WHAT YOU SHOULD DO BEFORE & AFTER STARTING A NEW JOB

When you read this article, it means that you are intending to change jobs or transfer to other companies. Do you know WHAT YOU SHOULD DO BEFORE & AFTER STARTING A NEW JOB? If not, the answer to your question is right here.

1. When you decide to quit your job, what do you need to do?

As soon as having intention to switch to a new job, you should be sure about 3 important things down below:

– How long is your Visa valid?
You should quit your job when the period of stay in Japan is at least 6 months left, this will help you have enough time to find a new job or receive offers from other companies.

– Do you have enough money to live for a few months?
If you quit your current job, you need to make sure that you have enough money to cover the costs of food, accommodation, commuting, etc. to continue looking for a new job. Not being clear about your financial capability will result in depression that leads yourself to wrong decisions in the future.

– Calculate the remaining days of paid leave (有給) to decide when you should quit your job
Most companies usually require employees to give notice of termination at least 30 days in advance. Calculate how many days left of paid leave you have (有給休暇) and then notify your company the date when you want to leave. It is advisable to arrange your leave around the end of the month, this is also better in calculating your insurance.

You need to write a resignation letter (退職届), print it out and send it directly or online to the department in charge (depending on your company). The application form can be handwritten or typed, and can be done horizontally or vertically.

Calculation of your leave date and last working day:
If you want to leave on November 30, 2021, you need to notify your company at least before October 30 (depending on regulations). If you have 10 days left of paid leave, count down 10 official working days (excluding holidays) back from November 30, your last working day will probably be November 16, 2021.

2. What you should do before quitting your job:

Once you’ve informed your last working day to your line manager, you’ll need to complete the following steps:
– Try to complete all of your remaining tasks. In case you can’t finish before the date, you need to ask the manager who you will hand over to. Schedule and sign for the handover tasks.
– If you are keeping company assets: phones, computers, wifi, keys, etc. or even email accounts, company facebook access, etc., you should return all of them on your last day, signature of the handover recipient is required to avoid future disputes.
– Get your retirement book (年金手帳), resignation certificate (離職票 or 退職証明書), employment insurance card (雇用保険被保険者証), withholding slip (源泉徴収票). If your company does not prepare these documents in time before your last working day, they will send them to your house later by post. These documents are necessary for you to complete the procedures after quitting your job such as: entering a new company, transferring insurance, applying for the Unemployment Benefits or extending your Visa, etc.
– Finally, you should spend at least 5-10 minutes on your last day to say goodbye to everyone, thank the people around you for the help during the past time.

3. After quitting, what should you do?

Though you have quit your job, the validity of your insurance card will be as of the date you end your contract with the company. Therefore, in the given above example: 11/16 is your last day but 11/30 is the date of termination of the contract, so the validity of your insurance card (社会保険) is until 30/11. After this date you need to return the card to the company, or send it by post.
– If within 15 days after quitting your job you start a new job, you do not need to go to the City Hall (shiyakusho) to change to the National Insurance (Kokuminhoken). However, if you haven’t determined the time to work or found a new job yet, you must go to the City Hall (shiyakusho) to register for the National Insurance (Kokuminhoken).
– If you decide to take a long break before starting a new job, you can apply for the Unemployment Benefits from Hello work (ハロワーク).

To apply for the Unemployment Benefits, you need the following documents from your previous company: 1. 退職証明書, 2. 離職票, so don’t forget to register before quitting so that the company will give them to you on your last day.

4. After finding a new job and transferring to another company, you need to notify the Immigration Department of your job change within 14 days after the transfer, this procedure is called 契約機関に関する届出.

After filling in the prescribed form, you can submit it directly at the nearest Immigration Department or send it by post (with a 2-sided photocopy of your residence card – 在留カード)

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** Write「届出書在中」clearly on your envelope.
** If you have switched to a new job and still have not reported it to the Immigration Department though it has been exceeded for more than 14 days, please complete this procedure as quickly as possible.