Nurturing and Work Memorandum of Cooperation | 4 Signatory Countries and 5 Countries with Letters of Recommendation

The Immigration Services Agency updated its “Bilateral Memoranda of Cooperation on Nurturing and Work” page on September 2, 2026, and published the Memorandum of Cooperation with Laos. This brings the total number of concluded agreements to four countries: Thailand, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, and Laos.

For Nurturing and Work, the acceptance of foreign nationals through a Supervising and Support Organization receiving referrals from a Sending Organization is, in principle, only permitted from countries that have concluded this Memorandum of Cooperation. We will clarify the difference from the 17 countries under the Technical Intern Training program and the 5 countries that require a “letter of recommendation,” based on primary information from the Immigration Services Agency.

The overall process for pre-enforcement date applications is covered in “Pre-enforcement Date Application for Nurturing and Work Plan | Acceptance Begins September 1.” This article discusses the prerequisite “sending country side” of the matter.

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1. September 2, 2026: Memorandum with Laos Added

The Employment for Skill Development (ESD; Japanese: Ikusei Shuro) Program page of the Immigration Services Agency (hereinafter, the Immigration Services Agency) includes an “Update Information (UPDATE)” section, which announced on September 2, 2026, that the “Bilateral Memoranda of Cooperation on Nurturing and Work” had been updated. The update consists of the addition of a Memorandum of Cooperation with the Lao People’s Democratic Republic.

According to the text of the Memorandum (provisional translation), the Memorandum with Laos was signed in Tokyo on August 5, 2026, and in Vientiane on August 31, 2026. This is a rather swift announcement, published two days after the signing.

The Employment for Skill Development (ESD) Program will commence operation on April 1, 2027, and pre-enforcement date applications for the certification of Nurturing and Work Plans began on September 1, 2026. Information on “from which countries foreign nationals can be accepted” influences the order of preparation.

2. What is a Bilateral Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC)?

A Bilateral Memorandum of Cooperation is referred to as an MOC, an acronym for Memorandum of Cooperation in English. It is a document that sets out agreements between the Government of Japan (Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, and National Police Agency) and the government of the sending country regarding the sending and acceptance of Nurturing and Work foreign nationals.

The purpose is to eliminate malicious Sending Organizations and ensure the proper dispatch of foreign nationals. The framework to prevent issues that arose in the Technical Intern Training Program, such as the collection of exorbitant fees, security deposits, and penalty clauses by Sending Organizations, is established through the Memorandum and the “Certified Sending Organization” system based on it.

The main roles of the Memorandum are the following three points:

• The government of the sending country confirms whether its Sending Organizations meet the requirements stipulated by Japanese ministerial ordinances and provides Japan with a list of Certified Sending Organizations.
• If Japan revokes the permission of a Supervising and Support Organization or the certification of a Nurturing and Work Plan, it notifies the sending country.
• If one party reports an inappropriate case, the other party investigates and reports the results.

Furthermore, a Memorandum differs in nature from a treaty between countries. For example, the Memorandum with Sri Lanka includes a sentence in its objective section stating, “This Memorandum does not create legally binding obligations under international law and shall be implemented in accordance with the laws and regulations of each country.”

3. Acceptance under the Supervising Type is, in principle, only from countries that have concluded a Memorandum.

This is the most practical point in this article. Chapter 4 of the Immigration Services Agency’s “Employment for Skill Development (ESD) Program Operational Guidelines” states the following regarding supervising-type Nurturing and Work, which involves receiving referrals from foreign Sending Organizations:

To eliminate malicious Sending Organizations and ensure proper dispatch, in principle, Nurturing and Work foreign nationals with the nationality of a country can only be accepted from countries that have concluded a bilateral arrangement between the Government of Japan and the government of the sending country.

Immigration Services Agency “Employment for Skill Development (ESD) Program Operational Guidelines” Chapter 4

In other words, acceptance for regular Nurturing and Work (through a Supervising and Support Organization) is, in principle, not possible from countries without a Memorandum. As of September 3, 2026, there are four such “concluding countries.”

