japanese workers alike. For details see The 2024 overtime cap and holidays in construction.

Why is registration in the Construction Career Up System (CCUS) mandatory?

CCUS (the Construction Career Up System) is a mechanism that accumulates workers' employment history and qualifications across the industry. For the Specified Skilled Worker scheme in construction, both the accepting company's business registration and the worker's own skilled-worker registration are criteria for approving the acceptance plan — so that skills and employment history are recorded objectively and the basis for treatment (especially raises as skills mature) can be shown.

Because registration is a prerequisite for the residence-status applications and the acceptance-plan approval, the acceptance schedule is built around CCUS registration. The status of enrolment in social and labour insurance also overlaps with what CCUS and the acceptance plan check, so filing the enrolment first makes the procedure smoother. In construction, the relationship with one-person contractors and guidance on social-insurance enrolment easily become issues, covered separately in Social insurance in construction and special enrolment in workers' accident insurance for one-person contractors.

How do the acceptance-plan approval (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism) and the residence status connect?

In construction, before the residence-status application (the application for a certificate of eligibility, the application to change the residence status, and so on), you must obtain approval of the "construction acceptance plan" from the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. The approved acceptance plan becomes an attachment to the residence-status applications. If you get the order wrong and push the residence application first, the procedure stalls without the approved acceptance plan.

The main criteria for approval are: the construction-business licence (Construction Business Act, Article 3(1)); CCUS business and skilled-worker registration; membership of JAC; equal-or-above pay and the monthly-salary basis; the number accepted being no more than the total number of full-time staff (skilled workers); having the worker attend training designated by the Minister after acceptance; and accepting on-site guidance by the State or a proper-employment monitoring body. These rest on the construction field's operational guidelines and the notification (the field-specific operation policy).

Stage	Main procedure	In charge
① Preparation	Construction licence, CCUS business registration, JAC membership, wage rules (monthly salary)	Business (labour by a shakai hoken roumushi)
② Acceptance plan	Application to approve the construction acceptance plan (Minister)	Gyoseishoshi / registered support organisation
③ Residence application	Certificate of eligibility / change of residence status (attaching the approved plan)	Person / accredited gyoseishoshi or registered support organisation
④ After acceptance	Social- and labour-insurance enrolment, wage and working-hour management, designated training, on-site guidance	Business (labour by a shakai hoken roumushi)

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Who handles the residence-status application, the labour side, and social insurance?

The application to approve the construction acceptance plan, the filing of the residence-status application on the applicant's behalf, drawing up the support plan for the ichigo worker, and obtaining the construction-business licence are the work of the applicant or an accredited gyoseishoshi or a registered support organisation. A shakai hoken roumushi cannot file residence-status applications on behalf of the applicant. These are the field of a gyoseishoshi or a registered support organisation, contracted separately from shakai hoken roumushi work, as independent business entities.

On the other hand, drawing up the wage rules and work rules including the monthly-salary basis, concluding and filing the overtime agreement, designing premium wages, the procedures for enrolment in social insurance (health insurance and employees' pension) and labour insurance (workers' accident insurance and employment insurance), and stating the working conditions are handled by a shakai hoken roumushi. The labour side of an in-house support system is in The in-house support system for Specified Skilled Workers and labour management, and matching the residence period with the contract period is in Residence period and employment-contract period.

What can 四葉社会保険労務士事務所 do for you?

四葉社会保険労務士事務所 in Kohinata, Bunkyo Ward, handles, for the labour of accepting Specified Skilled Workers in construction, drawing up wage rules and work rules on a monthly-salary basis, preparing a wage table that can demonstrate equivalence, concluding and filing the overtime agreement and designing premium wages, the procedures for social- and labour-insurance enrolment, and stating the working conditions. The initial consultation is free. We quote according to the content and number of employees; for how fees are thought about, see the fee schedule, and the questions we are asked most often are on the FAQ page.

The application to approve the construction acceptance plan, the filing of the residence-status application on the applicant's behalf, drawing up the support plan, and obtaining the construction-business licence are the work of a gyoseishoshi or a registered support organisation (a shakai hoken roumushi cannot file residence-status applications on the applicant's behalf), and individual disputes over termination or working conditions are the work of an attorney; we will guide you to contract with each separately, as an independent business entity. This office does not accept referral fees.

