Registered Support Organizations in Japan: What They Must Do for You (and Must Never Charge)

Key Takeaways

Every SSW (i) worker must receive support from either the employer directly or a registered support organization (toroku shien kikan) approved by the Immigration Services Agency of Japan.
The support plan covers pre-arrival orientation, airport pickup, housing, city hall registration, bank account, Japanese learning, complaints, and a check-in interview at least every 3 months.
Roughly 1,800 registered support organizations list Tagalog as a language they can support in. You can ask for one that does.
The support organization must never charge you. Their fee is paid by the employer.
If support is missing or you are being charged, you can report it, and the organization can lose its registration.

Why this system exists

Japan learned from TITP. Under the old training program, many workers had nobody to turn to when a problem came up: a contract that did not match reality, a landlord who would not rent to foreigners, a payslip they could not read. So when SSW was created, Japan required that every SSW (i) worker be supported by someone whose job is to make daily life work.

An employer can do this itself if it meets certain conditions. Most do not, so they contract a registered support organization, which is registered with and monitored by the Immigration Services Agency of Japan. It must have staff who can communicate in a language you understand, and it must follow a written support plan submitted with your Certificate of Eligibility application. Your support plan is part of your immigration paperwork. It is not a favor. It is a condition of your status.

What the support plan must include

The Immigration Services Agency lists ten areas of required support. In plain language:

1. Pre-arrival orientation. Before you leave the Philippines, they must explain your work conditions, what you can and cannot do in Japan, how to get to your workplace, and what daily life will cost. This can be online. It must be in a language you understand.

2. Airport pickup and send-off. They meet you at the airport when you arrive and take you to your housing. When you leave Japan at the end of your contract, they see you off as well.

3. Housing and life setup. They help you secure housing (acting as guarantor or providing company housing if needed), open a bank account, get a mobile phone contract, and set up utilities.

4. Life orientation after arrival. How to use the trains, separate garbage, handle emergencies, use the clinic, and what the local rules are.

5. Accompanying you to government offices. City hall for resident registration and health insurance, the pension office, tax office. They go with you if you need it.

6. Japanese language learning opportunities. They must give you information about classes or materials, and help you access them. They do not have to pay for a private school, but they cannot leave you without options.

7. Handling consultations and complaints. If you have a problem at work or in daily life, you can bring it to them. They must respond in a language you understand and take appropriate action, including contacting the relevant authorities.

8. Promoting interaction with Japanese people. Local events and community groups. Isolation is one of the biggest reasons workers give up.

9. Support for changing jobs if your contract ends through no fault of yours. If the company closes or lays you off, they must help you find a new employer in the same field.

10. Regular check-in interviews. At least once every 3 months, they must meet you and your supervisor face to face and confirm that your working conditions match your contract. If they find a problem, such as a labor law violation, they are required to report it.

The 3-month check-in: what to expect

This is the part of the system that gives you real protection, so use it.

Every three months, a staff member sits down with you and asks about your hours, pay, housing, relationships at work, and health. They also speak with your supervisor separately. This is not a performance review. The purpose is to catch problems early.

Be honest. If your payslip shows a deduction you do not understand, bring the payslip. If overtime is not being paid, say so. The staff are required to act, and if they do not, you can go over their heads to the immigration office or the Labor Standards Inspection Office.

If your support organization is not holding these interviews, or is holding them with the boss in the room and no chance to speak privately, that is a failure on their side. Write down the dates.

The rule that cannot be broken: you pay nothing

A registered support organization is paid by the employer. The law says the cost of support must not be charged to the worker, directly or indirectly. That means:

No monthly "support fee" from your salary
No "registration fee" when you arrive
No charge for the airport pickup, the orientation, or the interviews
No "translation fee" for helping you at city hall
No fee hidden inside a housing charge that is far above local rent

This rule is the same in spirit as the placement fee rule on the Philippine side. On the Philippine side, Japan-bound workers pay no placement fee. On the Japanese side, workers pay nothing for support. If money is flowing from you to anyone for the privilege of working in Japan, something is wrong.

Housing rent and utilities that are stated in your contract at a reasonable amount are not support fees. That is the one legitimate line. Everything else is not.

Asking for Tagalog

As of 2026, roughly 1,800 registered support organizations list Tagalog among the languages they can support in. When you are matched with an employer, ask which support organization they use and whether it has Tagalog-speaking staff. If not, ask whether the employer can choose one that does. This is a fair request. A support organization that relies on machine translation for a 3-month interview is not what the system intends. Push for a real interpreter.

Signs of a good one, and a bad one

Good: staff contact you before you leave the Philippines, someone is actually at the airport, your first-week checklist gets done (city hall, bank, phone), they answer their phone, and interviews happen on schedule with time alone with the staff.

Bad: you cannot name your support organization, "support" is one message and then silence, the interview is a form you sign without a conversation, any money request for any reason, or they discourage you from contacting the immigration office or a labor office.

What to do if support is failing

Write down what is missing and when. Dates and screenshots.
Raise it with the support organization in writing first.
If nothing changes, contact the Immigration Services Agency of Japan. The agency can inspect and deregister support organizations that fail their duties.
For labor issues (unpaid wages, illegal deductions, dangerous conditions), contact the Labor Standards Inspection Office. They handle complaints from foreign workers.
For serious situations, contact the Philippine Embassy or the MWO in Tokyo or Osaka. OWWA services are available to you as a member.

You do not need permission from your employer to do any of these.

Before you sign, ask three questions

Which registered support organization will support me, and what is its registration number?
Does it have Tagalog-speaking staff?
Can I see the support plan that will be submitted with my COE?

Those three questions will tell you a lot about the employer. Add them to your list at /check. No one can promise you a visa or a job, but once you are in Japan under SSW, the support plan is something you are entitled to. Use it.

Sources

Immigration Services Agency of Japan / Ministry of Justice: registered support organization system, required support plan items, list of registered support organizations by language
Department of Migrant Workers (DMW): Migrant Workers Office (MWO) Tokyo and Osaka
OWWA: welfare services for members abroad
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare: Labor Standards Inspection Office consultation for foreign workers
Philippine Labor Code Art. 13(b); RA 8042 as amended by RA 10022
Hanapon: /check, /routes, /money