chef in japan
 

I want to become a chef... Recently my interests in Japan awoke, and i feel i would do practically anything to get there. I did some reality checking and realised it was hard as hell to move there. Basically you need a 4 year degree to get a visa. Although i read that if you are a skilled labour (10 years working experience) you can get visa, this also works for chefs.

So what are my chances if i learn Japanese, work for 10 years, and also do some minor studying on the way (like wine sampling)..

Should i just forget about it?

Being a professional chef is one of the few jobs that you potentially actually could be hired to do in Japan. This would mean you would be a professional in a specialized cuisine, probably native to your country. I have seen "native" chefs at all kinds of restaurants in Japan, from Indian to Italian to Brazilian to Chinese...the list goes on.

Very true, and very marketable. To the OP, where are you from btw?

Im from Sweden. Sounds like i might have a chance then. That's good news.

Okay, nice, i found your other thread about not wanting to go back to japan interesting btw. It made me think.

If you have any skill with patisserie maybe look into that; high-end desserts are pretty marketable in Japan.

Thanks for the advise.

They really only want the best of the best, eh?

Yeah, thats pretty logical.

Honestly though, if you have a marketable skill, and or capital (and a means to get yourself into the country), think it could be quite possible for this person to open their own business. I know of tons of foreigners who have opened their own businesses in Japan. Granted mostly Eikaiwa schools, and "international bars", but restaurants and bakeries are not unheard of.

What the OP will really needs to work on is learning to mix Japanese tastes with whatever he specializes in, and getting his Japanese to a high level. (and acquiring capital somehow and a visa somehow).

I'm a part owner of a bar in Hakodate in Hokkaido. It is not foreign bar though as there are only about 30 foreigners in the whole city and 300,000 Japanese, so if we want to make money no point going for the foreign market. We've hired a Japanese guy to run the bar full time and a couple of casual staff to help on busy nights. Not exactly going to retire anytime soon off the income we get but at least it's not losing money.

I dont see why they would hire a foreigner at all, if it cost them money to sponsor a visa.

Can you actually get a degree in cooking? or do you mean i should get a degree in something unrelated to cooking to increase my chances?

Why not do something like a BA in culinary management? Maybe check and see if an associate degree would be viable, as they tend to be more flexible. You may also be able to combine with a cordon bleu certification or similar accreditation. Here, two seconds googling found me this: http://education-portal.com/articles/Career_Information_for_a_Chef's_Degree_or_Certification.html
I'd advise you to put your brain in gear, do some homework and then go hunt out some solid careers advice from somewhere more viable than the internet. Contact universities, ask for advice, ask for prospectuses. Research top chefs and see where/how they trained.

Japan might have preference for a foreign chef if he's a specialist in his native cuisine or has locational training; same as England- you find more Indian native, Indian trained chefs cooking Indian cuisine than white British chefs. We even have a special immigration policy over it.

Rick O'Shay pretty much got it when he said "What the OP will really needs to work on is learning to mix Japanese tastes with whatever he specializes in, and getting his Japanese to a high level. (and acquiring capital somehow and a visa somehow)". You will also need talent and the qualifications and working history to prove it. You won't need to be the best of the best, per se; even a maître pâtissier still doesn't wear the M.O.F stripes, all he's done is finish his training with success. But you will need to be good at whatever you chose to do.

You still need 10 years of experience (for the visa) even though you have a chef degree, right? not that im in a rush...


Thanks for the good advices, you have been really helpful. If you have any more information, feel free to share :)

I would do that if i could, it seems Sweden is not included in the arrangement. But you are right, moving there without knowing is not smart.. i've heard you work longer and harder than in a western society..

Im pretty sure you need 10 years or it wouldnt be labeled as "skilled labourer visa".

The information on the offical site is a little vague, because they seem to have recently changed some stuff there.

Skilled Labour Working Visa,Foreign Cooking or Special Food Preparation, Architecture or Civil Engineering,Training Animals, Seabed Digging

Here it says you need 10 years, ive found other sites that says so to...

Didn't Japan make a government change recently? maybe it has something to do with that? it's weird they dont state the real requirements on mofa.

Yes you can... if you have a degree or the 10yrs (or so) of relevant work experience.

Landing something like this might be good as a starting point, but 3 million yen a year in Tokyo is not really all that great.

FWIW, here are the eligibility requirements for a foreign chef in Japan :

A cook of a foreign food can apply for "Skilled Labor" when the person satisfies all of the following conditions:

The applicant has a contract with a public or private organization in Japan

The applicant receives no less reward than a Japanese national would receive for comparable work

The applicant has at least 10 years' experience in cooking that foreign food (including the period of time studying at an educational institution in a foreign country while majoring in the skills concerned)