Request Submitted to Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and Commissioner of Immigration Services Agency Following Suspension of New Acceptances in "Food Service" Specified Skilled Worker Category

The General Incorporated Association for Supporting Foreign Human Resources (CSAF), located in Chuo-ku, Tokyo, and led by Representative Director Yukio Goshima, submitted a request on April 6, 2026, to the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Mr. Norikazu Suzuki) and the Commissioner of the Immigration Services Agency (Mr. Hiroshi Kikuchi) regarding the suspension of new acceptances in the "Food Service" specified skilled worker category.

Background: First Suspension of New Acceptances in the Food Service Sector

On March 27, 2026, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and the Immigration Services Agency announced the suspension of new acceptances from April 13 onwards in the "Food Service" specified skilled worker category, as the number of residents approached the acceptance quota (50,000 people). Applications for Certificates of Eligibility will be denied, and applications for changes in status of residence will, in principle, be disapproved. This is the first time such a suspension has been implemented in the food service sector since the system's establishment in 2019.

As of the end of February 2026, the number of Specified Skilled Worker Type 1 residents in the food service sector reached approximately 46,000 (preliminary figure), and it is expected to exceed the 50,000 limit around May. The effective job opening ratio for food preparation workers is in the high 2s, and including customer service and waiting staff, it is close to 3, which is more than double the average for all industries.

Impact on the Field: Job Offer Cancellations, Review of Store Opening Plans, Reduced Business Hours

Emergency hearings conducted by CSAF with member companies and related businesses reported serious impacts, including the review of store opening plans due to the virtual impossibility of new hires, the realization of risks of canceling job offers for prospective employees, reduced business hours, and increased burden on existing staff.

Furthermore, for international students who studied at Japanese educational institutions and aim to work in the food service industry, a structural problem has arisen where the "Engineer/Specialist in Humanities/International Services" (Gijinkoku) visa is rarely approved for food service operations, the "Specified Skilled Worker Type 1" application is now impossible due to this suspension, and "Designated Activities (Public Notice No. 46)" is limited to four-year university graduates. This effectively closes all routes for changing status of residence.

Outline of Request: 8 Specific Demands

The request document includes the following 8 demands:

1. Prompt increase of the acceptance quota (current 50,000 ⇒ at least 70,000 or more)

2. Public announcement of concrete conditions and a schedule for early lifting of the suspension measure

3. Preferential consideration for hospital meals, elderly care facility meals, school meals, etc.

4. Special consideration for securing human resources in rural areas (e.g., setting priority quotas)

5. Expansion of measures to promote transition to Specified Skilled Worker Type 2

6. Establishment of a human resource development and supply system in cooperation with educational institutions

7. Securing routes for international students to change their status of residence (transitional measures, clarification of Gijinkoku standards, expansion of Designated Activities No. 46 to include vocational school graduates)

8. Ensuring inter-ministerial institutional consistency among the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the Immigration Services Agency, and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology

Copies of the request were also sent to the Food Service and Food Culture Division, New Business and Food Industry Department, Minister's Secretariat, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, and the Residence Management Support Department, Immigration Services Agency.

About CSAF

The General Incorporated Association for Supporting Foreign Human Resources (CSAF) is based on the Kobe Gakuen Educational Foundation Group (operating multiple vocational schools and Japanese language education institutions nationwide, with over 9,000 students and over 800 faculty and staff). Together with over 1,000 corporate and individual members, CSAF promotes the active participation of foreign human resources through training and settlement support, matching companies with foreign human resources, and holding workshops for applying for certified Japanese language education institutions. The foreign human resource platform "NEXTJAPAN," operated by AKI Co., Ltd., a business corporation of the group, has over 110,000 registered foreign human resources.

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