I recently started a non-English Japan-focused travel website. Due to the limited resources that target travelers from my region, it became popular quickly. For itinerary checks and general advises, I provide them for free and help guide users to make the reservations themselves. Only charging a nominal fee for few serious requests when there is enough time.
However, I have been thinking about taking this project as a travel planner seriously. It is not something new or unique, it simply targets an often ignored market. I feel that there is a potential for a good income if given the time.
I am not looking to start a travel agency, from my understanding, they require license and huge capital. I was wondering about a realistic option to self-employ or start a small business related to travel advisory or international services or maybe even tech considering it will be run online only.
It is also possible for me to start the main office of the company in my original country and try to use that to hire myself here (If it is legal) or if it makes starting a small company or a branch easier in Japan. I looked into Employer of Record (EOR) services in Japan too, but I feel that they are a bit expensive with many hidden or unreasonable fees, for example the cheapest is about 120,000 JPY/month and there was 30,000 yen yearly for MyNumber card fee…
I am currently employed full-time at a company that sponsor my “Engineer/Specialist in humanities/International services” visa. To be honest, the salary is the literal minimum wage with no benefits but long odd hours and rotating shifts. I still will not leave this company any time soon, and if my project can be registered and become successful, I might just ask them to change my contract to part-time. This is mainly because of their visa sponsorship. If I can self-sponsor my visa, that will take out a huge concern.
My other main concern is about declaring this as an income in Japan. As I mentioned, I am intentionally not fully utilizing the potential and only making small amounts which I receive to a non-Japanese PayPal account. What is a suitable option to get this as an income in Japan?
By the way, I am currently running the website by myself. But if it is possible to register a company, and make it my main full time job, then I will probably need the help of a native Japanese staff. I maybe thinking way ahead of myself in this point, though.
Any input about this topic or suggestions are highly appreciated.
Thank you.
by ParadiseLime