Japan’s digital nomad visa gives you six months in Tokyo, if you can clear one big number
Japan will let you work from a Tokyo apartment for six months without a single Japanese employer involved. There’s just one number standing at the door, and it’s ¥10 million.
The visa is real, it launched in 2024, and Americans are on the list of eligible nationalities. Whether it fits you comes down to three things: what you earn, who pays you, and how you feel about a hard stop at the six-month mark.
Before you keep reading: if “moving abroad” has been a someday thought, I turned everything I wish I’d known into one guide. Visas, jobs, country picks — check it out.
The number that decides everything
Applicants need at least ¥10,000,000 in personal annual income, and you prove it when you apply. That’s the headline requirement, and it’s the one that filters out most people before the paperwork even starts.
Is that steep? Yes. Japan clearly designed this for established remote earners, not people hoping to freelance their way into a first client from a ramen shop.
Nationality matters too. Japan limits the visa to countries that have both a visa-exemption arrangement and a tax or social security agreement with it, and the United States makes the cut.
Six months means six months
The maximum stay is six months, and there’s no extending it under the same status. If you want another round, you have to leave Japan and stay out for at least six months before you reapply.
No residence card comes with it either, because the status is built for a short stay. Think of it as a very long, very organized visit rather than a move.
Bringing family? A spouse or child can come along under a related status for up to six months, but each person needs their own documents, including insurance and proof of the relationship.
Insurance is not optional (and it’s not small)
You need private insurance covering death, injury, and illness for your entire planned stay, with at least ¥10,000,000 in medical-treatment coverage. Your regular US health plan isn’t the thing to wave at the consulate.
Credit-card travel insurance can count, as long as your documentation shows the supplementary coverage actually meets that minimum. Read the fine print before you assume yours does, because no, the card’s marketing page doesn’t count as proof.
If you’re applying from the US, you submit everything to the Japanese embassy or consulate that covers where you live. Confirm the current document list with them directly, since requirements can shift.
The rule people skim past: no Japanese clients
The visa covers remote work for foreign employers or clients. It does not allow employment under contracts with Japanese public or private organizations, and activities outside the status are generally off the table.
Here’s my plainly stated opinion: that’s the line that matters more than the income figure. If your best client is a Tokyo startup, this isn’t your visa, no matter how good your bank statements look.
Curious what else Japan has to offer once the laptop closes? My Japan posts cover everything from onsen towns to tea ceremonies.
Your taxes don’t take six months off
The visa doesn’t decide your Japanese tax liability on its own. Where you’re a tax resident, where your income comes from, and the US–Japan tax treaty all play a part.
US citizens generally still report worldwide income to the IRS. And a six-month stay alone may not satisfy the 330-day physical presence test for the foreign earned income exclusion, so run your numbers with a tax professional before you book.
So, is it worth it?
If you already earn well from foreign clients and want a long stretch in Japan without juggling tourist-stay limits, it’s a strong option. If you’re hoping the visa will bridge you toward living there permanently, it won’t.
Would you spend six months in Japan on a hard deadline, or is that clock too short for you?
If working remotely abroad has you curious, my digital nomad jobs page has more.
