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Relocation Package for Chefs: What to Offer and What Law Requires

What to put in a chef's relocation package, when each item is paid, which items are legal duties in Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Canada (low wage LMIA), Australia (482), US H-2B and the UK, how to cost it, and a bilingual offer clause.

Updated September 27, 2026 WashokuJob

A relocation package for a chef from Japan should cover the visa fees, the flight out, two to four weeks of temporary housing, a settling-in sum and the flight home. Some of that is not optional: Singapore makes the employer buy the return ticket unless the chef agrees otherwise in writing, Saudi Arabia puts the return ticket on the employer, and Canada's low wage LMIA requires round trip travel, affordable housing and health insurance.

For owners writing the relocation part of an offer. This is the site's reference page for what to include, which items the law makes yours in each route, and when each is paid. Salary is on how much to pay a sushi chef; the full cost of the hire, with this package as one line, is on budgeting an international chef hire. Housing models and deposits are on staff housing for restaurants, and the first weeks after arrival on onboarding a chef from Japan.

On this page

  1. What to offer, who pays, and when
  2. What the law requires, route by route
  3. What it costs
  4. Three package levels
  5. Tax on relocation payments
  6. Relocation clause for the offer letter
  7. What to do this week
  8. Questions employers ask

1. What to offer, who pays, and when

Chefs moving from Japan rarely have savings to front the move: average pay in accommodation and food services in Japan was ¥2,793,000 in 2024, the lowest of any industry (National Tax Agency). Paying directly, rather than reimbursing, widens your candidate pool.

ItemUsually paid byWhen the cash goes out
Visa and permit feesEmployer; required on some routesAt filing, 8 to 12 weeks before start
Immigration adviser or lawyerEmployer; some routes forbid passing it onRetainer before filing
Flight out, with extra baggage for knivesEmployer; required for H-2B and low wage LMIATwo to four weeks before start
Airport pickupEmployerArrival day
Temporary housing, two to four weeksEmployerArrival
Deposit and first month's rentEmployer, or an advance (check local deduction rules)Weeks 1 to 4
Settling-in sum (phone, transport card, bedding, kitchen shoes)EmployerWeek 1
Health insurance until public cover startsEmployer; required for S Pass and low wage LMIAFrom arrival
Knives and tools the job requiresEmployer; required for H-2BWeek 1
Flight home at the endEmployer; required in Singapore, Saudi Arabia, low wage LMIA, H-2B, and on request under the 482Contract end, or early termination

2. What the law requires, route by route

Checked against official sources in September 2026. Not a complete list; each depends on the exact route.

RouteWhat the employer must pay or provide
Singapore, EP and S PassOn cancelling the pass, an air ticket home with checked luggage and connecting transport to the port nearest the hometown, unless the holder agrees in writing to pay. Medical insurance for S Pass holders.
Saudi ArabiaArticle 40 of the Labor Law: recruitment fees, iqama and work permit fees, exit and re-entry visas, and the return ticket home at the end of employment. See Saudi Arabia.
Canada, low wage LMIARound trip transport to the work location and back home; housing costing less than 30% of the worker's before tax income; private emergency health insurance until provincial cover starts; no recruitment fees charged by anyone recruiting for you.
Australia, 482Reasonable and necessary travel costs to leave Australia if the worker asks in writing, paid within 30 days (reg 2.80). Sponsorship, nomination and recruitment costs may not be recovered from anyone (reg 2.87).
United States, H-2BInbound travel and daily subsistence once the worker completes half the period; return travel if they complete it or are dismissed early; visa and related fees in the first workweek; required tools free; no recruitment or attorney fees from the worker (20 CFR 655.20).
United KingdomThe worker may not be made to pay the certificate of sponsorship, the skills charge or the employer's application costs. New overseas chef sponsorship is effectively closed.

A cost you may not pass on cannot come back through a salary deduction or a clawback clause either. For the UAE and Qatar, see the Dubai and Qatar guides.

