Yes, you can be fired in Japan, but employers face one of the strictest legal standards in the developed world. Under Article 16 of the Labor Contract Act, a dismissal without objectively reasonable grounds that is not considered socially appropriate is treated as an abuse of rights and declared invalid.1Japanese Law Translation. Labor Contracts Act In practice, that means your employer needs a documented, defensible reason, has to show that firing you was proportionate to the problem, and in many situations cannot fire you at all.
The Legal Test Every Dismissal Must Pass
Two separate hurdles apply to any firing. First, the employer must point to a concrete factual reason. Second, even if the reason is real, a court will ask whether termination was a proportionate response given the circumstances.
The second test is where most employer arguments collapse. A single bad quarter, an isolated workplace conflict, or a mistake that caused no lasting harm rarely satisfies a court that dismissal was socially appropriate. Judges weigh the employee’s tenure, whether lesser measures were tried first, and how the company has handled similar situations with other workers. An employer that tolerates the same behavior from one employee but fires another over it will have a hard time defending the decision.
The reason itself also has to be on the books. Every business with 10 or more employees must maintain written Rules of Employment (shugyo kisoku), and all possible reasons for dismissal must appear in them. If a reason isn’t listed there, it generally can’t be used.2Japan External Trade Organization. Resignation and Dismissal
When Your Employer Cannot Fire You At All
Some situations take dismissal off the table entirely, no matter what your employer’s reasoning might be.
The Labor Standards Act bars firing a worker who is on leave for a work-related injury or illness, and for 30 days after that leave ends. The same protection applies to women on pre- and post-childbirth leave, and for 30 days afterward.3Japanese Law Translation. Labor Standards Act The only carveout is if the business itself becomes impossible to continue because of a natural disaster or similar catastrophe.
The Equal Employment Opportunity Act adds another layer. Employers cannot fire a woman because she is pregnant, gave birth, or requested maternity leave. Any dismissal of a pregnant woman or a woman within one year of childbirth is presumed invalid unless the employer proves the reason was completely unrelated to pregnancy or childbirth.4Japanese Law Translation. Act on Equal Opportunity and Treatment between Men and Women in Employment The same law prohibits using marriage as grounds for termination and bans sex-based discrimination in dismissal decisions generally.
Union activity is also protected. The Labor Union Act makes it illegal to fire or disadvantage a worker for joining a union, attempting to organize one, or participating in legitimate union activities.5Japanese Law Translation. Labor Union Act Retaliation for filing an unfair labor practice complaint with the Labour Relations Commission is equally prohibited.
The Three Kinds of Lawful Dismissal
Outside those absolute prohibitions, Japanese law recognizes three categories of dismissal, each with its own requirements.
Ordinary Dismissal for Performance or Capability
Ordinary dismissal (futsu kaiko) covers situations where an employee cannot do the job. Sustained poor performance, a prolonged illness that prevents work, or a fundamental lack of the skills the role requires can all qualify. The key word is sustained. A rough patch or a temporary health problem does not meet the standard.
Employers also have to show they tried to fix the situation first. That means formal warnings with clear expectations, additional training or mentoring, and a genuine effort to transfer the employee to a different role within the company. Skipping these steps is one of the fastest ways for a dismissal to be struck down. Courts expect a paper trail showing the employer acted in good faith over a meaningful period before deciding the relationship was beyond repair.
Disciplinary Dismissal for Misconduct
Disciplinary dismissal (chokai kaiko) is reserved for serious misconduct: theft, violence, fraud, or a major breach of company rules that damages the business. Because it is punitive, it carries heavier consequences. The employer may be able to skip the standard notice period and in some cases withhold severance.
Under Article 20 of the Labor Standards Act, an employer that wants to dismiss someone immediately for cause must first obtain approval from the relevant government agency, which in practice is the local Labor Standards Inspection Office.3Japanese Law Translation. Labor Standards Act Without that approval, the standard 30-day notice requirement still applies. Courts also scrutinize whether the alleged misconduct truly rises to summary-firing level. Jumping to disciplinary dismissal over a relatively minor rule violation risks having the whole termination overturned.
Economic Dismissal in Layoffs
Economic dismissal (seiri kaiko) applies when a company needs to cut headcount because of financial hardship or restructuring. Japanese courts treat layoffs with particular skepticism, because the employee has done nothing wrong. Case law has produced a four-part test that an employer must satisfy:6The Japan Institute for Labour Policy and Training. Four Requirements for Dismissal in Line With Corporate Restructuring and Need for Discussion in Good Faith
- The company must prove that reducing headcount is genuinely unavoidable, not merely convenient or profit-maximizing.
