🇯🇵CVs for Japan: Rirekisho vs English Resume

Quick facts: CVs in Japan

These are common practices; they vary by employer and industry. If a job ad asks for something specific, follow the ad.

What to include

What to leave off

• Overstating your Japanese — Interviews will reveal it quickly; give your real level.
• Boastful language — A modest, precise tone is usually better received.
• Missing dates or unexplained gaps — Employers pay close attention to chronology.
• A casual photo — If you include one, make it formal with a plain background.
• Using an English resume for a Japanese-language role — Those roles usually expect a rirekisho.

ATS and CVs in Japan

In Japan, applicant tracking systems are most common at international companies, tech firms and recruitment agencies working in English. Traditional Japanese companies tend to rely on the rirekisho, manual review or their own application portals. If you are applying for an English-language role, keep your resume simple and machine-readable.

• Use a single-column template such as Executive or Minimal, or Photo if the employer expects a photo.
• Keep standard English section headings.
• Match the job ad's wording for technical skills you genuinely have.
• Do not put key information in tables or images.
• Use clear, continuous dates without unexplained gaps.

Try the CV checker and the job-description matcher.

Agencies working in English often ask for a Word version so they can present it to clients.

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CV example

Examples by job

Applying for jobs in Japan

If you are looking for English-language work in Japan, LinkedIn and Indeed are useful, and there are recruitment agencies that specialise in bilingual roles. Tech companies and international firms in large cities such as Tokyo and Osaka usually offer more opportunities for non-Japanese speakers.

• Shūkatsu: large Japanese companies often hire new graduates through a structured annual recruiting cycle with its own timing and process.
• Interviews: there may be several rounds, and punctuality and formality matter a great deal.
• Japanese: even in English-language roles, some Japanese makes a real difference at work and in daily life.
• Residence and visas: you need a residence status that matches the type of work. Rules change, so check official Immigration Services Agency of Japan sources and the employer.

See the software developer example and our other CV examples for English-language roles.

English-teaching programmes that recruit from abroad are also a common entry route.

Bilingual career fairs can also be a good way to meet several employers at once.

CV language

Most roles at Japanese companies require Japanese, and applications usually use a rirekisho and shokumu keirekisho written in Japanese. Our builder does not output Japanese CVs or produce these forms, so for those roles you will need another tool, ideally with a native speaker reviewing the result.

There are, however, many English-language roles at international companies, in tech and in English teaching, and that is where our builder fits: it produces English resumes and translates details typed in Arabic automatically. List your Japanese level honestly under Languages.

CV or resume?

Japan has two main Japanese-language documents: the 履歴書 (rirekisho), a standardized form with personal details, photo, education and work history in a grid, and the 職務経歴書 (shokumu keirekisho), a longer description of your roles and responsibilities. For English-language roles, international companies usually accept a standard English resume or CV, and the two words are used almost interchangeably.

Cover letters in Japan

Western-style cover letters are uncommon at traditional Japanese companies, since the rirekisho itself has a section for your motivation. At international companies and for English-language roles, a short, polite letter can help. Keep it to a page or less, formal and modest in tone, explain why you are interested in the company and in Japan, and be honest about your Japanese level. Start with the cover letter generator.

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