Resident Path for a Content Creator (Freelancer)

7 comments

1. This is a copy of your post for archive/search purposes.

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   **Resident Path for a Content Creator (Freelancer)**

   Hey All,

   My partner and I have been growing a YouTube channel since 2019 and over the last two years we’ve gotten to the point of clearing about $70,000 Annually and saving about $20,000 a year.

   We’re interested in moving to Japan longterm and eventually seeking residence status.

   We’re both 30 with no college experience. However, with aggressive saving and growth in our YouTube business we’re hoping to have about $150,000 saved in the next 5 years.

   So the question is, are their any clear paths to residency for people like us? And could we potentially get a business visa with our YouTube channel?

   Before we spend money on lawyers or anything like that wanted to see if anyone had any similar experience. Thanks.

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2. >So the question is, are their any clear paths to residency for people like us?

   Not really, no.

   Not only are there no *clear* paths there are for all intents and purposes no paths *at all*.

   >And could we potentially get a business visa with our YouTube channel?

   Also unlikely to the point of impossibly. Japan’s investor/business visa is much more restrictive than the “bring money, get visa” visas elsewhere. You’ll be expected to show some level of interaction with the Japanese economy beyond just “pay taxes”.

   Pretty much your only option is to sign on with an existing YT agency in Japan

3. Almost all (99%) Youtubers in Japan have a normal work visa job or have been here long enough to get permanent residency OR are married to a Japanese national so they are able to do whatever they want without worrying about a visa.

   Otherwise, a few establish themselves here by applying for a [business manager visa](https://english.visajapan.jp/toushi.html) and starting content business (super hard to do as a Youtuber).

   If you already work with YouTube’s Maker Studios, you could ask them to sponsor your work visa {the chance of that is less than being [hit by meteorite](https://phys.org/news/2020-04-terrible-luck-person-meteoriteback.html)}.

   A more possible choice is to find a talent agency or production company in Japan to sponsor your work visa.

   Read the old threads:

   * [**How do YouTubers get Visas?**](https://www.reddit.com/r/movingtojapan/comments/uj9u3t/how_do_youtubers_get_visas/)

   * [**An American based company that primarily deals with YouTube is offering me a full-time gig to write/make videos for their channel**](https://www.reddit.com/r/japanlife/comments/f37old/how_can_i_work_remotely_in_japan/)

   > And could we potentially get a business visa with our YouTube channel?

   Yes, but the [business manager visa](https://english.visajapan.jp/toushi.html) for starting a content business difficult and costs a lot more than the claimed 5million yen minimum. You will need a formal business plan, legal assistance, provable multi-year income history, liquid cash in the bank, ad nauseam. Basically, it’s not fun and hardly worth the effort.

   ________
   Warning: The vast majority of English speaking Japan Youtubers lie about their income and visa status.

4. >We’re interested in moving to Japan longterm and eventually seeking residence status.

   Just semantics here, but in Japan ‘residence status’ is an important term (and is different to a visa). Your Status of Residence (residence status) is what allows you to live (and work, if applicable) in Japan. If you want to be here for more than 90 days, you’ll need a status of residence. Its not an ‘eventually’ thing.

   > Just wanted to also mention […] we’re married.

   So this means that if one of you qualifies for a status of residence then they could bring the other as a dependent (assuming you’re a heterosexual couple; if you’re a same-sex couple then you’d need to jump through a few hoops to get a designated activities status).

   ​

   >So the question is, are their any clear paths to residency for people like us?

   Like u/dalkyr82 said, not really no. I’m sure someone will come along and talk about ‘business manager’ or similar, but its important to note that these statuses require the applicants to have a detailed business plan that explicitly explains why the business must be in Japan (and how it will relate to the Japanese economy). There are other caveats, but that would likely be the main issue for your burgeoning production company.

   Of course, that being said there *are* a number of youtube content creators floating around here in Japan. While the majority of them would be here legally for other purposes (eg as English teachers doing youtube stuff on the side, legally or not), there should be a small number that make youtube content their primary source of income. I’d suggest canvassing the popular youtubers to see if you can find a production company to partner with (or get hired by) for your channel.

   Good luck!

5. No real path for you only round about ways but 150k is not enough for those ways you seek. Get a degree.

6. [removed]

7. try contacting Geexplus .they have a few YouTubers under them like the trash taste youtuber.maybe they take you in