- It must show it tried alternatives first, such as cutting executive compensation, eliminating overtime, halting new hiring, and soliciting voluntary resignations.
- The employees selected must be chosen using objective, rational criteria rather than favoritism or retaliation.
- The employer must engage in meaningful, good-faith discussions with affected employees or their union before making final decisions.
Failing any single element can invalidate the entire round of layoffs. Employers who skip the voluntary resignation step or who cannot demonstrate real financial distress regularly lose these cases.
Notice, Pay, and the Written Reason
Even when a dismissal is lawful, the employer must give at least 30 days’ advance notice. If the employer wants you gone sooner, it can pay a dismissal notice allowance (yokoku teate) equal to your average daily wage multiplied by the number of days the notice falls short of 30.3Japanese Law Translation. Labor Standards Act No notice at all means paying 30 full days of average wages. This payment eliminates the waiting period but does not excuse the need for a valid reason.
If you have been dismissed, you have the right to request a written certificate from your employer stating the reason. That matters because whatever the employer puts in writing becomes its official position. If the case later reaches a tribunal or court, the employer is held to that justification. Requesting the certificate promptly is one of the most practical steps a dismissed employee can take.
Probation and Fixed-Term Contracts
A common misconception is that employers can freely fire someone during a probationary period (shiyou kikan), which usually runs three to six months. Once you have worked more than 14 days, the standard dismissal protections and the 30-day notice requirement apply.3Japanese Law Translation. Labor Standards Act Courts do give employers somewhat more latitude during probation, recognizing that the purpose is to evaluate fit. But the dismissal still needs an objectively reasonable basis and must be socially appropriate. Firing a probationary employee without documenting genuine concerns or providing any feedback invites the same scrutiny as any other dismissal.
Fixed-term employees actually have stronger protection against mid-contract termination than permanent employees do. Article 17 of the Labor Contract Act bars an employer from ending a fixed-term contract early except for “unavoidable reasons,” a stricter standard than the ordinary test.1Japanese Law Translation. Labor Contracts Act
Non-renewal at the end of a fixed term can also be contested. Under Article 19, if a contract has been renewed repeatedly or the worker has reasonable grounds to expect renewal, refusing to renew is legally treated the same as a dismissal and must meet the same standard. And under Article 18, a worker on consecutive fixed-term contracts totaling more than five years with the same employer can request conversion to a permanent, open-ended contract. Once that request is made, the employer must accept it by operation of law.1Japanese Law Translation. Labor Contracts Act
Encouraged Resignation Is Not the Same as Firing
Because lawful dismissal is so hard, many Japanese employers use a practice called taishoku kansho, or encouraged resignation. The company approaches the employee, explains the situation, and offers a severance package in exchange for a voluntary departure.
The legal line is voluntariness. An employer can explain why it wants to part ways and offer financial incentives to resign. It cannot cross into coercion. Repeated one-on-one pressure meetings, threats about future career prospects, deliberate isolation from colleagues, or reassignment to pointless tasks designed to humiliate the employee can all convert an “encouraged resignation” into constructive dismissal. If a court concludes you had no real choice, the resignation is treated as a firing and subjected to the full abuse-of-rights analysis. Before signing anything, make sure the decision to leave is actually yours.
If You’ve Been Fired
An employee who believes a firing was unlawful has options. The fastest is the labor tribunal system (rodo shinpan), which uses a panel of one district court judge and two labor relations specialists. Proceedings are designed to conclude within three hearings, typically around 70 days, and roughly 80 percent of cases resolve at this stage. If either side objects to the outcome, the case moves to district court, where labor trials often take six months to over a year.
Reinstatement is technically the legal remedy for an invalid dismissal, but most cases settle for a lump-sum payment instead. Few employees want to return to a company that tried to fire them, and the amount varies widely depending on tenure, salary, and the egregiousness of the employer’s conduct.
You can also apply for unemployment benefits through your local Hello Work office. The process starts with a separation certificate (rishokuhyo) from your former employer, which must accurately classify the reason for leaving. For an involuntary dismissal, the classification should reflect that the termination was at the employer’s initiative. If the employer incorrectly marks it as a voluntary resignation, you can dispute the classification through Hello Work.
The classification controls how long you wait. Workers dismissed involuntarily can begin receiving benefits after the standard seven-day waiting period. Those who resign voluntarily generally face a one-month restriction, and workers dismissed for serious misconduct may face a three-month wait. Benefits are calculated as a percentage of prior wages, with duration depending on age and length of employment insurance coverage. Register promptly, because benefits run from the date of registration rather than the date of dismissal.