SSW Visa Japan Total Cost: Fair Agency Fees vs Scams (2026)

A fair SSW visa cost is a list of small, official fees you can see on a receipt. That means your test fees, documents, a medical check, the visa and travel, plus the steps your own government requires. Japan's rules ban deposits and penalty contracts for SSW jobs, and they ban them for brokers in your home country too. If someone asks for a large "processing" payment with no breakdown, stop and check.

This guide is for candidates in Nepal, the Philippines, Indonesia, Myanmar, India and other sending countries. It does not name any company. It explains the official rules so you can judge any offer yourself.

What does the SSW visa really cost?

Here are the costs a candidate usually pays. Each one has an official source where you can check the price.

1. The Japanese test

You need the JFT-Basic at A2.2 (200 or more) or JLPT N4 or higher. These are the JFT-Basic fees Prometric lists in each country:

You can sit the test again after 45 days if you score under 200, and each sitting costs the fee again. So good preparation saves money. Book only on the official Prometric site. See how to register.

2. The skills test for your field

Each of the 19 SSW fields has its own skills test. Prometric and other test bodies publish the fee for each field and country. Fees differ a lot between fields, so check yours on the official fee page or in the cost calculator. Nursing care also needs a care Japanese test.

3. Passport and documents

Your passport, certificates and translations cost what your own government and translators charge. The Japanese employer, or someone it appoints, applies for the Certificate of Eligibility (COE, 在留資格認定証明書) in Japan.

4. Medical check

Most sending countries require a medical check before departure. In Nepal and the Philippines it is part of the official departure steps (see below).

5. The visa

You apply at the Japanese embassy with the COE. The fee depends on your nationality, and some nationals pay none. Check your local Japanese embassy's visa page, or see the amount in the cost calculator.

6. Travel to Japan

The contract should say who pays the flight. Ask before you sign. One rule helps you at the end: if you cannot pay for your trip home when your SSW job ends, the employer must pay it.

What the employer pays, not you

Some costs must never be passed to you:

• Support costs. Employers must give SSW (i) workers official support: airport pick-up, help finding housing, a life orientation and more. ISA rules say the worker must not pay these costs, directly or indirectly.
• Housing set-up costs. If the employer rents your flat, it cannot charge you the deposit, key money, agent fee or renewal fee. Monthly rent must be no more than the real rent shared by the residents.
• Job placement fees in Japan. MHLW says that, apart from a few exceptions, Japanese job placement agencies are banned from charging job seekers a fee.

What Japan forbids in SSW recruitment

The ISA rules for the SSW visa list things that must not happen to you or your family. They apply to everyone involved: the employer, the support organisation, job agencies, and brokers in your home country and in Japan. The rule has no named subject on purpose, so it covers anyone.

No one may:

• Take a deposit (保証金, hoshōkin) or hold your money or property, whatever they call it ("guarantee", "bond", "security")
• Make you sign a penalty contract (違約金, iyakukin), for example a fine if you quit, "run away", or break the job contract

The ISA guidelines also list taking your passport or residence card against your will as a wrongful act by an employer or support organisation.

The ISA guidelines also give examples of contracts that count as unfair. These are banned too:

• A fine if you talk to the immigration office or a labour office about a problem
• A fine if you go out on your day off without permission, or leave work to use the toilet
• A loan that is forgiven only if you stay a set time
• A loan you must repay all at once if you quit
• Very high prices for goods or services, such as training or housing

The employer must explain at the pre-departure guidance that deposits and penalty contracts are illegal, and confirm that you have none. If an employer hires you knowing you paid a deposit or signed a penalty contract, it can be banned from hiring SSW workers for five years.

Country rules: Nepal and the Philippines

Japan has signed SSW cooperation agreements (MOCs) with 17 countries, including Nepal, the Philippines, Indonesia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, India and Pakistan. The ISA publishes them, along with a guide to each country's own departure steps.

Nepal

The Nepal–Japan MOC (renewed for five years from 1 April 2024) commits both governments to share information about anyone who takes deposits, makes unfair penalty contracts, uses fake documents, or charges fees without showing how they were calculated.

According to the ISA's guide for Nepal:

• A Japanese employer can recruit Nepali workers directly. It can also post a job through the Embassy of Nepal in Tokyo, which sends it to the Japan desk of the Department of Foreign Employment (DoFE).
• Before leaving, Nepali workers need a medical check at a designated clinic, a pre-departure orientation (2–3 days), overseas worker insurance, a set payment to the migrant workers' welfare fund, and a labour permit from DoFE, applied for online. The permit is checked at departure.

So an agency is not required for Nepal. If you do use one, check it on DoFE's list of licensed recruitment agencies.

The Philippines

According to the ISA's guide for the Philippines:

• Filipino SSW workers must be recruited through a sending agency licensed by the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW). The employer must first register with the DMW through the Migrant Workers Office in Tokyo or Osaka.
• Before leaving, workers attend a Pre-Departure Orientation Seminar run by OWWA, have a medical check, and get an Overseas Employment Certificate (OEC) from the DMW. The OEC has a fee and is valid for 60 days.

The DMW also sets rules on what agencies may charge for Japan. These rules can change, so check the DMW's current advisories, or ask the DMW directly, before you pay any agency fee. Use the DMW's licensed agency search to confirm the agency is real.

Other countries

Indonesia, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Pakistan and others have their own registration steps, such as worker ID cards, emigration clearance or online systems. The ISA's MOC page links to each country's guide. Your own labour ministry is the best place to check an agency licence.

Red flags of an SSW job scam

Most agencies are honest. But scams follow the same patterns. Be careful if you see any of these:

• A job offer with no employer name, or an employer you can't find. Real offers name the company in Japan and the job.
• A "guaranteed pass" or a promise of a visa "for sure". No one controls the tests or the immigration decision.
• Selling a JFT-Basic result. The only valid result is the one you earn at a test centre, shown on Prometric My Page.
• Big payments in cash with no receipt, or a single "package fee" with no breakdown.
• A deposit, bond or guarantee of any kind.
• A loan from the agency that you repay from your salary in Japan, or that is forgiven only if you stay.
• Pressure to sign today, or a contract in a language you can't read.
• Holding your passport or bank card.
• A training-centre course that is "required" for a job, at a high price. Ask who requires it, and get it in writing.

How to check an agency before you pay

1. Check the licence on your government's official list. In Nepal, use DoFE's list of licensed recruitment agencies. In the Philippines, use the DMW's licensed recruitment agency search.
2. Check the employer. Ask for the company name, address and job in Japan. A real SSW employer must sign a contract in a language you understand.
3. Ask for every fee in writing, with a breakdown. Compare the test fees with the official Prometric fee pages.
4. Read the contract for deposits, penalties, loans or "compensation" clauses. If you find one, do not sign.
5. Pay official fees to the official body where you can: test fees to Prometric, visa fees to the embassy or its appointed centre.

Want to know what the job will pay once you arrive? Read our guide to SSW take-home pay. For the full visa requirements, see the SSW visa guide.

The cheapest step is passing the first time

The biggest cost you control is the Japanese test. Every failed attempt means another fee and another 45-day wait. Practising in the real format first is the best way to avoid that.