Technical intern training was created in 1993 with the stated aim of transferring skills to developing countries through on-the-job training in Japan. Interns come mostly from Southeast Asia, work in manufacturing, construction, agriculture, food processing, care and similar sectors, and can stay for up to five years across three stages. Most are recruited and supervised through supervising organisations, with sending organisations in their home countries.
Its weaknesses are well documented. Interns could not normally change employer, many arrived owing large fees to brokers, and labour inspections repeatedly found violations of working hours, pay and safety rules. The Technical Intern Training Act, in force from November 2017, added a licensing regime and a supervisory body, the Organization for Technical Intern Training, but criticism continued, including from the US State Department's annual trafficking report.
In June 2024 the Diet voted to abolish the programme. From 1 April 2027 new entrants come in under ikusei shuro, while interns already in Japan may complete their current stage under the old rules. At the end of 2025 there were about 457,000 interns in Japan, roughly flat on the year, while Specified Skilled Worker numbers grew quickly.
What it means for a foreign employer
- Check your supply chain. Japanese suppliers, contractors and group companies may rely on interns. Labour-rights failures in that chain can become your reputational problem.
- It is a source of Specified Skilled Workers. Interns who complete the second stage can move to Specified Skilled Worker type 1 without the skills test in a related field.
- Do not use it for anything else. Interns may only do the work in their training plan. Using them in other roles is a breach for both the employer and the supervising organisation.
- Watch the transition. Expect costs and paperwork to change as programmes move to the new system.
Sources
- Act on Proper Technical Intern Training and Protection of Technical Intern Trainees (in force November 2017).
- Act amending the Immigration Control Act and the Technical Intern Training Act, enacted June 2024.
- Immigration Services Agency, foreign resident statistics as at end of 2025, as reported by Nikkei, March 2026.