As exceptions, the operational guidelines list the following two forms. This is because both forms involve direct acceptance from overseas subsidiaries or business partners, without going through a Sending Organization:

• Independent Nurturing and Work (a form of accepting staff from the overseas offices of Japanese organizations)
• In the case of supervising-type Nurturing and Work, accepting staff from the overseas offices of foreign organizations with a close business relationship

However, the operational guidelines also caution regarding these exceptions. Since dispatch to Japan without going through a Sending Organization may be considered a violation of the sending country’s domestic laws and regulations, it is requested that the accepting company confirm the sending country’s laws and regulations before applying.

Furthermore, the relationship with the Certified Sending Organization list is clear. The operational guidelines state that “for those who have received referrals from Sending Organizations not listed on the said list, certification of the Nurturing and Work Plan cannot be obtained.” The list is scheduled to be progressively published on the website of the Foreign National Nurturing and Work Organization (currently the Organization for Technical Intern Training until enforcement), and each organization will be assigned a 9-digit Sending Organization number consisting of 3 alphabetic characters and 6 numeric characters. This number must be stated on the application form.

4. The Four Concluded Countries and Their Signing Dates

All Memoranda are prepared in two copies in English, with Japan and the respective country signing in their respective cities. The signing dates vary by country.

Country	Signed by Japan	Signed by Partner Country
Thailand	May 20, 2026, Tokyo	June 2, 2026, Bangkok
Uzbekistan	May 20, 2026, Tokyo	June 29, 2026, Tashkent
Sri Lanka	May 20, 2026, Tokyo	July 23, 2026, Colombo
Laos	August 5, 2026, Tokyo	August 31, 2026, Vientiane

Cooperation based on the Memoranda of Cooperation will all commence from the date of the later signature. Therefore, the order in which they actually came into effect is Thailand → Uzbekistan → Sri Lanka → Laos. The Immigration Services Agency’s press release dated June 4, 2026, also states regarding the Memorandum of Cooperation with Thailand that “this Memorandum of Cooperation with the Kingdom of Thailand is the first to be concluded concerning the Employment for Skill Development (ESD) Program.”

The provisions for the period of validity are common to all four countries.

• Cooperation shall continue for five years from the date of the last signature.
• Unless written notification of non-extension is provided 60 days prior to the expiration date, it shall be automatically extended for another five years.
• If termination is desired before the expiration of the period, written notification must be provided 90 days prior to the desired date.

5. Technical Intern Training in 17 Countries, ESD in 4 Countries

For comparison, there are bilateral agreements for the Technical Intern Training Program. The Immigration Services Agency’s “Bilateral Agreements / Certified Sending Organizations” page lists 17 countries in order of establishment.

Program	Number of Countries with Agreements	Details
Technical Intern Training	17 Countries	Vietnam, Cambodia, India, Philippines, Laos, Mongolia, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Bhutan, Uzbekistan, Pakistan, Thailand, Indonesia, Nepal, Timor-Leste, Fiji
ESD	4 Countries	Thailand, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, Laos

All four countries for ESD also have agreements for Technical Intern Training. On the other hand, major sending countries for Technical Intern Training such as Vietnam, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Myanmar do not yet have Memoranda of Cooperation for ESD published as of September 3, 2026.

Technical Intern Training and ESD are separate programs, and agreements for Technical Intern Training are not directly carried over to ESD. The Immigration Services Agency’s press release regarding the Memorandum of Cooperation with Thailand also explains that “while a Memorandum of Cooperation concerning the Technical Intern Training Program has already been concluded with the Kingdom of Thailand, this Memorandum of Cooperation has been concluded in conjunction with the commencement of the ESD Program, replacing the Technical Intern Training Program.” The arrangement is to re-establish agreements for each program.

Discussions are expected to proceed sequentially for the remaining countries towards implementation, but the timing has not been announced. When the Memorandum of Cooperation for the country your company is considering will be published is a prerequisite for your recruitment plan.

6. The Five Countries Requiring a “Letter of Recommendation” Are Separate from the List of Concluded Countries

There is another list of countries that can be easily confused. This is the list of five countries for which Letters of Recommendation are issued, published on the Immigration Services Agency’s “Pre-Enforcement Application for the ESD Program” page.

