Photo: Collected
Under the memorandum titled ‘Memorandum of Cooperation on Employment Skills Development’ (ESDP-MOC), signed last Saturday (17 October), Japan will begin recruiting Bangladeshi workers from 1 April 2027. This employment-related agreement has been signed between Bangladesh and Japan.
The secretary of the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment signed the agreement on behalf of Bangladesh. On the Japanese side, it was signed by representatives of the country’s Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, and the National Police Agency.
The matter was announced today in a press release signed by the ministry’s public relations officer, Md Shariful Islam.
According to the release, the initial term of the memorandum has been set at five years. Once that term ends, it will automatically be extended for another five years. In other words, the overall term of the agreement will stand at 10 years in all.
Under the agreement, the protection of Bangladeshi workers will be ensured, cooperation between the two countries in sending and receiving workers will be strengthened, and opportunities for skills development through employment will be created.
According to Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Ariful Haque Chowdhury, the agreement will ensure the highest level of protection for Bangladeshi workers while also creating opportunities for their skills development, higher pay and long-term residence in Japan.
He said that under the agreement Bangladeshi workers will receive legal protection on a par with Japan’s local workers, and equal opportunities for men and women will be ensured at the workplace. In particular, female foreign workers may not be dismissed or treated in a discriminatory manner on grounds of pregnancy or childbirth. For this reason, no mandatory provision for forced repatriation has been kept in the agreement either.
The copies of the agreement will be formally handed over between the two sides during Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s forthcoming visit to Japan, the release said.
The ministry has expressed the hope that the implementation of the agreement will further strengthen the friendly relations between Bangladesh and Japan while expanding opportunities for developing the country’s skilled human resources.
Background
According to information on the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment’s ‘Bangladesh to Japan Initiative’ portal, manpower-related understandings with Japan began on 29 January 2018, the day the memorandum of understanding on the Technical Intern Training Programme (TITP) was signed.
According to the same portal, the memorandum of understanding for the Specified Skilled Worker (SSW) category was signed on 27 August 2019. Later, on 29 May 2025, memorandums of understanding were signed in Tokyo between BMET and Japanese agencies.
The portal also notes that after Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus’s visit to Japan, a separate ‘Japan Cell’ headed by a joint secretary was formed at the ministry.
The numbers
A Prothom Alo report of 3 October 2025, citing the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment, said about 26,000 Bangladeshis are currently in Japan.
Citing ministry sources, that report said opportunities may be created to send about 2,000 workers in 2026, 6,000 in 2027, 12,000 in 2028, 30,000 in 2029 and 50,000 in 2030.
By way of comparison, the same report noted that Nepal has so far sent about 2.5 lakh people to Japan.
According to the ministry’s portal, the government’s target is to send 1 lakh workers to Japan a year. Citing a Japan Times report of 30 March 2023, the portal said Japan’s worker shortfall could exceed 1.1 crore by 2040.
At a glance
According to the explanation on the ministry’s portal, work visas in Japan are mainly of three kinds – Technical Intern (TITP), Specified Skilled Worker (SSW), and Engineer/Specialist in Humanities and International Services.
The portal notes that for TITP and student visas JLPT N5, and for SSW either JLPT N4 or JFT-Basic, must be passed, along with passing the relevant skills test.
Sources
Background sources: Prothom Alo, 3 October 2025; Bangladesh to Japan Initiative, Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment
