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Starting November 20, 2007, all foreigners, as well as foreign residents entering Japan will be subjected to fingerprinting and photographing. This is a measure aimed at preventing terrorism in the country. Those who refuse to cooperate with this process will not be allowed to enter the country. Only those who are aged below 16 years of age and a few special groups of people like visiting dignitaries, diplomats and tokubetsu eijuusha (Korean and Taiwanese long-term residents of Japan who lost their Japanese citizenships after the war) are exempted from undergoing this procedure.

Those who wish to gain entry to Japan as a worker needs to get a work visa from a Japanese consulate or embassy outside the country. You will be able to enter the country on a status of residence permitting work. There are more than a dozen of such residence statuses, each of them granting the holder the ability to work but only in a specific field of profession, like arts, education, journalism, research, entertainments, international services, engineering and business management, among others. Should you change jobs that fall under a different field of profession, like shifting from arts to education, you also have to change your residence status.

A degree from a university or considerable experience in a certain professional field is the primary requirement for a working visa in Japan. Most types of working visas also need for you to have a sponsor, which should be your prospective employer. Residence permission is usually given for periods of one to three years and they can both be extended.