List	Countries Listed
Memoranda of Cooperation Published (4 Countries)	Thailand, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, Laos
Countries for which Letters of Recommendation are to be issued (5 Countries)	Indonesia, Cambodia, Kyrgyzstan, Vietnam, Laos

A Letter of Recommendation is prepared by a public institution in the sending country and submitted for each individual applicant at the time of application (including pre-enforcement applications). Reference Form No. 1-6 is available, and it is also possible to issue a single document for multiple applicants using an attachment. This requirement is waived for supervised ESD when accepting employees of foreign organizations with a close business relationship, and for independent ESD.

The practical key points are as follows:

• Letters of Recommendation cannot be prepared by the Japanese side. You must work backward from the sending country’s arrangements.
• For four of the five countries requiring Letters of Recommendation (Indonesia, Cambodia, Kyrgyzstan, Vietnam), Memoranda of Cooperation have not yet been published. Since supervised acceptance is generally permitted only from countries with concluded Memoranda of Cooperation, it is necessary to check the publication status of the Memoranda of Cooperation in conjunction with preparing the Letters of Recommendation.
• Kyrgyzstan is not included in the 17 countries for Technical Intern Training.

7. What is Written in the Memoranda of Cooperation

The Memoranda of Cooperation for the four countries share the same structure and consist of commitments from the Japanese side, commitments from the sending country side, and certification standards for sending organizations (attached), among others. We will extract items highly relevant to corporate practice.

Item	Provisions of the Memorandum
Accreditation of Sending Organizations	The sending country’s government accredits sending organizations that meet the requirements of Japanese ministerial ordinances and provides a list.
Transparency of Fees	Accredited sending organizations clearly define the calculation standards for fees and other charges, publish them on their websites, etc., and explain them to the individual and the Supervising Support Organization.
Security Deposit / Penalty	Not having collected security deposits, managed assets, or entered into contracts stipulating penalties for breach of contract within the past 5 years.
Temporary Suspension of Acceptance	If the sending country is deemed not to have properly fulfilled its commitments and the issue is not resolved through consultation, Japan can temporarily suspend acceptance by written notice.
Temporary Suspension of Sending	If Japan is deemed not to have properly fulfilled its commitments and the issue is not resolved through consultation, the sending country can temporarily suspend sending by written notice.
Estimated Number of Acceptances	The estimated number of acceptances for each sector will be published and generally operated as the upper limit for the number of accepted individuals. In sectors where this limit is exceeded, the accreditation of Employment for Skill Development (ESD) plans may be temporarily suspended.

Among these, the temporary suspension of accreditation due to exceeding the estimated number of acceptances directly impacts recruitment plans. This means that if the cap for a particular sector is filled first, the accreditation of plans for that sector may be halted, even for countries with a memorandum.

Furthermore, the upper limit for fees paid to sending organizations is stipulated not by the memorandum but by ministerial ordinance, and it is set not to exceed two months’ worth of the monthly remuneration (scheduled wages) stated in the Employment for Skill Development (ESD) plan (Article 21 of the Ordinance for Enforcement of the ESD Act).

Details are not uniform across all countries. For example, the memorandum with Sri Lanka includes a provision stating that when a temporary suspension of sending is lifted, immediate notification can be made through diplomatic channels, and methods for resumption can be discussed. For memoranda with partner countries, it is crucial to individually confirm the specific memorandum for that country.

8. Impact on HR Professionals at Companies

For companies considering acceptance, the existence of a memorandum is a prerequisite for “whether preparations can begin.” Here are the points to confirm as of September 2026.

• Confirm whether the memorandum for the intended sending country is published. As a general rule, supervised acceptance from countries without a published memorandum is not permitted.
• Even for countries with a memorandum, receive intermediation from organizations listed in the accredited sending organizations list. Accreditation of an Employment for Skill Development (ESD) plan cannot be obtained through intermediation from an organization not on the list.
• Enter the 9-digit sending organization number on the application form. The list will be published sequentially on the organization’s website.
• Confirm if the country is subject to a letter of recommendation, and if necessary, start arrangements with the sending country first. This is required for each individual and cannot be prepared by Japan.
• If the acceptance is in the form of a single entity or involves employees of an affiliated company overseas, there may be room for acceptance from countries without a memorandum. However, it is necessary to confirm before applying whether it violates the laws and regulations of the sending country.
• Also pay attention to the estimated number of acceptances for each sector. If exceeded, the accreditation of plans for that sector may be temporarily suspended.