Frequently asked questions

Q. Why is a "monthly salary" required for Specified Skilled Workers in construction?
A. Construction work has working days that rise and fall easily with the season, the stage of work and the weather, so a build-up of daily or hourly pay alone tends to make the month's income swing widely and become unstable. In construction, paying the reward stably (a monthly salary that is stable per month) is part of the criteria for approving the construction acceptance plan. Set the monthly amount in the wage rules and the employment contract and design it not to vary by daily pay alone.

Q. Who registers in CCUS (the Construction Career Up System)?
A. The accepting company does the business registration, and the worker being accepted does the skilled-worker registration. In the construction Specified Skilled Worker scheme, both registrations are criteria for approving the acceptance plan and are prerequisites for the residence-status applications and the acceptance-plan approval. It is a mechanism to record skills and employment history and to show the basis for raises as skills mature.

Q. Which comes first, the approval of the acceptance plan or the residence-status application?
A. The approval of the acceptance plan comes first. In construction, you obtain approval of the "construction acceptance plan" from the Minister before the residence-status application and attach the approved plan to the residence applications. Pushing only the residence application first will stall without the approved acceptance plan. The approval application and the filing of the residence-status application are the work of a gyoseishoshi or a registered support organisation; a shakai hoken roumushi cannot file residence applications.

Q. Is there a cap on the number you can accept?
A. Yes. In construction, the number of Specified Skilled Workers (ichigo) must not exceed the total number of the accepting company's full-time staff (skilled workers). This is a construction-specific cap that other fields do not have. The actual way of counting must be checked against the operational guidelines and review criteria, so the gyoseishoshi or registered support organisation handling the acceptance-plan application and the shakai hoken roumushi for labour share the checking.

Sources for this article

• Immigration Control and Refugee Recognition Act (出入国管理及び難民認定法, Cabinet Order No. 319 of 1951), Article 2-5 (standards for the Specified Skilled Worker employment contract and the support plan for ichigo workers) (confirmed against e-Gov on October 30, 2026)
• The ministerial ordinance setting the standards for the Specified Skilled Worker employment contract and the support plan (the Specified Skilled Worker criteria ordinance) = the reward of an ichigo worker must be equal to or above that paid to a Japanese worker with equivalent skills doing the work (referenced October 30, 2026)
• The field-specific operation policy "Policy on the operation of the Specified Skilled Worker residence status in the construction field" (notification) and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism's operational guidelines / manual on applying to approve the "construction acceptance plan" = paying the reward stably (monthly salary), equal-or-above pay and raises as skills mature, CCUS registration of the accepting company and the ichigo worker (business and skilled-worker registration), membership of the Japan Association for Construction Human Resources (JAC), the number of ichigo workers being no more than the total number of full-time staff (skilled workers), attending the training designated by the Minister, and accepting on-site guidance (referenced on the Ministry's pages on October 30, 2026)
• Construction Business Act (建設業法, Act No. 100 of 1949), Article 3(1) (licence for the construction business) (confirmed against e-Gov on October 30, 2026)
• Labour Standards Act (労働基準法, Act No. 49 of 1947), Article 36 (agreement on overtime and holiday work) and Article 37 (premium wages) (confirmed against e-Gov on October 30, 2026); the cap on overtime in construction has applied since April 1, 2024
• Health Insurance Act (Act No. 70 of 1922), Employees' Pension Insurance Act (Act No. 115 of 1954), Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance Act (Act No. 50 of 1947) and Employment Insurance Act (Act No. 116 of 1974) = the duty to enrol in social and labour insurance (referenced October 30, 2026)

The criteria for approving the acceptance plan and the way the number accepted is calculated can change with revisions to the operational guidelines, so check the Ministry's latest pages just before applying. This article does not go so far as to decide whom you should consult. Wage rules and work rules including the monthly-salary basis, the overtime agreement, premium wages, and enrolment in social and labour insurance are the work of a shakai hoken roumushi. The application to approve the construction acceptance plan, the filing of the residence-status application on the applicant's behalf, drawing up the support plan, and obtaining the construction-business licence are the work of a gyoseishoshi or a registered support organisation (a shakai hoken roumushi cannot file residence applications), and individual disputes over termination or working conditions are the work of an attorney; each is carried out by an independent business entity and contracted separately. This office does not accept referral fees. The cost of consulting 四葉社会保険労務士事務所 is set out in the fee schedule, and the questions we are asked most often are on the FAQ page.

This article is general information. Judgments that fit your particular circumstances are made by a qualified professional after a meeting. Written by Joji Uramatsu (Shakai Hoken Roumushi (Certified Social Insurance and Labor Consultant), Gyoseishoshi (Certified Administrative Procedures Legal Specialist), Registered Real Estate Transaction Specialist).