3. What it costs

Airfares, hotel nights and rents are not published by any official source, so we give no figure for them. Price them from quotes on the day. What can be stated:

WorksheetTokyo to New York, E-2Tokyo to Singapore, S Pass
Visa feesUS$315S$205
Flight outquotequote
Temporary housingnights × quoted ratenights × quoted rate
Deposit and first rentyour leaseyour lease
Settling-in sumyour policyyour policy
Health insurance to cover startquotequote (required)
Flight home at the endyour contractrequired unless waived in writing
Package totalsum of the linessum of the lines

4. Three package levels

Starting points, not market data; no official source publishes what restaurants offer.

LevelIncludesSuits
EssentialEvery legally required item; visa and adviser fees; flight out; pickup; two weeks' housingLine cooks, working holiday conversions
StandardEssential plus flight home; four weeks' housing; deposit advance; settling-in sum; help with a bank accountMost sushi and kitchen chef roles
SeniorStandard plus a yearly flight home; first year housing contribution; shipping allowance; language lessons; dependants' visa feesHead chefs, omakase leads, openings

5. Tax on relocation payments

We verified one market. In the US, IRS Publication 15-B (2026) says P.L. 119-21 permanently removed the exclusion for qualified moving expense reimbursements, apart from narrow military and intelligence exceptions, so moving costs you pay or reimburse are generally taxable wages. Some employers gross up the payment. We have not verified the treatment elsewhere; ask your payroll provider before you fix the amounts. Japanese tax on a chef who leaves Japan is covered in Japanese tax for chefs working abroad.

6. Relocation clause for the offer letter

Send it in both languages. Replace the brackets and delete lines you do not offer.

English
Relocation. The Company will pay directly: (1) all government fees for your [visa]; (2) a one way economy flight from [Tokyo] to [city] with [one] extra checked bag; (3) temporary accommodation for up to [28] nights; (4) a settling-in allowance of [amount], paid in your first pay; (5) health insurance until public cover begins; (6) an economy flight home at the end of your contract, or if we end your employment early. If the visa is refused, costs already paid remain the Company's. Items the law requires us to pay will never be deducted from your pay.

日本語
渡航・移住支援。当社は次の費用を直接支払います。(1) [ビザ名]の政府手数料の全額、(2) [東京]から[都市名]までの片道エコノミー航空券（受託手荷物[1]個追加）、(3) 最長[28]泊の仮住まい、(4) 生活立ち上げ手当[金額]（初回の給与で支給）、(5) 公的医療保険の適用開始までの医療保険、(6) 契約終了時、または当社都合で早期に雇用を終了する場合の帰国用エコノミー航空券。ビザが却下された場合、支払い済みの費用は当社が負担します。法律で当社負担とされる費用を給与から差し引くことはありません。

7. What to do this week

Figures that expire: H-2B subsistence rates (Department of Labor notice, last effective 7 April 2026), visa fees (see the fee table for update dates), Canada chef medians (Job Bank, updated 19 November 2025). Rules checked 27 September 2026.

Questions employers ask

What should a relocation package for a chef include?

Visa fees, the flight out with extra baggage for knives, two to four weeks of temporary housing, a settling-in sum, health insurance until public cover starts and the flight home. Senior roles add yearly flights home and a housing contribution.

Who pays the chef's flight home?

In Singapore the employer does when the pass is cancelled, unless the chef agrees in writing to pay. Saudi Arabia, Canada's low wage LMIA and the US H-2B also put it on the employer, and a 482 sponsor must pay reasonable travel costs if the worker asks in writing.

Can I deduct relocation costs from the chef's pay?

Not costs the law makes yours, such as Australian sponsorship and nomination costs or Canadian low wage transport. For other items, check local deduction rules and state any repayment terms in the contract before arrival.

Is a relocation allowance taxable?

In the US, generally yes: moving expense reimbursements are taxable wages under IRS Publication 15-B (2026). We have not verified other countries; ask your payroll provider.

How much does it cost to relocate a chef from Japan?

Government visa fees are fixed (for example US$315 for an E-2, S$205 for an S Pass). Flights, housing and insurance have no official figure, so total them from quotes using the worksheet above.

General information, not legal, tax or immigration advice. Obligations depend on the exact route and change often. Confirm with a licensed adviser before making an offer.

Sources

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