What is the Business Manager visa?
The Business Manager visa is the visa obtained by foreign nationals who reside in Japan for the purpose of operating a business.
In recent years, drawing attention to the stability of Japan’s real estate market, its good yields, and the absence of any particular restrictions on real estate acquisition by foreign nationals, the number of foreign nationals acquiring Japanese real estate has been on the rise.
Among foreign nationals who own real estate in Japan, some may be wondering, “Can I obtain a Business Manager visa through real estate investment?”
To give the conclusion first, it is possible to obtain a Business Manager visa through real estate investment.
However, you cannot obtain a Business Manager visa by “merely” owning real estate.
This page explains how to obtain a Business Manager visa through real estate investment.
Requirements and conditions for obtaining a Business Manager visa
The requirements and conditions for obtaining a Business Manager visa can be summarized simply as follows.
- The activity carried out in Japan must be the “operation of a business”
- The business must be compliant with laws and regulations
- The business must be recognized as stable and continuous
- A business office for operating the business must exist in Japan
- The business must be of a certain scale or larger, with a capital contribution of 30 million yen or more and the employment of one full-time member of staff
- You must have the necessary educational background or management experience
When obtaining a Business Manager visa through real estate investment, items (1) to (3) are particularly problematic, so we explain them below.
The activity carried out in Japan must be the “operation of a business”
The former “Investment/Management visa”
Some people mistakenly believe that if they hold investment real estate in Japan, they can obtain a Business Manager visa.
In fact, we sometimes receive inquiries saying, “I have purchased Japanese real estate, so I would like to obtain an investment visa.”
This appears to be a misunderstanding stemming from the fact that the former name of the “Business Manager visa” was the “Investment/Management visa.” The “investment” referred to here does not mean investment in real estate, but investment in a business.
Simply acquiring investment real estate for 30 million yen does not satisfy item (1) above.
To obtain a Business Manager visa through real estate investment, that real estate investment must be conducted as the “operation of a business.”
Forms of real estate investment that are recognized
For the reasons above, merely purchasing real estate for speculative purposes cannot be called the “operation of a business,” and you cannot obtain a Business Manager visa.
If you run a real estate leasing business or a hotel/lodging business with the real estate you own, there is a possibility it will be recognized as the “operation of a business.”
However, please note that if you run a real estate leasing business or a lodging business but you merely own the real estate and leave everything else to a management company, that business form will not be recognized as the “operation of a business” for a Business Manager visa.
The business owner personally needs to actually carry out concrete work such as researching and negotiating property purchases and recruiting tenants.
Also, even if you run a real estate leasing business or a hotel, you cannot obtain a Business Manager visa if you manage it remotely from overseas and do not reside in Japan. As stated earlier, this visa is granted for foreign nationals who reside in Japan in order to operate a business.
The business must be compliant with laws and regulations
No license or similar is required to run a simple real estate leasing business, but to run a lodging business such as a hotel or minpaku (private lodging), you must have obtained the necessary permission or filed the necessary notification.
In addition, where there are other laws and regulations to be met, such as the Building Standards Act, those must be complied with as well.
The business must be recognized as stable and continuous
The rental income and accommodation revenue from the real estate must be able to cover all business expenses in accounting terms.
Real estate management fees, officers’ remuneration, the rent for the business office in item (4), and so on
Therefore, if the rental income is only in the range of tens of thousands of yen per month, the stability and continuity of the business may not be recognized.
You also need to prepare and submit to the Immigration Bureau a business plan and similar documents that explain in detail how the business will be operated stably and continuously.
In closing
On this page, we explained how to obtain a Business Manager visa through real estate investment.
The Business Manager visa has strict requirements and conditions, and it is generally a difficult visa to obtain compared with other visas.
If you are thinking of obtaining a Business Manager visa through real estate investment, we recommend consulting an experienced professional first.