Companies planning to switch from Technical Intern Training should note that they may not necessarily be able to continue with the same sending organization and the same country. While there are agreements for Technical Intern Training with 17 countries, Employment for Skill Development (ESD) currently has agreements with 4 countries.

9. Impact on Foreign Nationals Themselves

For those considering working in Japan under the Employment for Skill Development (ESD) program, the memorandum relates to the following points.

• Whether acceptance through a Supervising Support Organization is possible depends on whether a memorandum for your country has been created. As of September 3, 2026, memoranda are published for four countries: Thailand, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, and Laos.
• Please confirm whether the sending organization you intend to entrust with the procedures is accredited by the sending country’s government. If you go through an organization not on the list of accredited sending organizations, you will not be able to obtain accreditation for your Employment for Skill Development (ESD) plan in Japan.
• There is an upper limit to the fees you can pay to the sending organization. The upper limit is two months’ worth of the monthly remuneration (scheduled wages) you receive in Japan. If you are asked to pay more than this amount, please confirm before agreeing.
• If you are asked to deposit a security deposit or enter into a contract stipulating a penalty for returning home midway, please do not agree. The memorandum sets not engaging in such acts as a standard for accredited sending organizations.
• The breakdown of fees should be publicly available. Accredited sending organizations are required to publish the calculation standards for the fees they collect on their websites, etc.

10. Points to Note When Reading Primary Information

When checking the text of the memorandum from the Immigration Services Agency’s page, there are two points to be aware of as of September 3, 2026.

The text of the Memorandum of Understanding with Thailand can be found in the PDF linked from the press release dated June 4, 2026, titled “Memorandum of Cooperation on the Employment for Skill Development (ESD) Program with the Kingdom of Thailand.”

11. Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. Can individuals from countries without a Memorandum of Understanding not come to Japan under the Employment for Skill Development (ESD) Program?

In principle, the form in which a supervising support organization receives applications from a sending organization is limited to countries that have concluded a Memorandum of Understanding. However, the independent Employment for Skill Development (ESD) Program and the acceptance of staff from overseas offices of foreign organizations with close business relationships are permitted from countries/regions without a Memorandum of Understanding.

Q2. If a country has an agreement for Technical Intern Training, can individuals from that country be accepted under the Employment for Skill Development (ESD) Program as well?

No. A separate Memorandum of Understanding is to be created for each system. While there are agreements for Technical Intern Training with 17 countries, as of September 3, 2026, there are only 4 countries for the Employment for Skill Development (ESD) Program.

Q3. When will the Memoranda of Understanding for Vietnam and Indonesia be published?

The timing has not been announced. However, both countries are listed as eligible for the issuance of recommendation letters on the pre-enforcement application page. Please check the Immigration Services Agency’s page for publication status.

Q4. Where can I find the list of certified sending organizations?

It is stated that the list will be published sequentially on the website of the Foreign National Employment for Skill Development (ESD) Organization (Foreign National Technical Intern Training Organization until the system’s enforcement). Please check if your planned sending organization is on the list before applying for certification of your Employment for Skill Development (ESD) Program plan.

Q5. Where can I obtain a recommendation letter?

It is prepared by a public institution in the sending country and cannot be prepared by the Japanese side. It is required for each eligible individual and must be submitted at the time of application. Reference Form No. 1-6 is available.

12. Summary

As of September 3, 2026, bilateral cooperation Memoranda of Understanding for the Employment for Skill Development (ESD) Program are in place with four countries: Thailand, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, and Laos. Acceptance through supervising support organizations is, in principle, limited to these four countries, which is a significant difference from the 17 countries for Technical Intern Training. The scope differs from the five countries eligible for recommendation letters, with only Laos overlapping.

The extent to which Memoranda of Understanding will expand by the enforcement date of April 1, 2027, is the very premise of the acceptance plan. We recommend regularly checking the publication status on the Immigration Services Agency’s website and preparing a set of three items: the Memorandum of Understanding, the list of certified sending organizations, and the recommendation letter.

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This article is written based on publicly available information as of September 2026. Details of the system and its enforcement period may change in the future. For actual applications, please refer to the official information from the Immigration Services Agency or contact our office.

Author of this article: Administrative Scrivener Authorized to File Applications, Satoshi Nakayama
Representative, Administrative Scrivener Corporation Miyazaki International Legal Office
Location: Miyazaki City, Miyazaki Prefecture