Employment Certificates in English for a Chef's Visa File

Many skilled work visas ask the employer to show that the chef has the experience or training the job requires. For a chef from Japan, that evidence usually comes in Japanese: a 在職証明書 (zaishoku shōmeisho, certificate of employment) from each restaurant, and a 卒業証明書 (sotsugyō shōmeisho, certificate of graduation) from a cooking school. This page explains what those documents should say, how to get English versions an immigration officer will accept, and when you need a notary or an apostille.

1. Why the visa file needs these documents

The job title on your application is only a claim. Immigration officers look for documents that prove the experience behind it. Two examples:

• Australia's Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482) requires at least one year of relevant work experience.
• For US petitions, any document in a foreign language submitted to USCIS must come with a full English translation certified by the translator (8 CFR 103.2(b)(3)).

Check the document list for the exact visa you are using, and ask the chef to start collecting early. Some items take weeks.

2. What a useful employment certificate says

There is no single official form in Japan for a certificate of employment. What an officer needs is a document that can be checked. Ask for:

• The employer's letterhead, full legal name (for example 株式会社○○), address and phone number
• The restaurant or branch name, if different from the company
• The chef's full name as in the passport, and date of birth
• Start date and end date (or "currently employed")
• Position and section, and any promotions with dates
• Main duties, in a few concrete lines
• Employment type (full time, contract, part time) and weekly hours
• Date of issue, name and title of the signatory, and the company seal

Duties matter most. "Worked as a cook" proves little. "Responsible for the grill section, including fish preparation and seasoning, in a 40-seat kaiseki restaurant; supervised two junior cooks" is evidence.

3. Getting it from a Japanese employer

If the chef has left

Japan's Labour Standards Act Article 22 says that when a worker leaves and requests a certificate covering the period of employment, type of work, position, wages or the reason for leaving, the employer must issue it without delay. The certificate must not include anything the worker did not ask for. In practice, the chef should ask for exactly the items the visa needs.

If the chef still works there

Article 22 is about leaving. For a current employer, a certificate is a request, and the chef may not want to make it until they have resigned. Plan for that in your timeline.

Ask for English directly

The simplest route is an English certificate issued by the employer itself, alongside the Japanese one. It avoids a separate translation. Not every restaurant will agree; if one does not, move to a translation.

If the restaurant has closed

Ask the chef for other evidence: pay slips, tax withholding slips (源泉徴収票), social insurance records, and a letter from the former head chef. Check with your immigration lawyer which substitutes the authority accepts.

4. Translation rules at the destination

The receiving country sets the rules. Some we have checked:

Keep names and dates identical to the passport across all documents. A name romanised two different ways can prompt extra questions.

5. Notarisation and apostille in Japan

Some immigration authorities, and some foreign employers' lawyers, want Japanese documents authenticated. Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) handles apostilles and official seal certification (公印確認), but only for public documents that meet its conditions: an issue date within three months, the issuing body named, and an official seal rather than a personal seal or signature.

A certificate of employment from a company is a private document, so MOFA cannot certify it directly. The route is:

1. A notary public (公証人) in Japan authenticates the signature on the private document.
2. The regional legal affairs bureau certifies the notary's seal.
3. MOFA then issues its certification or apostille.

The Japan National Notaries Association explains that for a translation of a public document, the translator can sign a declaration that the translation is faithful, and the notary authenticates that declaration. It lists the fee for authenticating a private document as ¥11,000 in general (¥6,500 where the document states no monetary amount), plus ¥6,000 when the document is in a foreign language.

MOFA's page, dated 18 September 2026, also says that from 5 October 2026 in-person applications at MOFA in Tokyo require an online reservation, and that documents are returned by post only.

6. Graduation certificates from culinary schools

If the chef trained at a 専門学校 (senmon gakkō, a private vocational college), note that MOFA's table of issuers shows certificates from private vocational colleges are not eligible for either official seal certification or an apostille directly. As with an employment certificate, they must go through a notary first. Certificates from national and public universities can receive official seal certification; public high schools can receive both.

Ask the school for a 卒業証明書 (a certificate of graduation, issued on request) rather than sending the original diploma. If the chef holds a Japanese cook's licence (調理師免許), see English versions of the cook's licence. For a Japanese-language guide written for the chef, see 卒業・在職証明の英文作成.

7. Checklist

• Do you have the exact document list for the visa?
• Does each certificate show dates, position, duties, hours, signatory and seal?
• Do names and dates match the passport exactly?
• Is the translation in the form the destination requires (certified, affidavit, or certified copy)?
• If authentication is needed, has the chef allowed time for a notary, the legal affairs bureau and MOFA?
• Have you added a police certificate to the list if the visa needs one?

General information, not legal or immigration advice. Document requirements differ by visa and change over time; follow the instructions of the immigration authority handling the application and take advice from a qualified immigration lawyer.