IT Career in Japan — Plan
IT Career in Japan
Section titled “IT Career in Japan”Goal: work as a cyber security engineer in Japan.
1. Visa — 技人国 (Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/Intl Services)
Section titled “1. Visa — 技人国 (Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/Intl Services)”| Item | Status |
|---|---|
| Requirement | Bachelor’s degree (related field) OR 10 yrs experience |
| Fitra’s case | ✓ CS degree, UGM — directly relevant. Gate cleared. |
| 告示 IT exam route | NOT needed (that’s the degree-less workaround) |
Notes:
- Degree should relate to the work. CS + IT job = clean.
- Job scope must be knowledge/engineering work: 脆弱性診断 (vuln assessment), SOC engineering, CSIRT, security design, consulting. Monitoring-only / helpdesk / 運用監視 alone gets refused.
- Parallel door: 企業内転勤 (intra-company transfer) — 1+ yr at a Japanese firm’s Indonesian subsidiary, then transfer. No education requirement, no JLPT requirement.
2. Language — BJT (decided 2026-09-12, replaces JLPT)
Section titled “2. Language — BJT (decided 2026-09-12, replaces JLPT)”Target: BJT (Business Japanese Proficiency Test), J1 530+. See BJT plan.
JLPT dropped: exams are twice-yearly with registration closing ~3 months ahead (Dec 2026 registration closed 7 Sept 2026; next seat Jul 2027). BJT is CBT year-round, no pass/fail, business-focused, and accepted by immigration — no lost year waiting for a window.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Score | 0–800, ranks J5 → J1+ |
| Target | J1 530+ (standard-hire benchmark); 480+ = 15 immigration points |
| Fee — Indonesia | 25 USD |
| Where | Jakarta / Bandung (no Jogja centre) |
| Retake lockout | 3 months |
| Booking | Pearson VUE — same account as AWS CCP |
Caveat: JLPT level does NOT convert to BJT rank — N1 holders have scored J3. Business register (keigo, business katakana, written documents) is the gap. See the Tio Daily video point below.
Video insight (Tio Daily): classroom Japanese ≠ business Japanese. Learn IT terminology + meeting vocabulary (proposals, finance, scheduling) separately. Interviews are largely memorizable: 自己紹介, strengths/weaknesses, skills, 志望動機.
3. Two hiring doors
Section titled “3. Two hiring doors”| Door | Language bar | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Direct hire from Indonesia | N2 effectively required | Harder; apply once N2 + portfolio ready |
| 企業内転勤 transfer | No JLPT required | Most reliable. Join a Japanese firm’s Indonesian subsidiary (PT NSSOL Systems, PT Fujitsu Indonesia, NTT Data Indonesia, Nomura Research), 1–2 yrs, then transfer. |
| English-only roles in Japan | None | Rakuten, Mercari, LINE/Yahoo, Indeed Japan, Woven, foreign MSSPs/consultancies. Far fewer seats, but they exist. |
4. Cert ladder
Section titled “4. Cert ladder”| Cert | Role |
|---|---|
| AWS CCP | ✓ passed 2026-09-09 |
| CAPIJ | ✓ Complete (verified 2026-09-12) — API security skill + portfolio |
| CAPIE | Material €24 at certs.thexssrat.com. Exam voucher price on inquiry. |
| CompTIA Security+ | International credibility. NOT 告示 (doesn’t waive degree — irrelevant now) |
| SG 情報セキュリティマネジメント | Easiest Japanese security cert (~70% pass). IPA Level 2. Continues after 2027 reform. |
| SC 情報処理安全確保支援士 | The prize. Japan’s only cyber national qual (登録セキスペ). IPA Level 4, ~19% pass. Survived the 2027 cull. |
The SG / SC structure — corrected
Section titled “The SG / SC structure — corrected”SG is NOT a prerequisite for SC. No formal chain. IPA levels are separate doors:
Level 1 IP (ITパスポート)Level 2 SG (情報セキュリティマネジメント) / FE (基本情報技術者)Level 3 AP (応用情報技術者)Level 4 SC (情報処理安全確保支援士)You can sit SC directly. SG is the cheap, easy security exam two levels below — a de-risking step, not a gate.
The real gate in front of SG is Japanese. The exam is Japanese-only, and 科目B is 12 long scenario questions (policy documents, incident reports, compliance findings). At N3 you can attempt it; N2 is the working level.
SG weighting — honest calibration. SG is useful but modest:
| Purpose | Value |
|---|---|
| 技人国 visa | Zero — the CS degree already clears it; language is the real gate |
| Technical skill | Zero — SG is compliance/management, not engineering |
| Japanese resume line (履歴書 資格欄) | Moderate — recognizable, verifiable, cheap (~¥5,700) |
| Stepping stone to SC | Moderate |
SC is the one that matters — Level 4, Japan’s only cyber national qualification, the only security exam IPA kept distinct through the 2027 reform. It also carries an ongoing obligation (registration + annual fee + CPE), which is part of why it’s respected.
2027 exam reform (correcting an earlier error)
Section titled “2027 exam reform (correcting an earlier error)”Previously stated here: “SG/FE CBT pauses after 27 Dec 2026, real window closing.” Misleading. The 休止 is a scheduled system-migration gap, not abolition:
2026-12-28 temporary pause (system migration)2027 spring SG and FE RESUME under the new system| Exam | 2027 status |
|---|---|
| IP | 内容変更 (content revised) |
| SG | 継続 — continues |
| FE | 継続 — continues |
| データマネジメント (仮称) | NEW |
| プロフェッショナルデジタルスキル ×3 (仮称) | NEW — replaces AP + 高度 |
| SC | 一部変更 — continues, revised (management emphasis added to 科目B) |
Retired: AP (応用情報技術者) and the 高度 exams — consolidated into プロフェッショナルデジタルスキル試験 ×3. SC survived that cull, which signals how IPA values it.
SG format change 2027: 60 questions (科目A 60) → 科目A 48 + 科目B 12, still 120 min total.
IPA on the scope: 「試験で問う知識・技能の範囲そのものに変更はありません」— the knowledge and skills tested are unchanged; only notation and structure are revised.
No deadline pressure. SG can be taken after 2027 with a revised syllabus.
5. Portfolio (the part that replaces “experience”)
Section titled “5. Portfolio (the part that replaces “experience”)”- CAPIJ/CAPIE labs + written reports
- Own API pentest reports (pitura-dashboard API is a legal target — own it)
- OWASP API Top 10 practice machines
- Burp Suite + nmap + nuclei + ghidra already on archie
6. Application mechanics
Section titled “6. Application mechanics”Japanese CV is a real gate. Two documents:
- 履歴書 (Rirekisho) — 1–2 page standardized form: photo, 学歴/職歴 chronological, 免許・資格, 志望動機, 本人希望記入欄. Buy the standard form or use a template.
- 職務経歴書 (Shokumu Keirekisho) — free-form career history: per-company projects, role, tech stack, achievements. More detail than an Indonesian CV.
Apply broadly across platforms. Full portal list, agency comparison, and salary bands: Japan Job Search.
Interview prep: Japanese interviews are largely memorizable — 自己紹介, 強み/弱み, 志望動機 (per the Tio Daily video). Prepare these regardless of track.
7. Timeline (working)
Section titled “7. Timeline (working)”2026-09 → CAPIJ/CAPIE + AWS CCP ✓ ; lock BJT, get official mock test book2026-10 → BJT baseline (free samples) → decide on diagnostic sit2027-Q1 → BJT first attempt (Jakarta/Bandung). Target J1 530+.2027-Q2 → BJT retake window (3-month lockout)2027-28 → 企業内転勤 track or direct hire once BJT J1 + portfolio ready2028-30 → SC exam → seniority + salary jumpSources
Section titled “Sources”- Tio Daily — “Tips yang perlu dipersiapkan kalo mau Kerja IT Di jepang” (29 Aug 2026): Japanese CV format, spray applications, memorize interview basics, business JP ≠ classroom JP, berdoa.
- Japan IT告示 exam list (IPA): SG, SC, FE, AP etc. — Security+ excluded.
- JLPT Indonesia registration windows.